Anke: Royal Tunbridge Wells

Vic Reeves' Bizarre Birding

Need something amazing to do this weekend? You can't go far wrong with a visit to our local Art Gallery where Vic Reeves’ exhibition, ‘The Natural History of Kent and Sussex – Through My Binoculars’, is now showing.

If you're a birder like my wife and I then it makes for fascinating viewing, and listening too, with the bizarre contents of Vic's imagination played out in hilarious paints on the walls and also in surreal taxidermic displays of birds and insects. It certainly does make one feel very artistically inspired.

You may wonder how and why a famous television comedian would arrive in Tunbridge Wells to display art, well Vic is a Kent resident and a huge fan of museums, especially ours it would seem so it was only fitting that he be made a temporary curator to set up his very first museum exhibition.

The exhibition runs until the end of August and you can pick up some great souvenirs, there is also a chance to purchase one-off artistic proofs of Vic's work, the bird images being the most tempting. But they are actually all worthy of display on the walls and all brilliant.

This is an event not to be missed and you must, must, must pay the gallery a visit this weekend to see it. In Vic's own words: "You must come and see it, you will be astonished".

If you have been to the exhibition then let me know what you thought by leaving a comment below, you can also join Vic's Facebook Group by clicking here. There are lots of wonderful pictures on there and even some photographs of the artwork if you can't manage to get to the gallery yourself.
There is also a link to an audio interview with Vic at the museum here.

I really hope this sets a precedent for future displays at our gallery, perhaps Bob Mortimer might like his own display next?

For a post to coincide with Vic's brilliant exhibition I thought it would be a nice idea to get people discovering birds and maybe even being inspired to paint their own bird art just like Vic's.

So here are our top ten places in Tunbridge Wells to see wonderful birds to inspire you:

10. Feeder at the end of York Road - perfect place to sit on a bench and enjoy the myriad of sounds and odd glimpses of passerine paradise.

9. Ducks on Brighton Pond - a strange place that is alongside a busy main road but with its "duck island" is great for a Springtime treat of baby ducklings.

8. Train station - unlikely place to watch the fascinating courtship behaviours of pigeons along the platform and if you walk right to the end you can entertain yourself with sparrows and, if you're lucky, siskins until your train arrives.

7. Calverley Park - wander off the road into the trees and undergrowth to find out where the birds hide from the crowds in Calverley Grounds.

6. Camden Park - the walk from town to Hawkenbury down through Camden Park is always quiet and the mature trees make excellent hiding places for woodpeckers. Just listen for the distinct laughing calls.

5. Woodbury Park Cemetery - a gem of a hideaway from the town centre, this cemetery in a mature wooded valley is a beautiful place to sit and watch goldcrests, coal tits, blackcaps, chiffchaffs and swifts.

4. High Woods Lane - walk along this peaceful lane towards Pembury to enjoy quail, yellowhammers and fieldfares in the farmland, cheeky passerines in the allotments, and if you're very lucky you will see a barn owl feeding over the fields or even roosting in the abandoned barn.

3. Dunorlan Park - a huge range of waterfowl inhabit this great lake but especially keep your eyes open for water rails, mandarins, black swans, treecreepers, herons and kingfishers. See if you can spot all the birds listed in the cafe.

2. The Commons - from kingfishers, jays and herons to your blackcaps and blackbirds, you will never fail to see a lot of birds on the Commons.

1. Trinity Church - watch white doves sitting on the clock tower, listen to the song thrush who sits atop a tree with a song so strident you can probably hear it in Tonbridge, and the best treat of all is watching the starlings meet half-an-hour before sunset to chat about their day before leaving en-masse in one giant swirling ball to roost for the night in the town centre.

Caves meet tunnels

An interesting update to my previous post on Tunnels under Tunbridge Wells is the discovery of a 1941 sketch by E. Owen Jennings, former Principal of Tunbridge Wells School of Art.
The sketch shows some caves carved into the sandstone under the Common which were created for use as air raid shelters. The story goes that they were connected to the tunnels that lead off to the wine vaults, possibly even our smugglers tunnels. Does anyone out there, or anyone you know, have any memories of spending nights in these air raid shelters?

Smugglers' Tunnels

It's quite amazing at the breadth of history our town has for such a young place. Search statistics on my blog show that one of the most popular queries is for Tunbridge Wells Tunnels. I have covered some of these before, namely the Second World War tunnels under Hargate Forest but did you know that there are more under our very feet in the town centre?
Lots of people have told us about tunnels which apparently run from Bedford Terrace to Mount Sion (access, reportedly, for gentlemen to call on the ladies of the red light district without being spotted), there are also plenty of mythical tunnels under the common (donkey drive to vale towers) and there is of course the biggest tunnel of all, is the gigantic half-mile tunnel that carries the railway conveniently under our town without spoiling the view. It is important to note that there are no tunnels near the Common car park, the building you see there is an old public convenience that has since been turned into a bat hibernaculum.

But there are more interesting tales of tunnels than even those, and for them we need to step way back in our history to the early 1700's, a time of pirates and smugglers, to a humble local Tunbridge Wellian bricklayer called Gabriel Tomkins.

It seems that the building trade was upon hard times and life was getting a bit too tough for Gabriel, so like some other tradesmen of the time, he turned to smuggling.
By the early part of 1700 he had become leader of the Mayfield Gang, a group of rather pleasant but ruthless smugglers, choosing instead to tie up and disarm their opponents and then later free them rather than the usual cruel violence of your typical Smuggler.

The gang were actually quite popular with the locals too, as in true Robin Hood style they put some of the money they made smuggling back into the local community. Gabriel was an owler, a term for a smuggler of wool, particularly from England to France, in which the French would return the favour with brandy and silks. The gang would ride in parties of 20-30, well armed and fuelled with rebellion, to the coast at Hastings, Seaford or Lydd where they would load up the French vessels and then ride back to town with their payment, storing them in tunnels around Tunbridge Wells, possibly even in the mythical tunnels under Mount Ephraim that until recently were fronted by a well-known chain shop.

But by 1717 the life of crime had caught up with Gabriel and he was charged with the murder of Riding Officer Gerard Reeves during an affray at Langney Bridge near Eastbourne, but luckily was subsequently acquitted. Except that just four years later he was arrested again, this time for his role in breaking-free other gang members from the hands of the law. But again he evaded sentence by turning snitch and giving the authorities valuable information.

He went on to have a mixed career as both smuggler and customs officer, being Custom House Officer at Dartford in Kent in 1735 and Bailiff to the Sheriff of Sussex, but the pull of crime was too much and couldn't be suppressed and he soon fell back into his old ways by robbing the Chester Mail stagecoach for which he was hanged in 1750.

Could the mythical tunnels on Mount Ephraim be Gabriel's Tunnels? Does his ghost wander them guarding his still-hidden spoils? Anyone else picturing scenes from The Goonies of water slides and huge underground pirate ships?

p.s apologies for the non-Tunbridge Wellian photographs but they're actually photos from Seaford, where the loot was loaded. For the life of me I just couldn't find any smuggling-type shots in town

Boules to The Pantiles

What better place to sit and enjoy a cold drink and watch the world go by than The Pantiles. Well, that is indeed what the rest of the world thought it seemed, as the place was positively heaving with tourists ambling along today. The chalybeate spring even had a queue!
Summer has brought out the gorgeous hanging baskets along the promenade too which brings a beautiful scent to the hot sticky air.
But this image is what really summed up to me what Summer in Tunbridge Wells is all about, some friends getting together at lunchtime to have a game of French Boules, or Pétanque as the tourists watching probably would've called it.

Harrison's Rock Festival

Another glorious week of weather saw my wife and I itching to get outside on another long trek along the Tunbridge Wells Circular Trail. This time our finger of damacles fell onto Birchenden Wood, and more specifically Harrison's Rocks, so that's where we headed. And wow was it a great trek.

Trekking across farmland marked with rather worrying signs telling us to "Beware of the Bull", we headed out of the village of Langton Green on the edge of Tunbridge Wells, towards Groombridge. We rambled across the bridge over the steam railway line with its old carriages in storage underneath, pausing a while to spot the ancient London Underground carriages.

We passed through lots of stiles and gates, along lots of narrow lanes with high hedgerows bristling with butterflies and moths. We stopped at lakes, ponds and streams with huge dragonflies and tiny damoiselles flitting around. We stopped for a few precious minutes to watch a Grey Wagtail flying in and out of an abandoned doorway bringing back food for her noisy chicks. But mostly we kept walking and talking about how beautiful the Wealden countryside is.

And then the landscape changed. I can't quite explain it, but upon entering Birchenden Wood it felt like we'd stepped Down Under. The sights, the smells, the feeling was pure Australia. Very strange. Perhaps it's the antipodean-looking wash block at the campsite that has been erected in memory of the famous climber, Julie Tullis, or the over-large donations box along the dusty track that cars must negotiate for parking, or even the diversity of the trees here, but something was different. Time to sit and unpack our picnic.

Checking the information board, we decided to walk the perimiter of the forest first and then descend into the rocks from above, which I heartily recommend as it takes in some great views of the rocks from a distance, which must be even more spectacular in Autumn/Winter time.

We could hear the sounds of voices from afar but didn't expect quite the level of activity we saw when we finally arrived at the rock face. It was covered in climbers. Unbeknownst to us, there are an astonishing 339 climbs at Harrison's Rocks which draw climbers from all over the country, and most of them were there today by the look of it.

We explored the sandstone crags, marvelling at how delicate it all seemed, there were huge boulders dangling above the walkways just resting against other rocks. In places you could see where rainwater had worn away streams in the surface of the rock over many many years. Time was getting on, we let the climbers struggle on with their ropes and bits and began the long five miles home. A fabulous walk that you really must attempt this Summer. It still amazes me how this area can still keep giving after all these years, you just keep looking and you find new and wonderful things to do all the time.

Take a look at a gallery of images from our walk to Harrison's Rocks here or by clicking any of the images above.

Frant-tastic Voyage

What way to celebrate coming back off of holiday from the Devon countryside than to get out in the Wealden countryside. On a hot day and fancying a nice cold pint we decided to pick a pub a good long walk away. As far as Frant to be exact. We'd certainly earn it all that way.
Leaving town via Cumberland Walk, the heat of the day was already making that cold beverage seem further away with every step. The official Circular Walk took us out past the cemetery, the Nevill Golf Course and into the wonderful Chase Wood.
Entering the wood we were greeted by the wonderful the damp smells of a woodland, thanks to last nights heavy rains that also luckily washed away the pollen.

The sights and sounds of fledging birds were filling the air and the fleetest of glimpses of a deer crossing the path right ahead of us at one point was a real delight.
We trudged on, thirst building.

Exiting Chase Wood we were greeted with a beautiful sight, we hadn't realised that Chase Wood was taking us up a very steep incline and on escaping the coolness of the trees we could see for miles over the whole of Tunbridge Wells. The perfect place to sit for a picnic lunch. We were even joined by a family of Whitethroats and Yellowhammers.

We trudged on, just one last mile to the pretty village of Frant and the welcome pint, it was very welcome indeed. Just had the find the energy then to walk home.

If you enjoyed my pictures from the walk, there are some more here.

Crop Circles and UFOs?

Mysterious goings on have been occurring this week, firstly someone called Mr Cripps reports seeing a UFO and then this perplexing crop circle appeared within the grounds of Trinity Church.
Strange indeed. Did you spot anything weird or out of the ordinary this week?

Home

Back home from holiday. Nice to be back. What did I miss whilst I was away? Anything new and interesting to investigate?
Ever noticed how our TW water tastes lovely and soft and really different when you've been away? Just me then :D

Looking forward to getting back to local life and blogging again after a nice break.

Opera on The Pantiles

It's very rare that I manage to get to The Pantiles on a Bank Holiday Monday, but I'm very glad I made the effort today. The Pantiles was positively buzzing with people, all out to see the opera by the Unexpected Opera Company.

Entitled The Wedding, it was a specially written piece for The Pantiles about a Lottery winner trying to marry her daughter into blue-blooded stock. It featured household name operatic arias, beautifully sung in English, except with new lyrics. There were plenty of references to The Pantiles which were very funny.

But the best thing about it was the fact that it was a moving piece, it started on the Bandstand, then the next scene was up in the balconies, another was in the Fish Market and they ended up in the Chalybeate Spring with the final wedding scene.

It was a great feeling to see so many people enjoying it and following it along the walks. I must try and get to the special events that happen every weekend.

If you didn't manage to get to the event, or you did and want to relive it, why not visit my gallery of images by clicking here.

King Charles on Tour

Yesterday we welcomed a friend from the Big Smoke down to Tunbridge Wells, mainly for the purposes of a little photography walk around town.
I therefore broke out one of my repertoire of tours for visitors, and as we were pressed for time it was to be the speedy tour. Thus it went: Calverley Park, The Grove, Mount Sion, Eden Road, Chapel Place, King Charles the Martyr, The Pantiles, The Common, Mount Ephraim and home again. A nice big loop handily ending at Sankeys for a welcome pint.

The highlight of the day, apart from the unscheduled stop on The Pantiles for a cool glass of Chalybeate Water which was described as "like licking a lampost" and the refreshing cold beer to refresh the parts the Water didn't reach, was a visit to King Charles the Martyr Church. Here we were warmly welcomed by two cheerful ladies sat in front of a table festooned with pamphlets and guides. "Can we take some photos" we asked, to which their two faces lit up, "of course my dears, the more the merrier". So we did.

One's gaze can't help but drift upwards in a building like this, and there you'll see the fine ceiling domes by the master plasterers of Christopher Wren, namely John Wetherell and Henry Doogood. From there your attention is pulled towards the stained glass window at the back and you find yourself involuntarily walking towards it for a closer look.

We crept politely around all the fixtures and fittings, the lovely silence only marred every minute or so with the kerchunk of a camera shutter filling the air as we shot nearly every square inch of the place.

The details within the Church are so plentiful it's very easy to see your afternoon slip by in a flash. Just see how the light playing on the glass creates an image of warm colourful water on the old wooden boards in the picture below. Beautiful isn't it.

You can't really get it from this image, but the sound of the boards as you climb the stairs to the gallery above is strangely comforting. From up here back in a packed Sunday morning service in the summer of 1835 you may have caught the gaze of a young Princess Victoria, then a girl of sixteen, seated with her mother, sitting in the gallery opposite. A large brass plaque now attached to the panelling commemorates her visits.

Climbing the steps down again usually takes a lot longer than going up as you take your time to gaze at all the artwork that lines the small flight of steps. There are many fine beautiful historic documents here and they just beg to be photographed. Even if you can't quite read the writings of all of them.

There is time to peer outside through the coloured glass to the world beyond. Through the hazy delicately imperfect panes the view could almost be hundreds of years old if not for the speed of the passing shapes indicating modern traffic. Chapel Place looks crooked and skewed in a world of strange colour and passers by wobble past and make you reach out to touch the glass.

We reach into our pockets and post pieces of silver through the golden slot in the wall, our time here was fleeting but worth a couple of pounds in loose change.
Goodbye ladies, enjoy the wonderful peace and quiet when we're gone. I can't wait for the next friend to come visit so I can go back again.

There are a few more pictures here for you to enjoy of our small photowalk around the church and beyond.