FORBURY GARDENS

(Reading’s Hidden Gem)

Reading to me is like a curate’s egg, good in parts.

There is the wonderful Town Hall and many handsome Victorian and Edwardian buildings but there is also the faceless urban sprawl and the endless traffic.  In time I think the new railway station will be more loved although in my view it has some alarming design defects.  Have you noticed that when it snows it can actually snow inside the vast overbridge?  Yes I was walking across the many lines when to my surprise there was snow being blown in through the enormous vents on the roof.  I would not imagine that the architects would have missed this phenomena or that when it rains heavily the overbridge floor becomes quite wet and those obvious yellow signs begin to increase.

But overall I love Reading station as I do the superb kinetic bridge that crosses the River Thames between the Reading and Caversham Bridges.  It is a beautiful bridge and in my view is as graceful as the Millau Viaduct in the South of France.  I am looking forward to walking across this elegant bridge very soon and I am planning a visit to see Norman Foster’s bridge the next time I am in the South of France.   Although my Reading visit is more likely at present.

You may have noticed that I have dealt with the spectacular.

Reading Town Hall is a spectacular building.

Reading Railway Station is a spectacular building.

The kinetic bridge over the River Thames is spectacular in its own subtle way.

But there is an area of Reading which is quite small but in my view is the hidden gem of the town.  Do you know that Jane Austin once played in the area as a child?  Or that in its centre there is an enormous lion which commemorates a rather tragic battle which took place during the high days of our Empire.

I am of course referring to Forbury Gardens a small park which can be found not far from the centre of the town.  Many of you may have visited it but how many know of its fascinating history?  I certainly was not aware of its full history.

For those unfamiliar with Reading here is thumbnail guide on how to find the park. Essentially it is about five minutes’ walk from the railway station. All you need to do is turn sharp left when leaving the station and head towards the Town Hall where you will find a short street called Valpy Street.  The park is at the end of this street and can be easily seen.  It is surrounded in part by a decorative stone wall and be entered through an ornate gate again to your left (this is not the only entrance but the nearest to the station).  As you enter the park you will immediately feel the Victorian ambiance of the gardens.  Everything is pleasing to the eye.

But what of Forbury Gardens and its history how much do we actually know about the park?   My researches indicate that the actual area of the park was the site of the outer court of Reading Abbey whose ruins can be found to the left of the gardens.  Reading Abbey itself was founded in 1121 by Henry the First and soon became very influential within the town and beyond.  The actual name Forbury is a meeting place where fairs could be held and the town could meet the Abbey.

Initially Forbury Hill did not exist but was built in 1150 during the civil war between King Henry’s daughter Matilda and his nephew Stephen.  This was to fortify the Abbey.  It has remained in its position to this day.  All went well within reason until 1538 when the Abbey was mostly destroyed during Henry the Eight’s Dissolution of the Monasteries.  

Indeed the final Abbot was actually executed in front of the Abbey Church.  The building was plundered and robbed with anything of value stolen or used elsewhere.  The English Civil War and the Siege of Reading (1642-43) further harmed what was left of the Abbey and the hill was again used for defensive gain.

During the next two hundred years the area was used for a variety of purposes including military use as well as the location for many markets and fairs.  There was the famous Michaelmas Fair (later known as The Reading Cheese Fair) where stock and crops were sold.  This fair has also been recorded as a Hiring Fair which was really was a place where prospective employers and prospective employees could be matched.

Jane Austin is one of our most famous authors and has been strongly linked with Hampshire and the City of Bath (which she disliked).  But not many people know that Jane and her sister Cassandra were actually educated in Reading along with another cousin also called Jane.  They had been taught in Southampton and Oxford but this proved unsuccessful and they moved to The Reading Ladies Boarding School (The Abbey School) which taught the Jane(s) and Cassandra the staple eighteenth century diet of music, sewing, dancing and spelling (which would serve Jane well in later life).

It is estimated that she stayed for three years leaving in 1786. The school may have been used as the model for Mrs Goddard’s school in Emma.  Although it would be over sixty years before the park was actually created Jane is known to have played on the grounds in front of the Abbey ruins during breaks from lessons.  Just think you might be sitting in the park eating your healthy Subway sandwich and not so healthy sugary drink in exactly the spot where Jane first thought of Mr Darcy.  But why would you be sitting there in the first place?

This was because in 1854 the Forbury Hill and the eastern part of the present gardens were sold to the Reading Corporation for £1200.  From then it was all systems go. The Victorians were at the heart of the park mania where every large town had to have a park (in my view this was one the greatest gifts bestowed on us by our forefathers).

Possibly with Kew in mind, the gardens were planned with a botanical character. A fountain was planned, a summerhouse and a tunnel was built to link the gardens to the Abbey ruins in 1859.  The work started in 1855 and the park opened on Easter Sunday in 1856.  However the western part of the Forbury was still being used for fairs and because of this the area had a refuse problem which was spoiling the enjoyment of the visitors to the park.

The situation was remedied in 1860 when the western area was purchased by the town for £6010.  Fairs were no longer held in the park but a wall separated the two parts of the Forbury.  Each had its own character. As far as I can see the western part was reserved for more recreational use whereas its eastern neighbour was more botanical in nature.  This situation did not last long for in 1873 the western part of the Forbury was absorbed into the whole and the whole area became known as Forbury Gardens. 

The familiar Lion was erected in 1886 and the Victoria Gates in 1897 to commemorate Queen Victoria’s Diamond Jubilee.  To a great extent the gardens at the turn of the twentieth century are the gardens we enjoy today.  However, the park was allowed to deteriorate as the twentieth century progressed (this was true of many parks in the country and many soon became no go areas after dark).  Forbury was no exception. I had known the park vaguely since the 1960s and was shocked at its state when I visited the town in 1973.  It seemed a place for drunks and addicts and other unfortunate activities and subsequent visits did nothing to improve my image of the park.  I always felt the brave lion was on the verge of weeping at the decay that it was witnessing.  Something had to be done otherwise the park would have faded in all but its name. 

By 2005 a restoration project had been completed to the cost of £2.13 million pounds.

The historic features so beloved by the gardens were improved as well as safety and access.  CCTV was added to deter the few who wanted to spoil others enjoyment but most of all the famous lion was spruced up.  For anybody who visits the gardens what is the image that they do not forget?  It is the Maiwand Lion.  But who is this beast and why should he be position in the middle of a park in Reading? 

The Maiwand Lion is actually a war memorial to commemorate the Battle of Maiwand in 1880 which was one of the principle battles of the Second Anglo–Afghan War (1878-1880) in which the Afghans defeated two brigades of British and Indian troops.  The victory came at a high price for the aggressors as they lost some 2700 warriors whereas the Empire forces lost just under a thousand.  Amongst these were 329 men from the 66^th (Berkshire) Regiment of Foot and to be really precise the memorial actually commemorates these brave men.

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Here are a few facts about the Maiwand Lion.

Its sculptor was a George Blackall Simmonds (1843-1929) and one of the most enduring urban myths concerns the sculptor.  It is said that he committed suicide as it was observed that the lions gait was wrong and that of a domestic cat.  But on closer study the gait is correct and George lived for another forty-three years. This said I have never been able to find the lion’s tongue.

The sculpture is made of cast iron and weights sixteen tons and is Grade Two Listed.  It has an IPA named after it as well as appearing on the crest of Reading Football Club.  

I was in last the gardens (apart from a whirlwind visit to the Ice Fair) as the summer grew tired and the days grew shorter.  My wife was shopping in the town so I decided to escape to the tranquillity of the park.  I had treated myself to a small volume of Keats poetry at the nearby Oxfam Books and sat silently reading, awaiting my wife’s return. Although there were many people in the park there was a quietness that I did not notice immediately but was soon aware of.  The light and the semi-silence reminded me of that rather nice children’s programme In the Night Garden.  True there we no oddly shaped creatures carrying red blankets with them or a young lady who always wanted to dance (forgive me I do not know their names).  But the light and the vivid colours as well as the peaceful nature of the evening put me in mind of the night garden.

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Soon after this my wife returned and John Keats was placed into my jacket pocket and my thoughts of the BBC programme and the gardens were committed to memory.  I waved to the lion and we were on our way. 

If you are in Reading do try to visit this amazing park and meet the lion and the young author of Emma and other books.  Sit on the hill, visit the Trooper Potts memorial just outside of the gates.  Take time to have a sandwich or a coffee and just take in the Forbury Gardens for a while.

You will not be disappointed.

Stuart Miller-Osborne  

Wendy with stallholder, Kathy Coen

At Hungerford Arcade we always look forward to meeting lovely people with a story to tell and Wendy Dobbenie has a wonderful one about how she makes animals and scenes from 1960’s and 1970’s crockery into mosaic art.  Here you can see Wendy with stallholder Kathy Coen and below with Arcade co-owner, Adrian Gilmour.  Further down, you will see the wonderful work Wendy does with the crockery in making her mosaics.

Wendy with Arcade co-owner, Adrian Gilmour

Wendy started doing mosaics a few years ago purely as a hobby and something to do in her spare time. Wendy said “I enjoy de-stressing by smashing up crockery and creating new pieces with it”.  As you can see, it works!

This is Chris Joliffe and his adorable Westie, Poppy, with unit 46 stallholder Frances Jones.  Chris and Poppy have become regular fixtures here at the Arcade, making weekly visits to add to Chris’s ever growing collection of motoring memorabilia.  Over the years, Chris has become good friends with a number of our stallholders and everybody looks forward to Poppy’s irresistible good nature.  

This weekend there was a surprise in store for them in the form of a fantastic antique inkstand from Frances.  The inkstand was owned by her Grandfather and in her own words “to prove antiques dealers have a heart” she decided to give it to Chris rather than sell it.  She knows Chris will love it and actually use it.  It will be in pride of place on his desk at home.   

Frances’s Mother tragically passed away recently after a long battle with cancer and to show his appreciation, Chris will be making a donation to Cancer Research UK.  

Eileen’s beautiful blue and white meat drainer table

We had a wonderful lady visit us from the USA, Eileen Langenus, who told us this wonderful story about a table she has at home in the States.  The table is purely decorative and as you will see from Eileen’s pictures of her and her mother’s tables, they are rather beautiful.  The tables are specially made by craftsman who are very guarded about their skills and the secrets that makes it work, but I can tell you this. The table top is actually an English Victorian meat drainer.  

Eileen’s mother’s beautiful meat drainer table

The maker of the tables, travels over to England especially to buy the Victorian meat drainers then, on his return, designs the tables around them.  As you can see, the tables are very decorative and would be a talking point in any room.  I think they are just stunning!

Arcade Manager, Alex, Joyce, Jeanette & Rita

A lovely lady, Jeanette, came to the Arcade to do some shopping with her mother, Joyce. They stayed for a few hours when Jeanette bought a large amount of beautiful linens.   Curious, I asked if they were for a special occasion and she said that they were. Jeanette went on to tell us that on the 25th February, she will be at the Outlet Village, Swindon where she has to design four tables, each one dressed for 1920’s, 30’s, 40’s, and 50’s.  Every item on the table will be authentic to the period.  Incidentally, what you see in Jeanette’s arms is just a fraction of what she actually bought!

When Jeanette was asked about her business, Tinkerjo, Jeanette told us, “We did think long and hard about a name for our business but in the end there could really only be two names to consider, the names of our beautiful Yorkshire terriers, Tinkerbell and Josie and combining them gave us the perfect solution.

We have a passion for creative design and innovative styling and Tinkerjo was formed as a result of having a longstanding passion and desire to put our creativity and innovative ideas into designing gorgeous and bespoke décor, table decor and venue styling for Weddings and Celebrations.

We love working with beautiful things and are extremely fortunate that in starting Tinkerjo we are able to indulge our passion for all things creative, we are inspired on a daily basis by so many of the lovely things around us, fabrics, flowers, lace, ribbons, paintings and beautiful landscapes, all of these things are ingredients that go into our mixing bowl in creating and designing exquisite and unique decor for your Wedding or Celebration.  As the saying goes, “it’s all in the detail” and we take great care in ensuring that we attend to every detail”.

Find out more about this remarkable lady and her wonderful business, Tinkerjo on her website at www.tinkerjo.co.uk

Rita with Wendy, showing off the beautiful ring that she made from cutlery

Hungerford Arcade once again came up trumps when a customer with a most unusual skill, called into the Arcade to buy some silver cutlery, “but not just any old silver cutlery”, she said.  We were intrigued and waited for her to return to the counter with her purchases to find out more.

From this….

The customer, Wendy Smyth, came back to the counter with her purchases of silver cutlery dessert forks, coffee spoons, butter knives and sugar tongs, and told us, “This might look like ordinary cutlery, but parts from each item will be transformed into bespoke jewellery”. As you can see from the photographs, the beautiful rings designed and made by Wendy entirely from cutlery.  I will never look at cutlery again in the same way.  When I see teaspoons, I wonder how they would look as long dangly earrrings!  

to this

and this

Hungerford Arcade and everyone living in or associated with this beautiful town is very proud of the history of Hungerford.  The most famous inhabitant of Hungerford is, of course, John of Gaunt.  Our wonderful friend and author, Stuart Miller-Osborne, has written this fascinating article about this very famous man and his life. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I did.

What is noticeable when one is in Hungerford, are the references to a certain John of Gaunt. There is an inn named after him near the two rivers as well as a school that bears his name on the hill above the town. But who was John of Gaunt and why is his name so intertwined with the history of Hungerford? To find out we will have to go back to the reign of Edward the Second (1307-1327).

 It is known that the King visited the town on June 19^th 1308.  But let us jump forward some fourteen years as this is a record of history only.  A certain Thomas Earl of Lancaster and Leicester who was beheaded for treason in Pontefract in 1322 and had his properties forfeited to the Crown.  The King however, learnt that Thomas’ widow, Alice, had  Hungerford settled on her after her husband’s death along with the profits from the manor.

This is where it gets slightly complicated.  It seems that a neighbouring Lord, a man called Henry le Tyes from Chilton Foliat, had also been involved in the rebellion and was executed at the same time as Thomas. In 1327, his estates were settled on his brother Henry who died in 1345.  His son of the same name, was created Duke of Lancaster by Edward the Third.  When Henry died in 1361, Hungerford passed to his daughter, Maud (Matilda), who was called Maud of Bavaria and was married to a certain Duke of Zealand. Are you still with me ?

Maud, sadly died on the 10^th of April 1362, which, in the greater scheme of things, is a date of interest in the story of Hungerford and John of Gaunt, as her estates were left to her younger sister, Blanche who was the wife of the King’s forth son whom, as we know, was John of Gaunt.

John of Gaunt had been created by the Duke of Lancaster and the Earl of Leicester and because of his wife, there originated his connection with Hungerford.  Quite what happened to Thomas’ widow Alice and her possession of Hungerford is unclear, but by 1362, John of Gaunt and Hungerford were now being mentioned in the same breath.

John and Blanche were married at Reading Abbey on Sunday, the 19^th of May 1359, which although very much changed, still exists and is well worth a visit.  I have recently read an account of the marriage in a book called The Marriage of John of Gaunt and Blanche of Lancaster at Reading Abbey (1917), which apart from giving an account of the wedding, gives pen-pictures of both John and Blanche which I will share with you.

John of Gaunt

John of Gaunt was the fourth son of King Edward the Third.  He was just nineteen years old when he married his cousin Blanche, the second daughter of Henry Duke of Lancaster. John is remembered as a tall and soldier-like man with a determined yet thoughtful countenance. Chaucer spoke of him as “a wonder wel-faringe knight of good mochel” (a wonderfully handsome knight of great size).

Blanche of Lancaster

Blanche is noted as being a beautiful English blonde (An English Rose), who was tall like her husband and graceful in disposition. She was soft of speech and must have made an impression on Chaucer as she is mentioned in his Book of the Duchesse as follows;

As the someres sonne bright

Is fairer, clerer and hath more light
Than any planete in heven
The mone or the sterres seven
For al the worlde, so had she
Surmounted hem alle of beaute,
Of maner and of comlinesse
Of stature and wel set gladnesse
Of goodlihede so well beseye (endowed)

The description is typically Chaucer’s and with most of his work, can be read in a number of ways.  But Blanche, who was an early patron of the poet, would I believe, have been amused (if not flattered) by his description of her.  Blanche, who was a years younger than John and in the ten years of their marriage, bore him five children, one of whom married the future King of Portugal.  Sadly, Blanche died of the plague on the 12^th September 1369, her sister and father having already succumbed to the disease.  She was buried in St Paul’s Cathedral and was later joined by John on his death in 1399.

Upon his marriage to Blanche, John inherited North Standen as well as Hungerford Manor and Sandon Fee (a rural estate that lay around the town).  He also held the manor of Charleton (Charnham Street) as well as the Overlord-ship of nearby Eddington although, some of the nearby areas were still held directly by the Crown.

History relates that Edward the Third granted a Charter to Hungerford and John later granted himself the rights of free fishing from Eldren Stub to the Irish Stile (with the exception of some privately owned waters). The Charter is also said to confer rights of hunting grazing and fishing to householders living in the main street in Hungerford. This Charter itself appears to have been lost in 1381 during the Peasants Revolt so its history is that of some dispute.  What is known however, is that the inhabitants of Hungerford were granted a large number of rights and privileges, unusual at the time and since.  John is generally thought to have granted these but again, this is disputed in some quarters.  In short, John is credited in granting free fishing rights on the River Kennet between Elder Stubb (just below Leverton) to the Irish Stile (near Kinbury) to the inhabitants of the town as well as other privileges.

The John of Gaunt Horn

There is also the John of Gaunt Horn, which is supposed to have been made to guarantee the previously noted rights. The horn has Hungerford on one side with the word Actel (or Astel) on the other along with the crescent and star, which is now recognisable as the badge of the town.  This said, the horn dates from the fifteenth century (John died in 1399), but what is known, is that for some two hundred years (1365 -1565), Hungerford enjoyed John of Gaunt Privileges with the profits of markets and fairs as well as the free fishery being a right.

Why this came to an end is the subject for a different article, but whilst you cannot still fish freely on the Kennet, the sight of the yearlings grazing freely on Hungerford Common and the annual Hocktide (Tutti Day), gives a clue to the town’s past.

Whatever John of Gaunt did or did not grant is a subject for historians, but it all contributes to the unique feel of our town.

Stuart Miller-Osborne

Here is a wonderful story from our great friend and author, Stuart Miller-Osborne.  It is about a place in Kent strongly associated with Noel Coward, Ian Fleming and major film stars.  It is fascinating and I loved it.  Hope you do too.

Out and About

Here is a question.  What links the last place in England to be bombed during World War One and one of the biggest Hollywood stars of her generation?  It links Brief Encounter with the creator of James Bond.  And what connection do these have with the antiques trade?

The answer is St Margaret’s Bay in Kent which I had the pleasure to visit with my lovely wife a few days ago during our holiday in Kent.  St Margaret’s Bay, where is that you may ask?  The answer is just a stone’s throw from the town of Dover.  Basically it is just a small bay around about three miles from the famous town.  Yet it could not be more different.  Whilst Dover (which I have always liked) is currently a rather sad and shabby coastal town, St Margaret’s Bay and the village above the bay St Margaret’s at Cliffe are typically Kent tranquil.  This is the Kent of our childhood.  There is one shop and a number of pubs.  The buses do not run on time.  And you need to be pretty fit to survive the climb between the beach and the village above (it is indeed a three part village if you take into account the area of Nelson Park a little further inland).

But enough of this geography.  Why does this now obscure bay still have a claim to fame?  Well it is not that it was the last place on the mainland to be bombed during World War One.  It was because of a certain Noel Coward who lived in St Margaret’s Bay between 1945 and 1951.  He actually owned another house Goldenhurst which had been requisitioned by the army and in 1945.  He purchased White Cliffs which was in pretty bad shape at the time as it had been torn apart by British and Canadian troops in preparation for D Day.

He said at the time, that he felt he would be happy there with the waves lapping the walls of his bedroom (in bad weather I would imagine) and the vast white cliffs rising steeply behind the house.  There were also some modernist houses right next to Coward’s house and he attempted to purchase these also, so that his privacy could be assured.  He actually ran into problems at the time because of this, as there were restrictions in place because of the housing shortage in the South East following the war. This hurdle was cleared when his friends purchased the houses instead.  This was investigated by the Ministry of Works but no laws were found to have been broken.

After the house had been repaired, the guests began to arrive and soon the small bay began to be known by the name Piccadilly on Sea (as it had been named many years previously).  Celebrities such as Gertrude Lawrence and Daphne Du Maurier were frequently seen as was the actor Joseph Cotton.  But, it was the arrival of the Hollywood stars Spencer Tracy and Katherine Hepburn which attracted the attention as they would often drive down from London see Coward and his friends.  Kate was also famed for her morning dips in the sea (often in freezing weather) which she undertook on a regular basis.  I actually paddled in the sea there (with great difficulty as it is very rocky and the pebbles were not all that kind to your feet) and can assure you, that even in July, the waters were
not all that warm.  My ambitions to repeat Kate’s swimming exploits were soon abandoned.  Another visitor to White Cliffs was Coward’s great friend the writer, Ian Fleming, who we all know created James Bond.  Indeed, his novel Moonraker is set in the Dover/Deal area.  

I can see how Coward was happy there; it was incredibly convenient for London and Paris but was again in the middle of nowhere.  He often caught The Golden Arrow ferry (do you remember that?) and within hours was in Calais picking up food that was not available in England because of rationing.  He would sometimes go to Paris where he often met friends such as Maurice Chevalier, Marlene Dietrich and Mary Pickford amongst others.

During his trips to Jamaica (where he is now buried) he often loaned his house to the Duke of Kent and his family which caused even more excitement in the area.  Sadly, this was not to last as the public then were as just as they are today, they like to see celebrities.  What Coward wanted more than anything was a retreat. a place to relax and work and think.  The continuing stream of people to St Margaret’s Bay really gave him no choice, his privacy had been invaded.

During his time at White Cliffs, he worked on Blithe Spirit and he rewrote This Happy Breed and Brief Encounter so that they could be filmed (although I think This Happy Breed does predate his stay).  In 1951 he sold White Cliffs to Ian Fleming who lived there until 1957.  I think his wife was not too impressed with White Cliffs due to the crumbling chalk cliffs above and the amount of seaweed that was to be found around the house.

His other memorable creation Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, was also partially set in Kent, when the famous car flew to the nearby Goodwin Sands where the Potts family enjoyed a picnic in the middle of the channel. Today, in my view, St Margaret’s Bay is full of ghosts (especially if you are aware of the history of the area).  As you walk towards the beach on the lane above the only inn, there are the remnants of a wall built during Napoleonic times to help defend the area.  This is a reminder of how close St Margaret’s Bay is to France (which is visible on most days). I am told that this is the nearest point on the English mainland to our continental neighbour (just over twenty miles) and obviously would have been an early calling point should an invasion have occurred.  Although the major guns located in the area have been removed, one can still clearly see the wartime defences in situ (there is an accessible pill box located at the Dover end of the bay).  This is haunting enough, but what I found most haunting was the presence of the modernist houses at the far end of the bay which initially hide White Cliffs.  In a way it is odd to see them there right on the beach and when one gets closer, one sees that they are empty, although furnished (they are holiday lets).

White Cliffs, when I visited it was empty and obviously had been a little changed by owners since 1957. I looked over the wall onto the terrace (now totally empty) and thought of all the parties and gatherings that must have taken place there.  I looked at the beach, where Kate used to reach the sea in all weathers.  Everything was quiet and apart from a couple of German visitors, I was alone.

There was an eerie silence to the area and this was further enhanced by the incredible light that one finds in this part of Kent.  It is a very defined light which can be found in St Ives and in Venice as well as the South of France and elsewhere as you travel south. Turner loved it and during his time in nearby Margate, he often commented on the light.

On the day Caron and I visited St Margaret’s Bay there were less than five dozen people to be seen and on chatting to a local, I was assured that the bay did not get that busy, even at the height of summer.  It was well known but was a little forgotten.  There is one Inn there and a small unit selling tea and other goodies and that is it.

How do you get there you may ask?  Well it is really quite simple.  If you are driving then find the Dover to Deal road and St Margaret’s is well signposted and about two miles distant.

By train you go to Martin’s Mill (between Dover and Walmer) and follow Station Road towards the main Dover Road.  If you survive crossing this road then just follow your nose into St Margaret’s on Cliffe which is directly above the bay.  I would not advise the walk from the station as this can be a little hair raising due to the traffic and the winding nature of the road.  There is an adequate bus service from Dover and Deal, (which appears to run to its own timetable) which drops you in the village and is most convenient.

The steps that lead to St Margaret’s Bay (if you are walking from the village) are a little steep and were for some reason quite damp (even in July) but generally are good.

Or you can just drive down the hill (there appears to be ample parking at the bay).

How, may you ask, does this fit in with the antiques trade and Hungerford?  Well, I think I can sum it up in one word collectables.  Noel Coward is very well known and there is a mountain of collectables available if you search them out.  He was a composer, a playwright, director, actor and singer amongst other things and I often see scores and other ephemera of his for sale.  Only today whilst writing this article, I popped down to the Arcade to purchase his 1937 autobiography, Present Indicative, as I needed to confirm a couple of points I was researching.  The book (which was a first edition) was cheaper than the Sunday paper I had previously purchased and will be read (time permitting) in the coming weeks.  If I wanted a copy of let’s say Private Lives or The Vortex or even Hay Fever I do not suppose that I would have to wait long before finding one.  I would imagine that signed photographs are quite easily found (although I have not seen one for several years).  His music scores and film scripts must show up from time to time.  If you are a serious collector with a defined budget then you will seek out his work possibly at auction.  But most of us who admire his work will just wait and see what comes along which, in my view, is more fun.

 His great friend Ian Fleming, who I have already noted purchased White Cliffs from Coward in 1951, is, in my view, an underrated author.  His success with the Bond novels overshadowed everything else that this very talented man produced.  I remember that one of the first books I was given was a paperback copy of Goldfinger which I read (after a fashion) aged nine.  For some reason this book opened up my imagination and soon I was writing rather childlike short stories about the secret agents of C.H.A.N.N.E.L and their fight against evil.  My hero was called Victor Shoreway instead of James Bond and I was
always grateful to Fleming for helping me along.  Recently I found a sad but rather amusing story about Fleming who died at the age of 53 on the 12^th of August 1964.  On the previous day, he had been playing golf at the Royal St Georges Golf Club in Sandwich but he collapsed with a heart attack shortly after a meal.  As he was taken to hospital in Canterbury (and these are likely to have been his last recorded words) he apologised to the ambulance crew for having inconvenienced them saying, “I am sorry to trouble you chaps, I don’t know how you get along so fast on the roads these days”.

Having walked along many a road and lane in this area of Kent I can assure you that the situation has not improved in the last fifty years.  One can buy copies of the James Bond novels quite cheaply in paperback form and outside of first editions, hardback copies are quite reasonable to buy.  If you are after a first edition of one of his Bond novels then you can, at times, expect to part with quite serious money.  I have, I believe, read the whole series of his Bond novels and occasionally re-read one when on hols.  I was going to take a copy of Moonraker down with me this year but, as normal, l could not locate it in my study.

But St Margaret’s Bay is not just about Noel Coward and Ian Fleming, as it has other connections to fame. Channel swimmers nearly always start from there and a number of submarine telephone cables also start from the bay and I believe that Marconi used this area to test his communications long before Noel Coward arrived.  One can see tall masts on the cliffs as the village is approached. although these cannot be seen from the bay.  In a way there is something for everyone.  If you want peace and quiet then it is there in bucket loads.  If you want ghosts then just close your eyes.  If you are interested the bay’s history then there is more.

It was also very popular prior to Coward and Fleming moving there. Indeed, Henry Royce (of Rolls Royce fame) lived there high on the cliffs and other well to do and well known people either purchased summer homes or lived there all the year round.  More recently, the late Peter Ustinov lived there and the actress Miriam Margolyes now lives in his old house.  I do not celebrity spot and as I have intimated, you would be hard pressed to see anybody famous at St Margaret’s Bay today.  But if you look closely, then you will feel their presence whether it be the house parties and gatherings at White Cliffs or the famous Hollywood couple arriving from London.

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You will think of Fleming’s Bond novels and the many brave soldiers stationed here over the last two hundred years.  But if I was you. I would just sit on one of the many benches and look out to sea and enjoy the magnificent light on the English Channel which, even on dull days, is memorable.

If you feel like reading then why not buy one of the many Arthur Mee  guidebooks to Kent (there were a number at the Arcade when I last looked) and learn more about this fascinating county of which St Margaret’s Bay is only but a small part.

Do enjoy your visit.

Stuart Miller-Osborne

Adrian, Hazel, Managers, Alex, Rita and all the Staff and Stallholders at Hungerford Arcade with you a Very Happy and Peaceful New Year!