Down The Road Apiece

Anyone who has spent their morning at the beautiful gardens of Helmingham Hall might be tempted to travel a couple of miles along winding country roads to see Otley Hall's gardens. I can't really recommend it at present, though the Hall itself is a wonderful old building and the gardens have considerable "potential" and yielded a handful of photographs which I hope you enjoy.

Otley Hall dates from the sixteenth century and has been added to gradually over the centuries. Some rooms inside are said to be largely unaltered. Tours can be booked on certain dates, though the Hall is a family home and so not generally open to the public. You can however buy a ticket to see the garden, and the outside of the house.

A nicely rusted Barn Owl sculpture swoops down to greet us as we begin the leafy stroll around the moated manor house.

You get enticing glimpses through the trees and across the moat.

A little less "leafy" and a bit more "glimpse" would have made life easier for this photographer!

A sweet little dovecot.

A sculpture lurks alongside the path through the wood.

Trees hang over a small pond.

Away from the main lawn much of the space has been left to run rather wild.

We'd seen all there was to see in a half-hour or so and found ourselves back at the Hall. Had the scenery detained us a little longer we would have used the on-site café which seemed a lot more popular than the grounds.

Otley Hall was for many years the home of the Gosnold family, including Bartholomew Gosnold. In 1602 he sailed to Cape Cod and named Martha's Vineyard in memory of his daughter. He was also one of the leading figures in the founding of Jamestown.

A large part of the building is built with one of my favourite materials: timber frame infilled with brick noggin in a herringbone pattern. It's also surprising to see such a huge window in a building of this age.

As you can see from the photos Otley Hall has many charms though it doesn't compare to nearby Helmingham.

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Roland The Farter - During our recent trip to Hemingstone Church (the one with the two porches and interesting history) I failed to introduce you to one of the village's celebrated former inhabitants, Roland le Fartere or Roland the Farter. 

Roland lived in the twelfth century, occupying the manor house and having some 30 acres of land. The thirteenth century Liber Feodorum tells us the rent which he paid for his property (don't try this at home) - every year he was obliged to perform "Unum saltum et siffletum et unum bumbulum" (one jump and whistle and one fart) before King Henry II on Christmas Day - Henry's Christmas just wouldn't have been the same without it! 

Roland was a court jester, of course, it seems that the noble art of flatulism was his speciality and for this he was richly rewarded.

Take care.