Amongst the gliders

We missed it! The filming of the All Creatures Great and Small episode. On our way to the James Herriot museum there was a hive of activity at the cinema with props being taken in. I managed to get a photo of the 1930's dress shop window with an open door showing the 2021 domestic appliances repair shop. Quite bizarre from the old to the new! 

Bottom right shows the door open to the white goods.

We even managed to have a sneak peek inside the cinema and I had hoped the filming would happen when we returned from our visit to the museum.

So the museum time slot was for 10 am, we arrived early and expected to wait, but one of the staff ushered us in, a real bonus 'cos we had the place to ourselves.

I expect you all know that James Herriot was really James Alfred Wight (known as Alf) and that Siegfried was really Donald Sinclair. The house, 23 Kirkgate, now a museum, was set up almost identical to when they actually worked there as the first few photos show.

 

James Alfred Wight

Top and bottom left, Dining Room and office and Mrs Pumphrey, Top and bottom right  Sitting room

Dispensary and Scullery.

Go through another door and the set-up is quite different. This time as a film studio and the shooting of the series.

What a fabulous place to visit, especially if like me, you are James Herriot fan. If you haven't done it already, have a look at the link. It's fascinating reading.

I mentioned in my opening paragraph how we missed the filming of one of the episodes. On our way back to MB the cinema was being stripped of everything 1930s and put back to present day.

Top photo for the filming, middle photo being stripped and bottom photo of present day.

After lunch, we went in search of the White Horse. A tip off by a local mentioned a walk from Sutton Bank Visitor center, which also passed the gliding club, that took one to the top of the horse. 120 steps down would then take one to the bottom to view the whole horse.

Once more we had to do the notorious A170 hill, up this time, with its hairpins and MB took it all in its stride. Whether the Beast would have made it up is another question. Longer and heavier it may well have struggled. Anyway we got parked and started the 'so called' mile long walk. I say so called because we got to the mile marker set into the ground and the horse was nowhere to be seen. I reckon it was nearer to two miles before we reached it.

The views were to die for, oh how I wished it hadn't been misty. That Gliding club had gliders up in the air and because we walked around the perimeter of the airfield, had amazing views of them taking off and landing.

 

So the top of the horse....well what did I expect, it just looked like a mound of white granite. And those steps...last year they would have been no problem, but these days I'm suffering with my knees. Climbing up steps is okay but knowing I would have the pain on the descent, decided against it. Instead, looking down to see a car park at the bottom, decided driving would be the better option.

Shame the trees are obscuring its head.

This is our last night on this racecourse site, so tomorrow will be wild camping. We rather fancy one of the many lay-bys on the Yorkshire Dales. And who knows...with clear skies and no light pollution maybe the Milky Way will be visible.

And wildlife today.

Small Heath