Rather English - See the roof angels at Holy Trinity Blythburgh

A spectacular church in the Suffolk countryside, Holy Trinity Blythburgh is a huge church which stands on the site of earlier constructions dating back as far as the 7th century, and is noted for its stunning collection of roof angels. The church is often referred to as the Cathedral of the Marshes and at the time of Domesday Book, Blythburgh had one of the richest churches in Suffolk.

The church has many interesting features including a priest’s room, used for private prayers for the church’s benefactors, and extant marks on the door from a lightning storm which took place during a morning service in the 16th century. It has also notably been used by Benjamin Britten for some of the concerts of the annual Aldeburgh Festival. The church is open daily and when your author arrived - two minutes before the scheduled opening time - he was pleased to be met by the keyholder strolling merrily up the path.

For more, see http://www.holytrinityblythburgh.org.uk

_{From November 2012 until January 2013, Tired of London, Tired of Life will briefly be posting as RatherEnglish.com and featuring interesting things to do in England}

Rather English - Spend a night at the House in the Clouds

Another unusual Suffolk holiday let, the House in the Clouds in Thorpeness, Suffolk, was built by the Braithwaite Engineering Company in 1923 as a water tower to provide a water supply to the village, pumping water from the mill well and letting it be distributed by gravity in what is a rather flat part of the country.

The appearance of the House was added to make the water tower appear to be a cottage, and it continued to be used as a water tower until 1963 when a mains water supply was connected and in 1989, work began to convert it into the five floor cottage which is available for holiday lets today.

For more, see http://www.houseintheclouds.co.uk

<sub>^Picture © Martin Pettitt used under a Creative Commons license^

From November 2012 until January 2013, Tired of London, Tired of Life will briefly be posting as RatherEnglish.com and featuring interesting things to do in England</sub>

Rather English - Walk on Southwold Pier

Originally built in 1900 and 810 feet long, Southwold Pier once offered a landing stage for steamships carrying passengers from London Bridge. However, by 1979 a combination of storms and deliberate dismantling had reduced it to just 60ft. Rebuilding work started in the late 1990s, restoring the pier to 623 feet by 2001, leading to it being named Pier of the Year in 2002.

Today, the pleasantly-modern pier is owned by the Bourne family, combining a mix of cafés and restaurants, shops, installations such as Tim Hunkin and Will Jackson's Water Clock and the inevitable amusement arcade.

For more, see http://www.southwoldpier.co.uk

_{From November 2012 until January 2013, Tired of London, Tired of Life will briefly be posting as RatherEnglish.com and featuring interesting things to do in England}

Rather English - Take tea at Tilly's of Southwold

A distinctive little cafe on Southwold High Street, Tilly's is themed in a 1920’s style, but potential visitors shouldn't let that put them off, for the cafe's real speciality is good food and drink and good service.

Open seven days a week 9am to 7pm, the cafe has its own brand of speciality teas and a good choice of breakfast, lunch and afternoon tea dishes, as well as soft and alcoholic drinks, all served in a well-presented setting with second hand books on the tables. And if that isn't enough, they also do bus tours in a 1950s green omnibus called Olive.

For more, see http://www.tillysofsouthwold.co.uk

_{From November 2012 until January 2013, Tired of London, Tired of Life will briefly be posting as RatherEnglish.com and featuring interesting things to do in England}

Rather English - Celebrate 150 years of the Tube

Though there's some dispute about on which day the anniversary technically falls, we can be certain that roughly 150 years ago the world's first underground railway started along the line between Paddington (Bishop's Road) and Farringdon Street.

It's a line that has served us pretty well ever since, and a very high proportion of people who have been in London over that time will have at some point found themselves crammed into a loud carriage underground, staring through a window as the nothingness flashes by. The first underground was a remarkable engineering achievement, using steam trains to transport people along cut-and-cover tunnels just beneath the surface, and this coming Sunday a steam train will once again make the journey. If you want to see it, Ian has the details.

For more, see www.tfl.gov.uk/tube150

<sub>^Picture © bortescristian used under a Creative Commons license^

From November 2012 until January 2013, Tired of London, Tired of Life will briefly be posting as RatherEnglish.com and featuring interesting things to do in England</sub>

Rather English - Stay in a Martello Tower

Part of a line of towers built to keep out Napoleon's French forces, the Martello Tower at Aldeburgh in Suffolk is now an interesting holiday cottage, rented out by the Landmark Trust charity, who do a fantastic job refurbishing historically-important landmarks and allowing ordinary people to live in them, albeit only for a week or so.

The Tower was built between 1808 and 1812, and stands just outside Aldeburgh, on the Orford Ness peninsula, a huge shingle spit on the Suffolk coast. The Landmark Trust acquired it in 1971, and let it out following restoration, as they have done ever since.

For more, see http://www.landmarktrust.org.uk/BuildingDetails/Overview/199/Martello_Tower

<sub>^Picture © foshie used under a Creative Commons license^

From November 2012 until January 2013, Tired of London, Tired of Life will briefly be posting as RatherEnglish.com and featuring interesting things to do in England</sub>

Rather English - Drink at the Ship Inn, Blaxhall

Your author recently spent a agreeable evening at the Ship Inn in Blaxhall, a historic Suffolk pub known for its folk and traditional music and traditional Suffolk step dancing.

A Grade II listed, 17th century pub in rural Suffolk which claims to include smugglers, shepherds, seafarers, pilots, tourists and locals among its previous customers, the Ship offers bed and breakfast and is also located conveniently close to a hostel run by the YHA, offering a choice of where to lay your head after an evenings step dancing.

For more, see http://www.blaxhallshipinn.co.uk/

<sub>^Picture © Chris Holifield used under a Creative Commons license^

From November 2012 until January 2013, Tired of London, Tired of Life will briefly be posting as RatherEnglish.com and featuring interesting things to do in England</sub>

Rather English - See David Shrigley's HOW ARE YOU FEELING?

Your author popped in to see David Shrigley's HOW ARE YOU FEELING? at the Cornerhouse in Manchester yesterday and as ever thoroughly enjoyed the amusing and thoughtful works of the Glasgow artist. The exhibition - which has its final day today - features a mix of Shrigley's trademark small drawings alongside some larger interactive pieces.

The strategically-placed napping mattresses for those overcome with fatigue during their visits were particularly appealing, as was the opportunity to sound a huge gong and whilst your author didn't attempt to draw a naked humanoid figure designed by Shrigley in the third floor gallery or act out a play by the artist, both were well-executed and typically thoughtful.

For more, see http://www.cornerhouse.org/david-shrigley/

<sub>^Picture © Karen Cropper used under a Creative Commons license^

From November 2012 until January 2013, Tired of London, Tired of Life will briefly be posting as RatherEnglish.com and featuring interesting things to do in England</sub>

Rather English - Join the Waldron Wassail

The last gasps of the Christmas season are fading away and Wassailing season is upon us, the time of year when apple trees are blessed to ensure a good harvest later in the year. The Waldron Wassail takes place this evening at Waldron in Sussex, with Long Man Morris, Old Star Morris and Winter Solstice Mummers gathering at the Star Inn for a Wassail.

Those visiting are told to expect Morris dancing at the village war memorial and a mummers play, followed by the wassailing in the garden. As the events take place outside, visitors are advised to dress warmly and prepare to join in.

For more, see http://www.starinn-waldron.co.uk/upcoming-events/

_{^Picture © Paul Farmer, used under a Creative Commons license^
From November 2012 until January 2013, Tired of London, Tired of Life will briefly be posting as RatherEnglish.com and featuring interesting things to do in England}

Rather English - See the site of a Viking Invasion

In 991 AD, after sacking the town of Ipswich, a huge Viking fleet sailed down the coast and landed at Northey Island in the Blackwater Estuary in Essex, preparing to take Maldon. Here as they waited for the tide to fall, they were trapped on the island by the East Saxon forces of Æthelred the Unready, led by Earl Byrhtnoth and his forces.

When the Viking forces requested payment to leave, Byrhtnoth refused and challenged them to battle, but as the high tide prevented proper battle, the Vikings were allowed onto the mainland and the Battle of Maldon commenced, ending in defeat for the Anglo-Saxons. Today, the site is remembered as the oldest recorded battlefield in Britain. Today the island, which is in the care of the National Trust, can be visited by prior arrangement.

For more, see http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/northey-island/

<sub>^Picture © terry joyce used under a Creative Commons license^

From November 2012 until January 2013, Tired of London, Tired of Life will briefly be posting as RatherEnglish.com and featuring interesting things to do in England</sub>

Rather English - Walk to the Chapel of St Peter-on-the-Wall

One of the oldest intact churches in England, it is believed that there has been a chapel on the site of St Peter-on-the-Wall at Bradwell-on-Sea in Essex since around 653 AD when St Cedd arrived from Lindisfarne at the invitation of Sigeberht the Good, then King of the East Saxons. Though the current chapel probably dates from around 660 AD, it is remarkable that it has survived so well.

The chapel was built using bricks from the Roman fortress which once stood on the same site and is built against the wall of the ruins of the abandoned Roman fort of Othona, and takes its name from this. Today, it stands at the end of a long distance path from Chipping Ongar called the St Peter's Way, which makes a lovely if tiring walk over a few days.

For more, see http://www.bradwellchapel.org/

_{From November 2012 until January 2013, Tired of London, Tired of Life will briefly be posting as RatherEnglish.com and featuring interesting things to do in England}

Rather English - Walk in Hadleigh Country Park, Essex

Whilst many might dismiss the area around Southend on Sea, your author finds the tidal creeks between Benfleet and Leigh-on-Sea particularly beautiful, and the stretch beneath Hadleigh Castle - itself am impressive 13th century construction refortified during the Hundred Years War and open for free by English Heritage - is this part of the world at its best.

Between the castle and the creekside, Hadleigh Country Park offers more than 350 acres of parkland, with a mix of woodland, grassland and marsh, with a nearby bridge - just outside the park - enabling walkers to cross to the Essex Wildlife Trust's nature reserve at Two Tree Island.

For more, see http://www.hadleighcountrypark.co.uk/

<sub>^Picture © Edward Clack used under a Creative Commons license^

From November 2012 until January 2013, Tired of London, Tired of Life will briefly be posting as RatherEnglish.com and featuring interesting things to do in England</sub>

Visit 19 Princelet Street

To London, where today sees a special and rare opening of a building close to your author's heart, 19 Princelet Street, a house built in 1719 by Samuel Worrall in what were then open fields on the edge of the City of London, which quickly became home to a family of Huguenot weavers called Ogier who had escaped from persecution in France. Thus began a fascinating story retold at 19 Princelet Street, the Museum of Immigration.

This beautiful timeless building is open only rarely at the moment and 2012 saw not a single opening, so we are lucky to have two openings so early in 2013, today and Saturday, 5th January, both 2pm - 4pm. Your author encourages anyone who has not visited to make the trip, and also to wrap up warm, as 19 Princelet Street is cold even on a bright summer day.

For more, see http://www.19princeletstreet.org.uk/

<sub>^Picture © ceridwen used under a Creative Commons license^

From November 2012 until January 2013, Tired of London, Tired of Life will briefly be posting as RatherEnglish.com and featuring interesting things to do in England</sub>

Reflect on Tired of London, Tired of Life's 2012

It's been another eventful year for Tired of London, Tired of Life, with a book largely based in this website hitting the shelves twelve months ago and keeping your author busy throughout the year with talks, interviews and pangs of anxiety. Thank you to everyone who felt willing to buy a copy of the book, which has surpassed your author's expectations, and is still available in all good bookshops for anyone wishing to discover new things in London in 2013.

Your author should also apologise for the change of topic over the last 50 days, but has been thoroughly enjoying filling in gaps of places he hadn't been in England, and unfortunately spending time wandering over brooding moors and along windswept coast paths doesn't facilitate the writing of blog posts on London. Hopefully normal service will be resumed by the end of January.

Many thanks again for your kind support during 2012. Quite apart from the Olympic Games it was a fantastic year to be in London, and whilst the hype seemed to see our city fall a bit flat in the summer, your author feels sure that 2013 will be one of the best years ever for London, with upcoming events such the 150th Anniversary of the Tube starting on 13 January, Life and death Pompeii and Herculaneum at the British Museum in the summer, Lowry at the Tate Britain from Jun - Oct, a summer opening of the gardens of Buckingham Palace to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Queen's Coronation. All for a fraction of the price of the only available ticket to the Olympic horse-prancing.

Rather English - Visit the Stanley Spencer Gallery in Cookham

First opened in 1962 in a former methodist chapel in the village of Cookham, Berkshire, the Stanley Spencer Gallery collects together some works of art by celebrated English painter and Cookham resident Sir Stanley Spencer.

There can be no more fitting place to view the work of an artist so closely associated with both the village of Cookham than the chapel in which he once worshiped as a member of the congregation and many of the works on show feature Cookham, which was very much a theme of the artist's work, and where - particularly in later life - he could often be seen wandering the lanes of Cookham pushing a pram in which he carried his materials for painting. The pram is on show in the gallery.

For more, see http://stanleyspencer.org.uk/

_{From November 2012 until January 2013, Tired of London, Tired of Life will briefly be posting as RatherEnglish.com and featuring interesting things to do in England}