Two street artists have helped celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Lake District and the launch of the Lakes Alive’s summer season of outdoor shows, by performing on top of a Cumbrian mountain.

Jem Famous, who lives in Ambleside staged the show with fellow performer Campbell Innes.

Campbell Innes and Jem Famous performing on High Street - Pic Stewart Smith

The two street artists gave the UK’s highest outdoor show earlier today, on a Lakeland mountain where a traditional summer fair took place in the 18th and 19th centuries.

The annual shepherds’ meet was held each year on High Street on the 12th July up until 1835.

People from surrounding valleys would gather on the mountain, then known as Racecourse Hill, to take part in games and wrestling.

They would also take the opportunity to return stray sheep to their owners.

High Street, which is 2,700 feet high, was also a Roman road between Ambleside and Penrith and is popular with fell walkers.

The pair performed a show called ‘Grow Your Own’ which features juggling with a sickle and Peter Rabbit’s daring escape from Mr McGregor’s sack.

Jem Famous said: “It was an extraordinary day of performing, even by our standards.  Everyone up on High Street had a big surprise and a lot of fun.  In fact it was the first show we’ve done where not one person walked past without stopping to watch.

Lakes Alive is Cumbria’s unique contribution to the Legacy Trust UK programme, which was set up to help build a lasting cultural and sporting legacy from the 2012 Olympic Games and Paralympic Games.

The Lake District National Park was established on 13th August 1951 and is England’s largest National Park, covering 2,292 square kilometres.

Work has started to restore a Gillett and Brand clock, as part of the ongoing restoration work to Lowther Castle near Penrith, Cumbria.

The Cumbria Clock Company, based at Dacre, not far from the Lowther Estate, has dismantled the clock and removed parts to their workshop ahead of restoration.

Removal of the clock face at Lowther Castle, Penrith. Pic Val Corbett/Lowther Gardens

Installed in 1877 by famous clock makers Gillett and Brand, it has kept time in the stable courtyard for generations of grooms and stable hands.

Andrew Mercer, Project Director for the Lowther Castle and Gardens Trust said: “We are very lucky to have an historic clock company with experience of working on clocks as famous as Big Ben just on our doorstep. It was a considerable relief to find the clock mechanics in good condition, and great to know the clock can be returned to perfect working order. ”

A number of the original features of the clock will be maintained.

Pulleys and the lengthy wires that suspend the heavy lead weights have been carefully removed and will be fully reconditioned in time for the opening of the new visitor centre in Spring 2012.

Removing the bronze bells was particularly challenging for the restoration project, with the largest weighing in at 70kg and requiring a custom built scaffold tower.

One new bell will also be cast as part of the restoration project. This will replace the smallest bell.

Checking the Lowther clock mechanisms. Pic Val Corbett/Lowther Gardens

The only concession to modern times will be the addition of an electric winder, so the daily climb up the steps to wind the crank handle will not have to be made.

The castle grounds and 130 acres of gardens at Lowther are open to visitors 10.00am to 5.00pm every day; with admittance price £5.00 for adults.

The first phase of the Lowther Castle and Gardens project will take three years and is supported by £8.9m of grant funding from the Northwest Regional Development Agency (NWDA) and the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF).

Further information

A Catalogue of Manuscripts in the Library of The Worshipful Company of Clockmakers hints at  two calculations by a Benjamin L. Vulliamy, for the rate of going of a clock for Lowther Castle (1813 – 1814).  We are unsure if this account refers to this clock however.

Just outside Pooley Bridge and on the junction between Penrith and Tirrel is this unusual fingerpost with a crown on top.

Fingerpost sign just outside of Pooley Bridge in North Cumbria

Often to be found at junctions of old country lanes, the fingerpost  sign has become one of those things to have near any rural community along with the traditional red telephone box.

It is thought that the earliest known example of a fingerpost, is a post from 1699 near Chipping Campden in the  Cotswolds.  A replica of Joseph Izod’s fingerpost is located on the A44 at the junction with the B4081.

Fingerpost history

The General Turnpike Act 1773 required trustees to erect signs informing travellers of the distance to the nearest town.

Many of the earliest signs were erected by the Automobile Association (AA) and the Royal Automobile Club (RAC).

The Motor Car Act 1903  passed responsibility for the provision of all traffic signs to local authorities.

In 1921 the Ministry of Transport produced a manual for direction signs.

It recommended: -

• Standard 2.5 or 3-inch black upper case lettering on a white background,
• That the name of the authority responsible for maintenance should be included in the design,
• The supporting posts were to be white.

These requirements were set down in regulations in 1933 however with a slightly modified character set and paint scheme. This saw the introduction of black and white posts.

Crown on top of fingerpost road sign

Some local variations have taken place over the years to the official regulations.

In Dorset, Somerset, Devon and Cornwall the posts are red with white lettering.

Many posts also carry finials in the form of discs, rings, balls and pyramids marked with county names and sometimes map grid references.

The reason for the crown on top the sign near Pooley Bridge however is unclear.

Do you know the reason for a crown on this fingerpost?  Let us know via the comments area below.

Situated by the side of the busy A66 just outside Penrith in Cumbria, is a stone tower known as the Countess Pillar.

Standing around 4m tall and  on a small hill beside the busy road, this memorial will go un-noticed by many passing motorists heading towards the M6.

The Pillar is situated on the side of the main road to Penrith, the A66.

The Countess Pillar marks the place nearby where Lady Anne Clifford, Countess of Dorset, bade farewell to her mother Margaret on 2 April 1616, at the gateway to Brougham Castle.

Brougham Castle is around 1km from the site of the Pillar.

Lady Anne Clifford

Lady Anne Clifford was born on the 30 January 1590 at Skipton Castle in Yorkshire.  She was the only surviving child of George Clifford, the 3rd Earl of Cumberland.

When her father died, on the 30 October 1605,  his estate went to her uncle but Anne, only 15 at the time,  believed this land was rightly hers.

Highly intelligent and determined, she refused to compromise over the dispute, which she won in 1643 after 29 years. Legally did not win her case but came by the Estate by outliving any male heirs.  The titles were formally passed to her in 1646, right in the middle of the English Civil War.

The Clifford family had owned land in Westmorland, now part of Cumbria, and large parts of Yorkshire since the 13th century, including the nearby castles of Appleby and Brougham.

It is said by some commentators that she ruled these areas like a queen and indeed was very well connected in social circles.

Lady Anne Clifford died on the 22 March 1676 in the same room where her father was born at Brougham Castle. She was buried close to her mother in the North Clifford Chapel at St. Lawrence’s church at Appleby-in-Westmorland.

The Countess Pillar

Surrounded by iron railings the Countess Pillar has an octagonal stone shaft with a cube shaped stone on top.  Three of the four faces feature sundials whilst the fourth features an inscription.

The inscription at the top of the Countess Pillar

It reads:

This Pillar was Erected Anno 1656 By ye R. Honoble Anne Countess Dowager of Pembrook & Daughter & Sole Heire of ye Rt Honoble George Earl of Cumberland &c For a Memorial of her last Parting in this place with her good & Pious Mother ye Rt Honoble Margaret Countes Dowager of Cumberland ye 2d of April 1616. In Memory whereof she also left an Annuity of Four pounds to be distributed to ye poor within this parish of Brougham every 2nd day of April for ever upon ye stone table here hard by Laus Deo

Interestingly a date placed on one of the faces at the top of the monument reads 1654. This was the date when the pillar was erected by the side of the old A66.

The Alms table with the Countess Pillar standing behind.

Two years later and on the 40th anniversary of the parting, Lady Anne Clifford started the ritual of distributing bread and money to the poor of Brougham.  A plaque on the side of the monument indicates that £4 be the sum that is to be distributed.

A service is held at the foot of the Countess Pillar at 12 noon on the 2nd April each year to distribute the money. This service is known as the annual dole.

The Alms table, or dolestone, and the Pillar are Grade II listed.

Bench mark point

A Cut mark obscures an earlier stone masons mark

Carved in to many of the stones used to construct the monument are masons marks.  One of the most prominent marks however is a cut mark, used for map making.

Interestingly the cut mark obscures one of the earlier stone masons marks.  Research shows that the masons mark was that of Jonathon Gledall.

Further information

BBC Radio 4 – Woman’s Hour – Lady Anne Clifford

The Diaries of Lady Anne Clifford

Gallery

Born in 1904  Josefina de Vasconcellos lived to be over 100 and left a legacy of fine artwork around the world.

The daughter of a Brazilian diplomat she married Delmar Banner in 1930.

Art seemed to be Josefinas’ passion from an early age and she was soon gaining awards and prestigious commissions.

It was during a painting expedition in the 1930′s that she first came to the Lake District. Eventually they purchased a farmhouse in the Langdale Valley called the Bield.

The Hand, placed in the grounds of St Bees School, was one of the works to be created during the 1940′s.  It is in memory of a friend who died in WWII.

In 1957 her sculpture entitled ‘Virgin and Child’ was donated to St. Paul’s Cathedral in London. This marked a turning point in her career as she became the first woman to have a sculpture in the Cathedral.

Josefina was awarded an MBE in 1985 for services to the community in Cumbria.

One work, Reconciliation, first given to Bradford University in 1973 struck a chord with many and has since been versioned for many locations including Coventry Cathedral, The Berlin Wall, Hiroshima and in the grounds of Stormont Castle in Ireland.

In Cumbria, Josefinas work can be seen at St. Bees School and the Virgin Group sponsored woodland walk at St. Bees priory, Cartmel, Brougham Castle near Penrith and many other locations.

The Josefina de Vasconcellos Arts Care Trust is a fully Registered Charity, No. 1119354, set up in honour of the work and ideals of Josefina de Vasconcellos, MBE.

We will be adding to the gallery below as we come across any further examples of work by  Josefina de Vasconcellos.

With the store closure timetable being published another icon is set to be removed from the British High Street.

Woolworths - Carlisle

Famous for Pick ‘n’ Mix Sweets, Woolworths or Woolies as it is often known, is a familiar monument in almost every major town centre across the UK.

 Something about the red illuminated signage, the silver door handles and the cream coloured tiled floors just invokes memories  of  growing up.

Woolies has been a store for life, it has captured through the items in store, the timelines of so many people.

• The first 45rpm single for a girlfriend.
• Pots and pans for the home.
• Bulbs and plants for the garden
• The first clothing for a child.  
• Cards for anniversaries.
• Decorations and eggs for the annual festivities. 

and we must not forget the glue for repairing shoes when times were hard, cycle tyre repair kits and the gift tokens for loved ones far away at birthdays and at Christmas.

800+ stores to close

Woolworths will limp into 2009, however it may not manage to get the badge for trading 100 years in the UK unless a buyer for the brand can be secured.

The Administrators have agreed a store closure programme and all 27,000 permanent and temporary staff will lose their jobs unless a last-minute buyer can be found.

Woolworths operates 9 branches in Cumbria and all are set to close over the next few weeks.

• Carlisle store to close on  27 Dec 08
• Workington store to close on  27 Dec 08 
• Penrith store to close on  27 Dec 08
• Whitehaven store to close on  27 Dec 08
• Ulverston store to close on  29 Dec 08
• Keswick store to close on  29 Dec 08
• Kendal store to close on  2 Jan 09 
• Maryport store to close on  2 Jan 09
• Barrow in Furness store to close on  2 Jan 09

Many of the Woolworth stores occupy buildings known as Woolworth Buildings like the one in Carlisle on English Street.

           

Woolworth Building – Carlisle

Completed in 1933 the building has stamped in stone above the main building facade the words ‘ Woolworth Buildings’.  

Could this be the lasting legacy of the Woolworths name in the Cities or will planners allow demolition for redevelopment?

Tens of thousands of square meters of prime retail area will be made available as a result of the many stores closing and some may see this as a chance to take advantage of the opportunities this may provide.

It will be interesting to see if the brand is secured and the unique opportunities now offered with the land, properties and prime town centre locations are seized or just wasted to become yet another ‘tat shop’ on the high street.

Gallery

Situated just outside of Penrith in North Cumbria is the now derelict castle at Lowther.

Lowther castle

The 120 acre, Grade II listed site contains the remnants of at least three significant buildings and much of its 17th century gardens remains intact, although very overgrown and neglected.

The grounds were once opened to visitors in 1938 but after being used to test a secret tank weapon during the Second World War, the area has become a relic of its former glory.

The Castle and its Gardens have been closed for 70 years and now stand inaccessible and buried in vegetation.

The Trustees of the Lowther Castle and Gardens Trust plan to transform the imposing remains of the Gothic Castle, its massive stables and over 20 hidden gardens into a destination that will return some of the grandeur and pride to the fallen Cumbrian gem.

Stonework stored in a now leaking shed

The history of the site, its occupants and the notable names that have worked at Lowther is minutely recorded in an archive of over 2,700 steel trunks.

The Castle ruin will be stabilised but it will not be re-built. The ruin will tell the story of the houses that have occupied the site, the surrounding landscape and the stories of the people who have lived and worked at Lowther.

The record of the 130 acre gardens is extensive. The layout dates from the 17th Century but the present gardens are Edwardian and all lie buried under spruce and sycamore planted in the 1960′s.

There are over 20 different gardens at Lowther including a Japanese Garden, a Scented Garden, and an Iris Garden. Some gardens will be restored but visitors will also be able to see the remains of the Edwardian structures, lying derelict, covered in moss and lichen.

An Energy Centre will power the 130 acre site using woodchip fuel derived from the management woodlands on the Lowther Estate. The Energy Centre will house a viewing gallery and education space.

The £15m project will be carbon neutral and will be implemented over four years. The first phase is planned to open to visitors in Summer 2009.

Gallery

More information