Middle-earth Journeys

Merry wrote:Finally, I want to assure you that our jealousy of you two is sincere and deep!

It is indeed. So deep in fact that my little Mom who loves the old Miss Read books (she owns every single one) has declared that when I move to the Cotswold to satiate my Tolkien appetite, I must take her with me. She was particularly impressed with the photo of the tea servings.

Oh! I want to know more about the "cream tea" too! That looks absolutely scrumptious!

Thanks for your fun report marbretherese. The new Tolkien/G&S connection is a truly great find!

It does look magnificent, doesn't it! I really should have had it .

To answer questions...

A tea-cake is a cinnamon flavoured current bun (more bready than cakey) that's split in half and toasted. You then spread butter on it and let it melt in.

A Cotswold (or in fact any) cream tea is a pot of tea with scones, jam and really, really thick yellow clotted cream. You spread a thick layer of Jam on your split scone, then dump as much cream on top as you can. Then you try to get your scone/jam/cream tower in your mouth without accidents . Hobbits would love it.

Now you are all even more jealous .

Moreton in Marsh is a particularly nice old town with no new buildings that we could see to ruin it, but it's not unusual for the Cotswolds. There are many, many lovely old towns and villages there and it's famous for it's beautiful stone. The downside is that some of the prettiest places are heaving with tourists in the summer. Really, though, most areas over here will have their still unspoilt towns and villages here and there (you don't have to go far to find one), unfortunately I don't happen to live in one . Marbretherese and I actually had a conversation while we were in Moreton in Marsh about how easy it it for us to take it for granted over here.

The Redesdale Hall is a Market Hall and is one of the newest (I can hear you laughing) buildings in the town. It was built in the 'Tudor' style in 1887 in memory of Earl Redesdale. Who he is and why they wanted to remember him I have no idea . It really is a very fine building.

My post has crossed with Iolanthe's so there's some duplication but basically here's what I have found out . . .

- firstly, the cream tea which is tempting several of you to emigrate : the West of England in particular has a tradition of serving cream teas, usually called by the county or area eg Devon cream tea. They consist of scones (either fruit or plain), butter, jam (jelly) and thick cream (in Cornwall and Devon it is clotted cream) and of course, a pot of tea. A teacake is softer than a bagel and has dried fruit in it, rather like a hot cross bun without the cross. My own way of eating a cream tea is to split the scones in half, forget the butter, spread the halves with jam (strawberry) and put a dollop of cream on the top. Mmmm delicious!!

- the photos in the streets attitude is new here since the terror attacks of 2005. We are all seen as potential terrorists now

- when Jef Murray was talking about creating sacred space he used the word 'prayerful'. It was extremely interesting and there is more info on his website about his conversion to Catholicism and related activities.

- frames can really make or break a painting or photo and I think they say a lot. They can make a mediocre subject look wonderful and a lively one look dull (you can guess I'm speaking from experience). As for Tolkien's pessimism . . . or lack of it . . . a discussion or article is a good idea!

- Moreton-in-Marsh is a typical town of the Cotswold hills, where many local villages and towns are built in that distinctive yellow stone. I wouldn't say it was unusually old - but it is well preserved. I'm not sure about the hall but the nearby Redesdale Arms dates back to c 1650 and was an old stable inn, once used by market traders and post coaches. 'Rede' is an old English word for advice and the Redesdale family own estates all over the country (mainly in the North of England, they are an ancient Northumberland family and Redesdale is a dale ie valley near Hexham) so presumably the family has links with the town. Moreton isn't far from a lot of places familiar to Tolkien - Oxford and Birmingham are in easy reach and they were offering tours to those staying the weekend. Apparently Tolkien is thought to have visited the town when going to see Hilary who lived in nearby Evesham. I've just found a quote on the internet which says:

The Tolkien Society believes the similarities between the The Bell Inn in Moreton in Marsh and The Prancing Pony in Tolkein's town of Bree is irrefutable evidence Tolkien used the pub as inspiration. These similarities include the three storeys of the pub building and its entrance via a courtyard, and the similarities of Moreton in Marsh to the town of Bree, where the hobbits find the Prancing Pony on a cold, rainy night.

Of course, if Iolanthe and I had known that we would have had lunch at the Bell still - there's always next year !!!

That's amazing . How did we miss that one?

I just googled The Bell Inn and got this

The Bell Inn: JRR Tolkien

You can take a really cool virtual tour. Not quite as good as eating lunch there! I must admit that my 'Prancing Pony' has always looked a lot more like the one in the films .

We'll have to go back. Not sure I can wait a whole year, either . . . !

Thanks Iolanthe and marbretherese for your awesome reports! What a wonderful exhibition! I think I would have been walking around with my mouth open the whole time! Very convenient for those yummy goodies later!

I have to say that the Prancing Pony in the movie was not how I had pictured it from the book. I'm a big fan of the description of food and decor in books, and the meal the hobbits had in their little room by the fire was one of my favorites: I know it from memory! Cold meats, hot soup, red cheese, loaves of bread and butter, and a fruit tart--blackberry, I think--and plenty of ale, of course. And then there were the bolsters, much lamented by Butterbur. How bad can a place be that has good bolsters?

Once again, we see that Tolkien put everything he loved into his books. Thanks for the link, marbretherese!

Here's another link which may be of interest. According to the book I bought on Tolkien's Birmingam and the surrounding area (it's actually called The Roots of Tolkien's Middle Earth by Robert Blackham) doorways like this were common on Warwickshire forges during Tolkien's childhood, and may well have provided the inspiration for hobbit-holes!


http://mysite.wanadoo-members.co.uk/hea ... verdon.htm

Oh wow! That forge is amazing!!! Who'd have thought it? it looks just like a Hobbit doorway.

I can also see the Three Farthings Stone on Tolkien's Shire Map now I'm re-reading LotR. I never realised there was a real Thee Farthings Stone where three counties meet. No wonder it was on the handouts to the local area that they were giving out.

i was in Moreton-in-Marsh from Friday till Tuesday, but was also enjoying the Cotwolds a lot, so that must be why i missed out on you guys... too bad. I gave a lecture on Sunday morning and that might have been something of interest to you! It was an introduction to Tolkien's signature. I'd like to ask if any of the two reports (or both) may be reproduced at Tolkienlibrary.com, and then I will of course link to this board and state your names... They are just great! Send me an email if you would like this to happen!

We wondered if we'd see you Beren! It was a shame that neither of us could manage the Saturday or Sunday - I think we missed the best of it, although I wouldn't have wanted to give up hearing Jef Murray talk about painting. It was really inspirational.

I think it very likely that the two of us will go next year if we can.

I'm very happy for you to use my report. I'm glad you enjoyed it .

I'm happy for you to use my report, too, Beren!

Such a shame we missed your talk - I saw it listed in the programme and thought that it would have been most interesting. I would definitely like to go along at the weekend next year!