North Devon Focus. Spring and the Bubble of Life

Well its been a mizzly, wet start to the year and so it continues. Although I love a misty astmospheric shot ..enough is enough.

I'm so looking forward to Spring sunshine, such a wonderful time of year on the North Devon coast.

In my garden the Hellebores are first to make an appearance. The Daffodils and Primroses beginning to bloom and the long shoots of the Bluebells and Tulips rising. A bonus of not weeding, the side garden is full of Lesser Celanadine which will add a little mellow yellow to the mix. The first flowering Marsh Marigold has emerged in the pond.

Amazingly the Hedgehogs have been visiting the feeding station all through the Winter bar just one week. We have three, I think and the push and pushy behaviour has started all seen on the Trail cam.

Birds still visiting and beginning to chirp, the marauding Starlings seem to have moved on but I spotted the arrival of the Siskins last week, the Woodpecker yesterday so do hope they are nesting nearby. The Lilac and Pussy Willow trees are in bud and by the look of the new Cherry Trees and Magnolia the blossom will be pretty spectacular. Most of all I look forward to the Dawn Chorus, return of the House Martins, Swallows and Swifts, the real start of Spring.

Out the window I have seen and photgraphed some spectacular skies, sunsets, cloud formations and rainbow light, at one time the field was covered in Rooks. Migrating birds are constant visitors to the field throughout the year, a reminder that the rotation of cattle and sheep grazing are vitally important to the ecosystem.

At the end of January ITV NEWS reported how "Harmattan winds would sprinkle a covering of Saharan dust across the UK" and I captured that amazing sky. (Scroll down for photo)

The wind and rain has been non-stop, I've lost count of the number of named storms but looking forward to getting out and about in the sunlight on the coast and in the countryside. Love where you live💚

 

Ecosystem. "An ecosystem is a geographic area where plants, animals, and other organisms, as well as weather and landscape, work together to form a bubble of life."

 

Another flaming sky. According to the news this sky was influenced by Saharan dust.

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Pat Adams' North Devon Focus. My North Devon Coast & Country Chronicle

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Joy to the World. Merry Christmas, Season's Greetings, Happy Holidays

I'm sending "Joy to the World" and Season's Greetings to all my followers. Thank you so much for visiting, commenting and liking the pictures and posts on my North Devon Focus Website, Blog, Facebook, Flickr and Instagram. Thank you for sharing your news and local events. 

It's been another tough year for everyone so I think we all deserve a little sparkle. Hope this little Robin Red Breast brings you joy.

🎄🎄🎅🎅Merry Christmas🎅🎅 🎄🎄

Here's to a happier, healthy, peaceful 2024

STAY SAFE 

Best wishes Pat Adams

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National Robin Day - 21st December
In 2015 the Robin was crowned as Britain's national bird

England. Pastoral scenes in the North Devon countryside.

Moments of peace in the countryside. We headed for the horizon and the bright yellow of the rapeseed fields, the vibrant yellow was slightly muted by the sea mist rolling in. The photos taken capture the patchwork fields, winding country lanes and wildflower filled verges, England's green and yellow pleasant land. Flower power in the Devon countryside does the heart good. Wish everyone, everywhere could experience such tranquility.
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#getoutside #pastoral #landscape #foreverengland finding #peace in the #countryside #mentalhealthawareness #findingpeace
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“Mental Health Awareness Week runs from Monday 9 May to Sunday 15 May 2022”

 

Moments like this - Photos copyright Pat and Brett Adams

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Glad Tidings & Season's Greetings from Bideford - Santa's on his way.

Santa's on his way so I'm sending Glad Tidings and Season's Greetings to all my followers. Thank you so much for visiting and liking the pictures and posts on my North Devon Focus Website, Blog, Facebook, Flickr and Instagram. Thank you for sharing your news and local events.

It's been a tough year for everyone so I think we all deserve a little sparkle. 

🎄🎄🎅🎅Merry Christmas🎅🎅 🎄🎄

Here's to a happier, peaceful 2022 

STAY SAFE 

Best wishes Pat Adams

North Devon Focus

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🎅>Youtube

Compelling Storytelling. 'Song of the Skylark', a new Devon book by Liz Shakespeare

Two hundred years ago in North Devon, a young girl stands on a table before an audience of farmers.

‘Mary Mitchell, nine years old. Draws your straws, gentlemen and we’ll see who’s to win this prize.’ The child was a parish apprentice, and this method of selection had died out everywhere else in the country, except North Devon.

Author Liz Shakespeare, who has become well-known for writing books inspired by the history of Devon, has uncovered the true story of one such apprentice.

‘The Song of the Skylark tells the story of Mary Mitchell, aged nine, and her brother Thomas who are sent to a remote farm, far from their parents and everything that is familiar to them,’ says Liz. ‘Pauper children in North Devon were often apprenticed as farmworkers and had to work long hours without wages. They were not granted their freedom until they reached the age of twenty-one. In effect they were simply used as unpaid servants to their masters.’ In 1843 the editor of the North Devon Journal criticised the practice, referring to it as slavery.

Liz found numerous documents which helped in her research into parish apprentices. ‘Many children would have been treated as part of the family,’ says Liz, ‘but it is clear that some were not. There are reports in the local papers of apprentices being severely whipped, and some ran away from their masters.’ Liz found adverts that had been placed by farmers giving a description of the runaway child, and warning that whoever harbours said apprentice will be prosecuted.

Thomas and Mary Mitchell work on the farm in Buckland Brewer parish for five years. These years become increasingly difficult for them due to a series of failed harvests.

‘It was shocking to realise how hard their lives would have been,’ says Liz. ‘The potato blight which caused the Great Famine in Ireland also hit Devon, and many labourers came close to starvation during the period termed the Hungry Forties.’

However Liz discovered that Thomas and Mary also had some respite from the backbreaking work. ‘One document revealed that they could read, and described them as ‘Thornites’. This was the name given to followers of the Thorne family of Shebbear who, along with William O’Bryan from Cornwall, had founded the Bible Christian movement, an offshoot of Wesleyan Methodism. The centre of the Bible Christian movement was Shebbear where there was a school for training ministers, later Shebbear College.’

Chapels were built wherever a small piece of land could be found, often at a crossroads with no other dwellings in sight; small unpretentious buildings with arched windows, now often converted to dwellings.

For Thomas and Mary, whose days are filled with unremitting labour and who are far from their family, joining a welcoming community at chapel and being told wonderful stories of the Promised Land brings very welcome relief.

‘The Bible Christians were particularly interesting’ said Liz, ‘because right from the start, in the early 1820’s, they used women ministers. One such was Mary O’Bryan Thorne. She was an extraordinary woman; highly educated, an inspirational preacher despite suffering terribly from nerves before speaking, mother to thirteen children, she also ran a busy farm household at Shebbear with the help of only one servant. She is an important character in my story.’

After five years on the farm, Thomas and Mary eventually take daring action in an effort to change the course of their lives. Their attempt ultimately wins them their freedom, but not before they are brought face-to-face with the heartless judicial system of early Victorian England.

‘I found it a compelling and sometimes difficult story to write,’ says Liz, ‘’but it has a happy ending!’

Liz is launching The Song of the Skylark on Friday 16^th October with talks on Zoom at 2.30 and 7.30 describing how she came to write it and the research she carried out; there will be time for questions afterwards. Tickets are just £3 each with all proceeds being donated to The Plough Arts Centre in Torrington. You can book tickets at www.lizshakespeare.co.uk.

Signed copies of The Song of the Skylark can also be ordered from the website for £9.99 and will be sent post-free, or cheques made payable to Letterbox Books can be sent to The Old Post Office, Littleham, Bideford, EX39 5HW. The book is also available on Kindle.

'Ran Away' Public Notice (North Devon Journal) 29th January 1840
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The Song of the Skylark Launch 

Friday 16^th October with talks on Zoom at 2.30 and 7.30 

 You can book tickets at www.lizshakespeare.co.uk - proceeds being donated to The Plough Arts Centre in Torrington. 

Appledore Shipping Forecast. Great news fairweather on its way for Appledore Shipyard.

Great news fairweather on its way for Appledore Shipyard. The yard recently purchased for £7m had a visit from the Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Tuesday 25th August. That Babcock sign on the door will soon be changing to Harland & Wolff...

350 vessels were built here before its closure on March 2019. The Appledore Yard was founded in 1855. The last vessel to be built at the yard was the LÉ George Bernard Shaw, an Irish Naval Service vessel. 

The photos below features the Appledore Yard on the Torridge Estuary, with its doors open, were taken on 29th April 2018. North Devon coast and countryside heritage come together, farming, fishing industry and shipbuilding. 

On the horizon you can see over to the Goldcoast across Bideford Bay and the Atlantic Ocean beyond.

Appledore Shipyard on the banks of the Torridge Estuary, North Devon Photo copyright Pat Adams North Devon Focus (All Rights Reserved)

  The quaint fishing village of Appledore across the Torridge Estuary, frigate alongside Appledore Shipyard. Photo copyright Pat Adams North Devon Focus (All Rights Reserved)  

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READ ALL ABOUT IT 

• Appledore Shipyard: ‘Delight’ as deal for site is reached North Devon Gazette  
• The Prime Minister, Boris Johnson made a trip to Appledore Shipyard in North Devon following the announcement that the historic site is set to reopen. North Devon Live
• Appledore Shipyard to reopen after £7m InfraStrata deal "Speaking during a visit to Appledore on Tuesday, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said the shipyard had a "massive history but it's also got a great future" BBC News Devon

Changing the ring TONE of the iconic RED telephone box

Ringing the changes for the iconic RED telephone box aka Kiosk No 2 and K6 are as British as cream teas and the royal family. Now in decline due to mobile phones they are being converted to house defibrillators and to charge those mobile phones which is great but do you think changing the ring TONE is a step too far! 

Shot of the recently painted box at Horns Cross between #bideford and #clovelly on the A39. If you know if this one contains a defibrillator or mobile phone charger leave a comment.

Photo copyright Pat Adams.North Devon Focus (All Rights Reserved)

North Devon Connections. From Bristol to Bucks Mills

I so enjoy watching "Great Canal Journeys" with Timothy West and Prunella Scales. This week, as they were bobbing on the floating harbour at Bristol, the historic Schooner Kathleen and May sailed by. Leaving their canal boat they enjoyed a trip on The Matthew of Bristol then made the crossing from Clevedon to Ilfracombe aboard the Waverley Paddle Steamer, both vessels are regular visitors to North Devon The Kathleen and May was purchased by Steve Clark, OBE in 1999. It was restored and berthed in Bideford until 2010. Tim and Pru finally made a nostalgic trip to Bucks Mills and Johns Cottage where Prunella spent her childhood during the war. They were welcomed back to Bucks Mills at St. Anne’s Church by Chris Braund and 90 year old Conrad William James. At one time, almost every resident was related to the Braunds. King Cottage was once the home of the "King of Bucks", Captain James Braund.

Beyond the gate John's, Bucks Mills,- Photo copyright Pat Adams

The Lime Kiln and the steep walk down to the  beach at Bucks Mills - Photo copyright Pat Adams

King Cottage at the top of the hill - Artists Judith Ackland and Mary Stella Edwards used the Cabin on the left as their studio - Photo copyright Pat Adams

 Tap here for more information on Bucks Mills and it's history
  Catch Up Channel 4 Great Canal Journeys

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The Waverley is the world’s last sea going paddle steamer

The Matthew of Bristol is a replica of the 15th century caravel that John Cabot sailed from Bristol to Newfoundland in 1497.

The Kathleen and May Schooner was purchased and towed to Brunswick Wharf, East-the-Water, Bideford then restored by Steve Clark in 1999. As a result of his efforts in this restoration he was awarded the OBE in 2008. Since 2010 Kathleen & May has been berthed in Albert Dock beside Merseyside Maritime Museum.

One Year Ago Today. Swell Time at Westward Ho!

As the region prepares itself for more rain and flood warnings we look back one  year ago today and a swell time at Westward Ho!. It was a warm, balmy day with a particularly high tide. People never seem to tire of the sight of the mighty ocean pounding on Westward Ho! slipway rocks and the Pebbleridge. It was fantastic to capture the stunning rainbow highlight as the “Wild Horses” crashed over the shore before splashing up high on the pebbles. Surfers were taking advantage of the huge waves, even the lifeguard took a trip out on his belly board. This is just one of the Autumn Highlights around Bideford Bay, it’s also a time for dramatic skies, coast and country walks amidst berry laden hedgerows and burnished bracken. Be on the look-out for late butterflies and fungi,  the departure of the swallows and the arrival of the winter flocks on the Skern. For more Autumn Highlights check out the North Devon Focus Flickr slideshow. Article Pat Adams 25/9/12
 

Author Liz Shakespeare has deep roots in the North Devon Countryside

Author, Liz Shakespeare, was born in Devon and the family stories she grew up with and the sense of being deeply rooted in the area have, she feels, influenced her writing. She draws her inspiration from the North Devon countryside, from the strong historical identity of the area and the sense of past lives that can be experienced in any long-inhabited area. She is interested in social history and particularly in the lives of the less advantaged. A synopsis for each book follows, Liz's books are available from www.lizshakespeare.co.uk
The Turning of the Tide. Young and vulnerable Selina Burman from Clovelly and her two young children are confined in the harsh environment of Bideford Workhouse. Her prospects improve when she meets Dr Ackland, a popular G.P. committed to social change. He employs her as a servant in his own household, despite the doubts of his wife and the Bideford community. Selina's work gives satisfaction, but her search for love and security does not conform to the expectations of a middle class Victorian family and threatens to damage both her own future and Dr Ackland's career. Set in Bideford and Clovelly, this novel draws on newspaper articles, letters and census returns, and powerfully brings to life the factual origins of the story.  

Fever: A Story from a Devon Churchyard. How many of us have wandered through a country churchyard and been moved by the memorials to young children? In this book the author sets out to discover the truth behind a number of graves dating from just one year in a nineteenth century Devon village. Her compelling investigation reveals the harsh reality of life in a small village before the days of effective medical care. By skilfully weaving social history, research and imaginative reconstruction she builds a sympathetic portrait of a community in the midst of adversity. It is a story common to many rural communities; it is impossible to remain unmoved by the knowledge that this story is true. 

The Memory Be Green: An Oral History of a Devon Village Within living memory village life has changed beyond recognition. Yet the old ways have not disappeared completely for they survive in the memories of our older neighbours. In this book men and women born early in the twentieth century recall a vanished way of life: a time when large families kept a pig to supplement a simple diet; every drop of water was carried from the village pump; the whole village turned out to help with the hay harvest and life was as slow and steady as the horse which pulled the plough. 

Reviews of Liz's books can be seen at www.lizshakespeare.co.uk