Living it up in London

Hanging my head in shame at the long silence. We’ve been busy but that is no excuse as my headmistress would have said, ‘It is just a case of being organised”. Organised I obviously am not, but we have been happily busy and I am sticking to that as an excuse.explanation.

We went down to London last week, John on the Wednesday as he had a rather nostalgic and fun cricket club reunion dinner at Lords to attend. I joined him on Friday evening, when as far as I was concerned the family/friends/fun began. On the Friday evening we went to see for the second time – last time in Scarborough – Alan Ayckbourn’s latest play, Neighbourhood Watch, in which Frances Grey, a Douglas’s Barn guest, was unrecognisable playing – most convincingly – the part of Amy , the seductress wife of the hapless Gareth. Then on Saturday afternoon seven of us trooped off to the Aldwych to see Tom Chambers (again) in Top Hat. Having toured the provinces for six months this is their London premiere. The theatre was packed and the audience wonderfully appreciative – as far as one could see the production was faultless.

My only problem was the person on my left sang her way through every piece, quite loud and more than quite out of tune. Pointed looks from several of us did nothing to dim her enthusiasm so we just had to try to not let it bother us too much.

The dancing is terrific, so slick, and all the dancers manage to look as if they were really enjoying it; Tom was saying they really do when the audience is responsive. How they all but Tom in particular, manage to sing and dance non stop without ever faltering is most impressive. When we saw Tom at the stage door afterwards he looked as fresh as if he had just woken up from a thoroughly refreshing nap! And he had to go through it all again that evening.

Drinks at a friend’s house afterwards and an Indian meal for us all, then brunch with another friend the next door and we felt thoroughly relaxed. Then reality struck and the bubble was burst. A text from Janet let us know that the power had gone off in Parwich. Having just had a 15-hour cut only a few weeks ago, we assumed this one couldn’t possibly rival that, but…it did. We got back at 7ish to find Parwich plunged in darkness and the house pretty cold. Our Tom’s Barn guests were pretty cheery because of course they had the log burner and they had arranged to have dinner at a pub, but the Douglas’s Barn guests were very glad to huddle up with us in our house, all in our anoraks, and valiantly consume pizza and red wine to combat the cold. In fact so jolly it was that when the lights came on at about 10ish everything looked so bright and garish we promptly turned them off again and reverted thankfully to candlelight.
These days we are all so dependent on electricity, it is very salutary every so often to have to cope without emails, (digital) phones not to mention lighting and heating. computers, kettles and toasters. But not for ever.

‘The Magnificent Charity Walk’

Their description, not mine (and the sheep don’t seem that impressed) although it does feel rather good to have completed a ‘magnificent walk’; we’ll gloss quickly over the fact it was only 7 miles long. Let’s face it, the 67 year old man who did 21 miles in just over five hours, jogging down all the hills, and the hills were steeply steep, is more impressive.

The Friends of the Peak District had organised a great charity walking event last Sunday to raise funds for their work supporting the Peak District, with apparently over 200 adults and children taking part. There were various possibilities other than the 21 mile walk. Daughter Ruthie was up from London and she and I opted to do the seven miles one, John preferring to potter about with his camera and (too heavy for long distance walking) lens hoping to get some good bird shots, which he didn’t.

The images convey some of the beauty, they don’t convey so well the ‘up, up, up’ height one climbs.

Ruth and I were however quite delighted with our choice. We arrived late but that didn’t seem to matter. The scenery was truly magnificent, and so was the weather and we both felt it would be a walk many of our guests would probably love too so I will write it up and put it in the WALKS file in the barns. It is worth saying, the walk would not be pleasant if the weather was very wet or windy.

I should have an OS Map in front of me as I write, but I haven’t so will have to rely on my very unscientific description. The walk we did started from Thornbridge Hall, but could just as conveniently be started from the Hassop Station Bookshop on the Hassop roundabout just north of Bakewell, or for a slightly shorter version beginning/ending near a very popular eatery, the Monsal Head Hotel. Both these options would mean one could very conveniently park nearby.

Part of the walk is on the Monsal Trail before – after going through one of the tunnels and crossing a viaduct – one veers off left to start on a large loop ‘off-piste’ up (and up and up) to Brushfield and High Dale, and then down again to meet the River Wye and the Trail before a final steep climb to the Monsal Head Hotel. They must do a roaring trade with hungry, thirsty wakers celebrating the end of their hike.

Ruthie and I had to resist this particular lure, and that of the Packhorse at Little Longstone which did look very inviting, to meet up with John and various friends and colleagues who had also been walking but had all been back some time (we did start rather late…). Even the relaxed looking 67 year old who’d run 21 miles in 5 hours was back, almost limbering up for the next run…

Historic House and Farm Contents Auction in Alstonefield

We had an interesting day on Saturday. Those of you who have walked up to Alstonefield from Dovedale or vice versa for that matter, may well have noticed a very beautiful wreck of a house opposite the church. A Grade 2 listed building dating from the late 16th century it had been in the Harour-Crewe family but had been sold to meet death duties in 1951. For years and years it just slowly grew more dilapidated although it was actually inhabited until the owner died last year and the house is to be sold by auction on Thursday 10th May.

What a wonderful project if only one had about a million pounds or perhaps even two… The house could be stunning – the photos may give you a slight idea. The reserve price is quite low but to restore it would take as much again, and more… Sadly we shall be away on the 10th May but would otherwise loved to have gone to be part of the excitement, with hands firmly in pockets and eyes averted from the auctioneer’s in case there might be a terrible misunderstanding and we ended up the already impoverished new owners.

On Saturday was the auction of the contents of the house and farm machinery, all old – some interestingly old and some just plain old. The outside of the house had been tidied up, new gravel laid, and bits and pieces of farming equipment laid out on the ‘lawn’. In the shed was a motley collection of furniture, and general bits and bobs, in the house, ditto. There were some interesting pieces, and some badly in need of repair were snaffled up by people who obviously would lovingly restore them for their home, or perhaps tart them up and sell them on at a greatly inflated price. Obviously many people knew more than we did, and while some things went for a ridiculously low price, others were bid for eagerly in a way that astounded the ignorant among us. Why should anyone want to spend hundreds on an old jug with all the pouring lip side missing? Then there were two pony traps which went for surprisingly little to the delight of the buyer who looked as if she had been expecting to have to go much higher.

There was a lovely atmosphere and it was all great fun. There were so many people there, farmers, families, traders and lots of local people who had just gone along for the experience. It got cold by the end though so we were very glad to retire to the George for a (delicious) late lunch by the fire!

Tissington Tea Rooms Re-Opening

Tissington Tea Rooms

Tissington is one of our nearest neighbours, an estate village which has been owned and run by the FitzHerbert family for four centuries – 403 to be precise! According to them it is where heaven and earth meet in the Peaks – I thought that was Parwich but we’re not far away so they may have got it slightly wrong!

Anyway, to be serious, it is a lovely village and a great favourite with our guests and us who love walking over the hills to tempt ourselves in the White Peak Butchery there with the array of wonderful meats, sausages, black pudding and bacon; many of them have also discovered On a Wick and a Prayer wonderful candle workshop, not to mention Tissington Hall itself and the Tea Rooms where we often like to go for a delicious lunch or afternoon tea.

Sir Richard FitzHerbert and Mr Michael McLoughlin our local MP

The Tea Room have been shut for a bit, while very super fancy new loos and other improvements were put in. We were delighted to be invited to the official opening yesterday morning, where the Derbyshire Dales MP, Michael MacLoughlin (also Chief Whip) opened them and we all celebrated with champagne and  a specially commissioned Tissington Tearooms cake.

Eating In Without Lifting a Finger…

Paul's Butter Chicken Curry

It doesn’t take long for the subject to return to food, not that I should perhaps apologise. One can’t turn on the telly for a minute without finding a cookery programme and goodness knows how many cookery books are produced each year and fancy kitchens full of even fancier gadgets advertised.

And yet we are told that nobody cooks any more. We know that is not true. A lot of our guests take a lot of pride in cooking, and part of the fun of their holiday is having the time, and in a well-equipped kitchen, to prepare delicious meals to enjoy together.  But even they, and indeed all of us, however keen we may be as cooks, do like occasionally to sit back and enjoy what someone else has prepared.

We are lucky in Parwich to have some really excellent nearby pubs and restaurants where you know the food will be good and the atmosphere fun and you will feel you’ve had a real treat. However, drink-driving laws and winter road conditions both also make the idea of eating in very attractive, and  with no worry about getting home afterwards, much more relaxing. This – with some forethought and planning – is charmingly possible in Parwich.

Discounting the possibility of having cheated by popping something into the slow cooker in the morning, or the often very tasty prepared ready meal meals one can buy in Waitrose and M&S in Ashbourne – and indeed in all the super markets, we have some unique gems in Parwich to offer our guests.

Firstly, you can ring Val Kirkham beforehand on 01335 390 458 to find out about her meals which she will cook in her house next door to Orchard Farm and bring them round personally to your door when you want them. Secondly, you can pre-order a curry from Paul and Evie, at the Cottage of the Green, on 01335 390 488. These are available at the weekend, and you do have to fetch them (5 or 6 minutes ‘walk).

Today John and I did just that. Fridays – our changeover day – are always busy  and supper time can come with us feeling a little weary and with nothing delicious miraculously appearing on the table. We’d planned ahead this week, and ordered a chicken curry, rice and a chutney. Paul and Evie had popped in some very thin lacy-textured poppadoms (heme-made?) and we had a feast fit for kings. Last time we had a lamb curry, next time who knows…?

All we do know is that they will always be very authentic and quite lovely and very good value as we find a portion for one does us both and we are NOT known for our birdlike appetites. We do have to ask for mild to medium strength, slightly embarrassingly for people who lived in India for three years and have eaten some pretty hot curries in our time. I suspect Paul’s ‘Hot’ would be just that, hot! If anyone has tried one we’d be intrigued to know!

Parwich: TripAdvisor’s “Travellors’ Choice” Destination for 2012??

Will Parwich beat London – or even Baslow – for TripAdvisor’s latest Travellors’ Choice Awards?
This evening I received an invitation to rate these three destinations; could this be the first hint that Parwich has reached the UK’s short list for this year’s awards?

Sadly, probably not, but let’s see what the criteria is before we give up on the hopes of toppling London. I was going to give you the actual link to the page but fortunately I realised in time that TripAdvisor might blacklist us immediately if 15 or even 50 people filled in the form and rated Parwich as John and me; instead I write it out myself:

How would you rate Parwich for these activities? Answer 1-5 (1 being terrible, 5 being excellent)
Beach/Sun
Food & Wine
Outdoor/Adventure
Skiing/Winter Sports (almost could have said yes last week!)
Golfing
Nightlife
Gay/Lesbian
City Break
Spa and Wellness
Romance
Family

What is your score? Much as we all might love Parwich, it is not going to make it to the Awards…

Finally, to end on a slightly more serious note… TripAdvisor has been a lot in the news recently, with hoteliers I think, mainly, being very upset about malicious anonymous reviews that they cannot remove; others have claimed that often rivals would write themselves, or get members of staff to write, bogus rave reviews about their own establishment whilst slating the competition.

The fact that many millions of travellers use TripAdvisor to plan their holiday, researching accommodation, restaurants and destinations (vote for Parwich!) and finding the information and reviews extremely helpful has been largely ignored in the articles that I have seen.

As far as we are concerned here, being such a small, personal setup, we have not yet suffered any mishaps and we have played by the rules ourselves: we most certainly have never written a review ourselves pretending to be guests of Tom’s or Douglas’s Barns (not even when we have stayed as genuine guests!). We often do not know who has written a review but from what people say, and their destination one can be totally confident that so far all the reviews we have had are completely genuine ones, from guests that have stayed really here.

The fact that the reviews have been very positive is very encouraging and rewarding for us but we are well aware that one day we may have an upsetting one. Things can go wrong in the most ordered of setups (fridges giving up the ghost on Christmas Eve, water pouring through the kitchen ceiling, keys getting stuck in locks – yes to all of those!).

One can imagine that very often people who write damning reviews are feeling so aggrieved is because they feel nobody has listened or cared enough to do anything about their grievance at the time at the time .

This is where people like us, being on the spot, have an enormous advantage. We would always hope to be able to deal with the problem instantly which thanks to a wonderfully loyal and willing team of local tradesmen, builders, cleaners  and general helpers we almost always can although it can be very fraught at the time.

So we think TripAdvisor is great… But, back to the destination rating. How has Parwich fared? 55/55 is the top mark but we have no beach, no nightlife, no one offers city breaks and the skiing is not well established. Perhaps it will be Baslow, or even London.

Get Here if You Can!

Do have a look at this lovely Peak District official video, with a most haunting melody… The message is – ‘Come to the Peak District, no matter how!’ and we could add the rider, having got to the Peak District, why not come here, why not get to Tom’s or Douglas’s Barns if you can!

Get here if you can and we’d love to see you…!

That was somewhat cheap jumping onto the bandwagon sort of comment but there was an element of seriousness. We are so small and can only have two couples at the most at a time. For every booking we turn away sometimes dozens of people ringing up and emailing on the off-chance the date has suddenly become available and of course we’ll never know how many just check the online availability hopefully, and see for themselves that the dates they want are already taken. Others may assume – wrongly – that the availability is not updated or we may have at random marked off dates to look busier than we are. We never ever would do the latter, and the SuperControl availability is pretty well 100% up to date. The only time it wouldn’t be would be if someone had contacted us to book while we were out and not within reach of computers and online booking systems.

One wants to make people happy and it can be very difficult disappointing someone who has set their hearts on a special date. Once it was quite amusing: unwilling to accept my assurance that both barns were booked on a certain date, the voice on the phone lost patience. “Well,” she said shortly, ” if you can’t help me please hand me over to someone who can!”. Of course I couldn’t do either but she wasn’t convinced.

Anyway, our message is, do watch this video. Do come to the Peak District – there’s nowhere lovelier. And If you are thinking about coming here, to either Tom’s or Douglas’s Barns and you know when, do get in touch (and if it’s before the end of 2011 so much the better for you as you will be benefiting from the old prices). If you are not immediately sure of being able to get time off work we can happily reserve a date for a day or two while you get the go-ahead from work. And if you are worried about booking dates far in advance, that we do understand. However, there really should be no need to worry. We have altered dates and accepted cancellation on lots of occasions and been able to rebook the dates almost immediately. As we all know it is the last minute cancellations which cause the problem when the fees are still due and we cannot re-let the dates however hard we try; the only way to be sure to avoid any risk of that possibility is to take out holiday cancellation insurance. We think that some banks offer that with your account so it would be worth checking that out too as a free alternative – it’s silly to pay if you don’t need to.

Meanwhile, to repeat, get here if you can and we’d love to see you!

Christmas in the Peak District

Will we have a white Christmas this year? Who knows, but many of us hope so. We have failed in our personal quest to find winter tyres for our car (Honda Jazz) so are glad to say we do have two brand new toboggans with which to help transport any guests whose car fails at the last slope. Hopefully that may not happen at all this year but it never seems to cast much of a blight when it does. Everybody rallies round and it really is quite good fun.

Since the clocks changed one can no longer ignore the fact that winter is rapidly approaching and we have already had some November foggy spells although nothing too dramatic as yet.  Suddenly also Christmas is looming as anyone who has been anywhere near the shops recently will suspect and we keep getting emails about the various events being planned; however, I’ll keep this simple and stick to our two favourites, Haddon and Chatsworth.Haddon Hall is reopening for Christmas from 7th –21st December from 10.30 to 4pm (last admission 3.30pm).

14 & 15 December: Christmas by Candlelight: Festive music and entertainment in the Banqueting Hall. Supper from 6pm, the performance starts at 7.30pm. Tickets £15, pre-booking essential. Pre-performance Christmas suppers also available to book in the Restaurant. Phone 01629 810912.

17 & 18 December: Christmas music and carols performed by local choirs and musicians

There is masses on at Chatsworth, as always, with so many really tempting events that I can’t begin to list them all – Christmas markets, carols, a Christmas gourmet evening and  even a magical Christmas party! The annual Christmas at the Farm Shop season has already started so it is never too soon to see what gorgeous goodies they have laid in for this year.

There will no doubt be masses more going on round and about but this will do for a start, for those who have planned a holiday here between now and Christmas. We do warn any guests that are planning to go out for a meal especially near to Christmas that it is probably wise to book the restaurant or pub sooner rather than later  – also Ashbourne Taxis if you are planning to do it is style (01335 354 198).

Finally, nothing to do with Christmas but there is a long article on the Peak District in the November issue of Discover Britain. The sharp-eyed among you will spot on page 39 Tom’s and Douglas’s Barns featuring not in their own right but as members of Peak District Premier Cottages who took an ad out to promote all our local Peak District cottages.

Jerusalem!

What a lovely time we have been having! (Don’t worry, life isn’t all jolly excitements and things will be back to normal on Monday but it’s fun while it lasts…)

On Friday we had the cricket lunch reunion of a successful Trinity College Dublin 1st X1 cricket team, in a wine bar near Russell Square. About 30 met, mostly cricketers but also a number of their wives – all friends of many years, sharing a lot of fun memories. Lunch and chat lingered until early evening.

Then a quick cab to son Nick, who had cooked a delicious supper for his sister, two of his cousins (our nephews) and their wife/girlfriend, John and me: a lovely family occasion. Then only a few hours to wait before the much-anticipated but up until then unrevealed Saturday theatre engagement…Jerusalem, at the Apollo.

Shaftesbury Avenue was seething with theatre goers and Halloween revellers, the latter all with whitened faces, ghoulish fangs and weird outfits which helped add to the sense of unreality and confusion which faced us as we sat in the Apollo Theatre and watched Jerusalem. Even the name Jerusalem is confusing. Jez Butterworth’s Jerusalem is not the holy one, the ancient focus for so many conflicting claims and hopes; his is apparently the Jerusalem of William Blake, the WI and many a rousing funeral, but actually it isn’t…

Right at the beginning we realise the play is far from a comforting take on the rural idyll of England’s green and pleasant land. Phaedra, a shy young ‘maiden’, appears in front and sings Jerusalem the Golden rather uncertainly. Behind her, unbeknownst to her, through the curtain (a rather tattered and tired St. George’s cross) one can see a red light flickering. Before she has finished there is an enormous explosion, the curtain goes up to ear- splitting music as a motley group dance in a wonderfully frenzied fashion in front of a battered old motor van in a leafy glade, and we are away.

The shocks and surprises continue, in a wonderfully intriguing and entertaining description of what has been called ‘the modern Battle of Britain’ to decide the kind of England we are going to be living in in the future. The central character in this battle, Byron, is played with unbelievable panache by Mark Rylance (if anyone deserves an Oscar I am sure he does). To the ‘haves’ he is a disreputable and amoral gypsy, a threat to be obliterated from their more comfortable lives and plans for a new housing estate which happens to be where his caravan inconveniently is; to the ‘have nots’ – as we in the audience (tickets £50 a time) miraculously have become – he is the champion, the charismatic and almost entirely convincing ‘have not’ fighting authority in all its forms (angry fathers, bitter partners, the council…).

On his side are hangers on and potential misfits all, from unconfident students to an unhappy Morris dancer to a muddled professor; they all, usually but not always intentionally, enjoy his supply of drugs and wonderfully entertaining ‘true’ stories all of which help them escape from the reality of their dreary and depressing lives.

But the play itself is far from dreary and depressing, and Mark Rylance as Byron is quite upliftingly impressive as he entertains and transports the audience for nearly three hours. It is not for the faint-hearted (no one can utter a sentence without swearing copiously). It is not poetic although I suppose someone could argue that this is the stuff of future myths and legends: the haves and the have nots, the Davids and Goliath… All strangely prophetic (or maybe, worryingly, more factual than prophetic) as was Alan Ayckbourn’e Neighbourhood Watch which we saw in Scarborough last month, anticipating later events which do little to confirm the comfortable myth of ‘Jerusalem the Golden’. But as we picked our way through the Halloween revellers we all returned home glowing with the sense of having witnessed something very special in the theatre.

Thank you, Nick and Ruthie, for your birthday treat for your papa, which we all were able to enjoy so much!

Tom Chambers and Top Hat

We were very excited about seeing `Top Hat’, for all sorts of reasons. It is always such a treat going to the theatre anyway; we both love musicals and we are both great longterm fans of Tom Chambers whose plays we watched (and hockey matches) throughout his time at school and the former ever since. We know that Tom has always admired Fred Astaire and and that he just loves loves – and is very good at – tap dancing.

Negotiating the rugby league crowds and heavy rain along a busy route unknown to us had its stressful moments but we got to the Lowry in one piece, and managed eventually to park, way up above the crowds on the 6th floor… Apart from the journey from our delighteful B&B in Wilsmlow it was indulgence through and through, this trip! Having made our way down from the 6th floor clouds of the car park we had time for a quick chat with Tom at the stage door at the end of the matinee, a quick look at the current TS Lowry exhibition (what a talented but sad and solitary man) and then sat back to enjoy in a leisurely fashion our pre-booked pre theatre dinner at the Terrace Restaurant. All the food – although delicious – came shaped in little rounds which seems to be a current fashion and a not very subtle form of portion control (although i must admit we had more than enough).

Well dined we made our way to our very comfortable seats in row G – beautifully close to the action. Don’t you love that moment before the curtain opens, and when the orchestra begins… and so lively was the music that the conductor was almost tap dancing himself.

And at last it started. We loved the show. The storyline is thin, with the age-old theme of mistaken identities/dreadful misunderstandings but this hardly matters. The actors were good, the dancing magnificent and the familiar tunes so well-loved. I must admit there was a spell towards the end of the first act when John and I both found the show had begun to flag slightly; fortunately it regained its magic throughout the second half half and how disappointing it always is when a show really does come to an end with no more chances of an encore.

Marvelling how Tom, Summer Strallen and all the actors can do two shows in one day and still dance with such vigour and apparent enthusiasm we rose from our seats and virtually tap-danced our way back to the car park, passing all the rugby league singers whose endlessly repeated dirge-like refrains failed to drown the lively 1930s numbers echoing in our own heads. And now we are hoping to see the show again when it comes to Leeds (via Plymouth, Norwich, Canterbury and Edinburgh). Will it come to London?