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Category: Norwich

  • Norwich – Rosary Cemetery

    Norwich – Rosary Cemetery

    The Rosary Cemetery was founded in 1819 by Thomas Drummond (1764-1852), a Presbyterian minister who recognised that churchyards had become overcrowded and there was a need for more space. The first section of land was five acres in size and had previously been used as market gardens. The first burial took place in 1824, the reinterring of the remains of Drummond’s wife, moved from the Octagon Chapel in the city.

    Initially, the cemetery wasn’t much used and the Church of England were none too keen on it, it was all a bit non-conformist for them. There was also the problem, until the 1832 Anatomy Act, of bodies being stolen by body-snatchers, especially so at this slightly remote location. As the nineteenth century progressed, the cemetery became more popular and there had been 18,000 burials by 1884.

    The project was inspirational, as the Rosary was the first non-denominational cemetery in England and many more followed the model which was established here. Drummond was sensible enough to appoint a body (no pun intended) of trustees to look after the affairs of the cemetery and he insisted on the land being freehold, so that it would be much harder to change its usage later on.

    The mortuary chapel, redesigned by Edward Boardman in 1879, replacing a previous building which had been erected here in 1830.

    This is some of the older part of the cemetery, but an extension was purchased in 1903, although wasn’t brought into use until 1924.

    In 1954, the oldest part of the cemetery was taken over by Norwich City Council and they decided to abandon it, or, as they called it, returned it to nature. I’m not sure whether this stone was damaged by their efforts, but there are a few gravestones which have unfortunately been damaged in this manner. Fortunately, there’s an active Friends of Rosary Cemetery which was established in 1998 and they have helped to transform the site and they hold numerous walks, site clearances and events to highlight the history of the cemetery.

  • Norwich – Rosary Cemetery (Alfred Wilmot Spooner)

    Norwich – Rosary Cemetery (Alfred Wilmot Spooner)

    Since I’ve been grounded again by the Government, I thought I’d meander around the Rosary Cemetery located near to me in Norwich, in an attempt to see what stories lie there. It might not be the most fascinating blog content, but it’ll keep me quiet for a few weeks….

    This is the grave of Alfred Wilmot Spooner, located in one of the oldest parts of the cemetery. He was baptised on 6 January 1813 at St. Andrew’s Church in Norwich and was the son of Edward Spooner and Sophia Spooner (nee Gunton) and they had married at St. Peter Mancroft church in April 1807.

    Edward is listed on Alfred’s baptism record as being a straw manufacturer, although I’m not entirely sure what that entailed, with Sophia being a bonnet maker. I can’t be certain, as there are multiple names, but I suspect Edward had been baptised in the same church on 29 August 1784, himself the son of Edward Spooner and Eliza Springale. Edward (Alfred’s father) died at the age of just 49 and was buried at St. Peter Mancroft church on 3 June 1834.

    Alfred died on 21 August 1840, at the age of 27 years old. Unfortunately, for the purposes of my writing this post, this means that he didn’t appear on the first national census which took place in 1841. At this point, his mother was still alive though (now aged 60), living on Day’s Yard in St. Peter Mancroft, which was also called Day’s Court. This yard has long since gone, it’s now pretty much under the treasury counters in Norwich City Hall. She lived with Hannah Bensley, aged 65, and Matilda Stratford, aged 14.

    And, that’s as much as this story as I can find. I don’t know what happened to Alfred during his life. Sophia, Alfred’s mother, died in 1860, having moved to Lakenham to live with the Chittock family, with Hannah Chittock being Edward and Sophia’s daughter. Hannah (so Alfred’s sister) and Timothy married in St. Peter Mancroft church on 8 March 1837.

    So, using my imagination a bit here. The burial of Alfred took place at Rosary Cemetery, at that time still relatively empty, and was likely attended by his mother Sophia, his sister Hannah and his brother-in-law Timothy, amongst others. It might have been a communal effort to pay for the gravestone, as it’s a nice one which has lasted well. The family had gone through the sadness of Alfred’s father dying in 1834, the excitement of Alfred’s sister’s wedding in 1837 and then this sadness in 1840. Quite why Alfred died at such a young age, I sadly don’t know….

  • Norwich – A Little Protest Up a Crane

    Norwich – A Little Protest Up a Crane

    There’s a little protest going on up a crane in Duke Street in Norwich.

    Apparently, it’s a teenager called Alex Sidney from Dereham who has rather bravely (and I must confess, I wouldn’t be that brave) shinned up this crane. Three others have been arrested and they were apparently pleased that there was no security, although I’m sure construction project managers were hopeful that they didn’t have to employ teams of security 24 hours a day to guard things.

    And this is the result, a substantial police, fire and ambulance presence at the scene.

    The EDP have reported that Alex said:

    “If I get arrested now or if I get arrested in nine hours the consequences will be the same so I might as well stay out for a bit longer.”

    And, to be fair, he’s probably right.

  • Greater Anglia : Norwich to London Liverpool Street

    Greater Anglia : Norwich to London Liverpool Street

    So, back to London Liverpool Street today, and this is my train having safely arrived into the capital.

    This wasn’t ideal when I arrived at Norwich railway station at 11:05, my train had been cancelled. I say not ideal, I wasn’t that displeased, as that means a delay repay gets triggered.

    I was travelling First today, which wasn’t some decision to switch to a more decadent lifestyle, but just because the price was pretty much the same as standard. I don’t think I’ve been in First on the new trains, they look all smart and tidy.

    The individual seats and I like these raised ones, there’s a ledge for my bag and also easily accessible power points. Despite the service having to cater for the 11:30 passengers as well as the 12:00 passengers from Norwich, it wasn’t overly busy.

    First class passengers get free snacks and drinks, so I merrily meandered to the cafe bar to collect my refreshments for the journey. There was a very friendly staff member at the cafe bar, although he told me something which I’ve suspected, which is that the InterCity 125s now removed from the route were more stable than the current new trains. He mentioned this as he was being flung about, as was I, and I can’t imagine how difficult it is to try and work like that. I had wondered if the trains were going faster and that was the problem, but he thought not. So, all that money and Greater Anglia have bought more rickety trains than the ones they already had.

    These new trains don’t really seem to be perfect in numerous ways, it was a train fault that caused the cancellation of my 11:30 journey. The automatic announcements also went wrong as it kept repeating that we were stopping at stations that we clearly weren’t (stations such as Goodmayes and Romford are not stops which this service ever calls at to my knowledge), which led to the driver (or guard, whoever does the announcements) having to clarify the situation. The train was though clean and all was comfortable.

    The fare for this journey was £18, more than the usual £10 that I pay. The train delay means that I get 50% back, so the journey cost me £9, which is entirely agreeable to me. So, all rather lovely.

  • Norwich – Georgian Townhouse

    Norwich – Georgian Townhouse

    This is a City Club venue, a chain that is relatively new to me, but I rather like. I’ve been to some of their venues without realising such as the Bath Brew House, but recently have gone to the Old Ticket Office and the Cambridge Brew House, both in Cambridge. I had looked at going to some of their London pubs, although the ones I have been looking at haven’t re-opened yet.

    Anyway, this City Club venue was still doing their version of Eat Out to Help Out until the end of October, with food half price before 18:30, which is very generous. There weren’t many tables left, although we only booked the day before, so we were fortunate to get a table with the offer still going.

    The welcome was friendly, although the staff member tried to take our order very quickly and then didn’t re-appear for eleven minutes (yes, I did time it, although only because we wanted to be sure we got our order in before 18:30, although I don’t think it mattered). The beer selection was limited to two, neither overly exciting, but the Norfolk Topper was Barsham Brewery is local and was well-kept. I noticed then writing this that I also had this at the Old Ticket Office and was pleased to note I gave it the same score on Untappd which shows some consistency. I understand that these are difficult times for pubs, but I’m hoping that there might be a little more innovation in their beer selections in 2021.

    I was dining with my friend Richard, who bought a wine that was more expensive than my main. He’s very decadent though. The environment was all clean and comfortable, with the venue also being quite a large hotel, so there was a formal element to proceedings, but nothing that was too frightening for me…… Being a creature of habit, I went for my usual dishes, not least because Richard was very adventurous and had venison carpaccio with crispy parsnip beignets. Apparently it was lovely, but I’m not into eating raw deer, so he had the more exotic dishes.

    My starter of salt and pepper squid, which was served on a dollop of chilli mayonnaise. The salt and pepper element was a little lacking, but the squid was well cooked and wasn’t chewy, which is rather a good sign. All very acceptable as a starter.

    This batter on the haddock and chips looks burnt, although it didn’t taste like that and I like some crispiness to the batter anyway. It was a large portion, well presented and had been drained well so that the chips weren’t all moist and annoying. Tartare sauce is one of my favourite things and I think this was home-made, and if it wasn’t, I liked it anyway. The fish was tender and everything was cooked well, so all entirely acceptable again.

    The starter, after discount, was £3.50 and the main was £6.50, so I thought that was sufficiently good value for money. I would come here again, and likely will, as it’s a comfortable environment and I’ve got some confidence that they’ll ensure everyone is satisfied. Richard and me faffed about with their app, but it does pretty much work and let us split the bill and pay separately, without needing to hassle the staff. Applying the discounts involved staff intervention, but this was done efficiently.

    I thought I’d have a little look at TripAdvisor to amuse myself, and the restaurant isn’t quite as well reviewed as I would have thought. Primarily, it’s got the first review that I’ve seen marked by TripAdvisor as “a serious safety incident” and I’m moderately surprised that the hotel hasn’t replied to this. The more recent review of 1/5 for refusing entry to customers coming in at 21:55 seems harsh, if they’re closing at 22:00 it’s not entirely sensible to serve a round at that point. Anyway, having read the reviews I’m less tempted to come back, but I think we still left happy with the price we’d paid. And Richard forgot to apply his £5 welcome discount, so he has to go back to get a free drink. Well, I would, no point in not getting that.

  • London – Lambeth – Imperial War Museum (Air Raid Damage in Norwich)

    London – Lambeth – Imperial War Museum (Air Raid Damage in Norwich)

    From the collections of the Imperial War Museum (© IWM HU 140004), I’ve never seen this photo before. There’s no address on it, but it was taken in Norwich following a Baedeker Raid which took place on 29 April 1942. The man was the owner of the shoe shop which had been destroyed, looking through to see if he could salvage any of his stock.

  • Greater Anglia : Norwich to London Liverpool Street

    Greater Anglia : Norwich to London Liverpool Street

    My last train journey was from Chesterfield to York in March 2020 and I didn’t expect it would take until August 2020 for me to make another. Norwich railway station looks different to when I last used it, with the ticket gates now left open and unmanned. There’s now directional signage around the concourse and a couple of the food outlets, West Cornwall Pasty and Starbucks, haven’t re-opened, nor has Marks & Spencer. It felt moderately busy, but nowhere near what I would have usually expected for a Monday morning.

    Waiting at platform 2, the new style train which serves the Norwich to London line.

    There was plenty of space for customers on board, just a handful of passengers in each carriage. The power points and on-board screens worked on the train, although it wasn’t doing a very good job of air conditioning and not for the first time this week I muttered to myself that it was too hot.

    Safely at London Liverpool Street railway station, the train arrived dead on time.

    The barriers were operating as usual at the station, with revenue protection officers and police questioning a couple of people as I walked by. So, although there’s no ticket barrier at Norwich and tickets aren’t checked on board, there are still mechanisms to ensure people have paid their fares. The concourse was relatively quiet and someone asked me how they could get out of the railway station, something I didn’t think was particularly challenging, but there we go. Once outside, it became evident to me just how quiet London currently is….

  • Norwich – Drunken Dash and Daring

    Norwich – Drunken Dash and Daring

    This news story is from 1860, when a robbery took place on White Lion Street in Norwich.

    “William Marsham, on bail, was charged with stealing a coat, the property of Mr. George Womack, clothier, White Lion Street. Mr C. Cooper, who prosecuted, said the intent with which the prisoner took the coat did not seem to be a felonious one, and, therefore, with the Recorder’s permission, he should not offer any evidence. The Recorder, addressing the prisoner, said he entirely believed the statement the prisoner made to the policeman, that he had never known a happy moment since he took this coat, and he entirely believed that the prisoner had no felonious intention. That was evident from his going to the shop and putting the coat on before the eyes of all the shopmen. It was a case of drunken dash and daring, and he hoped the prisoner, having placed himself in such jeopardy by his intemperance would be wiser for the future, and abandon a vice which to young men in his position was often the first step to theft. The prisoner was then discharged”.

    I can’t tell whether it was the father or son George Womack, but the former died in 1860 at the age of 72, whilst the son died in the Thorpe Rail Disaster of 1874, a tragedy where 15 people were killed. William Marsham was lodging at a property in Porter’s Square in Norwich a year later, working as a bricklayer, but I can’t work out where he went after 1861.

    But, I do like the pragmatism of the Norwich courts at the time, as well as the phrase “drunken dash and daring”.

  • Norwich – Brewdog (Wings Wednesday)

    Norwich – Brewdog (Wings Wednesday)

    Back to Brewdog, which I’ve written about before, but some of my favourite pubs are still closed and I think this chain has handled things well in recent months. And I like their craft beer. So, I pre-booked a table in advance and this was acknowledged and confirmed around a day later.

    The bar area with the list of beers on the back bar. I took these photos when leaving, at a time when it was quieter, because otherwise it was relatively busy throughout the evening. When entering the bar, there’s a staff member near to the door and they explain how everything is working in terms of hygiene and safety. Customers need to scan a QR code (I won’t mention that Nathan’s Nokia 8210 doesn’t have this facility, so he had to stand and look confused) and that allowed me to give my contact details to comply with Government rules, and there’s also an ordering facility as well on the app. Customers can decide whether to use the app to order, but table service is still offered.

    Another photo of the front bar area.

    My drink was Layer Cake, a pastry stout with layers of flavour including marshmallow and chocolate. Decadent, rich and very sippable. I was also conveniently seated next to a hand sanitiser, which was quite handy given that the food choice for the evening wasn’t the cleanest to eat.

    And, Wings Wednesday, which is either cauliflower or chicken wings for £10 and they keep on bringing them until you tell them not to bring them. Which seems a very good deal. The wings were excellent, evenly coated with a pleasantly flavoured sauce and they were all cooked well. I like blue cheese, but not always blue cheese dip, but this one complemented the chicken wings nicely, and they also brought me over some hot sauce.

    Service was friendly and engaging throughout, everything was brought over with no real delay and the staff seemed to be in control of the whole process. There is an air of professionalism to Brewdog, so the whole efficiency of the process wasn’t unsurprising.

  • Norwich – Cathedral Gates

    Norwich – Cathedral Gates

    I’m not sure that I can recall a time when the Erpingham and Ethelbert Gates have both been closed in the evening, I wonder whether it’s related to the Nelson statue incident.