Welcome to the Rudloe and environs website.
Here you will find news, articles and photos of an area that straddles the Cotswold Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in north-west Wiltshire.
Contributions in the form of articles or photos are welcome. Even those with completely contrary views to mine!
Thanks to the website builder 1&1 and Rob Brown for the original idea.
Rudloescene now, in January 2014, has a sister, academic rather than anarchic, website about Box history here: http://www.boxpeopleandplaces.co.uk/
It contains thoroughly professional, well-researched articles about Box and its people.
Contact rudloescene through the 'Contact' page.
I suppose that 'Walks in the Time of ...' has run its course so the photo diaries of walks will now revert to their localities or themes. Whilst this walk starts at Rudloe and continues through Hudswell and Potley to Corsham, the theme is one that struck me at Pound Pill. Early in the walk, I met Laura and Pat of Rudloe and having put the world straight, we came to discussing watering holes, whereupon they recommended the Great Western. I determined then to stop off there for a shandy before the final push into Corsham. You may see from the later photograph that from the signage, the Great Western pronounces 'Open All Day' except it wasn't (fake news). Proceeding then up Pound Pill, we come to Corsham Primary School which proclaims 'An Outstanding School' (fake news actually - see below) on its sign. This is from an OFSTED report of 2013. When OFSTED used to publish 'dashboards' of achievement in various elements of a school's programme, we found that the Dashboard for Corsham Primary showed that for Key Stage 1, for reading, writing and maths, the school was in the bottom 40%, 20% and 20% respectively of schools in the country and for Key Stage 2, for English, reading, writing and maths, the school was in the bottom 20% for reading and the bottom 40% for the three other disciplines. Outstanding? It seems that this was a contrivance especially when viewed against St Patrick's which was rated only 'Good' but whose (Dashboard) achievements were better.
The title photograph is of a pylon in the upper part of the 50-acre field, the lower part of which has now become the 30-acre, Redcliffe, Park Place development. So, one wonders what is to become of the upper 20 acres which, at present, is still down to Miscanthus, thistles, ragwort and a pylon (what devious plans are afoot?).
Redcliffe's Park Place development. One wonders why so much space was left on its northern side. Also this path could be continued to Skynet Drive in order to access the toucan crossing, bus stop and the school.
Great willowherb on the Rudloe-Hudswell byway with Redcliffe's Park Place development beyond
Thistles, ragwort and the south-western edge of Redcliffe's Park Place development
Poplar (and sycamore) avenue at Hudswell 'Common'
Ground cover in Hudswell woodland
All quiet at Lower Pockeredge Lake (there is one fisherman further along the bank)
Tramways (and the railway) from Potley
The latest (?) Barry Baldwin sculpture looks along the buttresses on the south side of the house
A sculpted house at Potley
The dry bed of the stream that runs from the fenced lake at Hudswell through the Batters
Old man's beard (Clematis vitalba) on the railway fence at Pound Mead
Close-up of old man's beard on the railway fence at Pound Mead
Ales and food server 'All Day' except it's not (fake news)
I must admit, the Great Western looks pretty smart. Must pop down when it is open.
'An Outstanding School' - more old, fake news - see the introductory paragraph
The Almshouses from the yard of Wiltshire College's Corsham 'campus' - one wonders why this yard is not put to better use
Having failed to quench my thirst at the Great Western, I thought I would try the Methuen. In the bar, there was only one chap seated at a table; the barmaid was preparing some drink or other at the 'far end' of the bar area. She looked around at me as if I had entered with some nasty-smelling substance on my shoe then turned back to the task in hand. Isn't this the 'hospitality trade'? Hospitality as in 'Good afternoon sir, I'll be with you in a moment'. Exit stage left to Grounded.
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