Colin Crosby Heritage Tours

Hippos Sighted All Over Rutland

People who live in London, or have visited it in the last few months, will be aware of the brightly coloured elephants that appeared all over the capital earlier this year.

Now a similar phenomenon has appeared in the tiny and lovely county of Rutland, with multiple sightings of jolly hippos.

The hippos can be seen in both the county`s small towns, Oakham and Uppingham, as well as several villages, including Clipsham, Lyddington and Manton.

Among those sponsoring hippos are Don Paddy`s and the Goldmark Gallery, both in Uppingham, and the local M. P. Alan Duncan.

Do go and have a look. Perhaps you could time your visit to coincide with my "Oakham" Guided Walk on Wednesday 15th September.

Posted by colin on Friday 3rd September, 2010 at 3:44pm

North Wales Tour Was a Big Hit

My recent Coach Trip entitled "North Wales Tour" turned out to be an even bigger hit than usual.

A good turnout of people left St. Margarets Bus Station in Leicester in the morning, and this time the party included, not just people from the Leicestershire area, but also visitors from Burma and Romania.

I always make a stop in the morning where one can buy tea, coffee, cakes etc, and it is always at a place where there is something interesting to see as well as just getting refreshments. This time it was at the Dobbies Garden Centre on the edge of Shrewsbury.

Moving into Wales, we pased through Llangollen, catching a glimpse of the amazing Pontcysyllte Aqueduct.

Our first proper stop was at Betws-y-Coed, where some sampled the superb ice cream, some visited the railway centre and some investigated the ancient parish church.

From there on, the scenery became even more impressive as we moved into Snowdonia with mountains all around us. We drove through the fantastic Llanberis Pass and made a stop at Llanberis, where again there is plenty to see, including the Snowdon Mountain Railway and the Welsh National Slate Museum.

Our final stop of the tour was at Conwy, one of Edward I`s fortified towns with one of his splendid castles and a delightful quayside. Conwy was probably the most popular of the three stops.

On the way home we stopped again, this time at Norton Canes Services where of course coffee etc was procured.

My Visitors` Book received such comments as "thanks for a brilliant trip", "we really appreciated the whole trip", "another great day out, Wales was beautiful", "a really good day, dramatic countryside, I especially enjoyed Conwy, a lovely town by the sea", "yet another interesting and scenic day out", "many thanks again Colin, your commentary was as usual very interesting" and "I will definitely come again".

Posted by colin on Wednesday 1st September, 2010 at 10:12am

Strolling Around Thurmaston

The Festival of Leicestershire and Rutland Archaeology was a good event, which gave various opportunities for looking around villages in these counties.

One of the events was a stroll around Thurmaston, and as I was not committed to anything else at the time I decided to take part.

We were particularly looking at sites where archaeological discoveries have been made.

Starting at the Community Centre in Melton Road (the Roman Fosse Way), we strolled for a while beside the river and canal, and then across to where the giant Asda store now stands on the outskirts of the village.

Along the way, sites of burials etc were pointed out. The whole thing was interesting and informative.

In my own programme of Guided Walks, I don`t actually lead a Thurmaston village one, but a little of the village is included in "Waterside Thurmaston".

Posted by colin on Sunday 22nd August, 2010 at 10:00am

Britain`s Best Park is in Colchester

Colchester, the oldest town in Britain, has lots of claims to fame, and I have just become aware of another one.

In the annual Britain`s Best Park competition, voted for by park staff and park users, Castle Park in Colchester is the winner for 2009.

The regional winners included Kelvingrove Park, Glasgow; Bute Park, Cardiff; The Walks, Kings Lynn; and Garth Park, Bicester.

I would certainly agree that Castle Park is an excellent park, and well worthy of awards. My own favourites, however, are Abbey Park in Leicester and Priory Park in Prittlewell. How about you?

Posted by colin on Saturday 21st August, 2010 at 9:17am

Antiques at the NEC

From time to time, the National Exhibition Centre (NEC) at Birmingham plays host to an antiques show named Antiques for Everyone.

I visit this show when I can, and on a recent occasion my wife Anne came with me.

It`s always nice to be surrounded by beautiful things, especially paintings, and I enjoy seeing them, and seeing where the exhibitors are from - a large number are from the Cotswolds.

On the way back from the NEC we stopped in Birmingham City Centre. We had a coffee in the excellent tea shop attached to St. Martin`s Church, and admired the indoor markets.

Posted by colin on Friday 20th August, 2010 at 8:44am

A Walk Around Castle Hill Park

The recent Festival of Leicestershire and Rutland Archaeology gave a number of opportunities to visit lesser known parts of these counties.

One such was a walk around Castle Hill Park on the edge of Leicester, led by Stefan Cabaniuk of the City Council. It was a day when I was free, so decided to take part.

This appealing country park is actually on the edge of the Beaumont Leys estate. The humps and bumps are not, as widely believed locally, of a castle but of a preceptory of the Knights Hospitaller.

We strolled as far as King William`s Bridge at Anstey, which features on my Guided Walks "Anstey" and "Anstey Bridges".

It was a good and informative afternoon.

Posted by colin on Thursday 19th August, 2010 at 8:32am

Norman Pilgrim

Sadly, my friend Norman Pilgrim has passed away.

I first knew Norman nearly two decades ago, when he and I were both committee members of the Leicester Civic Society.

Later, after I had qualified as a Blue Badge Guide, he gave me lots of tips which helped when I started giving talks to groups.

Norman was a well known speaker in the Leicester area, and like me gave talks on a number of occasions to the Community History Network. His talks were always entertaining as well as informative.

Norman Pilgrim, a lifelong Leicester resident, was 89. His many friends will miss him a lot.

Posted by colin on Wednesday 18th August, 2010 at 9:31am

Walk Around the Grace Dieu Ruins

Among the events organised as part of the recent Festival of Leicestershire and Rutland Archaeology was a walk around the ruins of Grace Dieu Priory.

Being free on that day, I decided to take part.

The walk started in the car park of the Bull`s Head at Thringstone, and was enthusiastically led by members of the Friends of Grace Dieu.

We walked through the woods, and under an impressive railway viaduct that is completely invisible from the road, before arriving at the fascinating ruins.

The priory was founded in the 13th century for Augustinian canonesses, and at Henry VIII`s Dissolution of the Monasteries was converted into a house by the Beaumont family. The whole site is now in ruins, but can be seen from the road.

Posted by colin on Sunday 15th August, 2010 at 9:03am

A Stroll Around Desford

The recent Festival of Leicestershire and Rutland Archaeology included a good number of events, some of which I took advantage of when I was free from other commitments.

One such was a Guided Walk around Desford. This was led by a local man, Brian Ward.

I was a little surprised to find that the starting point was the Tropical Bird Garden, outside the village and down a fairly steep hill, which of course necessitated everybody walking up that hill before really starting. But then I realised that there is a sizeable car park there, and it must have been assumed that everybody would arrive by car.

We had an interesting walk around the village, including visits to the village hall (the former miners` welfare hall), St. Martin`s Church and the Baptist chapel, where we were addressed by the enthusiastic minister.

Afterwards, before catching the bus back to Leicester, I went to the church hall for a splendid raspberry cream tea. This had not been mentioned during the walk, but I had noted the posters around the village. I sat there happily chatting with the churchwarden and his wife (and their dog).

Posted by colin on Friday 13th August, 2010 at 4:14pm

Spielberg Classic is Favourite Family Movie

"Radio Times" asked its readers to vote for their all time favourite family film, and they voted in their thousands.

The magazine has now published the Top Hundred, which makes fascinating reading, especially for somebody like me who had a long and successful career managing cinemas.

The ultimate No 1 turned out to be Steven Spielberg`s magical tale, hugely popular at the time and ever since, "ET - The Extra-Terrestrial", while "The Wizard of Oz" (starring Judy Garland) and "Mary Poppins" (starring Julie Andrews) came second and third.

Here is the Top Twenty.

1. ET - The Extra-Terrestrial (1982) *

2. The Wizard of Oz (1939) +

3. Mary Poppins (1964) *

4. Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (1968) *

5. Toy Story (1995)

6. Shrek (2001)

7. Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory (1971) *

8. Back to the Future (1985) *

9. The Jungle Book (1967) *

10. The Sound of Music (1965) *

11. Home Alone (1990)

12. The Lion King (1994)

13. The Railway Children (1970) *

14. Finding Nemo (2003)

15. Grease (1978) *

16. Bedknobs and Broomsticks (1971) *

17. Star Wars (1977) *

18. Miracle on 34th Street (1947)

19. Babe (1995)

20. Bambi (1942) +

* signifies films released during my career, and shown by me

+ signifies films shown by me as reissues

Some of my own favourites not making this fabulous Top Twenty are Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984) (22); Ghost Busters (1984) (26); Oliver! (1968) (30); Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937) (31); The Great Escape (1963) (32); Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) (34); The Never Ending Story (1984) (39); Jason and the Argonauts (1963) (41); Fantasia (1940) (45); One Hundred and One Dalmatians (1960) (46); The Aristocats (1970) (51); Singin` in the Rain (1952) (55); The Empire Strikes Back (1980) (56); Lady and the Tramp (1955) (59); Dumbo (1941) (60); Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977) (61); Great Expectations (1946) (70); Superman (1978) (84); Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines (1965) (85); Robin Hood (1973) (87); Genevieve (1953) (88); The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938) (92); Pinocchio (1940) (93).

And of course, with all lists of this nature, there are surprising ommissions. Whatever happened to "It`s a Mad Mad Mad Mad World"? Or "The Great Race"? Or "Tom Thumb"? Or "The Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm"? Or perhaps more obscurely "The Butterfly Ball"?

But it gives a theme for a hundred conversations.

Posted by colin on Thursday 12th August, 2010 at 8:46am