#bampton

We did clean up in the backyard garden this weekend. Some things got converted into ash & biochar:

I like the way this woodland phlox spreads. It forms little clumps or communities rather than a wall of invasion like our blue salvia:

"We're not buying any more plants this year...":

Our crabapple blossomed for the first time. They smell amazing. I don't expect many but I hope we get a couple of fruit this year just to taste:

We harvested some of our leeks today. You can smell them all over the house. It is glorious:

We knew it was a gamble & our bay tree did die back hard but there is new growth so maybe we can manage to keep it alive year to year with heavy leaf mulching:

We had a cut of beef roast & my queen said, "Do you want to try grilling it?" In deed I would. There are angels still weeping over how good it was:

I also made a vlog about it (there’s English Subtitles), the Downton part is in the first 20 minutes. You can find it here 👇🏻

I went to Bampton (aka Downton Village), Cogges Manor Farm (aka Yew Tree Farm), Portal Memorial Hall (aka the school) and Basildon Park (aka Grantham house).

“No I’m not in London. Penrith. PENRITH!”

Last year, between lockdowns, I took a much needed trip up to a favourite location of mine, the Lake District. A place it’s never”a mistake” to go on holiday to. It proved a great opportunity to visit a couple more Withnail And I filming locations that I’d wanted to see properly. 

I’d already made the trek up to see “Crow Crag” (Sleddale Hall) way back in 2009, and I’m glad I did because it’s since been sold and is under renovation. 

This time round I decided it’d be nice to see the phone box Withnail filmed his agent from and, because it is only just up the road from that spot, the gate that Withnail left open allowing the bull to get out. Neither are in fact located in Penrith, despite what Withnail says on the phone, but 10 miles south in the tiny village of Bampton.

To amuse myself during lockdown, to ‘get out of it for a while. Get into the countryside, rejuvenate,” I thought, why not do some sketches from the photos I’ve taken at all these Withnail spots, relive the holiday.

I started out much more true to the actual location, with the bus stop and phone box having the correct scale relationship to each other. The thing is, knowing the scene in the film, the phone box is the focal point, both in framing, colour and and narrative. Considering that I’ve taken liberties and resized things. I had to reign myself in from really going to town and stretching the phone box to represent Withnail, while the background bus stop stood in for a shorter I / Marwood (an idea I still like).