I am currently shooting two videos at once. The first being a search for the Caratacus’s last stand in the Welsh Marches and the second a visit to the rural market town of Petworth in West Sussex. Here is the teaser video for the latter.

Petworth is famed for its splendid stately home, once the property of the de Percy family and later the Earl of Egremont’s base.

The town was also known for its austere House of Correction which later served as a prison with prisoners having to work long hours on a treadmill or handcrank. Many of the poor were shipped off to Canada in the 19th Century by the Petworth Immigration Committee and in the 1942 a German bomber distroyed a boys school killing 28 of the children and two teachers.

The Bald Explorer is off to search for all these things and more in the episode. Meanwhile, while we wait for that, here is a teaser video show off some of Petworth’s rather lovely architecture.

Building a prison in computer graphics..

Where possible I always like to gather as much information about the subject I am making in computer graphics. One of the first pieces of luck was noticing that the prison is clearly marked in precise terms on the planning maps for Petworth in 1875. Not only was the building’s shell accurately drawn up, but also the cells and ancillary buildings, such as the treadmill block and handcrank shed.

From there I can extrude upwards the walls and produce a skeleton of the old prison. What one does still require are the real measurements of widths of walls, heights of buildings and detail of roofs, etc. Luckily, there was an inspection of prisons made in the 1840′s and it included the Petworth one, giving not just a written description, but accurate measurements and dimensions in feet and inches. What is lacking, however, are drawings or photographs of the House of Correction. That said, I do have an old sketch of the place and one scratchy early photo which gives us the rear detail and roof.

I do not intend to make an all singing and dancing model, that would take too long, but fair representation of the austere nature of the place will do. Besides my cg skills are very sparse, so I will do what I can. I am not sure if anyone has done any work in this area before, so it could be a valuable contribution to the knowledge we have on the Georgian/Victorian building, who knows? There are plans to rebuild on the site, so all that is there is likely to be lost for ever, so I must work quickly before all my references are gone.

I am confused. I am dismayed. I am annoyed too.

While out scouting at locations for a forthcoming episode of the Bald Explorer my friend and fellow researcher Jimmy and I found ourselves in a cemetery. This is not usual for history enthusiasts like us. It is always interesting to read the names of those that have passed before us and on occasions attempt to find out more about them from old post office directories and town listings. The reason we were in this particular grave yard in Petworth, West Sussex, was to see a curious oblong shaped wall that resembled the remains of a mortuary chapel. We had been scanning the satellite photographs freely available on the Internet while comparing them to old maps from the 19th Century to see what had changed over the years and this had stuck as interesting.

We wondered what the story was behind the chapel and why there was only the rectangular wall of its footings left. We marked it down as one of the things to check out when we next popped over to the old rural market town for further research. As it happens, it wasn’t what we thought. Nothing unusual there, but the mystery deepened. Looking at the low walls and the small square rusty holes sunk into it, we could see that this was a very grand enclosed grave, probably a large family affair. Unfortunately, there was no name, or anything discernible to read and it been abandoned long ago. At one time, iron railings would have surrounded it and at the east end we deduced had been a pair of gates, the recces for the hinges could clearly be observed. No doubt the railings and gates had been removed during the 1940′s as part of the wartime requirement for metal and these historic relics might very well have been used to build parts of tanks, planes or weapons.

The shamefully forgotten resting place of the third Earl of Egremont.

But who could this site have been for, we wondered? The Earl of Egremont was the big name that sprung to mind, but discounted almost immediately because as the owner of Petworth House in the 18th Century and with a large number of estates up and down the country, it seemed most unlikely that he would be buried in a small and otherwise parochial cemetery. I was pretty certain that a character of his magnitude and importance would have had a private burial ground attached to the large and impressive stately home. There is an old family chapel in there after all.

But then, that evening, I met Leigh Lawson, author of a book about the Petworth Emigration Committee which in the early 19th century, with the approval and help of George O’Brian Wyndham, the third Earl of Egremont and effectively Lord of Petworth, sent 1800 of the poorest members of the community in and around Petworth and other parts of Sussex to Canada for a fresh start and a new life. She informed me that this family grave was indeed his and like me was appalled at the state in which the people of Petworth had allowed it to become.

Missing, the memoral to George O'Brian Wyndham, third Earl of Egremont's tomb

The third Earl, more than any other of the various families that had lived in the manor and palatial house of Petworth, had generously assisted the inhabitants of the town. He had engaged more workers that he really required, set up charities to assist the poor and gave the town an enormous amount of money to building the necessary schools, prisons, town halls and other public requirements.

It maybe 175 years since his death, but you would think that the up keep of a small area for memory of his name wouldn’t have been much to ask considering all he did to put Petworth on the map and now bring a not insignificant tourist trade to the town.

Don’t want to read this? Have a listen instead!

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The Georgian Stately Home that is Petworth House

Petworth House as we see it today is from the alternation in the 1870′s, but the original manor of Peteorde dates back to the Saxon times. It was superseded by the Normans after the Conquest and held by Robert de Belleme, the son of the great Earl and friend of William the Conqueror, Roger de Montgomery. But soon the house passed into the de Perci family ending up in the ownership of Henry Hotspur who dies at the famous Battle of Shrewsbury in 1403. His sword that he wielded on that battlefield against King Henry 4th was for a long time on exhibit at Petworth House.  I called them up the other day to determine if it was still there, but a rather surprised young lady said that I was the third person inquiring and that unfortunately it was lost.

The house is best associated with George Wyndam, the third Earl of Egremont. He was a very generous man. He collected the mass of the arts works that are now on permanent display and did great works within the Petworth community. More of all these things will be investigated in the forthcoming Bald Explorer episode.

Meanwhile, do enjoy the audio tour of the house with Richard and Jimmy.

Download as Podcast – Part 1.
Download as Podcast – Part 2.
Download as Podcast – Part 3.
Download as Podcast – Part 4.
Download as Podcast – Part 5.
Download as Podcast – Part 6.

Gordon Stevenson chats to Richard Vobes about the museum.

Why not check the podcast and have a listen to the visit:

Download as Podcast.

The Stonemansons Inn, a little long North Street, Petworth.

As part of our research into a video episode of the Bald Explorer I always like to visit a place and get a feel for the location. I love to take photographs and look for the unusual. I took Jimmy with me to Petworth in West Sussex this time and we tramped the streets impressed by the old houses and wonderful architecture.  This recording was the second podcast we made that day and towards the end we are in search of the rather grim sounding Petworth House of Correction, the local prison.

I used to live in Petworth some thirty years ago. I wasn’t interested in history then being only a young man of eighteen. I was a member of the local youth theatre and was lodged in one of the oldest streets in Petworth, Lombard Street. It is a beautifully preserved cobbled street leading down from the parish church, St Mary’s, to the market square.

Little really has changed in Petworth I am pleased to say. Perhaps there are a few more antique shops than I remember and a couple of the businesses have changed, pubs closed and now I see they charge for parking in the main car park. (Only a pound for the whole day, so it doesn’t break the bank I suppose.)

There are some lovely public houses, Inns and drinking places in the old town, but one that I had never visited in my youth was the Stonemansons Inn along North Street a little out of town. It stands close to where the old boy’s school once stood, before a stray bomb destroyed it during World War two. (See our other podcast about Petworth).

One of the remaining buildings of the Petworth House of Correction.

The Stonemasons Inn is made up from a small row of 17th Century timber framed cottages with each room named after previous owners. It is a fabulously atmospheric building, complete with low beams,  charming fire places and plenty of character. Better than all that they also sell local real ale and produce rather lovely food.

Close by was where the old Petworth Toll House would have stood and collected the money from travellers coming and going to the market town.  Luckily, these days, you can drove your sheep or heard your cattle along this busy road for free.

One of the notorious places in Petworth and not generally known about is the old House of Correction. It was opened in 1788 and mainly used to house petty criminals, but its treatment was harsh and draconian. The prisoners were given forced hard labour, including many hours on a treadmill (1o hours in the Summer and 7 hours in the Winter) and it was known ‘grinding the wind’ for it achieved in practical terms, absolutely nothing. There was also a handcrank which was turned against pressure for another period of 10 hours.  I hope to explore more about this cruel institution in the Bald Explorer episode.

An overlay showing where the old prison used to stand in 1875, thanks to Jimmy for this.

Meanwhile do have a listen to preliminary exploration of this delightful town.

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Petworth Cemetary or the clumbing remains of it.

Jimmy Hastel and Richard Vobes, the Bald Explorer, are off to Petworth to explore the history aspects of this wonder old market town for an exciting video that will be coming soon to these pages.

In this podcast, Richard and Jimmy are having a look round a graveyard. Why, you might well ask? It is actually a sad story. During the second World War a lone German bomber had crossed the channel and was trying to either ditch its load or aim to damage the beautiful Georgian property, Petworth House. Well, it missed, and one of the bombs apparently hit a tree and was deflected to a near by boys school. The result was dreadful.

The mass gave of the victims from the Petworth School Bombing.

It was the 29th September 1942 when the Petworth Boys School was totally destroyed and 28 children were killed along with the head master, Charles Stevenson and assistant teacher Charlotte Marshall. Many were badly injured.

The mass grave is a poignant sight with his stone memorial at one end dedicated to the lost souls of the school children and teachers. Shamefully, the rest of the cemetery has been mostly abandoned with no one willing to claim ownership and therefore responsibility for looking after it all.

Newspaper cutting from 3rd October 1942 - with kind permission from http://www.gravelroots.net

Jimmy and I ventured in to find the graves and the crumbling chapel hidden within. Have a listen to our adventure.
You can check out the fabulous website that has more information at Gravelroots.

Download as Podcast

My new audioboo website with blog posts in audio format.

I know that some of my followers enjoy podcasts and do not always have time to read the blogs as they go up. Well, I have an answer for that to help them out. I have started a fresh website which lists all my posts and articles but in a recorded format.

By using the services of the very popular AudioBoo podcast format, I am recording the written content in my sound studio and uploading. At the moment I have the free account which permits up to three minutes of recording time. If this proves popular I will bite the bullet, open my wallets and purchase a 30 minute account. I believe this approximately £60 a year, so not too bad.

I would love to know if you like this service or have any comments about using AudioBoo, so do please send any feedback to either the Bald Explorer Audio Blog site or of course to this post.

The Bald Explorer Audio Blog site is ready for you right now!

The South Downs above Worthing in Sussex

Naturally a few dog walkers had popped out and were exercising their animals, stooping every few minutes to pick up the nasty stuff that plops out the ugly end of the excitable creatures. I do not own one of these beasts, but I always marvel at the short distance many of these people actually travel with their pets. You would think that walking was the main purpose for investing time and care by owning such canine friends, but it would appear not as I soon found myself leaving them far behind.

Apart from the exercise and the intake of fresh air, I find walking incredible stimulating for the brain. I allow my mind to wonder, or perhaps daydream as I stroll on my merry way along the rural byways of the great rolling Sussex uplands and downlands. If I have a problem I can hand it over to the subconscious mind to ponder on as I take in the sunshine and gaze at the beautiful scenery around me. I find that worries and concerns begin to ebb away as my feet engage with earth and one leg in front of the other takes me methodically forward deeper into the countryside and away from the rat race of the town I have left.

The splendour of the Sussex countryside walk.

You don’t have to make an excursion onto the South Downs, or whatever your local area of natural beauty is called, a big deal and go hiking for miles and miles to feel the effect they have on the soul. A short jaunt of an hour or so is plenty to recharge the batteries. If the sun comes out I know I am chomping at the bit to be away from the desk and really there is no excuse to not pop out at lunch time or in the early evenings. If you get the chance, you should do the same. You wont regret it, I assure you.

Rain halts play is a familiar expression and no truer when it comes to the film making process of the Bald Explorer productions. This is not because I am particularly adverse to working in wet weather. It has more to do with not having the right sort of waterproofing for my camera equipment, gaining access to certain locations when knee deep in boggy conditions and asking people to help out with the filming and having them get cold and soggy in the process.

The nature of my documentaries as a history/travel adventure is to show off the landscape. I want my viewers to appreciate the location, the architecture the buildings shot and beautiful imagery presented when the sun is shinning or the sky is bright. These videos will be hanging about for a while, one hopes, and rather than impatiently knock them out, I do prefer to wait for the right conditions. That said it is incredible frustrating when the weather lets you down day after day.

The other irritating thing that happens to annoy me is how wonderful the weather is when I am not actually available to get out and film. This is continuously happening and drives me mad, but you do learn to shrug your shoulders and try not to let it get to you too much.

The key to these none shooting days is to make use of the time as much as possible. So I am currently researching and planning episode five. If I can get the script ready for that one two, it is then feasibly possible to shoot the next two back to back and just utilise the good weather for filming when it comes.

Well, that is the plan. Ideally, one should write several episodes in the winter and use the spring and summer months for production purposes only. Maybe this winter I will do that.