And to see country living at its finest, I’ve decided to head to Chipping Norton. Home to some rather well-known individuals (including David & Sam Cameron, Matthew Freud and Jeremy Clarkson) I figure I’ve got to check it out and since it’s just 10 kms away (although local transport is scarce, with just a few buses a day) off I head…
As I mosey along the main drag, I see cottages - the kind of cottages that wouldn't look out of place on chocolate box tins - and almost all of them are built from stone quarried from the area. It’s honey-coloured (dating back to the Jurassic area) and when the sun falls on it, the hue is simply glorious!
I’m house sitting for a charming couple who are leaving me in charge of their three cats and four chickens! I’ll be staying in a 17th century cottage with timber beams, old floors, tiny doors and lots of character. Who could pass up an opportunity like this?
Who didn’t love Bet Lynch, the busty blonde barmaid, whose presence in the Rovers Return pub who first made an appearance in the much-loved (and much-mocked) British soap opera ‘Coronation Street. Graduating from barmaid to landlady, she was a real character, dressed in her trademark leopard print and sporting a beehive hairstyle.Walking around the pub with a cigarette perpetually hanging from her mouth, she was probably one of tv’s most well-known stars in that period.,,
Ooooh, these look good too. They’re a selection of biscuits in a beautiful keepsake tin which I’m informed plays ‘God Save the King’ as it spins! What’s inside. Well apparently, sweet treats that invoke the memories of the Commonwealth (of which the late Queen Elizabeth II was particularly fond). These include Canadian cranberry, Fijian ginger, South African macadamia nut and British clotted cream delights…
Piccadilly is awash with red, white and blue union jack flags, fluttering gaily in the breeze. The lovely Burlington Arcade (which runs parallel to Bond Street and is a marvelous example of Regency architecture) has rolled out the red carpet (well, it’s actually more red/pink) and hung flags with ‘CR’ (‘Charles Regina’) all along its enclosure, and with the light streaming in from the glass windows above, it looks heavenly.
After the public outpouring of grief, the ten days of national mourning and the knowledge that a glorious and golden Elizabethan era was over, plans were put in motion for a Coronation. It’s now twenty four hours before the ‘Big Day’ and I decide to head into central London, to try and capture some of the atmosphere with my camera. I decide to wander around aimlessly, and begin in Covent Garden…
We’re tired, for sure, and our feet are aching but as we pass Westminster, there’s a surge of enthusiasm from all eight of us - because we know that we can finally turn right at Lambeth Bridge, towards the Houses of Parliament! And then I stare at the next line of zigzags, which goes on as far as the eye can see. This is ‘soft security’ apparently and although I don’t realise it, it’s going to take us almost two hours to get through. ..
My fellow queuers have come from Ipswich, Cheltenham and Gloucester - they all awoke in the middle of the night and either drove or caught National Express buses to London. I am truly in awe of their dedication to this cause. But then, as we discuss, the Queen was dedicated to her job for seventy years and so what’s a day out of all of our lives, if it means showing some respect…
The Queen’s coffin, placed atop a Catafalque (raised platform) is in the hall’s centre and I have a bird’s eye view of those before me, passing before it. She is surrounded by ‘bodyguards’ which include the Gentleman at Arms, the Royal Company of Archers and the Yeoman of the Guard.