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ISSUE 219 | MAY 2021 | thebathmag.co.uk | £3.95 where sold

MAKING A WE LC O

URN RET ME

PLUS...

FORCE OF NATURE

Exclusive interview with Bridgerton star Adjoa Andoh

ARTFUL SCAPES

Monserrat Pis Marcos talks Canaletto

PAINTER’S MUSE

Artist Lydia Corbett remembers her time modelling for Picasso

BRIDGING THE DIVIDE Can we protect Cleveland Bridge for the future?

A N D S O M U C H M O R E I N T H E C I T Y ’ S B I G G E S T G U I D E T O L I V I N G I N B AT H

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Contents 5 THINGS

38 May 2021

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Events are returning to the city – here’s just a few

THE CITYIST

MODEL CITIZEN

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He designs the sets for The Brits, Glastonbury and so much more, all from detailed architectural models – meet Matt Rees

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FOOD: COMPLIMENTS OF THE SEASON . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

Our interview with charity fundraiser, James Shone

Melissa Blease looks at the mid-spring season’s superstar crops

NOTES ON A SMALL CITY

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Richard Wyatt likened to Victor Meldrew? ... ‘We don’t believe it’!

READING DELIGHTS

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As part of The Bath Festival, here are the books that take centre stage

THE LADY IN RED (AND PURPLE) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16 CITY SPECIAL – BRIDGING THE DIVIDE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .54

Melissa Blease chats to Adjoa Andoh about her life and work, and starring as the indomitable Lady Danbury in Bridgerton

WHAT’S ON . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20

EDUCATION NEWS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .62

Check out this month’s cultural delights, events and arts in the city. Yes, things to see and do for real

SINGING IN THE BATHS

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Illuminating news and reports from Bath’s venerable seats of learning

Choral group The Gesualdo Six are singing at the Roman Baths as part of the Bath Festival line-up. Emma Clegg chats to Owain Park

WONDERFUL COPENHAGEN

Cleveland Bridge is due to close in May for major repair works. The city is divided (in more ways than one) about its future

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THE WALK

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Spectacular scenery and ancient monuments alongside the River Chew

HOME & GARDENS

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To celebrate the re-opening of the Theatre Royal Bath, Melissa Blease interviews thespian Malcolm Sinclair

Coopers’ refurbished showroom, garden parties and Ellie West talks superpower plants

ARTS & EXHIBITIONS

HOT PROPERTY

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A selection of fine homes to buy or rent

Our art pages are looking awesome as the city’s art scene revives

CANALETTO ON SHOW

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The much-anticpated Italian master’s show at the Holburne

THE GIRL WITH THE PONYTAIL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .34 Sylvette was Picasso’s muse; now she’s an accomplished artist, Lydia Corbett

More content and updates discover: thebathmag.co.uk

ON THE COVER

Making a very welcome return, our May cover celebrates The Bath Festival and the wonderful happenings about to take place across the city.

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FROM THE EDITOR

QUOTE OF THE ISSUE “Picasso liked my profile and the ponytail. Normally they were worn very low down, but mine was high above the head, like a horse’s tail – beautiful it was” SEE THE GIRL WITH THE PONYTAIL ON PAGE 34

“

Editor photograph by TBM

his month I felt connected to Picasso. Who needs six degrees of separation when you can have a conversation with the very person who inspired 60 of his paintings in the 1950s? Lydia Corbett, then known as Sylvette David, was Picasso’s muse for three months. She was just 19 and wore her blonde hair in a high ponytail – she met him as his relationship with Françoise Gilot was breaking down, and gave him an artistic focus at a time when he was feeling vulnerable and unsettled. He smelt of wine and garlic, Lydia told me, and was brown, athletic and he used to try and make her – the serious girl with a ponytail – laugh. Lydia, herself now a painter and potter, was defined by this relationship and her artwork sings of that long-ago experience. Her show at the David Simon Gallery in Castle Cary, open from 8–29 May, is an exhibition showing a selection of her paintings alongside a range of Picasso’s signed works on paper and ceramics from the period when he knew her – see page 34. Melissa Blease meets another famous face on page 16 when she talks to Adjoa Andoh, aka Lady Danbury in Bridgerton, who has a close connection with the south west and a personal flair that clearly suits her on-screen character. Roll on series two! Melissa – now on a roll – followed up with a chat to Malcolm Sinclair who is starring in Michael Frayn’s multi award-winning Copenhagen at Theatre Royal Bath from 9–26 June. It’s live and physical (hurrah) – and she’s buying him a drink. See page 26. There’s even more event excitement in the air because the Bath Festival is coming to the city this month. How wonderful that we’re coming back to life! The events in May celebrate music and books, with the finale weekend following in August. To get a taste of what’s on offer I talked to Owain Park of choral group The Gesualdo Six who are performing at the Roman Baths on 18 May (see page 24) and we have a selection of festival books on page 48, an overview of a new title by Charles Saumarez Smith on page 52 called The Art Museum in Modern Times (and Charles will be talking to Chris Stephens of the Holburne on 19 May). Plus there are more festival events on page 20. Millie Bruce-Watt keeps the reading focus by chatting to Peter Davenport on page 50 about his new book Roman Bath where he reveals some of the latest findings with the help of new technology, techniques, and planning regulations. And on page 40 there’s an insightful review of The Picture of Dorian Gray by 16-year-old Isobel Smith, a pupil at King Edward’s School. We also take a close look at Cleveland Bridge on page 54, investigating its history, how we rely on it as a transport route, the work that’s taking place to strengthen it, and the concerns that many Bathonians have about protecting this elegant listed structure. Writing all this down is making me feel heady and flustered. All these things are happening, and we don’t have to stay at home! It’s time to dust off your diaries and start to plan… Emma Clegg Editor

JANE AUSTEN AND THE PENGUIN

Welcome to the world of Jane Austen and her small companion, a penguin occasionally known as Darcy. Together they inhabit a period of time that slips between contemporary life and Bath’s Georgian society in the early 1800s. The story of Jane Austen and the penguin examines an otherwise unnoticed relationship in the form of short commentaries and illustrations. Illustrator Penny Ives enjoys the incongruity of placing the penguin at Jane Austen’s side as friend and muse. The works, created in watercolour and oil-based pencil, are available as giclée prints or greeting cards and each print is signed by the artist. janeaustenandthepenguin.uk

All paper used to make this magazine is taken from good sustainable sources and we encourage our suppliers to join an accredited green scheme. Magazines are now fully recyclable. By recycling magazines, you can help to reduce waste and contribute to the six million tonnes of paper already recycled by the UK paper industry each year. Please recycle this magazine, but if you are not able to participate in a recycling scheme, then why not pass your magazine on to a friend or colleague.

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ZEITGEIST

things to do this

Yoga at the American Museum & Gardens

Admire This month, the Holburne Museum in Bath will present the most important set of paintings of Venice by Canaletto (1697–1768), which will leave their home at Woburn Abbey – one of world’s most important private art collections – for the first time in more than 70 years. This once-in-a-lifetime exhibition will enable art lovers to enjoy and study up-close 23 beautiful paintings in a fascinating exhibition that also explores Canaletto’s life and work, alongside themes of 18th-century Venice and the Grand Tour. Read our full feature about the exhibition on p32. holburne.org

May Relax

Join the American Museum & Gardens’ yoga experts from the YMCA as they take you through a themed yoga class each week. A typical class will include standing and seated yoga postures designed to ease, stretch and relax you. These will be intermingled with beautiful readings and poetry and, when held inside, a carefully curated playlist – but when outside (weather permitting), nature will provide the music. The class will end with a themed guided meditation to instil quietness in the mind and body, allowing you to completely relax, rest and restore. There will be elements of mindfulness and the opportunity to savour the exquisite setting that the museum gardens provide. Open to all levels and experience, beginners welcome. americanmuseum.org

Enjoy From the Creators of Pub in the Park and Drive & Dine Theatre, The Alfresco Theatre arrives in Bath for the weekend of 7 to 9 May with a tasty mix of bigscreen movies, comedy gigs, live theatre and exciting music acts. Pull-up, pop the handbrake on, turn your car radio up to the max and enjoy your show from the safety and comfort of your own private patch. Enjoy live shows and feel-good movies, all served alongside one-off dishes from some of the UK’s finest chefs; Tom Kerridge, Rick Stein, Jason Atherton, Paul Ainsworth and Atul Kochhar. The events take place in the glorious surroundings of Warleigh Lodge Farm near Bathford. thealfrescotheatre.co.uk

Ian Siegal at Chapel Arts

Listen

BRLSI’s Jurassic Ark exhibition

In more than a quarter century of touring multiaward winner Ian Siegal’s mission statement has barely changed: songs that are real, shows that resonate, vocals served raw. Today, he is considered by many to be the most compelling British blues artiste since the great names of the sixties. Siegal, who will be appearing at Chapel Arts on 28 May, is known as a bluesman, but it’s just one shade in the palette of an artist who slips between continents, eras and expectations. Chapel Arts is Covid-compliant and is operating at a reduced capacity. Tickets selling fast – keep an eye on the website: chapelarts.org

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Discover

After an enforced pause, Bath Royal Literary and Scientific Institution is delighted to welcome the public back through the doors to enjoy their summer exhibition Jurassic Ark: spectacular fossils from an ancient Somerset sea. The summer exhibition, with free entry, is being held at 16 Queen Square, Bath BA1 2HN, and is open 10am–4pm, Monday–Friday. BRLSI’s stunning collection of Jurassic fossils dates from 183 million years ago, so having the patience to wait another year for the opening seems almost trivial in comparison! BRLSI have put in place the government’s recommendations on hygiene and social distancing so visitors can be sure of having a safe and enjoyable experience, while being gently reminded by the exhibits before them that no matter what happens the world goes merrily on. brlsi.org ■

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The city

ist

THE BUZZ

INTERACTIVE THRILLER

The Egg Assembly has launched Routes, its most innovative project to date. It’s an interactive online experience taking place from 1–30 June, Routes pitches audience members against the clock in a race to uncover clues and unearth the truth in an environmental crime thriller. A first for the Theatre Royal Bath, this cutting-edge production combines new digital technology and human creativity with audience participation. Routes places its online audience firmly in the driving seat. During a thrilling missing persons search, Routes sends participants on an escape-room style adventure which explores the many threats and challenges facing our natural world. theeggassembly.com

IMPROVING LIVES

Interview:

James Shone

James Shone set up the charity I Can & I Am six years ago, following a brain tumour that left him without his sight and forced him to leave teaching. The charity aims to inspire confidence in every individual. James has recently successfully completed a Tandemathon from Bath to Big Ben to raise funds for the charity. We caught up with him a few days before the journey I used to live in Combe Down and taught at Monkton School. We now live in Beckington, near Frome. Lockdown was a challenge since I felt more isolated than ever with no sight and was so limited in what I was able to do. However, Zoom saved the day and I was able to continue doing my presentations virtually. It was wonderful to be able to support schools around the country, and internationally, with messages of positivity and hope. I am a cyclist – but only a static one! This was all I could manage on my own due to such little sight and poor balance, but our tandem has changed all that. I’ve trained hard for this challenge but the route is all new to me. I’m very used to the tandem now and hope to complete the challenge in three days. I will constantly be reminding myself of some of the messages I refer to in my presentations – mainly that I CAN do it and to celebrate the small steps of progress along the way.

Dementia Action Week takes place from 17– 23 May and someone taking postive action to improve the lives of people affected by dementia is Zoe Watson. After her mother developed early onset dementia, Zoe began sewing custom-made fidget blankets to help ease her mother’s restlessness and agitation. “I realised this bag was providing her some comfort as her stress levels increased, which led me to create a customised blanket for her. This proved to be meaningful and also practical for my mum to keep her mentally stimulated and calm.” Zoe has set up her own business, BUSYHANDSCREATIVE, creating custommade blankets for those in similar situations. busyhandscreative.co.uk

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We are following the route of Sustrans Route 4, part of the National Cycle Network. We’ll spend most of the time on cycle paths but on the final day we’ll be on busy roads into London. I’m very fortunate to have a superb captain in the form of Anthony Dutton who’s luckily in charge of navigation. He is a wonderful ‘can do’ person who is very practical and hugely kind. He’s the most wonderful companion on the tandem – we can chat for hours. We share a similar sense of humour, a love of food and both support Liverpool FC. As a teacher, the pastoral side of the job was always my passion. I long to see young people in a place of thriving rather than constantly struggling. Since losing my sight and having other health challenges I really

need to live out the message of the charity – it’s not always easy, but I do my best! The yellow balloon is a simple metaphor for overall mental wellbeing. When our balloon is inflated we feel good about who we are and what we can do and as a result we have that all important bouncebackability. It’s a natural tendency for us all to recognise what we can’t do before celebrating what we can and this I believe is the ultimate challenge of life. Too many people spend their lives trying to prove to themselves that they are better than others and then knocking others down. But the true battle is to remember what we can do and not be haunted by our can’ts. Practising gratitude is an essential skill for us all. I haven’t ever been formally trained as a speaker but recognise that authenticity and passion are what drive me most. Anecdotes and humour are also key. I’m not overly concerned about how polished my public speaking is as long as I convey my messages as best I can to help young people to be their best selves. We will be visiting schools next term on our new double decker bus. We’ll deliver workshops and mentoring sessions on the bus to embed the messages of I Can & I Am with those young people who need us most. The lower deck of the bus has been converted into a kitchen where we bake bread or cookies while with pupils. We seek to teach young people how they can best keep their balloons inflated – we are all beautifully different so it’s important to work with individuals. n • The I Can & I Am double decker bus is available from the summer term to visit schools in the Bath area. For more information, visit: icanandiam.com

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16 Pierrepont St, Bath BA1 1LA | Tel: 01225 464433 www.kathrynanthony.co.uk

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Warming up for Summer

See more online www.thebathmag.co.uk

Steve Miklos steve@thebathmagazine.co.uk

Editor Tel: Email:

Emma Clegg 01225 424592 emma@thebathmagazine.co.uk

Financial Director Email:

Jane Miklos jane@thebathmagazine.co.uk

Assistant Editor/Web Editor Millie Bruce-Watt Email: millie@thebathmagazine.co.uk Production Manager Email:

Jeff Osborne production@thebathmagazine.co.uk

Contact the Advertising Sales team tel: 01225 424499 Advertising Sales Email:

Liz Grey liz@thebathmagazine.co.uk

The Bath Magazine and The Bristol Magazine are published by

Lemonade Jug London 1875

MC Publishing Ltd. We are an independent of all other local publications

The Bath Magazine is delivered free, every month to more than 15,000 residential addresses as well as businesses throughout Bath and the surrounding area. We also have special distribution units in many of Bath’s supermarkets

2 Princes Buildings, George Street, Bath BA1 2ED Telephone: 01225 424499. Fax: 01225 426677 www.thebathmag.co.uk © MC Publishing Ltd 2021 Disclaimer: Whilst every reasonable care is taken with all material submitted to The Bath Magazine, the publisher cannot accept responsibility for loss or damage to such material. Opinions expressed in articles are strictly those of the authors. This publication is copyright and may not be reproduced in any form either in part or whole without written permission from the publishers.

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CITY | NOTEBOOK

Richard Wyatt: Notes on a small city Columnist Richard Wyatt is accused of moaning like Victor Meldrew, considers the matter of regional accents and remembers the elocution teacher who lived in a caravan

Richard Wyatt years ago on home ground with some beach donkeys at Weston-super-Mare

language and one that could be clearly understood by all. Admittedly, my west-coast (Weston-super-Mare) Somerset accent needed some rough edges smoothed out. I remember chancing upon a wonderful elocution teacher – of a certain age – living in a caravan near the village of Banwell. Miss Gwendoline Muspratt had been a victim of the demolition involved in creating the original Birmingham Bull Ring and had relocated to the west country.

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My nearest and dearest keeps pointing out that I am becoming a bit of a moaning Meldrew myself...

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o you know it’s nearly 2l years since the fictional character Victor Meldrew was ‘killed off’ by a hit and run driver? It brought the curtain down at the end of six very popular series of the BBC sitcom One Foot in the Grave, in which actor Richard Wilson so successfully epitomised the archetypal grumpy old man. Portraying this character had made Richard a household name and, although he moved on to other roles, his famous catchphrase “l don’t believe it!” lives on in me it seems. My nearest and dearest keeps pointing out that l am becoming a bit of a moaning Meldrew myself in what he thinks is a constantly growing list of grumbles. I run the gamut of litter, graffiti, dog poo, manners, bad language etc, etc. The most recent example of GSB (grumpy senior behaviour) concerned a competitive reality TV series in which young make-up artists – MUAs they call them – are put through a series of knock-out tasks to choose a winning cosmetologist. (Did you know using cosmetics is an art that goes back at least six thousand years?) Aimed at a younger, trendy audience, the programme utilised the skills of a fashionable young TV celebrity to act as MC and be a ‘supportive go-between’ between contestants and judges. Nothing wrong with her presentation skills, or genuine show of sympathy for the often-stressed contestants, but week after week l waited for her to pronounce the letter H. “Let’s return to haytch cue”, (HQ) she says. It’s always the same – ‘haytch’ ! Is it me? Was l the only one taught to pronounce ‘H’ as ‘aitch’? Now this young lady is a Luton-born girl and there’s no mistaking where she comes from. So maybe they all say ‘haytch’ in the region. Our media these days is awash with regional accents. It’s quite the thing to champion your linguistic roots, whether it’s a Scouse accent, broad Brummie or, as in my case, a Zummerset burr. Of course it’s better to be ‘inclusive’ rather than promote an air of exclusivity. Thing was, in my youth if you wanted to get on in the world of broadcasting you had to speak the Queen’s English – also known as BBC English – which very few people use these days. Free of slang and regionalism, it was supposed to be a universal delivery of our native

Ousted from her home, she was happily established in more humble surroundings and determined to help rid this young media hopeful of his tendency to say Weston-super-Murr, instead of Mare. (Note: I break off here to make clear that l can get very ‘Victor’ over those who write my home town’s name with ‘super’ having a capital ’S’!) Thanks to a web posting by local historian John CrockfordHawley – who also happens to be a former mayor of Weston-superMare – l can tell you Weston is Saxon for ‘place in the west’, ‘super’ is Latin for above and ‘Mare’ Latin for sea. A lower case ’s’ is used because that part of the name is not a noun or place name, but describes the town’s location. Where was l? Yes, Gwendoline played a major part in leaving me with a pretty neutral accent. However, while she helped me mind my Ps and Qs, the one tip she gave me that l have never forgotten wasn’t so much about standing out from the crowd vocally, but standing up straight. Stand with your arms hanging down beside you. Then hunch your shoulders up and relax them backwards. That leaves you poised as straight as an arrow. As l get older l try and remember her deportment tip and stand proud. Why do the young slouch so? Here l go again!! n Richard Wyatt runs the Bath Newseum: bathnewseum.com

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INTERVIEW | ADJOA ANDOH

Lady in red (and purple)

Since its debut on 25 December, 82 million households have streamed Bridgerton – the new period drama has held the number one slot on the top 10 list in over 70 countries and has made the fifth biggest original series debut on Netflix. Melissa Blease speaks the force of nature that is Bristol-born Adjoa Andoh, also known as Lady Danbury Growing up: where it all began

rom Casualty, EastEnders and Dr Who to His Dark Materials and Invictus by way of A Streetcar Named Desire, Richard II and countless audio book narrations and radio dramas, Adjoa Andoh – born in Clifton, Bristol in 1963 – has, for the last three decades, been virtually omnipresent in theatres, on our screens and over the airwaves. But on Christmas Day 2020, Andoh secured a very special place in the nation’s hearts as Bridgerton’s indomitable dowager Lady Danbury. Formidable but always fair, frank but funny, and always, always full-on fabulous, she’s the woman you want as your best friend... but woe betide you turning her into a foe. With viewing figures topping 82 million, Bridgerton has become the most-watched series on Netflix in 76 countries across the globe. And here’s the really good news: there’s at least a third and fourth season in the pipeline, and season two is currently being filmed in Bath. We caught up with Andoh in a break from filming to take a whistlestop walk in her footsteps, from brave beginnings to right here, right now all-things-Adjoa.

I was the kid that always did the school play, or put on plays in the front room. I used to write stories, and make books. I put quizzes together, and cartoon strips, and all that sort of thing; I always liked storytelling, and I suppose I always wanted to act, but I just didn’t know that it was something I could actually do as a career. And if you grow up in the Cotswolds in the 1960s and 70s, it’s not an option that you consider seriously – you may as well say you want to be an astrophysicist, at a time when wanting to work for Lloyds Bank or apply for the civil service was about as fancy as it got. But when I was doing my A levels in 1979, I went to the Old Vic and saw Kate Nelligan in David Hare’s Plenty. I was a pretty miserable teenager, but there was something about that play that touched me quite profoundly, even though it had nothing to do with my life; it was set during World War II, and it was about a woman who worked in Special Ops. But there was something about that character discovering that she’d found something that she was really good at – in this case, running spies – whereas being a secretary wasn’t what she was really good at. When she returns to London, post-war, and realises that she’s supposed to get back in her box and go back to her previous life... that was heartbreaking. The whole experience of seeing that play led me to understand

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I was a punk in my early teens, and I saw The Clash at Bristol Exhibition Centre in 1977

Adjoa Andoh as Lady Danbury and René Jean Page as Simon Basset

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I spent much of my early childhood in Leeds and then the Cotswolds, but I was born in Clifton and still have very strong connections with both Bristol and Bath. My grandmother lives just off the Downs in Bristol, and my family lived in Whitchurch before moving down to the Cotswolds when I was four. We lived in Wickwar which was very beautiful but very quiet: just a couple of buses a week, and lots of cows and sheep. But Bristol was my Mecca. I was a punk in my early teens, and I saw The Clash at Bristol Exhibition Centre in 1977. I used to go to the Locarno and Trinity Hall all the time – they were ‘my’ places. My dad worked for British Aerospace; I sat my A levels at Filton Tech; I started a law degree at Bristol Polytechnic; I signed on in every dole office bar one in Bristol – I lived all over the city, I’ve still got lots of friends and family there and I’m very, very fond of it, and Bath too. I eventually moved to London and started acting, but I came back to play Miss Haversham in Great Expectations at the Bristol Old Vic in 2013, and stayed with friends I’d kept in touch with since 1981 when we were in Bristol Black Women’s Group together; my readymade little gang, still going strong! My best friend still lives in Bristol too, and my godson. And my mum went to teacher training college in Bath, where we film Bridgerton! So my West Country connections are very, very strong.

Image : Courtesy of Netflix

Bristol and Bath: early days, beyond... and back again

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that something really powerful happens when you act, or when you watch a piece of storytelling of any kind that means you can be in conversation with it in a way that goes beyond what’s actually happening on the stage, or on the TV. It can really touch you in a way that makes you think about your own life. I understood, right then, that I really wanted to be part of that. But even after that experience, I didn’t know how to go about it until I joined my Black Women’s Group in Bristol and met a San Franciscan woman called Deb’bora John-Wilson, who hosted acting classes. When I packed in my law degree after two years (which made my father cry!), I started doing classes with Deb’bora. She eventually got funded to do a show in London and suggested I audition for it, so I did, and I got the part. I was working in Bedminster Resource Centre at the time and I thought I’d go to London for two months then return to Bristol and get on with my life – but I never looked back. Deb’bora was a huge inspiration to me at the time, and she showed me a path that I didn’t really know was there.

Inspire, unite – and fight for what's right I think it’s really important that we give a hand up to, or just show what opportunities there could be for, people who are interested in wanting to do things with their life, and show them where the access points might be. In the village I grew up in in the 1960s and 70s, there were only three black people: me, my dad, and my brother. I learnt about sticking up for myself very early on, and sticking up for other people too. There were certain houses I wasn’t allowed in to because “you can’t have that coloured girl in here” – that was the attitude. And even when I moved to Bristol and tried to get student accommodation, it was okay when I was on the phone because I just sounded like anybody phoning up about the student room to rent. Then when I arrived to see it, I’d get “I’m so sorry my love, if you’d have arrived 10 just minutes earlier you could have had the room, but I’m afraid I’ve just let it.” If you encounter that once, you just think, oh well, I missed it. But when you encounter it six times in one day, you know what’s really going on. So I grew up with a

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strong sense of what was and wasn’t fair, and that’s something I’ve carried forward, all my life. It’s not just about race either – it could be about disability, or poverty, or transgender issues. I believe we’re all fabulous human beings, and we should all be taken on our merit and the equality of who we are: are you a decent person? Are you kind? Are you troubled? Are you poor? Do you need some help? What do you think you’re brilliant at? How can I make a space for you? That’s how I strive to think.

Tough times Covid has been – and remains to be – dreadful, for so many people, and on so many levels. Think of the loved ones we’ve lost, the funerals that haven’t been attended, the births that have gone uncelebrated, the weddings that have been cancelled. Think of the people who have lost their jobs and their livelihoods – there have been so many tragedies to bear. It’s been a very exposing experience, a spotlight on the state of the nation and how we value each other, and who we are to each other – fortunately, often in a good way. There have been such acts of kindness and generosity, and a real sense of people balancing their values – realising, for example, that they never made time to get to know their neighbour, but now they do; that’s got to be good, hasn’t it? But we have to remember that for many people, staying at home hasn’t been an option, and their incomes were so precarious that they couldn’t not work, or there was no furlough to rely on because of zero hours contracts, or they live with lots of other people so they couldn’t isolate even if they needed to. You consider all that – which none of us should avoid considering, regardless of our own personal circumstances – and we end up considering all sorts of issues about wealth, and work, and our immediate environment. There are lots of things that could come out of the situation we’ve all been through that could be positive if people pay attention, and hugely negative if we don’t. I really hope that we hang on to the beautiful things and learn from the tough times. And we’re not out of those tough times yet; I think it’s going to go backwards and forwards for a while, and we’ll all need to hold our nerve for a bit.

Image : Courtesy of Netflix

Phoebe Dynevor as Daphne Bridgerton and Adjoa Andoh as Lady Danbury on the set of Bridgerton

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We’d all been landed in a world that was sad, and difficult, and suddenly there was Bridgerton

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Image : Photography by Ingrid Pollard

The response to Bridgerton has been extraordinarily strong in part, perhaps, due to the fact that it opened on a Christmas Day that was really disappointing for lots of people. Whether Christmas is part of your faith tradition or not [another fascinating Adjoa fact: she was licensed as a Church of England Lay Preacher in 2009], it’s a countrywide holiday tradition, and last year we needed that more than ever before, after being apart for so long. We’d all been landed in a world that was sad, and difficult, and suddenly there was Bridgerton: slightly other-worldly, and totally addictive, and offering people the opportunity to just sort of fly off somewhere else for a while. Yes, Bridgerton may well have had that impact anyway, but I think it was doubled-down on by the circumstances when it first was broadcast. My friends’ daughter who lives in Bath, where the Holborne museum doubles for Lady Danbury’s house, noticed the museum has renamed their outside space ‘Lady Danbury’s Terrace’! I love the fact that you can enjoy Bridgerton on many different levels. If you like a good costume drama, or love a historical romp, or thrill to a romantic will they/wont they saga, it’s for you. If you want to look for elements that are more reflective, you can. There are many different races represented, and gay love affairs, and women who want to do things other than get married; it’s a broad remit that says to everybody, “come on in, you’re welcome!”

Adjoa in the 2020 production of Richard Il at Shakespeare's Globe Theatre, in which she not only played King Richard ll, but also co-directed it as well

Portrait by Chelsea Lauren

Bridgerton: the impact

Lady Danbury: for it is she... I think every actor brings something of themselves to any given character. Even if you’re playing somebody absolutely reprehensible or the absolute antithesis of who you are, every character, at some level cares about themselves, and you have to play it as though you are them, and connect that you/them with the audience, and then allow the audience in. I love Lady Danbury’s appetite for life. I salute people who don’t get wearied or downcast but remain hopeful and optimistic, which can be quite a challenge. I’m playing Lady Danbury as a black woman, so I think about the challenges that a woman and a woman of colour would have had in the Regency period. I think about her – the widow of a duke who doesn’t have any offspring that we hear about, who’s independently wealthy, and not beholden or responsible to anybody. Whatever choices she makes in her life are freely hers to make (apart from doing what the Queen wants!). She understands that world, she has status in that world, and she navigates that world very well. But she’s also somebody who can see the fragile ones, and she can scoop them up in her care as she sees fit. She’s not a bully but she doesn’t suffer fools, and she has no time for people who are mean. She knows the bohemian side of the world she lives in as well – the artists, and the drinking clubs, and all that goes along with that. And she’s fun! She likes a good party, and she likes a good frock, and she likes knowing what’s going on, and she can put her shoulder to the wheel if she wants things to happen, or change. Lady Danbury is an absolute delight to play; I think about all those fabulous aunts you might have grown up with, or great aunts, or friends of your mother who you liked to call aunty; I think about my mum, and my English grandmother, and my Ghanaian grandmother, and all those mighty women who are just ploughing their way through the world as best they can, and finding joy and excitement where they can, and dealing with hardship, and supporting each other through all that and moving forward. I guess, overall, I just want Lady Danbury to celebrate sturdy women – and she most certainly does that! ■ • Watch the first series of Bridgerton on Netflix

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LOCAL | EVENTS

What’s on in May The Carducci Quartet Photo: Andy Holdsworth

DREAM SPACE BATH Throughout May n Online Life in Bath but not as you know it. The team behind National Lottery funded community project Dream Space invites you to explore a new online exhibition of more than 50 moving and thought-provoking poems, songs, spoken word performances and reflections on experiences of the pandemic, the climate crisis, and racism in Bath. The exhibition is free to visit throughout May. thedreamspace.co.uk ARTISTS’ SHOWCASE Throughout May n Out of the Blue Gallery, 6 Upper Borough Walls, Bath A beautiful new gallery right in the heart of Bath is showcasing some of the best British artists and ceramicists. Set across two floors, the gallery is packed with great pieces. Look out for must-see exhibitions arriving at the gallery soon. outofthebluegallery.com CREATING SPACES 2021 Until 31 May n Abbey House, Market Cross, Malmesbury SN16 9AS Rufus Pollard of Malmesbury Abbey House invites you to see its selection of sculptures in the gardens. Work includes figurative and abstract sculpture in wood, ceramic, glass, stone and bronze, all complementing the beautiful gardens with long vistas, intimate corners, and the riverside walk. In addition, the Belvedere, a wood and glass space looking out on to the valley below, will 20 TheBATHMagazine

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display wall pieces, hanging sculptures and wood carvings. See website for opening times. abbeyhousegardens.co.uk; cotswoldsculptorsassociation.com THE BRIDGERTON WALKING TOUR 19–23 May n Start point outside No 1 Royal Crescent Enjoy a walk through the streets of Bath visiting some of the sites featured in the Netflix period drama Bridgerton. This Bath Festival event is a tour devised and led by professional Blue Badge tour guide Fred Mawer. See the exteriors of the grand homes of the Featheringtons and Lady Danbury, while enjoying some insights into raunchy Regency life in Bath. bathfestivals.org.uk RICHARD OSMAN 19 May, 7.30pm n The Bath Forum TV personality and quiz show master Richard Osman will be in conversation with comedian, actor and writer Miles Jupp. The Thursday Murder Club, Osman’s hugely successful debut novel, is on course to sell one million hardback copies. Steven Spielberg has snapped up the movie rights and the second installment of The Man Who Died Twice is published later this year. bathfestivals.org.uk THE COMPLETE BEETHOVEN QUARTETS 19, 20, 23, 24 May, various times (check website for details) n The Assembly Rooms The Carducci Quartet and the Heath Quartet

Ruth Pavey

take up the emotionally and physically demanding challenge of between them playing all of Beethoven’s 16 string quartets. This cycle of concerts will be a real treat for music lovers. bathfestivals.org.uk LOOT: BRITAIN AND THE BENIN BRONZES 20 May, 1pm n The Assembly Rooms Journalist Barnaby Phillips has written a fascinating book which has sparked debate about the acquisition of great works of art from other countries and cultures. Loot: Britain and the Benin Bronzes tells the story of treasures stolen from Nigeria, some of which can be seen in the British Museum. bathfestivals.org.uk CONCERT FOR THE PEOPLE OF BATH 20 May, 7.30pm n Bath Forum The Bath Philharmonia’s Concert for the People of Bath is a firm fixture on the city’s cultural calendar. This month they’ll be joined in Bath Forum by violinist Coco Tomita and pianist Alexandra Dariescu. The concert features Beethoven’s Emperor Concerto and Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto in E Minor and the evening is dedicated to the memory of Brian and Margaret Roper. bathfestivals.org.uk NAPOLEON: A LIFE IN GARDEN AND SHADOWS 20 May, 5pm n The Assembly Rooms Award-winning biographer Ruth Scurr ➲

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LOCAL | EVENTS

The Holburne Museum – home to Bridgerton’s Lady Danbury

reveals a fresh portrait of Napoleon, written to mark the 200th anniversary of his death. Beyond the politics and the battle campaigns, the man is revealed as a gardener. Instead of wielding a sword, we see him leaning on his spade as he works on creating gardens throughout his life. bathfestivals.org.uk DEEPER INTO THE WOOD 21 May, 10.30am n The Assembly Rooms The Bath Magazine’s former gardening columnist and head gardener at The Priory Hotel, Jane Moore will be in conversation with writer and gardener Ruth Pavey, who wrote about creating a wildlife haven in the Somerset Levels in A Wood Of One’s Own, a Sunday Times Best Book of the Year in 2017. Now Ruth has written Deeper Into the Wood, a reflection on the challenges to wildlife and how her wood is changing. bathfestivals.org.uk The Heath Quartet, photo: Kauko Kikkas

THE TIME TRAVELLER’S GUIDE TO REGENCY BRITAIN 21 May, 11am n The Assembly Rooms Expect to see Regency Bath in a new, and not necessarily flattering light as historian and bestselling author Ian Mortimer takes us on a fascinating journey into the past. Bath was one of the most important centres of social life outside London, with grand balls taking place beneath the glittering chandeliers of the Assembly Rooms, the Pump Room and the houses of the Royal Crescent, so expect tales of extravagance and unchecked bad behaviour. bathfestivals.org.uk 22 TheBATHMagazine

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THE LIFE OF MUSIC WITH NICHOLAS KENYON 21 May, 2pm n The Assembly Rooms Writer, broadcaster and former director of the BBC Proms, Nicholas Kenyon has long championed composers and performers who widen the repertory and expand our listening. His talk will demonstrate that no matter how great the crisis, music has the power to bring us together. bathfestivals.org.uk

THE LOST DECADE: 2010–2020 21 May, 5pm n The Assembly Rooms The decade between 2010 and 2020 has been one of the most tumultuous in times in British history. Journalists Polly Toynbee and David Walker will be inviting us to look at the events which took place before Covid-19, our attitude to leadership, austerity and the rise of the use of food banks. They will also reflect that this was also a time of positive news, such as the rise of renewable energy and the legalisation of same-sex marriage. bathfestivals.org.uk

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ELIZABETH BARRETT BROWNING: TWO WAY MIRROR 23 May, 1pm n The Assembly Rooms Elizabeth Barrett Browning has been acclaimed as Britain’s greatest female poet, but how much do we know about her? Fiona Sampson is an acclaimed author who, through Two Way Mirror: The Life of Elizabeth Barrett Browning, takes us behind the romance of her extraordinary life to reveal a thoroughly modern figure. bathfestivals.org.uk GETTING OLDER 23 May, 3.30pm n The Assembly Rooms Sandi Toksvig has given Dr Lucy Pollock’s The Book About Getting Older the accolade that it’s the most important book about the second half of your life that you’ll ever read. From conversations about whether Dad should still be driving, how to find the best care home, to losing a loved one to dementia, this is a universal topic for all. bathfestivals.org.uk FOUR QUARTETS 25 May – 5 June n Theatre Royal Bath Ralph Fiennes directs and stars in a world premiere adaptation of T.S. Eliot’s Four Quartets to welcome audiences back to live theatre. Compelling, moving and symphonic, Four Quartets offer four interwoven meditations on the nature of time, faith, and the quest for spiritual enlightenment. Mostly written during World War II when the closure of playhouses during the Blitz interrupted Eliot’s work in theatre, the four parts (Burnt Norton, East Coker, The Dry Salvages and Little Gidding) were the culminating achievement of Eliot’s Nobel Prize-winning literary career. theatreroyal.org.uk THE BATH FESTIVAL AT HOME 28 May – 11 June n Online For audiences unable to attend live events, there’s a digital alternative this year. The Bath Festival will be recording selected highlights, including the sublime Gesualdo Six singing at the Roman Baths and young members of the Kanneh-Mason family playing at Bath Forum. The Bath Festival At Home will also feature specially commissioned film showing the city of Bath at its best to the rest of the world. bathfestivals.org.uk. n

Ralph Fiennes

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BATH FESTIVAL | CHORAL MUSIC

Singing in the Baths

Choral group The Gesualdo Six are singing at the Roman Baths on 18 May, the first time they have visited Bath, performing a programme of a cappella music around the theme of water. Emma Clegg chats to director, conductor and founding member Owain Park about the group and its plans for the concert

Music in lockdown I ask what the group got up to during lockdown. “We just completely changed our output, so focused online, created concert series, lots of videos and have turned it round so our audience can connect with us online. And we’ve tried to come up with inventive ways of keeping people engaged.” Talking about working in isolation, Owain explains, “It is difficult to make music in your front room with nobody else. So much of music is collaborative, and bouncing off each other. ”We have been able to work together in the same room since last June and that has transformed how we can work. But even when we are doing things at home, we’ve talked about the interpretation beforehand and knowing what we want to do with the music means people can inflect it differently, even though it’s being sung in isolation.”

Forming the group The Gesualdo Six were formed in 2014, with Owain a founding member. “We met at the University of Cambridge and this obviously has a very longstanding choral tradition. But we came from all different parts of the country, from Bristol and Salisbury and Manchester, and came together to perform some music by the Italian composer Carlo Gesualdo, which is where we got our name. “We were very small and everyone sang their own parts, like a string quartet, each member could shape and sculpt their part in their own way. We didn’t know what would happen with the group when we started. Because we enjoyed performing together it’s kept going, and 24 TheBATHMagazine

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When the venue has got something special you want to show that music can sometimes reflect and enhance that

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inging together in a choir or listening to a choir as part of an audience seem oddly tucked-away memories, but all that’s about to change as the Gesualso Six choral group drop in at the Roman Baths during Bath Festival’s celebration of books and music in May. The event will be socially distanced, but the singers’ position underneath the archways on one side of the Roman Baths will mean that their vocals are likely to drift atmospherically into other parts of the city. Appropriately the programme will have a water theme. “With choral music there is a lot of water imagery, with streams flowing and that kind of thing. So a lot of composers have reflected on that and there is a large pool of work to choose from. And with more contemporary pieces nature really finds its way in, so I’ve chosen music that makes sense of where we are performing as well as being a nice open-air concert, which is novel,” says director Owain Park. Pieces include choral masterpieces by Palestrina, Monteverdi and Gesualdo; English renaissance music by Byrd, Campion and Tomkins; as well as contemporary works and arrangements by David Bednall, Cristen Holmes, Vaughan-Williams and Owain Park himself. The evening will fade away with Wilbye’s Draw on Sweet Night. There will be two performances, one at 7.30pm and one at 9.30pm and the seond performance in the dusk will see the audience holding torches. Just the idea of this seems to heal some of the sadness and isolation that we’ve all experienced in the last year. While the event will be socially distanced, the emotional uplifts and the ability for the spirits to soar as you listen to a professional vocal performance will be ours again for a while, in person. “It will be so atmospheric. The tickets went on sale and were all snapped up,” says Owain, “So it’s nice to have that feeling of people wanting to come and hear us again.”

we’ve been able to built a bit of momentum which has been really exciting.”

Musical style The group consists of six choralists, plus Owain, who also sings. There are two countertenors, two tenors, a baritone and a bass. The countertenor voices give a soaring choirboy quality to the music – they use a falsetto pitch, but are worked on to be stable and controlled. “It’s a perfectly natural voice,” explains Owain. “It’s just when people with changed voices – mostly men whose voices have broken – flip into their falsetto. It’s using your vocal framework in a slightly different way. But it’s not like they did in the 18th century with castrati. “People seem to have this misconception that a countertenor is an outdated way of singing, but it’s not at all, it’s just a different way of using the voice. In fact it’s a little more authentic for some of the older music because that is how they would have heard it performed 300–400 years ago. So it’s nice to have that as a continuing tradition.” “The countertenors tend to reside in that high area for singing. Sometimes in the past when they had those lower lines in a composer like Purcell, for example, they would often switch into a lower register because that was fashionable at the time.” Although there are six regular members, there are others who take part when required. “I do sing things with the group,” says Owain, “Sometimes we change up the way that we perform. So some pieces are three voices, some are three, five or six. And rather than have everyone on stage all the time, we think about what the repertoire needs. The useful thing is that if somebody falls ill or isn’t available you can still be flexible with the repertoire. We were founded with me as the conductor, but since then it’s become a bit more loose.” The performance in Bath will be a capella, but The Gesualdo Six often experiment with different styles: “We have occasionally performed with string instruments, a bit with organ and have also worked with sopranos and mezzo sopranos. We are open to collaborations and in one of the festivals we organised last year, the London Sound Gallery, we collaborated with five other artists. So while the group line-up is set, it also allows us to try new things out. That’s been a positive thing about the way the industry has had to change – people have been more open to working with one another.”

Performing The group have performed in some inspirational venues, including a wildlife park in Jersey. “We’ve performed in a fair few events outside and it’s often a different style of music. Sacred, slow polyphony really does need those arches and those indoor spaces to help the sound. Whereas there’s music that really works well ouside – we’ve done concerts with light shows where images are projected on to the ceiling.

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BATH FESTIVAL | CHORAL MUSIC

And we performed with the Museum of the Moon in Harrogate, where there was a big hanging moon in the middle of the building. When the venue has got something special I think people can tell and you want to show that music can sometimes reflect and enhance that. That’s where programming comes into the equation.” Owain makes it clear that there is much more to a concert than what the audience sees and hears: “The concert is the culmination of months of thinking about the repertoire: where we are going to rehearse, what it means, and taking into account the venue or the theme of the festival. What we do on the day of the festival is make sure everyone is vocally in good shape. “My role as director and conductor is more of a management role than an artistic one, especially with a smaller group because you are so reliant on everyone to contribute, so everyone has a greater role overall because there are fewer of us. The challenge of the concert itself is interacting with the audience, letting them know about the music, and trying to give the concert a good shape so that visitors have a nice experience, rather than just being sung at for an hour.” “Because we’re in the Roman Baths and it’s being recorded, I won’t introduce each piece, but will let the concert flow more. Especially during the second performance when it’s dark. If it’s interrupted by a lot of chatting it can become a bit choppy. So I’ll do a brief introduction and then just let it happen.”

Educational projects The group are often involved in educational work. “Many of us benefitted from being choristers at churches and cathedrals, but not everyone can do that. Singing in schools is so important and it’s being

tested at the moment because there’s a lack of commitment to funding that area of the curriculum,” says Owain. “We are looking at setting up a charitable foundation so that we can fund that educational work. It doesn’t all come down to money – we want to make it work whatever happens, but it’s tricky. So the main thing is finding that framework for supporting the work. What has been good is that the schools with resources – often private schools – can bus in children from state schools in the area and we’ve been able to work with them. We had one event with 150 kids and that was really fun, where the different schools developed friendly rivalries. That sort of atmosphere was really conducive to everyone singing with gusto. “If we can get them all in the same building, in those situations it’s just about having as much energy as possible. And you can’t do it forever – about 45 minutes to an hour is about as much as everyone can take. What we’d love is not just to work with a group in a school once – if you could do it three times a year then people could progress. That’s where the commitment to funding comes from.” As a boy Owain was a chorister at St Mary Redcliffe Church, Bristol. “I still feel very connected to the west country,” he explains. “I was at school in Wells and I did a few concerts and courses at Bath Abbey. So that’s where I’m more used to performing. And because this is such a special occasion it’s cool to be in the Baths in the shadow of the Abbey doing something a little bit different.” n The Gesualdo Six, 18 May, Roman Baths, 7.30pm and 9.30pm. The event will also be filmed and broadcast from Friday 28 May as part of The Bath Festival at Home; bathfestivals.org.uk

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THEATRE | INTERVIEW

Wonderful Copenhagen

The theatre’s back, guys – hurrah! So Melissa Blease is back on theatre watch. Here she chats to veteran thespian (don’t say that fast) Malcolm Sinclair who is co-starring in Copenhagen, which runs from 9–26 June at Theatre Royal Bath

hat is it that we human beings ultimately depend on? We depend on our words. We are suspended in language. Our task is to communicate experience and ideas to others.” Thus spake Niels Henrik David Bohr, the 20th-century Danish physicist, philosopher and promoter of scientific research whose pioneering, Nobel Prize-winning ‘atomic model’ forms the basis for our understanding of how the world is structured. “Darling, when I’m back at the Theatre Royal Bath this time around, you really must buy me a drink!” Thus spake Malcolm Sinclair, the British actor (and former actors’ trade union Equity president of eight years standing), familiar to all of us for his work in all-kinds-of-everything-classics from various episodes of Midsomer Murders, A Touch of Frost, Casualty, The Bill and Foyle’s War to Uncle Vanya, The History Boys, Hamlet, My Fair Lady and a highly acclaimed production of David Haig’s Pressure (starring Sinclair in the role of General Dwight Eisenhower, which came to Theatre Royal Bath in 2018, at it happens), taking in films such as Casino Royale and V for Vendetta along the way. The connection between the two quotes? This June, Malcolm will be appearing at Theatre Royal Bath in Michael Frayn’s 1998 play Copenhagen, co-starring as Bohr himself alongside Haydn Gwynne as Bohr’s wife Margrethe and Philip Arditti as the German scientist Werner Heisenberg. And from just speaking to Malcolm longdistance down a telephone line, I know one fact for sure: there could be no actor with a more perfect voice (harmonious and sincere; mellow yet authoritative) to communicate Bohr’s experience and ideas to a theatre audience... nor make you an offer you can’t refuse regarding buying him a drink. “Copenhagen focuses on a real-life meeting between Bohr, his wife and Heisenberg that took place in 1941, after Denmark had been occupied by the Germans,” says Malcolm, once we’ve established details of our forthcoming rendezvous. “At the time, there was a possibility of developing an atomic bomb, and the main thrust of the potent conversation that took place during that meeting focuses on the morals and ethics of such a development.” Thanks to Michael Frayn, what happened in Copenhagen was not

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The whole idea of the theatre and the performing arts in general is to bring people together, a bit like another form of church, really

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destined to stay in Copenhagen – and the dynamic that underpinned that meeting was explosive on many levels. “Bohr and Heisenberg were already very, very close friends and long-term colleagues; it could be said that Heisenberg was Bohr’s protégé,” says Malcolm. “They were all physicists, but they called themselves theoretical physicists and they were all trying to work out, in theoretical terms, what an atom actually is, what atoms do, how they’re constructed, how they react to each other, and what the implications of development of the atom on the scale they were discussing could be – once a bomb is developed, the threat to people’s lives, of course, becomes terrifying.” But Bohr and Heisenberg were both about as far from being ‘warmongers’ as it’s possible to get. “Bohr was, in a way, the father of all the theoretical physicists; he led the thinking, he was a very, very good man,” says Malcolm. “And so, beyond the huge debate at the forefront of the Copenhagen theme, there’s another crucial layer about how and what these scientists actually did during the war – particularly Heisenberg, who stayed in Germany and worked under the Nazis and yet wasn’t a Nazi at all. How did he conduct himself... and was there really a possibility of Germany getting an atomic bomb? And of course, many awful contrasts and predicaments were thrown up at that time. Up until that point, in the world of science at least, everyone,

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THEATRE | INTERVIEW

PREVIOUS PAGE, left to right: Malcolm Sinclair, Haydn Gwynne and Philip Arditti, who are starring in Copenhagen

whatever their nationality, worked together – German, Danish, American, British, French, Italian, all of them. Then the moment the war happened, no one worked together anymore. Or did they? In short, Copenhagen is a fascinating, multi-contextual play; the moment I got the chance to do it, I leapt at it and said oh, yes please!” But this isn’t the first time that Bath audiences have been poised to leap at the chance to see Copenhagen – and, when it was originally scheduled on the Theatre Royal Bath programme last autumn, Malcolm wasn’t in the equation at all. “A wonderful actor called Michael Gould was cast in the November 2020 production, but he was forced to withdraw due to a case of Covid in his family and theatre was closed down again anyway,” Malcolm explains. “Then we thought we might get a crack at opening in January, and then we didn’t – we all know how the story went across the world, we’ve all been living through such very strange times. In preparation for this time around, though, we’re all very optimistic – and we’ve all had plenty of zoom calls, just to make sure we still remember our lines!” Ah, Covid and lockdown: Malcolm, how was it for you? “If I’m absolutely honest, it hasn’t all been too bad,” he says. “My other half could work from home, and I did three books, and I was lucky enough to receive some government support as I’m self-employed – on a work-related level, I had little reason to complain at all. But it’s all been very depressing in general, and dreadful for so many people. I lost my dear mother during lockdown – bless her heart, she was 95 and lived in a nursing home, so it was difficult to be with her; it’s a sad story that will resonate with all too many people. Even now, every plan we make is still provisional because we still

ABOVE: Malcolm Sinclair playing General Eisenhower in Pressure at Theatre Royal Bath in 2018. Photograph by Robert Day

have no idea how it’s all going to turn out. But so far, so good? And Bath is looking wonderful again!” Bath looking wonderful again is another subject that Malcolm can talk (harmonious, sincere, etc – remember?) with authority on. “I had – and still have – several very good friends in Bath, and in Bristol too. I was a student at Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, and my very first job out of college was at the Bristol Old Vic itself. I was there with the late Chris Harris, known by so many as the West Country’s best-loved pantomime dame, and a worldwide authority on the subject of one of theatre’s oldest traditions. “My friend Mark Buffery and I, who I was also at drama school with, used to do pantos at the Theatre Royal Bath with Chris – fun days indeed. But the very first time I visited Theatre Royal Bath – the first time of several, as it turned out – was with Sir John Mills, decades ago; oh, I have so many marvellous memories of that marvellous theatre.” And theatre is, ultimately, at the heart of Sinclair world. “I love it – love it, very strongly indeed,” he says. “The whole idea of the theatre and the performing arts in general is to bring people together, a bit like another form of church, really. Shops, gyms, hairdressers, pubs, cafés – they’re all up and running again, but theatres are going to be the last thing to reopen. I'm really pucker about going to, and working in, the theatre again; I just hope that people will turn up!” Oh Malcolm, I guarantee they will. And I guarantee I’ll pick up the tab for that drink, too – when asked by someone with a voice like his, it’d be impossible not to. Copenhagen, Theatre Royal Bath, 9–26 June; theatreroyal.org.uk THEBATHMAG.CO.UK

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A monstrous experience

Do you fancy a scary thrill? Well, dust off your boots and make your way down to the House of Frankenstein in June where you’ll find Mary Shelley’s story and that of her creation, Frankenstein brought to life. It’s a multi-sensory experience created by two film and theatre practitioners, Chris Harris and Jonathan Willis, Emma Clegg discovers

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Frontispiece illustration from Frankenstein, first published 1818

hen Chris mentioned the idea of a multi-sensory Frankenstein venue, it was a total no-brainer. Knowing Chris and his creative abilities, I was supremely confident that it was going to be something that would appeal to people and that would be different. And spectacular.” Jonathan Willis and Chris Harris are together founding partners of House of Frankenstein, opening in Bath in June. The house – just three doors up from the Jane Austen Museum in Gay Street – is set over four atmospheric floors featuring ominous music and unsettling soundscapes, aromas, lighting and special effects, electric shocks, projections, props, unusual artefacts, body parts and vintage items. Jonathan Willis is a film producer and Chris Harris is a writer and producer and they have worked together in the theatre and subsequently in film, including Chris’s stage play The Pixie Led (Time Out No 1), the acclaimed sci-fi movie The Machine (winner Raindance 2013) and Killers Anonymous (2019, Gary Oldman and Jessica Alba). “We’ve worked together for about 100 years,” says Jonathan. In fact it was 1987, which explains their strong connection. “I make movies, Chris has written productions, so you’ve got the written word, you’ve got theatre, where everything is theatrically dressed as a theme, as an audioscape and aromascape, and they’re all relevant for a visitor attraction,” explains Jonathan. There are also all their freelance contacts – scenic artists, prop makers, graphic designers – many of whom have taken part in the project. The experience – for it is not a museum – focuses on what inspired Mary Shelley to create the story of Frankenstein, which was her interest in science and galvanism and the reanimation of the dead using electricity. “As well as the story of Mary Shelley, we’re following the story of Frankenstein itself because the stories run quite closely together,” says Chris. “Her life was extraordinary – so much trauma and tragedy. By the time she was 24 she had published Frankenstein, she was a widow and three of her young children had died. Her mother died when she was just a few days old, she suffered depression, her husband was a philanderer and she lived in a chaotic, strange world where they were on the run most of the time. There was nothing glamorous about this – it was a hard, traumatic life. She was a visionary who came up with an idea that’s stood the test of time and it’s important to tell her story.” So what should visitors expect? Each room has a slightly different ambience, accentuated by the aroma and soundscapes. The first floor embraces Mary’s early life and her interest in the supernatural, and features a Tesla machine-effect spurting out five-million volts of electricity. Then there is a scary supernatural section, another about the novel and how it was created, then a laboratory. The ‘Mourning Room’ is a creepy space showing those that Mary lost in a short period of time. Also, there is a popular culture area which is more kitsch, following the green-skinned monster that has been immortalised in film and print. “In the laboratory we are going to represent Victor Frankenstein’s studio with a replica of the monster as Mary envisaged it, not as Universal Pictures did – she didn’t mention green skin and a flat top head,” says Jonathan. “What we’ve tried to do with the company MillenniumFX, a Bafta Award-winning animatronic company, is to create what we see using the words from the novel, how Mary herself saw the monster. Nobody has done that ever; there have always been compromises,” he continues. “Victor Frankenstein didn’t create a monster; it was supposed to be the perfect human being. But it didn’t look great, because you could see the sinews within the tight yellow skin.” The project has been an immersive one for Chris and Jonathan, “It’s been all consuming,” says Chris. “I sleep it. I wake up in the middle of

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We are going to represent Victor Frankenstein’s studio with a replica of the monster as Mary envisaged it

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the night and I’ve either created a problem or I’ve solved one. It’s 7,000 sq ft and we’re trying to tell a story with a lot of components.” “We’ve not done anything structurally to the fabric of the building – it’s all smoke and mirrors – but what we’ve done cosmetically has given the building a lovely atmosphere. We’re trying to make it a visceral experience, where it’s atmospheric and there are smells,” Chris continues. “Little things trip your senses, and there is a sense of foreboding. There will be little jumps but not jump-out-of-your-skin frights, although the basement goes more into this territory.” “We hope it is inspiring, a proper visceral experience that is totally unique and a world first,” concludes Jonathan. Try it out for yourself in June. Tickets will need to be prebooked and a limited number of people will be admitted each hour. The experience is recommended for ages 12+; the opening date will be announced soon on the website; houseoffrankenstein.com

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STATE OF THE ART Still, Beaux Arts Bath, 1–29 May During May, Beaux Arts Bath in York Street offers a respite from the busy streets outside with a showcase of still life drawings and paintings entitled Still. The exhibition features an exciting array of artists and mediums, including oil paintings by renowned Wiltshire artist Helen Simmonds, and the magical and amazingly detailed pencil drawings of Lewis Chamberlain. There is also the tranquil and contemplative work in egg tempera of Atsuko Fujii, works in oil by Nathan Ford, Harriet Porter Alex Callaway, and Rob Pittam. Ceramics are by John Jelfs. It’s well worth a visit. beauxartsbath.co.uk Image: Night Interior with Seated Figure by Lewis Chamberlain; pencil on paper; 25 x 32cm.

Picasso & Sylvette, David Simon Contemporary, 8–31 May This exhibition is a recognition of the relationship between Picasso and his muse Sylvette David, featuring a substantial collection of original, signed prints by Pablo Picasso with contemporary paintings by Lydia Corbett, née Sylvette David. The collection also includes ceramics created by Picasso in Vallauris, where he first met Lydia in 1954. The impact of the painter/muse aspect of this relationship has helped form the voice of Lydia Corbett’s own painting practice and this show is a rare and exclusive opportunity to see the works of both Picasso and his muse in one place, creating a unique and beautiful conversation between these artists’ works. Lydia Corbett, born Sylvette David in Paris in 1934, met Pablo Picasso in the 1950s. This chance encounter was an important moment for both Picasso and Lydia, or Sylvette David as she was then known. For Picasso, Sylvette became the subject of large and important body of work, including more than 60 paintings, drawings and sculptures. For Sylvette, her youthful beauty was immortalised

and she would be remembered as a muse of the great artist, ‘The Girl with the Ponytail’. Picasso’s work and their platonic relationship would become a constant source of inspiration for her own painting many years later. See also our interview with Lydia on page 34. davidsimoncontemporary.com

Images: Ma Tante avec des Fleurs by Lydia Carbett and Vallauris Exposition, 1954 by Pablo Picasso

Oversized paintings, The Fine Artist As the weather warms up, so do the colours of the city. The Circus is looking magnificent as the warm honey tones of the Georgian architecture are highlighted by sunshine. Tracey Bowes has completed a large painting of this glorious scene. This piece is part of a collection which includes uplifting scenes of the south west. Tracey produces large artworks which allow her to create high quality giclée prints which are large enough for feature walls. Her smaller framed prints make superb gifts alongside her eye-catching greeting card collection. thefineartistshop.com Image: Pulteney Bridge, Bath Weir, 2021 by Tracey Bowes; acrylic on paper

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Spring Exhibition, Gallery Nine Bath, until 31 May Gallery Nine’s spring exhibition features jewellery by Rachel Eardley, ceramics by Pru Cooper and Emily Myers and original works on paper by Paul Rudall. Rachel carefully hand-cuts designs from obsolete coins and sets them in silver. Prue Cooper makes press-moulded earthenware dishes, decorated with quotations and images illustrating the ways of the world – witty and narrative. Emily’s thrown vessels, domestic in scale, are often carved, faceted and altered, at the leather-hard stage, to create new and interesting shapes and surface textures. Paul Rudall, one of Britain’s most respected post war artists was an obsessive painter. He most often worked on board or paper in oils, but often in distinctive combination with meticulous pen and ink. galleryninebath.com

Shooting Stars: Carinthia West, Britain and America in the 1970s, American Museum & Gardens, 21 May – 31 October 2021

Image: artwork by Paul Rudall

Carinthia West’s intimate photographs of rock and film stars of the 1970s in America – and in particular on the glorious beaches of Malibu in California – present an upbeat and buoyant view of the decade that should remind us of the outstanding music and the great design of this much-maligned period. The exhibition’s colour, fun, and vivid exuberance are just what we need as we emerge, bleary-eyed, from the nightmare of Covid. The traditional picture painted of the 1970s is one of doom and gloom: the inevitable hangover after the party of the Swinging Sixties. However, as Carinthia West’s fascinating photographs demonstrate – alongside home interiors, fashion, posters, album covers, and the music of the Seventies – this is only part of the picture. The 1970s was a decade of bright colours, of fun, and of self-expression. americanmuseum.org

Image: Mick Jagger ‘Diamond Smile’ California 1976

Bear Flat Artists’ Open Studios Art Trail, 29–31 May This year’s Bear Flat Artists’ art trail is set to go ahead over the May Whitsun Bank Holiday weekend – 11am to 5pm daily. The event takes place in socially-distanced spaces and gardens following a successful art trail last September. Discover the creativity of more than 20 artists – all within walking distance of each other, and only 10 minutes from the town centre. Visitors can expect to see a dynamic mix of painting, ceramics, jewellery, printmaking, photography, sculpture, woodwork, glass and much more. The weekend is an opportunity to meet the artists, find out about their processes, and browse and buy original artwork direct from the maker in a relaxed setting. Visit Bear Flat Artists’ website to view the full trail. The Open Studios is a free event, open to everyone. bearflatartists.co.uk

Image: Milsom Street by painter Ben Hughes

May Fair, Bath Contemporary Artists’ Fair, 9 May Bath Contemporary Artists’ Fair is delighted to finally welcome everyone back to its May fair. Bath Contemporary Artists Fair is committed to bringing the best of contemporary art from the city and beyond right to the heart of Bath. Following on from the successful and popular fairs last year, the next event is on 9 May, where visitors can browse the brilliant works of local artists and admire fine art, photography, sculpture and textiles, all under the vaulted glass roof of Green Park Station. For updates and exhibiting artists visit the website. bcaf.co.uk

Image: artwork by Richard Gibson

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Canaletto views

The most important set of paintings of Venice by Canaletto is coming to the Holburne this year. Emma Clegg spoke to curator Monserrat Pis Marcos about the collection of 23 paintings,which bring to life the lure of 18th-century Venice

n 1731, the 4th Duke of Bedford commissioned 24 paintings of Venice from Antonio Canaletto. The Duke, then Lord John Russell, was in Venice on the Grand Tour in 1731, and would have met Joseph Smith, Canaletto’s agent, a Venetian resident and later British consul there. Lord John Russell was evidently attracted by Canaletto’s burgeoning reputation for producing precise and atmospheric views of the Italian city’s most iconic views and landmarks. When the 24 paintings were delivered they were displayed in the dining room at Woburn Abbey in Bedfordshire, the family seat of the Duke of Bedford. The family have never parted with them, until now. That’s because 23 of the 24 paintings are being shown at the Holburne Museum in Bath from January to September 2021. It’s one of the rare occasions that any of the successive Dukes of Bedford have lent the set of paintings – which form part of one of world’s most important private art collections – since they arrived in Britain from Canaletto in the 1730s. Canaletto was an Italian topographical painter whose masterful expression of atmosphere in his detailed views (vedute) of Venice influenced succeeding generations of landscape artists. Holburne curator Monserrat Pis Marcos explains the importance of the collection: “Canaletto painted several sets of paintings of Venice but not all of them have been kept together. The collection has belonged to the Bedford family since they were painted. So it hasn’t been taken apart, it hasn’t been sold, it’s not in different collections, and that’s what makes this set quite unique. “The paintings include classic views, some of them iconic. Others he painted very rarely or only once. Some of the views are intriguing, leaving you wondering why he would choose them. So for instance there’s the view of the Arsenale, the shipyard of Venice, which epitomised the commercial and military power of the Republic. The way he depicted this is the only one known of.” Other paintings show the familiar scenes that we all associate with Venice. Out of the 24 paintings there are two that are very large and these depict festivities within the Venetian calendar. One of these is the painting of the Ascension Day, the Festa della Sensa, a feast day for the Republic of Venice. This painting is very well known, partly because Canaletto painted several versions of it. This day commemorates two important events for the Republic: 9 May 1000AD when Doge Pietro II Orseolo helped Dalmatian inhabitants threatened by the Slavs, and the second, connected to 1177AD, when Venice was ruled by Doge Sebastiano Ziani. At that time, Pope Alexander III and

View of the Doge's Palace at the Piazzetta seen from the Bacino (The Palazzo Ducale, and Entrance of the Piazzetta di San Marco)

Emperor Federico Barbarossa met in Venice and stipulated a peace treaty. The Wedding Ceremony of the Sea was held in remembrance of this event each year, and, from that date each year, the Doge would sail on his state barge to San Pietro di Castello where the Bishop would be on board a gilt-edged boat, waiting to bless him. To highlight the dominion of the Serenissima (Republic of Venice) over the sea, the feast ended with the Doge throwing a gold ring into the water in the lagoon inlet. “The throwing of the gold ring into the sea was a re-enactment of their history as a maritime nation and their dominion over the sea. These views were very popular with tourists and they represented the power and wealth of Venice,” explains Monserrat. What was Canaletto’s inspiration for painting so many views of Venice? “There was a market at the time for Venetian vistas. So Canaletto found this niche and made good use of it. The idea of topographical vistas came to the fore at the end of the 17th century and the artists that came after this, including Canaletto, developed the notion of Venetian vista, which was at its height in the 18th century. It became very popular, especially with rich foreigners on their Grand Tour, and it’s quite logical if you think about it – like having a postcard to remember something that’s unusual to you.” Monserrat explains that in terms of his personal character and motivations, Canaletto remains a mystery. “Canaletto is quite an obscure figure. His paintings are really well known visually but if you want to find out about his personal life and who he really was, there is hardly anything there. So it’s hard to be specific about his motivation, beyond the fact that he wanted to make a living out of his painting. I’m pretty sure, though, that if Canaletto hadn’t loved Venice he wouldn’t have painted it as much as he did.” Canaletto was known for drawing from life and Monserrat explains that his sketchbooks informed all his paintings. “Drawings from his sketchbook at the Galleria dell’Accademia in Venice will be included in the catalogue. The sketches were usually drawn from life, so he would sit on a boat or on the side of a palazzo or by the waterfront and sketch what was in front of him.” His compositions, however, were frequently modified. “He was aware that his paintings had to be aesthetically pleasing and he was very accurate in many aspects. But he also knew that if the canal had a bit too much of a bend then it was acceptable to open up the perspective a little bit. And he would do that usually drawing from different views he had taken from life. So he wasn’t inventing a new reality. He would make the pieces of the puzzle join in a different way, always referring to that reality.” The paintings at Woburn Abbey have been displayed differently over the years, according to the preference of the keepers of the collection, so the Holburne had no specific model to follow. “Considering there wasn’t a right or wrong order in terms of the way they were laid out at Woburn Abbey we were free to hang the paintings however we wished. We were always keen to ensure that all the paintings were at eye level because at the Abbey they are displayed three high. “We decided to display the exhibition topographically. So when you enter the exhibition you’ll find a view of the Bacino di San Marco from the sea. When you went to Venice in this era you would arrive by the sea, so you begin from there and then you travel up the canal. You go upwards towards the Rialto Bridge in that first section. And then return in the second section. So we’re following the route along the Grand Canal.” You’ll be able to follow Canaletto’s views of the Grand Canal at the Holburne when the museum opens once again. n holburne.org

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The Piazzetta di San Marco, with the Libreria Vecchia on the left

View on the Grand Canal looking north from the Palazzo Contarini dagli Scrigni to the Palazzo Rezzonico

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The girl with the ponytail

In 1954 Pablo Picasso met Sylvette David in a small village in the south of France. The result was 40 paintings of an unknown girl with a ponytail. Emma Clegg talks to Sylvette, now known as Lydia, as she prepares for a new exhibition at David Simon Contemporary, where her paintings are shown alongside works on paper by Picasso

alking to the Girl with the Ponytail – 67 years after she spent three months modelling for Picasso – was an experience that I will never forget. Lydia Corbett, then known as Sylvette David, spoke with a soft, lilting French accent and everything she said carried a pure and almost transcendental warmth as she ruminated on her interesting life, her art, her children, and perhaps most of all her time spent with Picasso in 1954 in the small southern French town of Vallauris. “I love life and I love beauty. I have always loved beauty from my birth day onwards.” These were Lydia’s first words to me, once she had made her way in from her daughter Alice’s garden where they had been spending the afternoon making pots together. Describing herself in that long-ago world, she paints herself as an oddball. “I didn’t do much. I was a dreamer. And Picasso saw me and thought ‘What is that funny girl?’ “I was very shy but very eccentric. I never wore things that were proper. I always had long frilly skirts and a black top and ballet shoes.” The original manner of the shy young girl with a ponytail and a long slim neck who had captivated Picasso – and led to him creating around 40 paintings with her as his subject – hasn’t gone away. Now 86, Lydia still carries the innocence, the enchanting naturalness, the lack of ego and the spirituality that must have appealed to him then. “I didn’t like myself, no, no. I thought I wasn’t beautiful. It is weird the ways life goes when you are small – you get upset and full of problems. Picasso liked my innocence and naivity, and serious quality. I didn’t flirt – I wasn’t a flirt. I know because I had a friend who was much more beautiful and more sexy, and it was me he chose – he chose Sylvette.” I was talking to Lydia ahead of her exhibition at the David Simon Gallery in Castle Cary, which is open to the public from 8–29 May. She’s no stranger to exhibiting, in the early years of painting showing her work regularly at the Francis Kyle Gallery in London. The gallery is now closed, but she told me (a little wickedly), that this was the gallery where David Simon learnt his art trade. “My Frances Kyle gallery in London was marvellous for me – he had shows for me every two years. Did you know that David Simon learnt how to be a gallery BELOW: White Tulips with Figures, Lydia Corbett, watercolour and pen and ink

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person with Frances Kyle? Yes, he did! I am always grateful for that gallery.” The new exhibition is rather special – a joint exhibition of Lydia and Picasso’s work, celebrating the special connection between the two artists, and featuring a substantial collection of original, signed works on paper by Picasso curated for the first time with contemporary paintings by Lydia. The collection also includes a series of ceramics created by Picasso in Vallauris, where he first met Lydia in 1954.

Lydia’s artistic journey Lydia started painting in her forties, once her youngest child was at school, but says that her instinct for art was always there. “I’ve always painted in my mind. It was like meditation – I saw painting the whole time. “Later I sat in my kitchen with my tablecloth and my vases. I used to do still life because the flowers inspired me in the middle of the tablecloth. And the cloth would become a landscape with people in it, my children, or our animals. I live near Dartmoor, so the surrounding landscape and the sea inspired me. “I used to suffer a bit because I felt self-conscious, thinking nobody likes what I make, but did sell my work. When I started it was great fun. I did watercolours without Indian ink at first. Then I added the black ink. It’s wonderful because it does dark and light like the sun and the night, you know. Beautiful. “I love Indian ink. My father used Indian ink. He was an influential art dealer and painter, whose Champs Élysées gallery, David & Garnier, discovered and exhibited French Expressionist painter Bernard Buffet, who used very fine black and white lines. They were in my father’s house and that inspired me – beautiful lines and still life.” A few years ago Lydia developed macular degeneration, which compromised her eyesight. As a result she has moved away from watercolours, instead embracing oils. “Oils are more recent than the

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Photograph by Tobias Jellinek

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Picasso liked my profile and the ponytail. Normally they were worn very low down, but mine was high above the head, like a horse’s tail – beautiful it was Sylvette and Picasso in the artist’s studio in Vallauris, 1954

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Picasso & Sylvette is open to the public from 8–29 May at David Simon Contemporary (open Mon–Sat, 10am–5.30pm, closed on Weds and Sun), 37 High Street, Castle Cary, Somerset BA7 7AW; 01963 359102; davidsimoncontemporary.com 36 TheBATHMagazine

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Picasso... gave me the confidence to paint and to love life and to talk about it forever and ever. He is always with me Photograph by Tobias Jellinek

Memories of Picasso It is Lydia’s memories of Picasso that she loves to talk about most. She met him when she went to Vallauris (where her mother lived) with her fiancé Tobias Jellinek, who she had met at a free school in Suffolk, called Summerhill, which had a great impact on Lydia’s way of seeing the world. “Toby was interested in metalwork and he made avantgarde chairs. Picasso saw one of Toby’s chairs and bought it. At the same time he saw me, with my long blonde ponytail, and asked me if I would model for him. “He gave me the gift of self-confidence. Because he liked me and he was so kind. He was like a father, a godfather. He never touched me. He was so kind and gentle and he knew how I felt, because I was afraid of men, older men. My boyfriend was my age so it was fine, but older men frightened me. Picasso played games to make me laugh because I was always very serious. “I was a silent girl when I modelled. I would look at the view outside the window and see the hills of Vallauris and the sky and then I looked back and I saw him painting. We never stopped, well only for a bit. “Once he took me to a little room with a bed, like Van Gogh’s painting, you know? With a chair and a bed and a little window. And he started jumping on the bed like a little boy. He was 73 then – how could he jump on a bed? He was very athletic. He had a springy body, brown, and he looked very clean and healthy. And he smelt of wine and garlic. “Once he made a drawing of me without any clothes on. And he showed me and said ‘I hope you don’t mind’. And I said ‘Oh no’. But he was hoping I’d say that I would pose in the nude. But I never did – oh no, I wouldn’t do that. So he never forced me. He liked my profile. And the ponytail. Normally they are very low down, but mine was high above the head. Like a horse’s tail, beautiful it was. “In the village all the girls were a bit jealous of me. He chose me. And it helped me all my life to have Picasso behind me, you know. He gave me confidence to paint and to love life and to talk about it forever and ever. He is always with me, you know. “He was struck by something in this girl – I don’t even think it was me – it was somebody else. It is like a magical story now I’m old, I feel like it’s a beautiful story but I don’t feel in it especially. I loved Picasso and seeing him in his studio made me want to do it myself. I became like him, like a paintbrush.” n

ABOVE: Peintre Dessinant et Modele Nu au Chapeau by Pablo Picasso, 1965, original linocut, edition of 160

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watercolours because I can’t do those now. Some of the watercolours are very early and it’s a different style – you can see. It has grown. It gets better and better. And I love doing oils with a knife. And black lines, and colour, and white.” She lives in Devon and works from her studio. “My studio was a garage which I had done into a nice white studio with a brick red floor and a skylight. As I can’t see so well I like to do bigger paintings. And my work is much more simple now – simple lines, and black and white and colour, and charcoal. I love it. And I love clay too.” Her pots are hand-coiled, asymmetric and rustic looking, stained with painted inks and tempura, as if just dug up from centuries in the earth. “I collected vases for years. And then I started painting my own pots. I made pots in a little pottery in a village near me, and I loved it, coiled pots. They are quite strong. I love those.” Talking to Lydia makes you feel you are being led down an enchanted filmic pathway of blowsy blooms and hazy sunlight. She is very spiritual, which is reflected in her upbringing. She lived with her parents in Dieulefit, in the Drôme in the Rhône-Alpes, and spent a very free and wild childhood here, and went to school in the Drôme. “There were lots of children from Paris hidden in the mountains with that lovely headmistress who ran away from the Germans. It was an interesting time but a bit fearful because of the German soldiers. They didn’t come in the village – they were afraid of the Resistance. At the end of the war the Americans came through the village like you see in films, these handsome young men with tanks. And we threw them chewing gum and tomatoes and peaches. And my mum was very excited because she was English and she loved to hear English.”

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Napoleon’s Greatest Achievement DUNCAN CAMPBELL HAS BEEN DEALING IN ANTIQUE SILVER SINCE 1986

He’d be furious

he brief blockage of the Suez Canal last month and the global panic that ensued, gave us all a quick lesson in 21st century shipping practices. Though the jeopardy levels were rather ramped up by the press looking for a rare non-covid story, the Evergreen wasn’t stuck nearly long enough for there to be any serious consequences - save for the unlucky insurers. A far more significant interruption to shipping back in the 1790’s, caused by Napoleon’s blockades and attacks on British shipping, gave rise to all sorts of new and exciting innovations and trade. Though the French were only really interested in British ships, this skirmish was absolutely a global concern. In the 1790’s a staggering 45% of the world’s shipping was British. Not just sailing under a British flag, but British built ships with British crews and with a British owned cargo. The most interesting result, from my point of view, of Napoleon’s blockade is the foundation of new silversmithing businesses from Quebec to Melbourne and all over the world. The increased risk of importing silverware from London gave an opportunity for local silversmiths to compete in what had been a very difficult market. In British fashion and style, silver goods began to be made in Montreal, Sydney, Calcutta, Madras and China in order to satisfy the demand of the expats who were settled there. The lasting consequence of this new trade as far as I am concerned, is the profit still to be made from it. By way of example, a standard English George III. silver soup spoon is worth up to £50. The very same design, weight and date spoon with the mark of a Sydney based maker is £1,200+. The only way to tell the difference is to have memorised all the relevant Australian hallmarks and to know the English ones that the Australians are trying - with mixed results - to copy. Landing on a Jamaican, American or Australian marked spoon in a shop or at auction has paid my monthly mortgage more than once. Good Old Boney, scourge of the Prussians, friend to the antique silver trade. n beaunashbath.com; 01225 334234

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CREATIVE | CITY

Role model: Matt Rees Emma Clegg breaks through her podcast block and learns all about Matt Rees’ life as an art director and modelmaker. From building models for Richard Rogers Partnership to helping create Stormzy’s Pyramid Stage Set at Glastonbury, this maker’s work sounds well sound, she concludes

THIS PAGE: Matt’s model of the Brit Awards 2018, produced in collaboration with designer Misty Buckley. The dramatic, origamiinspired stage backdrop was to stand at 15 metres tall and 59 metres wide, comprising multiple folded and prism-shaped formations. OPPOSITE, top to bottom: architectural model of the opera The Great Gatsby performed at the Semperoper in Dresden in 2015; Matt working on a model; Meixi scheme for FCB Studios, Bath; the actual stage set at the Brit Awards 2018

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CITY | ENVIRONMENT

y experience with podcasts is not extensive. Mainly Desert Island Discs, to be honest, and I really think this shouldn’t count because it’s just a replay of a radio recording, rather than being done specially. People use podcasts for unwinding or relaxing, commuting, doing housework and working out. There are a dazzling 850,000 podcasts and over 30 million podcast episodes, so it’s not surprising they are also seen as one of the hottest marketing tools. The other big motivation for listening to podcasts is finding things out – three out of every four podcast consumers in the US say they enjoy tuning in to podcasts to learn new things. I have just listened to one of these. It’s one of a series of Meet the Maker podcasts, produced by design agency Mytton Williams for Made in Bath, an enterprise that started as a book and has now become a general celebration of the dynamic spirit of makers in and around Bath. Lockdown was the perfect opportunity for creative director Bob Mytton and Hannah Lee of Mytton Williams to interview makers for these podcasts, which are currently being published monthly. Their subjects have included Nick Hussey from Frahm Jackets, Ben Tucker from Plane Industries, Nell Beale from Coucou Manou, ceramic artist and Bath Spa lecturer Keith Harrison and composer and musician Liam O’Connell. A new podcast is being published each month, and I have just listened to the latest one, with art director and modelmaker Matt Rees. Matt has had a wonderfully varied career, centred around a craft (modelmaking) that he always enjoyed at school and during his degree in interior design, but which he didn’t realise was a career option until relatively late. Finding a job in the modelmaking department at architect Richard Rogers Partnership in London was a catalyst, and it was here that he made architectural models for the firm, which were used for entering competitions or getting planning consent. Matt has also created an amazing array of productions for some of the biggest names in the opera world and for stage shows and TV. These include stage shows for Coldplay, Take That, Stormzy’s Pyramid Stage set at Glastonbury in 2019 and a succession of recent Brit Awards stage sets, working with creative director and production designer Misty Buckley. This process starts with a scaleddown model, often now a digital model, moves to a scaled-down model with colour and decoration (see opposite), before being built at full scale (see below right, the final stage show for the 2018 Brit Awards). You’d think that moving from a scale of 1:200 for an architect scheme to 1:100 for the Brit stage designs and 1:25 for theatre stage designs might require some challenging adaptation, but it’s more dramatic still because as part of the stage projects Matt is involved in overseeing the building of the physical stage. So for stage shows and theatre his role, quite literally, involves overseeing an Alice in Wonderland transition from minute visualisations to real life constructions. Which makes sense, because the models are there as a representation of what the architect or designer has planned. Matt explains in the podcast how the design process has changed during his time as a modelmaker, with digital technology replacing some of the hand-built elements, which can save considerable time. However he maintains that models are still a crucial factor in all the work he does. “You can now create fully rendered walkthroughs, but people love physical models and there is something intangible about a model – in the middle of the room, with people crowding around it. So technology has added to model rather than taking away the need for it.” Matt has a new studio in Frome and he is looking forward to working there with other makers when Covid restrictions have eased, so it becomes more of a communal and collaborative space. I’ve only covered a fraction of the podcast content, so do listen to the whole thing by visiting the Made in Bath website. n You can listen to all the podcasts mentioned above on the Made in Bath website, as well as on all well-known podcast platforms. matt-rees.co.uk; madeinbath.co.uk; myttonwilliams.co.uk THEBATHMAG.CO.UK | maY 2021 THEBATHMAG.CO.UK | januarY 2010

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YOUNG WRITERS

Young writers: book review

It’s a real pleasure for us to showcase the work of young writers who love language. Here Isobel Smith, a Year 12 pupil at King Edward’s School in Bath who is studying English Language and Literature, has written this review of Oscar Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray.

ood literature lasts a decade, but great literature stands the test of time. The Picture of Dorian Gray was recommended to me as a classic work of literature, and after reading it, I can now confirm that it is in fact a great piece of writing. The protagonist embodies the doctrine of aestheticism, the belief that art has no purpose other than purely beauty. Oscar Wilde’s novel illustrates so intricately that the ‘age of the celebrity’ has been a common thread running throughout history, and it is not a new concept. As I was reading the novel, I could imagine it taking place in the modern day. Dorian Gray is a timeless character, his fate the blueprint for people who chose self-satisfaction. The pertinence of the novel is part of the reason why I’ve chosen to do a review on The Picture of Dorian Gray – it can be picked up at any point in history and would still be thoroughly enjoyed. The novel depicts an impressionable young man who flippantly sells his soul for eternal youth. Neglecting the true pleasures of life to live a corrupt one instead, Dorian destroys the portrait out of remorse for his crimes. Although, ironically, he kills himself in the process. Dorian Gray’s portrait is the key symbol in the novel. Dorian Gray sacrifices his soul’s morality for eternal youth and beauty. His strong narcissism can only have detrimental consequences, which become obvious as you read the novel. Gray’s portrait presents the moral implications of his hedonism and his alarmingly dissolute Portrait of writer Oscar Wilde

behaviour. The portrait bears the burden of his shame, whilst Dorian remains handsome and youthful. At the beginning of the novel, Gray is depicted as an innocent man but grows susceptible to Lord Henry’s unscrupulousness. Lord Henry is a languid, idle man who ‘knows the price of everything and the value of nothing’, and his intellectual ramblings change Dorian’s mind about his own ideologies. Lord Henry warns Dorian Gray that his beauty will fade – influencing Dorian to exclaim that he would sell his soul for the painting to age while he remains youthful. I find this novel so interesting due to the crucial significance of the themes that remain prevalent in the 21st century: beauty and vanity in relation to morality. Oscar Wilde’s criticism of the doctrine of aestheticism is evident throughout the novel, transgressing past the idea that art is art only decorative by including complex characters. Oscar Wilde said of the novel: “Basil Hallward is what I think I am: Lord Henry what the world thinks me: Dorian what I would like to be – in other ages perhaps”. By relating each character to versions of himself, it helps to portray the characters (and humanity) as a cyclical pattern that’s relevance is preserved from the contemporary reader to the modern reader.

❝

Dorian Gray is a timeless character, his fate the blueprint for people who choose self-satisfaction

❝

As a teenager in the 21st century, I became sensitive to the comparable points from the plot with the current day. Among the rise of social media, influencers have the power to show the perfect ‘portrait’ of themselves. Likewise, Dorian hides his true portrait and masks his immorality and insecurity to remain beautiful in his youth. Dorian Gray’s portrait displays new physical imperfections every time he commits a dangerous action, nowadays this is similar to digital footprints. Individuals now are finding their reputations ruined due to posts on social media from their teenage years. Ultimately, we can alter our appearances, deceiving those around us to appear as the platonic version of ourselves. However, the expected answer remains the same – it is not worth it. The final impression left on the reader is: would you give away everything to appear a certain way? As I said before, this has, and will be a recurring question through literature and culture. Therefore, the novel will always have lasting relevance and artistic merit. n Find The Picture of Dorian Gray, by Oscar Wilde, in one of Bath’s independent bookshops: toppingbooks.co.uk; mrbsemporium.com 40 TheBATHMagazine

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FOOD | AND | DRINK

Compliments of the season

The UK’s spring season superstar crops don’t hang around for long; if you miss any of the produce in the spotlight here, says Melissa Blease, you’ll seriously miss out... and there’s no going back until next year. Just imagine a medley of roast asparagus, sautéed morels, steamed Jersey Royals and wilted spinach topped with a freshly poached egg...

Spinach Few vegetables scream ‘green!’ quite as loudly as spinach, and its uniquely distinctive flavour profile matches its attention-grabbing hue. One of the UK’s greatest green growing things is, of course, available all year round, and frozen spinach is one of our greatest quick-fix assets. But we can enjoy it at its sprightliest best from now until the end of June, when baby leaves are picked fresh from the nutrient-rich earth. Look for bright green leaves with a fresh smell and no hint of wilt, pick off any thick stems (there shouldn’t be many, on young spinach), give it a quick rinse and shake off all the excess water before sautéing, bearing in mind that spinach miraculously reduces to around a quarter of its volume when cooked, so too much at once is never enough. Added bonus, plus fun fact: spinach contains a wide range of vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients. Contrary to popular belief, however, it isn’t laden with iron; this myth began in 1870 when a German scientist accidentally moved a decimal point, giving spinach 10 times more iron than it actually contains. Take that, Popeye! Spinach

Jersey Royals When is a new potato not just a new potato? When it’s a Jersey Royal. Small, smooth and loosely dressed in a fragile, papery skin, these creamy white angels of the tuber family have a sweetly nutty, subtly earthy flavour, a delicate aroma redolent of freshly mown grass and are at their brightest best from now until July, with the peak of their season in mid-May. Roast them? Criminal! Fried? Don’t you dare! Simply boil or steam until tender and serve with a slick of melted butter, a cascade of salt and a sprinkling of fresh chives – potato paradise indeed.

Asparagus British asparagus season doesn’t officially begin until 23 April. But due to an unusually mild winter, an advance party of vivid green spears (all of which have to be harvested by hand when they reach the right height) of the UK’s most celebrated, indigenous icons arrived early this year. Asparagus will bring uniquely flavoursome elegance to any dish whether you use it raw (slice thinly or shave into salads), roasted, steamed, grilled, stir-fried or barbecued. It’s

Feta’s best friend, tastes marvellous with mint, loves to be bathed in Hollandaise, and makes a glorious addition to risottos, tarts and pasta dishes. Spoiled for choice? You have from now until around the end of June to create asparagus alchemy.

Morels Many chefs consider the highly revered Morel to be the King of Mushrooms – and it’s easy to see why: earthy, nutty and uniquely fragrant with a honeycombed head and a thick, creamy coloured trunk, Morels look as special as they taste. But this lesser-spotted fungi has a very short season: six weeks if we’re lucky, from midApril to late May. Morels come with another warning, too: they must never be eaten raw as they contain a seriously nasty toxin called hydrazine. But, once cleaned (use a vegetable brush and treat them to a brief salt water soak) and cooked, the hazard lights are off. To experience full-on Morel magic, simply sauté them in hot oil and butter, season well and serve hot, on toast.steamed, grilled, stir-fried or barbecued.

Jersey Royals

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Asparagus

Wild Garlic One of the UK’s most overlooked seasonal treasures is growing freely (literally) in a hedgerow near you from now until very early summer. It grows plentifully in and around areas of mature woodland, and is especially abundant around Bath. At first glance, it’s easy to mistake the clusters of tiny white, star-shaped flowers for some variation on snowdrops, but close up, you’ll notice slender, spear-shaped, vivid green leaves and a pungent, garlicky aroma that belies the milder flavour of the plant itself. Pick the leaves (and the flowers, to use as an interesting garnish), rinse them and use raw to add a subtle garlicky backdrop to salads, risottos and wilted spring greens, or chop finely and sprinkle over warm pizzas, hot soup, pasta/gnocchi sauces or an omelette. Wild garlic also makes a lovely pesto (processed with olive oil, pine nuts or walnuts and parmesan cheese), loves lamb, is fabulous with creamy mushrooms on toast and has a natural affinity with spring onion mash.

Wild garlic

Rhubarb Let’s get ready to crumble! Outdoor-grown rhubarb – thicker stemmed than its forced cousin, and brighter red in colour – thrives from now until around the end of June. It's easy to stalk the good stuff: just be sure to select bunches with firm, unblemished, snappable stalks, and off you go. But beware! Never, ever eat rhubarb leaves: they contain high levels of oxalic acid (poisonous to both people and animals) so dispose of them immediately. To poach rhubarb, simply rinse, trim, chop and tip into a suitably sized pan with a sprinkling of caster sugar and a splash of water and simmer (partially covered) until soft. Roasting, meanwhile, brings a jammy, rich intensity to the rhubarb party: toss your prepped stalks with caster sugar, tip onto a baking tray (in a single layer), cover with foil and roast in a medium-hot oven for 15 minutes before shaking it all about, removing the foil and roasting for a further 5–10 minutes until the rhubarb is tender and the juices have turned syrupy. n THEBATHMAG.CO.UK

jAnuArY 2010

Rhubarb

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BEAUTY | SPECIAL

beauty NOTEBOOK

HOURGLASS Unlocked Instant Extensions Mascara £29.00 The look of lash extensions in an instant. The Unlocked Mascara by Hourglass is the ultimate formula for when more is more: more definition, more lift and more length to transform lashes with impossibly real results. Using filmforming technology, it coats each lash in lightweight fibres that lock in place for a high-impact, fanned-out finish and smudge-proof wear. For effortless removal, the tube-like film slides off with warm water.

MARC JACOBS BEAUTY Magic Marc'er Precision Pen Waterproof Liquid Eyeliner Marc Jacobs’ Magic Marc'er Precision Pen Waterproof Liquid Eyeliner features a calligraphy-inspired proprietary capillary system that draws thick and thin lines for accentuating the lash line or building a bolder look.

LAURA MERCIER Caviar Eye Stick Colour £25.00

In the eye of the beholder MARC JACOBS BEAUTY Highliner Matte Gel Eye Crayon Eyeliner £21.00 Matte-not-flat. Extreme colour. Waterproof. A gel eye crayon for a bold, matte finish. Experience the intense colour payoff, amazing glide and 12-hour wear of Marc Jacobs' original award-winning Highliner Gel Eye Crayon Eyeliner—now re-envisioned in a bold, matte finish.

From smokey to sultry and colourful to subtle, our handpicked eye makeup edit has everything needed for a transformation. Perfect brows using a soft sculpting pencil, create luxuriously full lashes with a thickening mascara or add polish with a shimmering eyeshadow palette. With beloved brands such as Hourglass , Tom Ford and Fenty, the perfect eyeliner flick is moments away. All products featured are available from the ground floor beauty hall at Harvey Nichols Bristol and online at harveynichols.com

NARS Euphoria Face Palette £56.00 Glow to another dimension with the Euphoria Face Palette from NARS. Turn skin on with a limited-edition palette of eight eyeshadows in a range of satin, matte, and glittering finishes, with three glistening shades of highlighter. Build and blend your way to an irresistible sheen that catches light from every angle.

FENTY BEAUTY Brow MVP £17.00 An ultra-fine, retractable brow pencil made for hairlike precision, born in a ground-breaking range of 14 longwear, waterproof, smudge-resistant shades – plus a built-in paddle brush for effortless blending and styling.

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Laura Mercier's versatile Caviar Eye Stick Colour delivers effortless application, high-impact colour and up to 12-hour wear. Pigment-rich shades—nudes to deeps, shimmer and matte finishes—glide seamlessly onto lids. Creamy formula gives you plenty of time to smudge, blend, line, fill or define, so it's easy to create any look. Sets for crease and transfer-resistant wear and layers easily over or under other eyeshadows (including powder).

TOM FORD Eye Colour Quad £68.00 Four coordinated eyeshadows in sparkling to matte finishes designed to create soft to bold iconic Tom Ford eyes. Formulated with advanced colour processes, the four luxurious finishes—sheer sparkle, satin, shimmer and matte—offer a spectrum of intensity and effects and deliver incredible shade fidelity and outstanding adhesion.

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ADVERTISEMENT FEATURE

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worked for many years in events and marketing which was very stressful. My diet was poor, I lived off ready meals, pastries, crisps and coffee. I had suffered longterm with IBS, eczema and adult acne after coming off the pill for 15 years. I was run down and kept getting ill all the time. After countless trips to the GP and fruitless medical testing to get to the bottom of it all, I was so confused and upset as to why my body was completely out of sync. I’d finally met my tipping point. From then on, I decided to start taking my health into my own hands and exploring ways to improve my symptoms. I was sure that my poor diet and prolonged hormonal contraception were not good for my body and wanted to make changes to my diet and lifestyle. Whilst talking to a friend, the topic of nutrition came up and it really resonated with me. There I was, struggling to enjoy full health and stumbling across Naturopathic Nutrition was like an epiphany moment. I could get to the root cause of

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my symptoms, and improve my health through food; a win-win! I went on to research different functional medicine degrees and realised none of them had any real-life clinical experience. CNM’s 200 clinical hours meant I would be confident in my own practice as soon as I graduated. It was a huge bonus to have so much real life clinical experience rather than just academic learning and case studies. Nutrition has changed my life in every way possible. I think, feel, look and sleep better and I am constantly rewarded when I am able to help those around me to live a better life. Whether you are interested in learning more about nutrition and health for yourself, to help someone you know, or even to become a practitioner, studying with CNM is one of the greatest experiences you'll ever have. The knowledge you gain is invaluable and the ability to help others is everlasting.

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MAY 2021

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BOOKISH | EVENTS

Events with books

Here is a selection of books that are taking centre stage at The Bath Festival from 17–24 May. From Napoleon and Elizabeth Barrett Browning to palliative care and teenage memoir, go along (booking advised), and consider your next read Breathtaking: Inside the NHS in a time of pandemic by Dr Rachel Clarke Sat 22 May, 11am Bath Forum Rachel Clarke is a bestselling author (Dear Life: A Doctor’s Story of Love, Loss and Consolation), health campaigner and palliative care doctor. Her new book Breathtaking is an unflinching insider’s account of medicine in the time of coronavirus. Rachel talks to Max Porter about how it feels to confront a pandemic from the inside, witnessing death on an unprecedented scale, coping with the uncertainty of whether your protective equipment is up to the job and dealing with the inadequacies of the government response. But, amid all the tough questions, this event will also consider the courage of patients and NHS staff alike, people who rose to their best upon facing the worst. This is a searing account and one critical for our times. For this event, Bath Festivals are offering a 10% discount for NHS workers. Little Brown, £16.99 Napoleon: A Life in Gardens and Shadows by Ruth Scurr Thurs 20 May, 5pm, Assembly Rooms Historian, award-winning biographer and literary critic Ruth Scurr’s new book is a revelatory portrait of Napoleon, written to mark the 200th anniversary of his death, showing him as both an emperor hunting for glory and an old man in a straw hat, leaning on his spade. Ruth talks to Caroline Sanderson about Napoleon’s love of nature and the gardens which gave his revolutionary life its light and shade, Napoleon’s gardens range from his childhood olive groves in Corsica, to Josephine’s gardens and menageries in Paris, to the walled garden of Hougoumont at the battle of Waterloo, and ultimately to his final garden in exile on St Helena. Come and gain fascinating insight into the domineering world leader’s peaceful pastime. Chatto & Windus, £30

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A Net For Small Fishes by Lucy Jago, Thurs 20 May, 10.30am, Assembly Rooms A Net for Small Fishes is historical fiction at its most lavish, based on a real-life scandal involving Frances Howard, wife of the powerful Earl of Essex and Anne Turner, her dresser, which rocked the Jacobean court. It’s a novel about power, sexuality and female friendship, about #MeToo four centuries ago. Former TV producer and awardwinning biographer Lucy Jago talks to Caroline Sanderson about the gender politics of the 1600s, the fashion for cross-dressing, wearing one’s wealth, divorce among the aristocracy, the devilment of women, necromancers, perfumes and poisons. “Sumptuous … If you’re feeling bereft after finishing The Mirror and the Light, let Jago transport you back to the Jacobean court” The Telegraph. Bloomsbury Publishing, £16.99 Two Way Mirror: The Life of Elizabeth Barrett Browning by Fiona Sampson, Sun 23 May, 1pm, Assembly Rooms Most of us know so little about the woman acclaimed as Britain’s greatest female poet. Yet she topped a BBC poll to find the nation’s favourite poem, How do I love thee? Let me count the ways, No.43 Songs from the Portuguese. Fiona Sampson, award-winning poet, broadcaster, critic and author of Two-Way Mirror: The Life of Elizabeth Barrett Browning, takes us behind the romance of her extraordinary life to show a thoroughly modern figure, who remains an electrifying study in self-invention. Elizabeth was born in 1806, a time when women could neither attend university nor vote, and yet she achieved lasting literary fame, inspiring writers from Emily Dickinson to George Eliot and Virginia Woolf. She gained notoriety after going against her despotic father’s wishes and running away to secretly marry fellow poet Robert Browning. This event will hold up a mirror to the woman, her art and the art of biography itself. The event is sponsored by Kingswood School. Viking, £18.99 Sometimes in Bath by Charles Nevin, 22 May, 2pm, Assembly Rooms Join award-winning journalist, columnist and author Charles Nevin as he takes us on a captivating story-tour though our elegant and intriguing city. All the Bath characters through the years are there. Beau Nash, Old King Bladud, a young Horatio Nelson, Jane Austen’s Mr Bennet, the Emperor Haile Selassie and many more personalities come to life in stories that chart the history of Britain’s oldest resort and premier purveyor of health, happiness and romance.

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BOOKISH | EVENTS

shotgun-wielding farmers, successfully dodging arranged marriages, getting mugged, having front row seats to race riots and achieving formative sexual experiences doing stomach crunches in a gym. However, with a GCSE pass rate of 30% at his school, his own fair share of family tragedy around the corner and 9/11 on the horizon, Tez’s experiences of growing up as a British Muslim wasn’t the fun, Jihad-pursuing affair the media wants us to believe. Well… not always. Sphere, £16.99

This event is guaranteed to be packed full of fascinating facts and anecdotes; including the architect John Wood’s theories about magic and druids, the origin of the Bath Bun and the truth behind John Betjeman’s famous poem, In a Bath Teashop. He talks to Marion Milne. Book Guild Publishing Ltd, £8.99 The Secret Diary of a British Muslim Aged 13¾ by Tez Ilyas 20 May, 8pm, Assembly Rooms You may know and love comedian Tez Ilyas from his stand-up shows, his role as Eight in Man Like Mobeen, his Radio 4 series TEZ Talks, or panel shows such as Mock the Week and The Last Leg. Where you won’t know him from is 1997 when he was 13¾ years old. The Secret Diary of a British Muslim Aged 13¾ is his hilarious and searingly sad teenage memoir covering experiences including running away from

Dark Water by Stuart Turton 19 May, 7.30–8.30pm, Assembly Rooms The Sunday Times bestselling author Stuart Turton talks to Natasha Pulley about his audacious second novel, The Devil and the Dark Water, chosen as a Book of the Year by The Guardian, The Sunday Times and The Financial Times. The year is 1634 and Samuel Pipps, the world’s greatest detective, is being transported to Amsterdam to be tried for a crime he may, or may not, have committed. This book is inventive and beguiling, with heroes, villains, twists and turns galore and follows on from the huge success of his dazzling debut novel, The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle which won the Costa First Novel Award in 2018. Bloomsbury Publishing, £16.99 n For all events book online: bathfestivals.org.uk

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The Three-Hundred-Year Dig Peter Davenport has spent 40 years working as an archaeologist in and around Bath and has been involved in some of the most important excavations this city has seen. In his latest book, Roman Bath, he explains how our understanding of the Roman period has been greatly improved thanks to new technology, techniques, and planning regulations. Millie Bruce-Watt speaks to Davenport about the extraordinary revelations of the last four decades

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ARCHAEOLOGY | BOOKS

he Roman city of Aquae Sulis, known today as the city of Bath, was once the shrine of Sulis Minerva. Sulis, the Celtic goddess of healing and sacred water, was conflated with the Roman goddess, Minerva, the goddess of wisdom, which led to the city’s Roman name. The urban settlement of Aquae Sulis emerged in the first few decades of Roman Britain and was home to the only hot spring in the British Isles. For the next 400 years, the spring-fed baths and the temple were in constant use by locals and visitors alike. However, less than a century after the collapse of the Roman empire, the city was in ruin.

Early discoveries Fast forward to 1727. A group of workers discovered a gilded bronze head of Minerva while digging a sewer trench along Stall Street. This discovery kickstarted what has been coined the “threehundred-year dig”, with archaeologists working tirelessly to uncover and understand the city that lay deep beneath our own. In 1980, Peter Davenport was brought to Bath by his professor, Barry Cunliffe. Cunliffe was Professor of European Prehistory at Oxford and director of the Bath Archaeological Trust. In 1985, Davenport and Cunliffe wrote a book about their work excavating the temple precinct lying beneath the Pump Room and exploring the nearby sacred spring. Together they published the spectacular results in their book The Temple of Sulis Minerva at Bath (1985). In the near 40 years following the temple excavation, Davenport has continued to play an active role in the archaeology of Bath and worked as the senior archaeologist at Bath Archaeological Trust up until its closure in 2005. “We did just about every excavation in Bath in that period,” he says.

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The end of Roman Britain is a fascinating period because we know so little about it. Archaeology is probably the only way we’re going to get it

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During Davenport’s career, a great deal has come to light, leading to new interpretations of how the Romans once lived. Cunliffe made his work and some later finds more available to the general reader and published the third edition of Roman Bath Discovered in 2000. Since then, however, several important excavations have taken place, along with some re-evaluation of older work, meaning an updated report was very much needed. New publication re-evaluating the findings This brings us to 2021. Davenport – now a semi-retired archaeologist – is set to publish his latest book, Roman Bath: A New History and Archaeology of Aquae Sulis, this month. He refers to the publication as the “latest interim report” in the “three-hundredyear dig”, a phrase originally coined by the manager of the Roman Baths and Pump Room, Stephen Clews, highlighting the fact that the discovery is a continuous process – one which will never be completed. “Archaeology is one of those things that goes out of date very quickly,” says Davenport. “But it continues to shape our ideas.” Throughout Roman Bath, Davenport eloquently tells the story of the town of Aquae Sulis and unpacks a series of new and surprising discoveries that have been made over the last forty years. He documents the most recent discoveries on Walcot Street and details the revelation that the Roman city where people worked, shopped and lived did not actually surround the baths, as previously thought. “The centre of Roman Bath was a monumental religious centre, full of grand buildings. The town where people lived was further out,” explains Davenport. “I think that completely changed our

understanding of what Roman Bath had been like.” Throughout this gripping read, Davenport details a whole host of astonishing discoveries from the last four decades. One notable study was conducted on the paving surrounding the Roman Baths themselves. Archaeologists realised that despite many millions of people entering the baths over the last 100 years – on average 1.3 million people a year – there has been little to no wear, only polish from people’s shoes. The paving, however, is heavily worn. As the Romans would have been barefoot while using the baths, this heavy wear indicates that the damage must have been caused after the collapse of the empire when people were walking around in heavy outdoor boots. “It’s another little hint that the Roman Baths were not being used as baths but were still in use for something else,” says Davenport. “There was still activity going on. We’re talking about the end of Roman Britain, we’re not talking about a desert with no people. There’s just a change, the Romans have gone, the administration has changed, the economy might have collapsed but people are still living. The end of Roman Britain is a fascinating period because we know so little about it. We have a few odd historical references and we know certain things happened but we don’t really understand the process. Archaeology is probably the only way we’re going to get it.” The last 30 years: technological insights The last 30 years, in particular, have seen an influx in new discoveries and updated information for many reasons, including the evolution of technology, the introduction of new techniques, and the change in planning regulations. Since the 1990s, there has been some sort of archaeological investigation almost every year. Just recently, on Bathwick Street, substantial Roman buildings and streets were discovered in an excavation under a new block of flats. “Much to everyone’s surprise, they found archaeology dating from quite early on in the Roman period. That was an area where we didn’t think that there would be what you might call ‘town’ and this was ‘town’,” says Davenport. “There's been a lot of work, not just in Britain but especially in Britain, in the last 30 years since the planning regulations changed in 1990. Excavation techniques are getting better, we’re still discovering new dating techniques and especially new technology,” he adds. “For example, up until 10–15 years ago it was sort of a guess as to what pottery was being used for. Now there’s technology which tells us what was being cooked or used in these pots because it leaves molecular traces in the fabric of the pottery. You can actually study it and say ‘well, they were boiling cabbage, they were cooking lamb’ – it’s quite astonishing.” With technology granting a more enhanced excavation and the safe digital storing of records, archaeologists have been able to question and revise the theories that have been suggested over the last three centuries. Davenport’s Roman Bath gives an extraordinary narration of the growth of our understanding; pays tribute to the many who have long laboured in severe conditions to explore and rescue the lost secrets of the ancient world; and poignantly passes on the torch to the next generation, who will undoubtedly further our knowledge of the Roman city buried beneath our feet. Ultimately, Davenport’s Roman Bath is a fascinating read packed full of remarkable revelations. Roman Bath; The History Press Ltd; set for publication in May. Available to buy from the Roman Baths Museum and available online. Peter Davenport wrote his last book Medieval Bath Uncovered in 2002. The book follows the reconstruction of the city around its convent and monastery and, later, its abbey.

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THE BATH FESTIVAL | BOOKS

Musing on museums Art historian and former director of the National Portrait Gallery Charles Saumarez Smith has written a fascinating book which explores the art museums of the world and is speaking in Bath on 19 May

hile our public galleries and museums have been closed during the pandemic, we’ve had plenty of time to reflect on our past experiences of viewing great works of art and on our intellectual and emotional response to art and to the buildings it is housed in. Consider for example, that the impact of the dramatic glass pyramid at the Louvre in Paris installed in the 1980s has on visitors may stay in their memories, just as much as perhaps as their first sight of the Mona Lisa, which is housed within its historic galleries. Being on the cusp of the re-opening of art museums in England (on 17 May) provides a good opportunity to consider how museums have changed over the past 100 years. And to speculate what future lies ahead for them. Charles Saumarez Smith is well placed to give a global overview of art museums, which he shares in The Art Museum in Modern Times, his very personal view of 42 museums from London to New York and from Margate to Shanghai. He has been a director of the National Portrait Gallery and of the National Gallery, chief executive of the Royal Academy of Arts and an educator in the field of the history of design. His book was published in March, but conceived long before the world pandemic.

Charles Saumarez Smith

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The Art Museum traces a radical shift over a century. Then art museums were housed in largely classically influenced buildings which set out to educate and instruct its visitors. At that time in the 1930s a new, bold approach to designing art museums saw more focus on creating buildings to display not just art from the past, but from the present. Saumarez Smith’s journey around the world showcases individual museums and their development. His chapter on museums for the millennium includes a section dedicated to the creation of Tate Modern – a disused power station beside the Thames – at the turn of the century. He quotes the philosophy of Nicholas Serota, then recently appointed director of the Tate Gallery, who believed: “our aim must be to generate a condition in which visitors can experience a sense of discovery in looking at particular paintings, sculptures or installations in a particular room at a particular moment, rather than find themselves standing on a conveyor belt of history.” Three important aspects of re-purposing the old power station into an international gallery for contemporary art were its impact on its rundown neighbourhood, the introduction of attractive parkland around it and the public spaces inside which would allow visitors room to circulate. No one could argue with the fact that the vast cavern of the Turbine Hall makes a dramatic space, and provides a setting for memorably huge installations, such as the great bronze spiders of Louise Bourgeois in 2000, or Ai Weiwei’s millions of tiny handcrafted porcelain Sunflower Seeds in 2010. As Saumarez Smith contemplates the key issues facing art museums he looks at how they might attract and engage new visitors, how they might get a greater diversity of visitors and make them more friendly for children, less elite and less hidebound. He also looks at museums as somewhere visitors can go to reflect, offering a place to retreat, to enlarge the human faculties through visual as well as cognitive experience. It is a paradox that we want our modern museums to be both marketplaces, with coffee and shops, while at the same time we expect them to be quiet cathedrals of contemplation. He also observes of the modern audience: “They do not want to be told what to think.” Chris Stephens, director of the Holburne Museum, which this year marks the 10th anniversary of its extension, commented: “Charles Saumarez Smith’s new book explores the development of the modern art museum, starting with the Museum of Modern Art that opened in New York in 1939 and culminating with the efflorescence

of new structures in China and the UEA, taking in the Centre Pompidou in Paris, the Getty Center in Los Angeles, Tate Modern in London and many others on the way. Among those larger, international stars he also mentions some of the smaller institutions that were part of the slew of new and refurbished museums that followed the introduction of the National Lottery in the UK. The book’s timing is fitting as several of them celebrate their 10th anniversary, including The Hepworth Wakefield and Turner Contemporary in Margate, just as the Holburne celebrates 10 years of its redevelopment. He charts the move from the museum as a place of teaching to one of aesthetic contemplation. The period has also, however, been marked by the increasing opening up of museums to as wide an audience as possible. The Victorians believed in the value of art and museums for individual and social wellbeing, as we do now, but they built grand structures, usually Palladian, which were approached up majestic flights of stairs to emphasise the importance of what lay within and to impress upon the visitor the privilege of the experience they were about to enjoy. The contrasting attitude now is best captured by the entrance to Tate Modern where the grand stairs have been replaced by a ramp which allows visitors to flow seamlessly from pavement to gallery. “It is a great journey from a world where access to art was a privilege to one where all of us working in museums seek to make creativity available to everyone without exception.” n Charles Saumaraz Smith will be in conversation with Chris Stephens, director of the Holburne Museum, Bath as part of The Bath Festival, on 19 May at 10.30am at the Assembly Rooms. Tickets from: thebathfestival.org.uk; 01225 463362. Chris Stephens is director of the Holburne Museum, Bath. He was curator of Modern British Art at Tate Britain from 2001–2017. The Art Museum in Modern Times by Charles Saumarez Smith, is published by Thames and Hudson.

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CITY | INTERIORS

The Turbine Hall in the Tate Modern oﬀers a spectacular space for sculpture and a sense of grand scale for visitors

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CITY | ARCHITECTURE

Protecting Cleveland Bridge

Cleveland Bridge, spanning the River Avon at Bathwick, was built as a toll bridge in 1826 on the site of a Roman ferry crossing, designed by Henry Goodridge to take the traffic of his day, horse-drawn vehicles and pedestrians. Now weakened by decades of heavy traffic, refurbishment works are starting to strengthen the bridge. But will this protect the elegant Grade II listed bridge from the heavy traffic that uses it? Or is the bridge’s position on a Primary Network road being considered above the need to protect it? Here we look at the history, the debate and hear some local perspectives. A history of Cleveland Bridge, by Kirsten Elliott

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The structure was one of great beauty – light yet strong, classical but modern

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Image © BathinTime

any of Bath’s traffic problems are caused by one simple fact – the old city was built in a huge bend in the River Avon, encircling the city on three sides. Although this necessitated several river crossings, most were either fords or ferries. For centuries, the only bridge was the Old Bridge on the south side. It was not until the early 18th century that Newton Bridge gave access from the south west to the north side of Bath. Even the addition of Pulteney Bridge in 1776 did not help, since it led only to Bathwick. Had William Johnstone Pulteney achieved his plans for what was known boldly as Bath New Town, the issues we face now with Cleveland Bridge would not exist. The Pulteney estate was intended as a grand entrance to the city, with Sydney Gardens at its heart, between Upper Great Pulteney Street and Great Pulteney Street. The planned route involved making a new turnpike road from Pulteney Bridge through Bathwick and Bathampton, to cross the river at Bathford. Almost immediately there were objections. Petitions – including one from the turnpikes commissioners who saw their income from road tolls about to disappear – were presented to the House of Commons, opposing the idea. They were successful. The route was refused. Travellers wishing to reach Bathwick from the north either had to go through the city or take the ferry, which crossed from what today is Bath Canoe Club’s jetty to the garden of Riparian House. However, in 1789 it was announced that “for the convenience of the Upper Town, a large and commodious ferry (lately launched) is kept opposite Walcot Parade.” So the usual ferry was not adequate for the crowds who flocked to the gardens. Yet it would be almost another 40 years before the bridge would be built, by which time Villa Gardens had long vanished under more building in Bathwick Street. These new developments made the construction of a bridge even more imperative. The landowner, the Earl of Darlington, was elevated to Marquis of Darlington in 1827, so negotiating to have this bridge built and opened that year may well have been by way of celebration – it certainly opened up the

estate to more traffic, and while it was not the grand entrance to the city that Pulteney had envisaged, it meant elegant traffic could avoid Walcot Street, with its shops and industries. The position of Cleveland Bridge had been suggested by Pulteney as early as 1805. Although Pulteney could not have known it, Roman finds began to be found in Bathwick. As work commenced on the bridge in the 1820s, more Roman remains turned up, and archaeologists now believe the site was that of the first bridge into the city, built by the Romans. At the very least, a Roman crossing lay just to the south of the site. The bridge’s architect Henry Edmund Goodridge was possibly influenced by these finds, designing severely classical toll-houses, in the then fashionable Greek Revival style. He also decided to use the latest in bridge technology – a cast iron single arch. The resulting structure was one of great beauty – light yet strong, classical but modern.

By the 20th century the bridge was seen as outdated. Firstly, it was a toll bridge, and secondly, it was not strong enough for motorised traffic. In 1929, it was strengthened by adding concrete reinforcements between the cast iron arches, and the tolls removed. Bath has a habit of ‘modernising’ structures in the name of progress and later finding out this was not such a good idea. If Brunel’s beautiful bridge over Pulteney Road had not been replaced in the 1970s with a hideous girder bridge, heavy lorries would not be able to go through Bathwick. If Cleveland Bridge had not been strengthened, only light traffic would be able to use it. Had William Pulteney been able to take his first route, none of this would have been necessary, nor would all the agonising over a link road across the Avon Valley.

The toll houses A toll house was included in the design of the bridge to charge users of the bridge for crossing. Goodridge installed four, one on each corner, to achieve symmetry in his neoclassical design. Each of these lodges had columns fronting onto the bridge, making them look like small ancient temples.

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The refurbishment of the bridge – statement from B&NES: “Although the bridge is almost 200 years old, and was originally built for pedestrians and horse-drawn carriages, it now carries around 17,000 vehicles a day, including coaches and heavy goods lorries weighing up to 44 tonnes. It forms part of the A36, a major strategic highway to the south coast. Without this river crossing, traffic would either need to route through the historic centre of Bath, along ancient streets which are protected by access and weight restrictions, or divert using roads to the east, costing motorists considerable time and fuel costs. From a heritage perspective, the bridge is a Grade II-listed structure that we have a legal duty to preserve appropriately. “Surveys have identified that *structural components of the bridge need to be maintained, repaired or replaced for it to continue to function safely. **The proposed refurbishment works would ensure the structural safety and integrity of the bridge, and would also preserve the heritage value of this listed structure. “These extensive repairs will be assisted by a grant from the Highways Maintenance Challenge Fund... This additional support

means that we will be able to carry out this major renovation project, without a dramatic effect on our funds available for more routine road maintenance throughout our region.”

The way forward for the bridge, by The Bath Magazine

them to agree to a permanent weight restriction on the bridge (see overleaf), further to representations from her ward. This motion was responded to by the Parliamentary Undersecretary Rachel Maclean, who said that “decisions about how Bath is best linked to the major destinations are for the relevant local Highway Authority to make.” She implied that the onus is on Wera Hobhouse and the Council’s Local Highway Authority to follow the DfT’s Guidelines by negotiating with neighbouring authorities. So there is provision for the alteration of this Primary Route, but negotiation is needed. So what are the barriers to this being done?

Observations on B&NES’ statement

• Repairs to the deck slabs (the foundation of the flat top of the carriageway)

* “Structural components of the bridge need to be maintained, repaired or replaced” – the plans approved cite the need for ‘strengthening’. This is a sore point, and key to arguments against the works.

• Repairs to the masonry abutments (stone supports)

** “The proposed refurbishment works would ensure the structural safety and integrity of the bridge” – this statement is misleading in that it omits the phrase ‘increased load-carrying capability’.

• The thickening of the Warren reinforced concrete trusses by 50mm *** • Repairs and repainting of the cast iron arches and parapets

Observations on the refurb work:

• Waterproofing to prevent future weather damage

*** The visual impact of thickening the concrete trusses will detract further from the curve of the beautiful arch.

The critical issue in the debate – and the one that has always dominated the conversation about the bridge – is that it is on a route that is part of the Primary Route network. Other local authorities, such as Wiltshire Council and Dorset Council, and the Highways Agency, who would need to agree to any weight restriction or other structural solutions, have taken the view that you can’t impose a permanent weight restriction on a Primary Route. But their stance is clearly to do with the transport system, not about protecting the bridge. Overleaf, we hear from Bath’s MP Wera Hobhouse and other locals. ➲ The concrete reinforcements under Cleveland Bridge

Image courtesy of bathnewseum.com

Refurbishment works, described as ‘essential repairs’, will soon be starting on Cleveland Bridge, funded by a £3.56 million grant from the Department of Transport, with the remaining £360,000 provided by B&NES. The work is being carried out by construction company Dyer and Butler. There is, however, considerable controversy about the planned works. Because of the bridge’s listed status, work can only repair and strengthen the deck and the concrete structure to operate for the situation at the time of its listing, circa 1950. A temporary weight restriction was put in place in February 2020, affecting heavy goods vehicles and larger coaches. This was organised ahead of the essential structural repairs as a precautionary measure, because surveys have shown that some structural parts of the bridge have come to the end of their life. The weight restriction of 18 tonnes, limited to 18 months, is due to revert back, not to 44 tonnes as it was previously, but to the new national limit of 48 tonnes in August this year, once the work is done. So put plainly, the plan is to strengthen the bridge and then allow heavy vehicles to continue crossing it. The motivation for this is clearly to keep the traffic flowing, and not to protect the listed bridge. Not everyone is in agreement with this strategy. Wera Hobhouse, the Liberal Democrat MP for Bath, in October last year brought a motion to Parliament asking for

The work taking place at Cleveland Bridge:

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The Cleveland Bridge permanent weight restriction debate in Parliament on 17 November 2020: Excerpts from Hansard Wera Hobhouse, Liberal Democrat MP for Bath: “Cleveland Bridge is a grade II listed structure. It forms part of the character of Bath’s UNESCO world heritage status. The protection of the city ... is of national importance, and it should not just be the citizens of Bath and the council ... called on to safeguard this treasure for future generations. “Cleveland Bridge links the north and the south of the city over the River Avon just a short walk from the city centre and is surrounded ... by listed architecture. Unfortunately, it is part of the Primary Road network and has to be open to all traffic. The bridge consists of 19thcentury ironwork with a 1920s concrete deck, but the weight of modern heavy goods vehicles is shaking the bridge to bits. Heavy traffic on the A36 and the alternative A350 has been a source of tension for many residents for many years. “...The challenge of a listed heritage asset is that you have to work with the structure as it is listed. You cannot replace the Victorian ironwork – because it is listed. You cannot replace the 1920s concrete deck – because it is listed. You can only repair and strengthen them, but they will never be stronger than when they were new, and when they were new, they were never expected to carry the very heavy vehicles that are being used today. The innovation of the bridge’s design, in both the early 19th and 20th centuries, is recognised in its listing, but those designs never envisaged that the bridge would be on a modern Primary Road network, with all that that entails. “Next year will see the very latest technology deployed to save the 1920s concrete structure. The danger is that bringing back the heaviest lorries will hasten the collapse of the deck, destroying the listed asset forever. With continuing heavy lorries, it is estimated that the current repairs may last for only 15 years. Therefore, without a permanent weight restriction, my concern is that while progress will be slow on an upgrade to the A350, Cleveland Bridge will again be in need of urgent, serious repairs very soon. We cannot let that happen. It is absolutely essential that we set a weight limit

that the bridge can sustain for the long term. “The Department for Transport has expressed its view that the A350, as the major north-south link, is a viable option, and in Bath neither I nor the Council would disagree. However, the Department for Transport has not done enough so far to create a consensus among councils and MPs in the Wiltshire constituencies to take this option forward to its final completion.”

Rachel Maclean, The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Transport “The West of England Combined Authority considers the repair of Cleveland Bridge ... as a priority. It sees Cleveland Bridge as a key structure in its regional network. As the hon. Member rightly said, issues on the structure have resulted in weight and speed restrictions, which the authority considers incur significant associated economic cost. Its view is that further restrictions will have an impact on safety, the economy and air quality, with higher carbon emissions. That is why the authority is very supportive of investment prioritisation for both these schemes. “Highways England [are] carrying out ... a strategic study that will review north-south connections between the M4 and the Dorset coast. That will include a review of the case for adopting the A350 corridor as the main strategic route for the area in place of the A36/A46 via Bath and will consider the case for the trunking or detrunking of key routes. So I hope I can reassure the hon. Lady that both Highways England and officials in the department will engage with the Western Gateway ... [and] with a range of local stakeholders as the study develops. I should add that decisions about how Bath is best linked to the major destinations are for the relevant local Highway Authority to make.” To read the full Hansard report, search ‘Hansard’ and ‘Cleveland Bridge’ in your internet browser

Peter Fellows

Lives on Bathwick Street “I live just metres away from Cleveland Bridge, and am on nodding terms with drivers sitting in traffic jams in Bathwick Street, when I venture upstairs from my basement flat. “Surely our beautiful Cleveland Bridge needs saving from heavy traffic with an enforced permanent weight limit. The council received funding of £3.5 million pounds from the government to temporarily renovate the bridge for perhaps 20 years. Once the renovation is completed, the temporary weight restrictions will be lifted, allowing heavy traffic to return; bringing about even more CAZ dosh into the council’s coffers. “The real answer is to complete the missing link at the Swainswick junction, where the A46 and A36 are in tandem. Perhaps a tunnel should be built beneath Bathampton Meadows to a point on the A36, beyond Bathampton and Limpley Stoke, or build a ‘unique’ suspension bridge instead of a tunnel. The alternative is to transport freight at night by rail! The citizens of Bath cannot be 56 TheBATHMagazine

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expected to tolerate heavy vehicles using the A4 and A36 through the city streets. “The current Cleveland Bridge temporary weight restriction has diminished heavy traffic and yet once the bridge is strengthened, I dare say congestion will return... “How can we protect the bridge? We should ensure there is no-access for heavy vehicles through Bath and across the Cleveland Bridge, which is situated on National Highway, the A36. Sat-navs should never be programmed to indicate the shortest route from the A46 through Bath is along the A4 to the A36 at Cleveland Place; along Bathwick Street to Sydney Gardens and onwards along Warminster Road (left), or Sydney Place and Pulteney Road (right). “Another thing that upsets me is the transportation of live animals along Bathwick Street in HGVs from the farms to the abattoirs. You can hear them squealing, bleating and lowing and smell the fear as those poor animals travel to their deaths, whilst stuck in a traffic jam on their final journey.”

Photograph by #BridgeBaddies

Voices from the city

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CITY | ARCHITECTURE

Photograph by #BridgeBaddies

“As soon as refurbishment works are finished in October, the council should find a way to impose heavy tolls for huge HGVs and lorries, so that the monument is protected and our environment is greener for our posterity” Cllr Dr Yukteshwar Kumar

Peter Hayes

Cllr Dr Yukteshwar Kumar

Sculptor who has a studio in one of the lodges

Sign Roy’s petition by going to change.org and searching on ‘Cleveland Bridge’

Local who has set up a petition for a permanent weight restriction on the bridge “The withdrawal of any weight limit means the immediate imposition of the new national default of 48 tonnes. Given that the need for these ‘repairs’ was caused by excessively heavy vehicles crossing the bridge, why now subject it to even heavier vehicles? “A 16-tonne weight limit would, undoubtedly, extend the working life of the bridge, and its elegant proportions (mask out the Warren trusses with your fingers as you look at its beautiful arch). “Removing the Primary Route (PR) designation from the A36, which crosses the bridge, would rid us of the throughtraffic problem at a stroke. The government initiative CAZ will hopefully curb local traffic excesses. However, council initiatives such as Low Traffic Neighbourhoods, Liveable Neighbourhoods, bollarded cycle lanes and eScooters are already causing more problems than they are likely to solve. “The council and our MP should put all their efforts into removing the PR designation. Everything else is merely rearranging the deckchairs on a Titanic-sized pollution problem, a distraction from the true cause of that problem, a cause they seem unwilling to deal with. “Protecting the listed bridge and solving Bath’s transport problems are not competing or mutually exclusive aims. By removing the A36’s Primary Route designation, we would see an instant improvement in both. The B&NES Planning Committee’s recent approval for the strengthening of the bridge was a huge mistake for our city. It will inevitably lead to the bridge’s rapid deterioration and, equally important, a rise in pollution, congestion and noise as those 48tonne HGVs crawl back over it and through our city streets. Not good for our UNESCO city’s heritage architecture, nor for our lungs.”

“I came to live in Bath in 1982 after a 10 year stint of working in Lesotho, Swaziland and Botswana. I was looking to set up a studio in Bath and eventually came across the Lodges on Cleveland Bridge. These were beautiful buildings but were in a state of significant disrepair. I approached the council with the suggestion that these lodges would make excellent starter units for artists. After some negotiation I acquired Number 2 and converted it into my working studio. “As an artist I find working from my studio on the bridge very inspirational, with the river in all its moods and the hustle and bustle of the Cleveland Bridge traffic. This historical landmark has been bruised and battered over the years and is in need of a major facelift. With the recent pandemic and the 18-tonne weight restriction, the bridge took on a serene status and I would love to see a permanent restriction, especially now we have the Clean Air Zone.”

“Cleveland Bridge is a Grade II* listed building and, like the Taj Mahal or the Great Wall of China, the residents and the council have a combined duty to protect this. I welcome the news of the refurbishment of the bridge, but we must work to ensure that the humongous HGVs and large lorries do not rape this monument on daily basis – thousands of times day and night. “We know that the bridge was built by the architect Henry Goodridge for horse-drawn vehicles and pedestrians and four toll houses were erected at all the corners, giving an appearance of small four ancient temples. We need to protect our ‘temple’ and as soon as refurbishment works are finished in October, the council should find a way to impose heavy tolls for huge HGVs and lorries, so that the monument is protected, and our environment is greener for our posterity.”

Another picture of the Cleveland Bridge...Just take a look at those wonderful toll booths which are gradually being chipped away by HGVs, for which we require a permanent weight restriction... Posted by Peter Fellows on Nextdoor neighbourhood app; nextdoor.co.uk

Photograph by #BridgeBaddies

Roy Carson

Liberal Democrat Councillor for Bathwick

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CITY | ENVIRONMENT

Ideas for changing the primary route David Andrews

Chair of Bath Trams; bathtrams.uk “I propose a slow bypass/link road connection from the Batheastern bypass to the Warminster Road. Most bypasses are expensive and unnecessarily upgraded compared to the roads they are connected to such as the pointlessly dual carriageway Batheastern bypass which is connected at both ends to single carriageways. Why not close one full lane of the Bathastern bypass and convert it into a long Park & Ride serviced by a tram? Also a small single carriageway tunnel under the railways and under the canal would connect to the Warminster Road, permitting car drivers from there also to park in the linear Park & Ride. It would connect at the Warminster Road by a traffic light system – not the gigantic roundabout that would normally be the case. Thus it is not designed to

speed up traffic through Bath but to make it take the same amount of time. Otherwise this would simply generate more traffic. An alternative would be to have have a a bridge over the river parallel to the existing railway arch at the Batheastern end of the bypass so vehicles accessing the Warminster Road from the bypass would pass under the existing railbridge presently leading to Bradford-on-Avon and Sally in the Wood, double back and cross the river in the new small bridge and run along parallel and close to to the railway on the the Bradford side of the trailway, again using a single carriageway. This could be screened by trees disguising it, and then as it approaches the rail spur to Bradford it tunnels under the trailway and under the canal. Again the intention is not to speed traffic as this will take the same amount of time as lorries going through Bath simply to get them out again. Photograph by #BridgeBaddies

Transport consultant “Having spent most of my life working with tunnels, from 1995 I started thinking about how we could address the A36 to A46 problem using some short lengths of tunnel. The roads south of Dry Arch and north of Swainswick are single carriageways so tunnels 11 metres wide with a 9-metre carriageway would work for the 1400m missing link. This link would not need a new river bridge – much of the Batheaston Bypass is on the south side of the river, connected by two new bridges originally intended to carry traffic that is still using Cleveland Bridge. “From 2008 a Bath Park and Ride East scheme was proposed, to be built on Bathampton Meadows between the newly built bypass and the river. Many of us objected strongly to this idea as it would have completely ruined the meadows. “The scheme I put forward between 2011 and 2015 was to use the ‘brown’ land of the old Bathampton Station to build a new subsurface car park linked to the A4 by a short tunnel under the railway and dual carriageway. By building the car park between the main line to London and the branch to Southampton we could also build a new station on the Southampton line for the ride into Bath, which would be four minutes to Southgate. “About a third of the traffic entering and leaving the city is from origins to the east, along the A4 and the A36. By linking these two roads at the P&R site, traffic from both

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❝ “Removing the Primary

Route designation from the A36, which crosses the bridge, would rid us of the through traffic problem at a stroke”

❝

Dorian Baker

routes could reach this new P&R station. “From its junction on to the Batheaston Bypass, the first length of the link road would be in a covered way for about 360 metres under the main line railway, through the car park, under the Southampton line, then beginning to rise at a gradient of 1 in 20. Continuing at 1 in 20, the next 480m would be at about existing ground level, then a 250 metre ‘cut and cover’ tunnel to Dry Arch corner, at a low level. South of this corner the existing road slopes quite steeply so the final length in a 270m ‘driven’ tunnel avoids the 13-metre rise up to Dry Arch before starting to drop down into the valley. Out of 1400m, 880m in tunnel. “By putting the two transport objectives together and building as much as possible of the new infrastructure below ground level, we could reduce the total environmental

impacts of the scheme and remove all northsouth through traffic from Cleveland Bridge. “The coup de grace would then be to get the Department for Transport to remove Cleveland Bridge from the primary road network and empower B&NES to set a permanent weight limit that is as low as we like.” n With many thanks to #BridgeBaddies for permission to use their images

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CITY | NEWS

CITYNEWS It’s almost a year since work was paused on the Stadium for Bath project and Bath Rugby has used the opportunity to reflect on the work undertaken. Lewis Hancock, Bath Rugby’s communications manager, says, “Bath Rugby is still committed to the Rec and to the city. Our desire to make a valuable and responsible contribution to the city is undiminished. “The raising of the pitch in previous designs created the space for a public car park. We have now identified a design solution to mitigate long-term challenges relating to flood risks and the water table which do not require the full raising of the pitch. We no longer believe it is appropriate to base the sustainability of the stadium and the club on car parking. We will therefore not be including an under-pitch car park in future proposals for redevelopment at the Rec. “The club has been granted leave on all grounds of appeal in relation to a recent judgment regarding the 1922 Covenants. The appeal hearing is due to be heard in Autumn 2021. “In the meantime, the club will continue to operate its temporary stadium facilities at the Rec ... and we will continue to consider solutions for an appropriate design at the Rec, which must also be financially sustainable. We recognise the support from so many people across Bath for this project, and we are hugely appreciative.” bathrugby.com

RUGBY REFLECTIONS

RAISE YOUR GLASSES Plate, Bathwick’s Restaurant and Bar at The Bird are hosting a Supper Club on Thursday 8 July in partnership with Champagne Taittinger. Diners will enjoy a celebratory feast of locally inspired dishes paired with a fizzy flight of some of the finest drops by Champagne Taittinger. thebirdbath.co.uk/food-drink/plate

ON YOUR BIKE Peloton, the global interactive fitness platform that revolutionised the fitness industry, has opened its latest showroom in Bath in SouthGate Bath on St Lawrence Street. Peloton brings the energy and benefits of studio-style workouts to the convenience and comfort of home. With thousands of classes across a variety of disciplines, Peloton delivers real-time motivation and curated playlists from the world’s best artists. In the UK, the brand’s immersive content is accessible through the Peloton Bike, the Peloton Bike+, the Peloton Tread and the Peloton App. Peloton’s showroom will provide consumers with the chance to experience the suite of connected fitness products. Set over two floors, the space will incorporate five private trial rooms, as well as a main area set up for personalised demonstrations. The team will be available for virtual appointments, where customers can ask questions. Appointments are bookable online. onepeloton.co.uk/showrooms

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NEW DEER AT THE ZOO A critically endangered deer fawn has been born at Longleat as part of an international captive breeding programme. Père David’s deer are originally from China and at one time there were only 18 left in the world. The fawn is the first to be born at the Wiltshire safari park this year and delighted keepers say it is doing well. “Père David’s deer is a prime example of the importance of captive breeding programmes run by zoos and safari parks–- without which it would almost certainly have become extinct,” said keeper Ian Turner. The species is named after the French Jesuit missionary and naturalist, Père Armand David who first spotted it in 1865 in the grounds of an Imperial Park near Beijing. In 1986, 39 Père David’s deer, including four bred at Longleat, were released into the DaFeng Milu reserve near Beijing. Today there are more than 2,000 in the wild in China and an estimated 8,000 worldwide, making it one of the most successful reintroduction programmes ever. longleat.co.uk

GOOD OLD GREEN EGG On 17 May, Homewood, Bath – a new member of Small Luxury Hotels of The World – will launch a unique ‘Big Green Egg’ barbecue dining experience. A three-course lunch or dinner may be hosted in its new dining domes, which sit nestled in the tree line of the hotel’s grounds, with uninterrupted views across the gardens. Some of the many treats include a glass of Taittinger Champagne and mezze boards on arrival; a nominated member of the group to take on the ‘Head Chef’ role, finishing grilling the main course; and a classic British summertime dessert in The Tandem Trifle, with its blend of sherry, custard, fresh cream and colourful fresh fruit. Champagne Afternoon Tea will also be available in the Domes daily, with a decadent menu including blue cheese and chestnut quiche and homemade carrot cake with orange and cream cheese frosting. The new Big Green Egg Experience is available at Homewood, Bath seven days a week, with lunch from 12–3pm, Afternoon Tea from 4–6pm; and Dinner from 7–10pm. This starts from £50 per person for lunch. homewoodbath.co.uk

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ocl A C C O U N TA N C Y

141 Englishcombe Lane, Bath BA2 2EL Tel: 01225 445507

www.oclaccountancy.com

How can I help a family member diagnosed with Dementia manage their affairs?

Businesses can obtain tax benefits if they switch to electric cars In light of the government’s aim to cease the sale of petrol and diesel cars by 2030, there are still perks to be had should your business wish to switch its existing fleet of vehicles to electric. For the income tax year 2020/21 the taxable benefit for directors of limited companies and their employees who drove fully electric cars was 0%, for 2021/22 (current tax year) this is now 1% and for 2022/23 (next tax year) this is 2% If for example a company purchases a Jaguar I-pace with a list price of £70,000 (292-mile battery range) the benefit in kind for 2020/21 was £0, for 2021/22 it will be £700 and for 2022/23 it will be £1,400. It was confirmed in the March 2020 budget that the 2% benefit in kind rate for 2022/23 would be extended for 2023/24 and 2024/25. Other benefits of investing in electric cars include 100% capital allowances on the initial car purchase and 100% capital allowances on the installation of charging points. To qualify for 100% capital allowances the car must be purchased new (i.e. factory fresh with only a very limited delivery/demo mileage). To enable 100% capital allowances to be claimed on charging points these must be new and unused and be installed at or near an employer’s workplace. There is additionally no fuel benefit where the employer pays for the cost of charging an electric vehicle, because for car benefit purposes electricity is not classified as a fuel. Where an employee doesn’t have an employer provided car (i.e. they use their own car for work) were the employer to pay for the installation of a charging point at the employee’s home the installation will attract an annual taxable benefit in kind based on 20% of the market value of the installation. Should an employee travel on business in their company provided car and need to charge the car the employer can reimburse the employee at the rate of 4p per mile per business journey. Where an employee uses their own electric car for business journeys an employer can reimburse the employee 45p for the first 10,000 business miles travelled and 25p for each business mileage travelled thereafter. .

For tax saving tips contact us – call Marie Sheldrake, Tom Hulett or Mike Wilcox on 01225 445507

To assist someone with their affairs (whether related to their finances or to health matters), you must hold the legal powers to do so. The route you will need to take will depend on the mental capacity of the person you are seeking to help. A Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) A Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) is a legal document that allows the donor (the person making the LPA) to choose another individual or individuals (attorney/s) to make decisions on their behalf about their property and financial affairs and/or their health and welfare, at a time when they are no longer able to make those decisions themselves. In order to enter into an LPA, the donor must have the mental capacity to do so. A diagnosis of Dementia does not automatically mean that the person concerned does not have the mental capacity but it does mean is that time is of the essence and you need to act now. If necessary, confirmation of capacity should be determined by a medical practitioner in the first instance. Should the person concerned have the required mental capacity, there are two types of LPA which can be made: Property & Financial Affairs and Health & Welfare. Loss of mental capacity If it has been confirmed that your family member does not have the mental capacity to enter into an LPA, then an application to the Court of Protection will need to be made on their behalf to appoint a Deputy. A Deputy is a person (or person’s) appointed by the Court of Protection to manage the affairs of an individual who lacks the mental capacity to do so themselves. The Deputy is usually a friend or relative but in some circumstances, it could be a professional such as a solicitor or an accountant. It is important to highlight that families should not wait for a diagnosis to act but instead start the conversation today and put in place LPA’s now and have the peace of mind that your family are ready and able to manage your affairs. If you would like to learn more about putting an LPA in place or appointing a deputy, please get in touch with Kate Norris on 01225 750 000 or email kate.norris@mogersdrewett.com.

Call Marie Sheldrake, Tom Hulett or Mike Wilcox on 01225 445507 to arrange a no-obligation meeting

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EDUCATION

EDUCATION NEWS NEW CHAPLAIN

NATURE CHALLENGE

Kingswood has announced the appointment of Katy Thomas as Chaplain to the Kingswood Foundation. Following in the footsteps of John Wesley himself, Katy will be promoting the school’s ethos of ‘do all the good you can, in all the ways you can’. From September, Katy will lead the school’s worship and play an important role in its pastoral life and in the wider community. Headmaster and principal of the Kingswood Foundation, Andrew GordonBrown says, “I am both excited and confident that Katy will draw on her vast pastoral and educational experience to lead the work of the chaplaincy and to support and enrich the life of our community. Katy is a deeply spiritual person whose role is central in our efforts to nudge our boys and girls to take up John Wesley’s challenge to “Do all the good you can…” Katy will take up residence at Kingswood over the summer holidays. kingswood.bath.sch.uk

Residents across Bath and North East Somerset are being urged to take part in this year’s City Nature Challenge by recording all the nature and wildlife they can find over the May Day Bank Holiday weekend. The annual global event is a chance for people to contribute to a worldwide study of trees, plants and wildlife to help shape conservation efforts and support scientific research. This year’s challenge takes place between Friday 30 April and Monday 3 May. Councillor Paul Crossley said: “Accurate information of what wildlife is on the increase and what is in decline is an important tool in helping to tackle the ecological emergency. Records suggest some worrying trends with the numbers of some species falling sharply over the last 20 years. Other species like the Marsh Fritillary butterfly, have recently been rediscovered so this type of citizen science research is an effective way for people to have a big impact. Anyone can get involved and

MATHS COMP FINAL Four Year 12 pupils at KES have reached the finals of an international maths competition. Jack Garrard, Filip Oczko, Max Smith and Carl Willis are one of the six teams to reach the finals of the M3 Challenge. The boys competed against 535 teams from the UK and America. “The students have powered the whole project – I was thrilled with the quality of the paper they produced,” said team coach and KES Maths teacher Mr Davies. The boys researched the competition, organised meetings and produced their mathematical model completely independently. This year, the M3 Challenge gave teams 14 hours to mathematically model a solution to the inequality of internet access around the globe. Among other things, teams were asked to consider the needs of different people, the changing cost of connectivity and the distribution of cellular nodes. In reaching the finals, the boys are awarded US $1,000 in scholarship money to help fund University tuition. First-place in the M3 Challenge wins $20,000 for each team member. kesbath.com 62 TheBATHMagazine

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ASPIRING LEADERS

you don’t need to be a wildlife expert; you can search your garden, street, local park, school grounds or carry out your observations as you stroll along footpaths in our wonderful countryside. Join in the City Nature Challenge by downloading the iNaturalist app, taking a photo and recording what you see. The app will help you identify a species, so you don’t have to be an expert to take part. See it, snap it, share it – it’s that simple. newsroom.bathnes.gov.uk

Graduation Cohort 2017

Across the private, public and not-for-profit sectors, today’s leaders are facing the most challenging operating circumstances for generations. In this landscape of global uncertainty, leaner workforces, budget cuts, and reliance upon digital communications and the competencies needed to lead organisations successfully have shifted. Leaders now need to be skilled at crisis management, dealing with uncertainty and high-level strategic leadership. Due to the continued success of the School of Management’s part-time Executive Masters in Strategy Change and Leadership, the University of Bristol is now taking applications for its ninth cohort in September 2021. This challenging and rewarding programme is designed for those aspiring to, or holding senior manager and leadership positions and will fit around the demands of a busy, professional leadership role. This bespoke master's degree in Strategy, Change and Leadership is aimed at providing senior managers with the tools and techniques they need to navigate their organisations through demanding times. By attending the programme, you will learn how to improve your ability to manage change and uncertainty; increase your leadership impact; understand organisational complexity and issues affecting success; make better choices about growth and strategic direction. Programme Director Helen Ballard says: “I am delighted to be recruiting our ninth cohort of executive students to this successful and practical master’s programme. Excellent leadership is critical in this challenging climate, and organisations recognise the importance of developing their management talent in such uncertain times. This practical master's degree will offer a return on investment from day one.” If you would like to have a chat about the programme or to attend the next webinar on 8 June 6pm–7pm, please contact Cheralyn Dark, Programme Manager by phone or email: 01179 546694; mgmt-scl@bristol.ac.uk. To find out more or to apply for September 2021 entry, visit: Helen Ballard bristol.ac.uk/strategy-change-leadership

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Andrew Swift May.qxp_Layout 1 21/04/2021 15:47 Page 1

THE | WALK

A walk along the Chew Valley

Pensford Viaduct

This month Andrew Swift guides us through a delightful feature-packed walk, taking in five villages along the River Chew, with magnificent structures, ancient standing stone monuments and some spectacular scenery as you go

uch of this eight-mile walk follows the course of the River Chew, along with a couple of its tributaries. En route, it takes in two monumental structures, firstly Pensford Viaduct, 303m long, 29m high, opened in 1873 to link Bristol with Radstock, but disused since 1968. The second is the stone circles at Stanton Drew, around 4,500 years old, which, though less spectacular than those at Stonehenge and Avebury, have long been held by many – including the architect John Wood, who made the first survey of them in 1749 – to be just as important. It also passes through five villages – Chew Magna, Pensford, Stanton Drew, and the two Nortons, Norton Hawkfield and Norton Malreward, named after the Norman knights, Thomas de Hauteville and Geoffrey Malruarde. who established them. Even better, it lies through unspoilt countryside, follows wellwaymarked paths, encounters no stiles and, when I walked it on Easter Monday, no livestock either. There is one steep downhill section and one tricky road crossing, but – with the proviso that parts of it can turn muddy during wet weather – it is otherwise straightforward. It starts in Chew Magna, 14 miles west of Bath, where there is a free car park next to the Pelican pub in the centre of the village (BS40 8SL; ST576631). Turn left out of the car park, cross by the Bear & Swan, head along a side street, turn right along Silver Street and follow it through the village, 64 THeBATHMagazine

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ignoring turnings to left and right. After 500m, when you come to a T junction, turn left uphill (ST579633). After 400m, when the lane swings right, follow a byway straight ahead. After another 750m, when you come to two gates ahead, go through the one on the right and continue alongside the hedgerow (ST581645). After 150m go through a kissing gate (KG) and head across a large field in the direction of the waymark. On the far side are two metal gates. Go through the one on the left and after a few metres turn right through a KG. Head down to the right of a pond and carry on through a KG. Head across a field, go through a KG in the hedge on the left and bear right towards a KG leading onto a lane (ST585654). Turn right and immediately right again through another KG. After going through a KG and a gated footbridge, turn left alongside a stream. Carry on through a series of KGs and footbridges for 500m before recrossing the stream and following a broad path. When you come to a lane, head up the track opposite (ST592648). This is the village of Norton Hawkfield, which lost its church over 450 years ago and has slumbered in obscurity ever since. Turn left when you come to a T junction and after 25m go through a KG on the right into a farmyard. Look out for a telegraph pole festooned with horseshoes as you head across to the left of the farmhouse, before turning right through a gate along a stony track. After 350m, just past a bench

commanding a view eastward, follow the track as it turns left. Ahead lie the ramparts of Maes Knoll, an Iron Age hillfort, with Norton Court nestling below. Carry on through a KG and just past it turn right to follow a track between horse chestnuts and a lonesome pine. When you come to a KG, go through it, turn right along a rough track and left at the road (ST600649). After 75m, climb steps to a KG on the right and head towards Norton Malreward church. After going through two KGs, turn right through a third and left along a track. Follow it as it bears right across an airstrip and carry on for 800m, at the end of which a handgate leads down a steep track, which may be slippery when wet. At the bottom, you have to turn left along a road for a few metres before crossing to a KG (ST610642). The road is narrow, so care and patience are needed. After going through the KG, bear right for 50m and then left downhill. Carry on through another KG, and when you come to the river turn left, heading for Pensford Viaduct. After 500m, as you enter Culvery Wood, the track leads uphill and under the viaduct. At the road, carry on past the church of St Thomas à Becket, closed after flood damage in 1968 and later converted to a home. After crossing a bridge, turn right and right again along Stanton Lane for 75m, before turning right along a footpath to head west along the valley (ST618636). After passing through two KGs you come to Bye Mills, where iron was wrought as long ago as 1668. Head on in the

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THE | WALK

follow a track heading down to the River Chew. Bear right alongside the river, continue across a gated bridge and carry on until you come to a KG leading onto a road (ST579630). Cross and head along the drive of Chew Court – once the country residence of the Bishop of Bath & Wells. Follow the drive as it curves round the court and head up steps into the churchyard. Carry on to the left of the church, go through the gates and cross to return to the car park.

Fact file

Maes Knoll and Norton Court

same direction through two more KGs and a handgate, and, when confronted by two gates ahead, go through the one on the left. Carry on alongside the hedge, and, after going through a KG, go through a handgate onto a lane (ST606633). Cross and go through another handgate, keeping close to the hedge on the right. Then, after another handgate, another lane crossing and another handgate, head straight on towards the tower of Stanton Drew church, looking to your right to see the stones. Continue through two KGs and carry on along a farm track which leads to a gateway (ST597632). A right turn here leads to the

stones, but to continue with the walk carry straight on. After passing a wall letter box on the right, turn left and left again before turning right along Sandy Lane. After 450m, the tarmac ends and you discover why it got its name. After another 700m the lane drops steeply downhill between high banks, turning sharp right at the bottom. After another 100m, bear left to cross a bridge, made from a single stone, across a stream (ST584627). Carry on through a KG and head up a field. At the end, go through a KG and bear right alongside the hedge. Bear left at the corner of the field and a little way further on

THE

KI TC HEN PAR TNER S DESIGN STUDIO

n Distance: 8 miles n Time: 3–4 hours n Level of challenge: Straightforward, except for one steep downhill section & a tricky road crossing n Map: OS Explorer 155 More on the details of this and many more walks can be found in Andrew Swift’s Country Walks from Bath, published by Akeman Press; akemanpress.com.

Remote Kitchen Design Service Available Call or email for further details 01179 466433 • studio@thekitchenpartmers.co.uk

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www.thekitchenpartners.co.uk 102 Whiteladies Road, Clifton, Bristol BS8 2QY | 01179 466433

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RETAILER | SHOWCASE

A new look Coopers

As part of an ongoing transformation coupled with an exclusive Premio Partner status with SMEG, one of Bath’s favourite businesses has unveiled a shiny new showroom featuring one of the largest ranges of the luxury manufacturer’s appliances on display in the UK. We chat to Coopers’ Darrin Christan about all things retail

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with the new rose gold finish of small appliances from Smeg.” Coopers are working very closely with a number of premium brands, including Fisher Paykel, Liebherr, Lacanche, Rangemaster, Ilve, Smeg, Quooker, Neff, Bosch and Siemens, just to mention a few. Over the coming months, the business is planning to expand the displays to create an immersive destination store where the appliances will be in demonstration mode or even live. And soon they will be hosting cookery demos where you can experience and taste the benefits of things like combination steam ovens and sous-vide cooking, a cooking technique that utilises precise temperature control to deliver consistent, restaurant-quality results.

❝

This is the future of retail. We don’t want to just show you boxes on the shop floor. We want to show you how they work

❝

he man in the control centre of Coopers home appliances in Walcot Street is someone who knows the business well. Inside out, in fact. His name is Darrin Christan. He started his Coopers life over 20 years ago, taking on a part-time job delivering and installing appliances. He quickly moved into the store and found his passion for sales. He then worked his way up within the business, learning different skills, from HR to procurement all the way through to management. His experience in these roles gave him a fantastic understanding of the business, the changing marketplace, and how to best to fulfil customers’ wants and expectations. In 2019 he finally realised his dream and purchased the business. COVID coming along so soon after buying the business must have felt like a major blow for Darrin, but he is philosophical: “We very quickly had to adapt, and I was amazed to see how supportive and understanding our customers were. The one big trend that I have seen is how the public wants to support independent businesses and shop locally. We moved swiftly and put measures in place to protect our staff and customers while continuing to supply all the essential appliance needs.” There have also been changes afoot over lockdown, as anyone walking past the store will know, having seen a regular bustle of workmen and dustsheets and floors being laid and new appliances being installed. “While the store was closed, we took the opportunity to start the first stage of our extensive refurb. Something that would have been very hard, if not impossible to do while being open. Covid helped focus our thoughts and efforts and, if anything, we have come out stronger,” says Darrin. “When I took over the business I did so with the intention of completely reinventing how we traded. I could see that the future of retail was changing, and I was genuinely excited and wanted to be part of it. My plan is to create a true destination store for the region. Concentrating on fewer brands and creating a real experience for our customers. Just seeing the appliances isn’t good enough. I want somewhere where you can actually interact with the appliances. “One of the most tactile brands out there is Smeg, and they were always the first on the list of manufacturers I wanted to work with. You need to see the Smeg appliances up close and personal to really appreciate the curves of the retro refrigeration, or the effortless touch control interface of the Dolce Stil Nova ovens, or the solidity and build quality of the Portofino range cookers.” So after months of designs and COVID delays the new Coopers now presents a first for the business, a ‘store in store’ showroom, unveiled just two days before reopening after lockdown three, and this is just stage one of the overall vision. Darrin is brimming with enthusiasm about the latest appliances with wow factor. “Appliances are becoming smart! Being able to connect your built-in coffee machine to your phone may sound strange but it’s a godsend on a cold morning, having the ability to order your perfect coffee from the comfort of your bed! Or when you find yourself walking around Waitrose not sure if you’ve got all the ingredients at home in the fridge you need for supper. Simple, buy a fridge with a camera inside so you can see on your smartphone exactly what you’ve got at home. Or keep it simple and add a splash of colour

“This is the future of retail. We don’t want to just show you boxes on the shop floor. We want to show you how they work, we want to show you that your favorite Le Creuset Casserole dish will fit in the Fisher & Paykel Dishdrawer or just how easy the Miele auto-dosing washing machines are to use,” enthuses Darrin. Anyone who has purchased appliances from Coopers will know that it’s a relief to deal with people that care and take the time to advise you on your purchase and to deliver and install it with that personal touch, something that is sadly lacking when you buy online. “The key thing we offer over online retailers is a true customer experience,” says Darrin. “From being able to touch and feel the appliances through to the right expert advice to make an informed decision. We constantly have customers who have made online purchases from our competitors just to find that what turns up isn’t what they wanted. It isn’t quite the right colour or it’s just too big or too small. A computer monitor won’t ever replace standing in front of the machine to really understand the size, colour, or feel of the controls. We offer competitive and simple pricing without the hidden add-ons that you commonly find with our online competitors.” After the last year where retailers had to close their doors, people’s shopping habits have changed by necessity and Darrin understands that all retailers will need to work hard to get people back into the shops. It seems he is going the right way about it, offering welldesigned spaces with carefully considered displays. “We are well underway into transforming the shop space to be fit for the new era of the high street.” n Coopers, 13–15 Walcot Street, Bath BA1 5BN; 01225 311811; coopers-stores.com

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RETAILER | SHOWCASE

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GARDEN | GETAWAYS

The eco-friendly log cabin oﬀers guests a unique countryside escape

Log cabin getaway

Do you have spare land in your garden? Then you can build a dreamy log cabin and make it into a source of income. This eco-friendly cabin by Garden Affairs provides a stylish holiday destination in Wales

n outdoor garden building can be used to extend your living space, creating a studio or garden room, but it can also be self-contained and provide a source of income. Rose wanted to create a holiday let business in her countryside Welsh home, which had land and breathtaking views of rolling hills and valleys, but no spare indoor space. A beautifully crafted timber log cabin from Garden Affairs was the inspired solution. A stand-alone building such as this would make an idyllic countryside hub for guests to enjoy nature, go on countryside walks and bike rides, or just relax and soak in the views. The result was Rose Lodge – now up and running as a holiday let in the Radnorshire hills, offering guests a unique countryside escape in an eco-friendly log cabin, including kitchen, bedroom and bathroom. Rose explains, “We looked around and saw

that Garden Affairs produced the very model we were looking for, at an affordable price and the flexibility we needed. They were pragmatic and took a helpful approach to our needs and pocket. And they had an extensive knowledge of the product.” The team at Garden Affairs set to work to deliver the vision, aware that special care was needed to make sure the building complemented the tranquil countryside around it. The 4 x 8.5m log cabin is made of natural, sustainable materials and with its earthy colours and textures, it blends seamlessly into the natural environment. The cabin was a very suitable choice for the Airbnb business that is now established there. It was quick and easy to assemble, reasonably priced and the additional porch gives a subtle nod to the natural architectural grandeur of the surrounding landscape. Inside the cabin, the look is bright, airy and contemporary, in large part due to Rose’s exquisite taste and styling, and the generous windows and glass doors which bring the drama and delight of the outdoors into the living space. The feature beams add a cool, chalet-style feel to the building, a blue kitchen adds a splash of colour, and thoughtfully placed furniture helps create a warm, practical environment for guests. As well as feeling invigorated by nature, guests will also sleep in the double bed sound in the knowledge that the building is made from sustainably sourced timber, making it an eco-friendly alternative to other types of holiday accommodation. Its extra-thick, 70mm wooden walls will also guarantee comfort. Timber is breathable – no mustiness or condensation – and it’s a

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natural insulator, so guests will stay warm in winter and cool during the summer months. Rose Lodge now occupies a unique and enviable position in the Welsh valleys. Its tranquility, comfort and outlook are sure to make it a go-to destination for leisureseekers wanting to relax, re-energise and get away from it all. “I love the look and feel of it,” says Rose, “and the way it has become a part of our garden. It stands there like a good, solid friend.” n Book your luxury stay in this destination in Radnorshire hills by searching AirBnb 39266977 in your internet browser. Enquire about log cabin options at Garden Affairs Garden Centre, 288 Frome Road, Trowbridge BA14 0DT; 01225 774566; gardenaffairs.co.uk

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Image shows: Karndean Van Gogh vinyl tiles

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OUTDOOR | LEISURE

Summer Party Field, beach, riverbank, or even in your own back garden, go for a stylish summer sundowner

PICNIC BLANKETS By the Natural Blanket Company A luxury picnic rug is perfect for a day out at the beach, a concert in the park or just picnicking in your back lawn. This pure wool blanket will also protect you from damp ground with its durable waterproof backing. With real leather carry straps it makes a great gift that will be a pleasure to sit on for years to come. Choose from a variety of colours and designs, 145cm x 183cm, Made in Britain. £120. See the range at: thenaturalblanket.co.uk

TAKE COVER IN STYLE A shelter for all seasons The four-sided very popular Crete gazebo is flexible, in a range of sizes from a petite 1.8m square to a showcase 4.2 x 6m. This multi-tasking gazebo range takes you from a hot-tub shelter to a restaurant terrace via every possible use in between. Choose from felt tiles, cedar shingles or slate eﬀect roofing. Choose to add solid sides, balustrades, or open sides to create the style you dream of. Paint the sustainable timber any colour you like for the perfect look. Visit: gardenaﬀairs.co.uk

LIGHTING FOR FUN FIREBOWL COOKERY Gather around the Kadai Original Kadais are up to 100 years old. Each one completely unique with a rich heritage from years of use as cooking bowls at weddings and festivals across India. Hand-picked in Rajasthan and available in sizes from 60cm – 170cm diameter. The Kadai can be raised to the perfect cooking height with a handmade iron stand or can be used as an impressive fire bowl to enjoy evenings under the stars throughout the year. The Boniti showroom on the A46 has an impressive selection of Kadais and accessories. Order from boniti.co.uk

Fiesta Festoon lights Add these fiesta festoon lights to the top of your garden party list. A 7.25m string (with a 5m lead-up from transformer) of 30 multi-coloured bulbs have a deep intense colour in the darkness that’s sure to liven up your indoor or outdoor space. Lightweight, safe LEDs and durable so they’ll survive blustery days and are oh so easy to hang in your home. £33.99. Order from lights4fun.co.uk

EXTREME LOUNGING

Outdoor, indoor weatherproof bean bag Engineered to defeat the elements, the Outdoor B-bag by this fabulous Brit brand takes lounging to new places and extremes. All eleven fabric colours are fade-resistant even in direct sunlight. Plus the tough and waterproof fabric of the outdoor bean bags is double-stitched for extra durability. Available in Mini, Mighty and Monster sizes, the Extreme Lounging bean bag collection can be found in Bath at TR Hayes. trhayes.co.uk

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SCATTER CUSHIONS

Evie Stripe Outdoor Cushion Take your Neptune cushions outside. Evie is made from a showerproof and highly lightfast polyester fabric featuring a ‘Nanoblock’ fluorocarbon treatment, so it won’t fade in the sun or grow mouldy over time. Most of all it looks great and very comfy too. Shown here in Burnt Sienna and Flax Blue, 45cms x 45cms, £90 each. Order from Neptune.co.uk

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Our 2021 media pa ck can be viewed online

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Fresh organic Rainbow Swiss Chard

Plants with superpowers

As we look forward to warmer months ahead, Elly West shares how gardening and what we grow in our gardens can make a world of difference to our mental and physical health

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Gardening reduces stress levels, helping us to wind down – all conducive to a good eight-hours of shut eye

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ow that we’re finally emerging from the third and hopefully final lockdown, looking to the future with an end to the pandemic firmly in sight, we may well be thinking about what we have learned over the past year. The value of good health and mental well-being has never been so apparent – and gardening has long-proven health benefits. Our garden layout, the plants we choose and the physical act of tending our outdoor space can all contribute to enhancing mood, lowering stress levels, encouraging relaxation and promoting happiness. So if 2020 made you appreciate the importance of a healthier and happier life, then the garden is a great starting point. If you don’t already have a vegetable plot, then this could be the spring that you decide to grow your own produce, even if it’s just some salad leaves, herbs or cherry tomatoes in a pot. Consider making room for fruits and vegetables that will actively boost your health. Growing your own will save you money and if you choose organic methods then you can be sure your food is chemical and pesticide-free. Freshly picked crops also have more vitamins and minerals than those from a supermarket shelf – and children are more likely to eat fruit and vegetables that they have had a hand in growing. Easy-to-grow ‘superfoods’ – those that are bursting with nutrients – include artichoke, kale, spinach, tomatoes, broccoli, chard and beetroot. Leafy greens in particular are rich in prebiotics, vitamins and antioxidants. Most are easy to grow from seed and tend to be shallow-rooted crops that don't need an extremely rich soil, so are easy to grow in an average border. They do need plenty of water though, as well as good levels of sunlight. Spinach beet, also known as perpetual spinach, is an ideal starter crop as it can be sown from early February right through to the end of August for crops from May to October. The bright green leaves can be eaten in salads or cooked in the same way as regular spinach, and it’s packed with calcium, magnesium and vitamins E and K. It’s also a

great source of dietary fibre. Curly kale has a long cropping season that can extend right through the winter, and has the added bonus of ornamental appeal with its red-purple frilly foliage. It’s happy in shade and is one of the most nutrient-dense foods on the planet, loaded with antioxidants, vitamin C, vitamin K and potassium. If you are short on space, you can always mix edibles in with your ornamental plants. Globe artichokes look fantastic at the back of a border with their large thistle-like heads and architectural leaves. Colourful chard is another vegetable that can hold its own in the flower border with its vivid stems and leaves. Try the variety ‘Bright Lights’ for stems in yellow, orange, pink, purple, green, white and red. A resolution on my list this year is to get more sleep. Quality sleep is vital for good health, both physical and mental. Lack of it negatively affects our concentration and memory; can contribute to depression and anxiety; and also lowers our immune system, making us more likely to contract infections. Gardening is all about fresh air and exercise, so can improve our sleep by making us physically tired. Being exposed to natural light as much as possible also helps regulate our internal body clocks. Gardening reduces stress levels, helping us to wind down – all conducive to a good eight-hours of shut eye. And, if you want to grow crops that will help you rest, then try tomatoes, walnuts, cherries, broccoli and strawberries, as they contain melatonin – the natural sleep hormone.

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GARDENING

Another way to get a good night's sleep is to ditch the caffeine and drink home-made herbal teas instead. Chamomile tea in particular is well-known for its calming properties, also helping with nerves and anxiety. The scent of lavender is also said to aid restfulness, so place lavender bags under your pillow or in with your stored sheets and pillow cases. Many garden herbs have other healing benefits as well. Rosemary is an attractive evergreen shrub that works well in mixed borders, a herb garden or pots, and contains healthy antioxidants. A tea made from its leaves may help boost mood, enhance alertness and memory. Mint tea is good for digestion and mint is very easy to grow. Grow it in pots or a separate bed in the garden though, as it tends to run rampant and can become invasive. The bark, leaves and sap of witch hazel are well-known for their astringent, anti-inflammatory healing properties, and are used in cosmetic and skincare products worldwide. Widely available in chemists, you can also make your own soothing tincture by boiling chopped twigs and scraped bark in water for half an hour or so, then straining into a jar. Keep it in the fridge and use within a few days. Think about the layout of your garden as well, to ensure it’s a space for calm, quiet contemplation, where you can relax and feel at one with nature. Include peaceful and secluded seating areas, harmonious colour schemes and sensory plants that offer scent and texture, as well as colour and form. Consider screening eyesores with trellis or planting, and masking noise pollution with the calming sounds of a water feature. Summer is on its way and our gardens are definitely calling us to get outside and appreciate the great outdoors. ■ • ellyswellies.co.uk; Instagram: @ellyswellies1

Plant of the month: Wisteria Scent is a vital element in a garden, and May brings the sweet aroma of wisteria, which can be seen flowering in all its splendour this month. This coveted plant produces distinctive long racemes of purple or white flowers in abundance, wafting their fragrance and attracting bees and other pollinators. Wisteria grows large and needs a strong support, which is why it is often grown on the front of a house where it has room to spread, or over a large arch or pergola. Plants like full sun and grow quickly. The twining tendrils can get under tiles and into roof spaces, so keep an eye out and make sure you prune them regularly, both for the best flowering performance and to keep them under control. Prune twice a year, shortening the long whippy growth at the end of the summer to about 30cm from the main stem, then in February cut these back again to short flowering spurs about 10cm long.

Create space with a garden room GARDEN OFFICES • LOG CABINS • STUDIOS • SUMMERHOUSES POSH SHEDS • TIMBER GARAGES • OUTDOOR LIVING SPACES

01225 774566 • www.gardenaffairs.co.uk Visit our Display Centre at Trowbridge Garden Centre 288 Frome Road, BA14 0DT THEBATHMAG.CO.UK

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the directory

to advertise in this section call 01225 424 499

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Health, Beauty & Wellbeing

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WE BUY Gold, Silver & Platinum in any form or condition.

Nigel Dando 11 Pulteney Bridge, Bath BA2 4AY Tel/Fax: 01225 464013 www.nigeldando.co.uk

Holiday Rental

60+ luxury properties for lets 2 nights to 5 months Holidays – For business – Friends & family – Temporary accommodation during renovation/relocation

IS AVAILABLE TO PICK UP FOR FREE AT

Contact: 01225 482 225 alexa@bathholidayrentals.com www.bathholidayrentals.com Providing 4 & 5 star self-catering properties since 2006

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CENTRAL

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MARDAN, BATH’S BESPOKE REMOVALS AND STORAGE COMPANY, DEVELOPS NEW TALENT

Mardan have a wealth of experience within the removals and storage industry, spanning over 30 years, ensuring customers have a stress-free and seamless move. Mardan are family run and bespoke with the experience, knowledge, skills, equipment and capacity to complete removals of any size; locally, nationally for domestic or commercial customers.

Marcus, Mardan’s founder, has always held fast, with confidence, to his belief that he can deliver a high standard of removals, exceeding that of his competitors. Marcus knows to do this he must have trust and confidence in the skills of his staff, which he does. So when a new office position was required within Mardan instead of recruiting externally Marcus looked to develop a team member which he already had extreme confidence in and who he knew would develop into the role seamlessly, Nik. The role would include; liaising with customers, completing quotes, emailing quotes, planning the removals diary, logistics and managing the storage yard. Nik, had worked with Marcus within removals for over 10 years having a strong knowledge of all aspects of removals and with the skills necessary to lead a team from Mardan on removals. Nik has risen to the challenge and is thriving. Marcus and Nik work extremely well as a team thus ensuring all customers have a personalised service and a positive move experience. Both Marcus and Nik enjoy completing the physical removal and Marcus truly believes that to do the ‘office’ role well it’s important to continue to complete removals, thus maintaining

the in depth knowledge developed throughout their earlier careers. Marcus and Nik are able to be flexible with their roles and keep their ‘hand in’ the hard physical work of removals. Mardan continue to grow their self-storage facility, offering safe, secure and reasonable storage to upward of 100 domestic and commercial customers.

“We used Mardan following a recommendation from a friend. They moved us in and out of storage and then into our renovated house. I would highly recommend them. The service was super efficient and the guys were quick, polite and courteous. Nothing was too much trouble and all of our possessions arrived safe and sound” Emma Webster, Moon Client

Mob: 07899 847857 Tel: 01225 317645 www.mardanremovals.co.uk

DOMESTIC & COMMERCIAL MOVERS • packers • STORERS • SHIPPERS

Bailbrook Lane, Bath A stunning development of two individual, contemporary, luxury homes in a secluded setting with magnificent views.

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Plans for architect-designed parkland revealed

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lans for over 6 acres of landscaped parkland at Holburne Park have been unveiled. Situated within naturally sloping grounds next to the Kennet and Avon canal in Bath, Holburne Park is a new development of villas, sweeping terraces and apartments, built in a classical style.

Due to open this summer, the parkland is a key element of the scheme, enhancing the area’s natural beauty and introducing an expansive new public green space for local residents to enjoy. Designed by acclaimed local landscape architects, Matthew Wigan Associates, it will be a place of tranquillity as well as providing a selection of amenities including a natural play area, fitness trail and two new pedestrian walkways, one of which will run alongside the canal with benches along the route. The parkland is designed to provide a haven for wildlife, with features such as a bat barn, wild meadows and grass banks sitting alongside the elegant lawned areas. Vicky Dudbridge is a director in Savills residential development sales division. She comments: “Parks and green spaces are and always have been important within our communities. Now, after more than a year spent living under the constraints of the pandemic, they have become especially valuable. “In a survey of over 1,100 Savills buyers and sellers we conducted in March, proximity to a park or open space was named as a top two priority for 55 per cent of respondents in relation to choosing a new home. This is a notable increase from 42 per cent who included it in their top two priorities in April 2020 and highlights the enduring impact of lockdown on how we want to live. “Holburne Park is set in a magnificent location. With expansive views across the city and open countryside it is truly exceptional. Matthew Wigan’s scheme really makes the most of its credentials and will enrich the local area both in terms of beauty and amenity.”

For more information on properties at Holburne Park please contact the Marketing Pavilion on 01225 302 888.

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PROPERTY | HOMEPAGE

superb Garden Maisonette with accommodation set over 3 floors including 2 principle reception rooms, 3 bedrooms, study, conservatory and large south facing garden to the rear. Number 27 The Circus was refurbished as a whole property some 30 years ago and three apartments were created. The Garden Maisonette occupies over half of the building and is a unique and special property laid out over three floors. It features two stunning reception rooms on the ground floor with period features and a rare ‘dumb waiter’ down to the kitchen below. These are complimented by three very large bedrooms, each with its own bathroom or shower room. The wonderful kitchen/breakfast room has the original range and dresser within it together with an Aga. In addition, below the study, is a conservatory which leads out to what without doubt is one of the most stunning south facing gardens in the city centre featuring a beautiful magnolia tree. The property also has a private underground parking space nearby which is available by separate negotiation. This represents an opportunity to purchase a unique property in on of Bath’s most iconic addresses. This is a very special property and to fully appreciate it a viewing is recommended by the sole agents Cobb Farr.

THE CIRCUS • Accommodation over three Floors • 2 principle reception rooms • 3 bedrooms plus a study • Large south facing garden and conservatory • Wonderful kitchen with Aga • Private parking space available by separate negotiation • Sought after location

£2,000,000 Cobb Farr, 35 Brock Street, The Circus, Bath. Tel: 01225 333332

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Bailbrook Lane, Bath

£1,950,000

A stunning development of a contemporary luxury detached home situated in an area of outstanding natural beauty. • 5 double bedrooms, 3 with en-suites

• Open plan luxury kitchen/dining/living room

• Doors to balcony overlooking meadow grassland

• Double garage

• 3/4 an acre of landscaped grounds

01225 333332 | 01225 866111

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Clarence Terrace, Widcombe Hill, Bath

£475,000

A charming 2 bedroom terraced cottage with a wealth of period features and authentic detail, with a lovely garden and much opportunity to extend, located in a fine position adjacent to the famous Bath Skyline Walk. • 2 double bedrooms, sitting room, dining room, kitchen • Large bathroom

• Pretty gardens

• Much potential to extend

• Wonderful location adjacent to the Skyline Walk

01225 333332 | 01225 866111

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winkworth.co.uk/bath for every step... SALES

ST JOHNS ROAD, BATHWICK £650,000 Freehold

LYME ROAD, NEWBRIDGE £525,000 Freehold

ST JOHNS ROAD, LOWER WESTON £435,000 Freehold

THE CHESTERTONS, BATHAMPTON £595,000 Freehold

Contact our Sales team on 01225 829000 bath@winkworth.co.uk Matthew Leonard

Lucy McIlroy

Director

For Letting Properties contact our Lettings team on 01225 829000 bath@winkworth.co.uk WINKWORTH BATH bath@winkworth.co.uk 13 Argyle Street, Bath, Somerset BA2 4BQ Follow us on

Denise Latham Lettings Manager

Central

Andrewsonline.co.uk

Catharine Place, BA1 £695,000

01225 809 571

Located in the centre of Bath near the Royal Crescent this exceptional apartment forms the upper two floors and offers a spacious entrance hall, open through kitchen dining living room, four double bedrooms, and two bathrooms. It also has a fantastic roof terrace and secure parking. Offered with vacant possession. Energy Efficiency Rating: C

central@andrewsonline.co.uk

To view more properties and other services available visit Andrewsonline.co.uk

Camden

Andrewsonline.co.uk

Manvers Street, BA1 £450,000

A beautifully finished and high specification apartment offering two double bedrooms in central Bath. Part of a grade II listed Georgian townhouse, Accommodation includes entrance hall, a spacious, light, lounge/diner, a fully fitted modern kitchen, two double bedrooms and the family bathroom. Energy Efficiency Rating: D

01225 809 868 camden@andrewsonline.co.uk

To view more properties and other services available visit Andrewsonline.co.uk

Newbridge Andrewsonline.co.uk

Westfield Park South, BA1 £525,000

A rare opportunity to acquire a traditionally built detached bungalow located in this quiet residential area just 2 miles from Bath city centre. With three bedrooms, one bathroom, 2 reception rooms, kitchen, breakfast room, conservatory and loft space - which offers further potential. Outside are two generously sized front and rear gardens. Energy Efficiency Rating: TBC

01225 809 685 newbridge@andrewsonline.co.uk

To view more properties and other services available visit Andrewsonline.co.uk

Bear Flat

Andrewsonline.co.uk

Shakespeare Ave, BA2 £740,000

This beautiful, Edwardian home has been thoughtfully adapted over the past years, creating a fantastic family home with contemporary extensions and modern touches combining beautifully with the existing period character. Comprising briefly, two inter-connecting reception rooms, kitchen and family dining room, four bedrooms and family bathroom. South facing rear garden. Energy Efficiency Rating: D

01225 805 680 bearflat@andrewsonline.co.uk

To view more properties and other services available visit Andrewsonline.co.uk

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