London Calling: WHITE HEAT

London Calling: WHITE HEAT

Jack (Sam Claflin) and Charlotte (Claire Foy)

Tony Grant's review of the new BBC series in the UK. Click on link.

A Visit to Windsor Castle

A trip to Great Britain for the first-time visitor means a visit to wondrous Windsor Castle. I visited that grand edifice the year after QE2 talked about her annus horribilis in her Christmas message of 1992 after the fire at the castle and the disintegration of Charles's and Diana's marriage. In 1993 I saw Windsor Castle and was bowled over by the renovations that had been completed, for I saw very little fire damage. Tony Grant recently visited Windsor and graciously shared his photos with me. I was brought back to my visit and most intrigued by the Irish Wolfhound.

Changing of the guard

Irish Guards

Wolfhound

Marching past

Windsor Castle

St. George's Chapel

Interior, St. George's Chapel

Images submitted by Tony Grant, London Calling

Ice and Ices to Keep Cool

Entrance to the ice house. Image @Tony Grant

The July heat this year is stifling. It is all people (and animals) can do to keep cool. Tony Grant sent two images of an ice house at Ham House in Cleveland.

One can see how far into the ground these ice houses went.
Image @Tony Grant

 Before refrigeration, blocks of ice were carved from frozen rivers, ponds, and streams and carted to these thick-walled, underground ice houses, where the ice was covered with burlap and straw to prevent melting.
Learn about the ways people kept cool during Jane Austen's day at Jane Austen's World.

Ham House

This strawberry frozen yogurt recipe offered by Jean from Delightful Repast is a sure fire way to beat the summer doldrums. Jean writes that yogurt has been around for centuries. I wonder if they froze it even back then?

Strawberry frozen yogurt by Jean @Delightful Repast

Snow at Chawton and Chawton Cottage

Gentle readers, Tony Grant from London Calling and contributor to this blog and Jane Austen's World shot these beautiful images during last week's snow in England. We see so many pictures of Chawton and Chawton Cottage in spring and summer with tourists all around. One can hear the silence in this waning light. Just lovely.

Village street (with Chawton Cottage at left). Image @Tony Grant

Chawton Cottage side door. Image @Tony Grant

Chawton Cottage sign. Image @Tony Grant

Across the fields. Image @Tony Grant

Chawton grounds in snow. Image @Tony Grant

Chawton fields with Chawton House in the distance. Image @Tony Grant

Chawton House grounds. Image @Tony Grant

To Chawton House. Image @Tony Grant

Chawton House in golden light. Image @Tony Grant

Read more:

• Jane Austen's House Museum
• Chawton House Library
• Chawton House on Twitter
• Reading, writing and Emma, by Dr. Gillian Dow of the Chawton House Library

Trip to Lacock Village

Lacock Houses by Tony Grant

Cranford

The Secret Dreamworld of a Jane Austen Fan offers My Bath Trip, Part 7, Lacock Village. Blog author Aurora offers fabulous images on her virtual tour. Speaking of which, Tony Grant also took excellent images of the village. Enjoy!

Lacock Church

Lacock Cottages

Lacock House

Cranford and Return to Cranford were filmed in Lacock Village

Lacock stores

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The George Inn

Tony Grant: Posts from London Calling

Gentle Reader, Tony Grant placed a few more posts about his trip to Bath on his own blog, London Calling. They are well worth a visit.

Bath Front Doors

This front door is number 17, The Circus, Bath. Approaching, The Circus, are three roads, Gay Street from the south, where Jane Austen lived for a short while, Bennet Street from the North East, which leads to The Upper Assembly Rooms and Brock Street to the North West which leads to the Royal Crescent. These three roads enter The Circus, dividing this circular road exactly into thirds. Number 17 is in the northern third and is near the entrance to Bennett Street.

It’s situation could not be closer to and was indeed part of the elite residences of Bath in the 18th century. It is also within a minutes walk of The Upper Assembly Rooms where the bright young things of the 18th century and some not so young, danced, gambled, flirted, paraded and generally made a show of themselves. These beautiful young things had time on their hands and many had money to spend.

The resident of number 17 The Circus between 1759 and 1768 was there to take advantage of this situation. He was Thomas Gainsborough an up and coming portrait artist.

For the rest of the article, click here.

Random Bits and Pieces of Bath

I don't know about you, but when I visit a place, I notice interesting, well interesting to me, bits and pieces, and get an overwhelming urge to photograph them.

Here are some photographs from Bath.

All the best,
Tony

Click here to see the rest of the photographs ...

Did Jane Austen Visit Tenby?

Gentle Readers: Tony Grant has been on holiday - to Bath and the West Country. His last letter to me was filled with wonderful information and images. Enjoy!

Tenby in the rain

Hi Vic,

Got back from Tenby yesterday.

The weather was wet.

I feel all fired up to write a Bath article for next week if you can forgive me for having disappeared for a while.

The town

While we were in Tenby we went up to the excellent museum they have on Castle Hill. I asked whether Jane Austen had stayed in the town. The people there seemed to think she had. They weren't sure which house she stayed in though. When I pointed out that the only reference to Tenby I have found, is in one letter and that mentions acquaintances going to the seaside resort. It didn't faze them in the museum. Everybody wants to claim Jane, whatever the the slim connection might be it seems.

Tudor merchant's house

Anyway, George Elliott did stay there for a while with her lover and future husband and actually was inspired to begin writing Silas Marner while a resident.Also Lord Nelson and Lady Hamilton stayed in one of the town houses inTenby. Edmund Keen, the actor, a favourite of Janes, stopped off while sailing round the coast on his yacht. He was persuaded to perform his, Shylock, in the town theatre for one night.

George Elliot stayed here

There are some beautiful 18th century town houses in Tenby.

Harbour view

Hope everything is well with you.

All the best,
Tony

George Elliot stayed here

Posted by Tony Grant, London Calling

Trip to Bath: Milsom Street

Inquiring Readers: Tony Grant has been on holiday visiting Bath and the West Country. He has sent me some glorious images. These, taken on Milsom Street, remind me of the post I had placed on this site just a month ago: Shopping and Milsom Street, Bath.

I had always thought of Milsom Street as being a shopping district, but when Catherine Morland sets out to find Miss Tilney in Northanger Abbey, it turns out that the General has rented a house in Milsom Street:

Catherine cheerfully complied, and being properly equipped, was more impatient than ever to be at the pump-room, that she might inform herself of General Tilneys lodgings, for though she believed they were in Milsom Street, she was not certain of the house, and Mrs. Allen's wavering convictions only made it more doubtful. To Milsom Street she was directed, and having made herself perfect in the number, hastened away with eager steps and a beating heart to pay her visit, explain her conduct, and be forgiven; tripping lightly through the church-yard, and resolutely turning away her eyes, that she might not be obliged to see her beloved Isabella and her dear family, who, she had reason to believe, were in a shop hard by. She reached the house without any impediment, looked at the number, knocked at the door, and inquired for Miss Tilney.

Studying the images that Tony sent, the street must have been loud and bustling with activity. Granted, today's Bath is filled with tourists and cars, but back then, on rainy days, women wore pattens that clattered on cobblestones, carriage wheels rattled, horses' hooves clopped, and the cries of street sellers rang through the air.

Image from Victoria Art Gallery, Bath; Photos from Tony Grant, London Calling

Vin de Constance

Several months ago, on Jane Austen Today, Raquel Sallaberry posted an article about a wine that Jane Austen refers to in Sense and Sensibility: "Jane Austen and Wine: The Sweet Wines of Constantia."

Here is a quotation from Raquel's blog:

In Sense and Sensibility, Mrs. Jennings, like every good soul, believes that is possible to cure all illness with a drop of any beverage - from water with sugar to wine. After Marianne's unfortunate encounter with Willoughby in London, she has a conversation with Elinor:

“My dear,” said she, entering, “I have just recollected that I have some of the finest old Constantia wine in the house that ever was tasted, so I have brought a glass of it for your sister. My poor husband! how fond he was of it! Whenever he had a touch of his old colicky gout, he said it did him more good than any thing else in the world. Do take it to your sister.”

As Marianne was already asleep, Elinor, even amused at the vaunted efficiency of that wine for so many problems, decided to drink herself, the wine, since she's also had her heart broken too!

This was an opportunity too good to waste. I did a quick Google search for wine merchants in South London that might sell this amazing, Vin de Constance. I came up with two very near where I live. ”South African Wines,” near Colliers Wood tube station and, “Wimbledon Wine Merchants,” just off Wimbledon High Street. I cycled into Wimbledon first and struck lucky immediately. Wimbledon Wine Merchants had four bottles on their shelf.

Yesterday, Marilyn (my wife) and I opened our precious bottle of Vin de Constance and imbibed.
The bottle is curvaceous in a rugged, peasant sense. The neck is sheathed in a tight, smooth black waxen sleeve, soft to the touch. The wine had a syrupy aroma with a slight lemon tang. We poured a little of it into our two glasses. Subtle aromas pervaded my senses, cinnamon, lemon, blackcurrant, natural sugars. Then we both sipped, experiencing this pleasure together.

Marilyn and I sat, satiated, complete, with the sensory pleasures of Vin de Constance.

To imagine that Jane Austen must have experienced the sensual delights of this wine as we had, made an emotional and imaginative connection to her. We wanted more.

Posted by Tony Grant, London Calling

Personal Hygiene in Jane Austen's Day

Inquiring reader: Last week Tony Grant discussed how rainwater seeping into the stratas of chalk, clay and gravel, which underlie the landscape of Hampshire, absorb the minerals from the ground it permeates and becomes hard. This week he continues his discussion of water from the perspective of personal hygiene.

Well and outbuildings at Chawton

As for washing, and personal hygiene, when you visit Janes cottage at Chawton you can see inside her and Cassandra’s bedroom a cupboard with a jug and basin for washing their hands and face but also a chamber pot. This was used during the night to urinate or defecate in. Imagine doing that with somebody sharing your room.
Whether the water in the jug for washing was hot or cold can only be speculated. To heat the water up would have taken a lot of effort. Not only drawing from the water from well but then heating it over the open fire in the kitchen and then taking it upstairs. I would speculate that Jane mostly got washed in cold water even in the winter. Perhaps an ice pick to break the ice would have been appropriate in winter months.

Wash basin and chamber in Jane's room at Chawton

The chamber pot would have had to be emptied in the morning. At the time cesspits were popular but they could smell and overflow. Claire Tomlin says that Edward had a new cesspit dug for them. However another and I would say more hygienic method of dealing with human excrement used at the time was a dry earth closet.


A dry earth closet is a wooden seat with a hole in the top, with a bucket underneath. Dry earth or peat is then ladled on top of the human waste to reduce the smell and to help it decay. When the bucket is full the contents are then dug into the garden to help the vegetables and plants grow. (Last image at bottom: view of the garden from Chawton cottage.)

Some people have even attached religious significance to the use of earth closets. They believe using an earth closet is a way of returning Gods minerals to the ground where it came from.

Perhaps we all need to have modern earth closets installed.

We have the probable boudoir habits of Jane Austen.

I’m not joking!!!!!!!!

Posted by Tony Grant, London Calling

PS: Continuing the subject, Vic wrote a review on Jane Austen's World about Privies and Water Closets.