Odd Days Out have been to investigate how – with the help of ‘Roys of Wroxham’ – the village of Hoveton has managed to buck the standard commercial homogeneity found in most high streets and instead replaced almost every shop with a Roys. Read More →
Thanks to its eponymous dessert, the Peakland town of Bakewell punches above its weight in terms of name recognition. However, it is the Bakewell Pudding that the town owes it success to – not the ‘tarted up’ variant made famous by Mr Kipling in the 1960s.
The pudding consists of a flaky pastry base covered with a layer of sieved jam and topped with a filling made of egg and almond paste. Culinary tourists still flock to Bakewell to try the local delicacy. Visitors on the hunt for this 19th century treat expect a certain archaism, which the small market town is more than happy to provide.
However, bubbling beneath its quaint exterior is a bitter dispute. Three shops, situated within 100 metres of each other, all claim that they alone have the original recipe for the Bakewell Pudding.Read More →
Ancient covens, the Devil’s homemade soup and an ethereal Julius Caesar – when it comes to Sussex folklore few places have as many associated legends as Chanctonbury Ring.
Since the Bronze Age this curious earthwork has held great significance to both Sussex natives and invaders from distant lands. Risking the wrath of ancient spirits, Odd Days Out has been to investigate why, to this day, legends and rumours persist around the area.Read More →
An unassuming footpath, Framfield Number Nine had no pretensions to be anything other than a simple thoroughfare.
Then, in 1989 it was abruptly blocked by a barn. The footpath then found itself at the centre of a landmark legal battle that influenced two acts of Parliament and with the help of the Ramblers, helped strengthen walkers’ rights.Read More →
Prior to the invention of refrigeration, fresh food would either have to be eaten immediately or preserved in a way that would impact its flavour. With the invention of the ice house (or ice well), the residents of Mari (an ancient city in modern-day Syria) came up with a solution to this way back in 1780 BC.Read More →
An ancient, candle-lit, cavern where sacred meals were consumed, animals sacrificed, and cultists put through brutal initiation ceremonies – all in the name of Mithras. Small temples or Mithraeums, can be found across the former Roman Empire, including in Londinium.Read More →
In the sleepy Sussex village of Lyminster there is a deep, deep pool. A pool so deep that children are told never to venture near it – for if they were to trip or stumble, they may fall straight through to Australasia. That is, of course, if not first consumed by the beast they call the ‘Knucker’.Read More →
The building was supposedly constructed by Benedictine Monks from the nearby Wilmington Priory in 1280. It continued to be used by the clergy until 1970 when it was sold into private ownership. It remains occupied to this day, so we ask other Odd Day Outer’s to be mindful not to disturb the occupants.Read More →
Built from recycled excavated material dug up during the construction of the surrounding housing development. It is the focal point of the recently-opened (January 2017) Gallions Reach Park, created from land left vacant Read More →
Whilst the Peasants’ Revolt of 1381 is the most well known of the popular uprisings in Medieval England, the Jack Cade rebellion of 1450, an important precursor the the War of the Roses, is worthy of much more attention.Read More →