Casting around for something substantial to read to help me through the coronavirus lockdown, I reached for a hefty tome bought some time ago in a charity shop. Untold Stories, a collection of writings and diary entries by Alan Bennett, has served me well during this difficult time. As well as being a trip down memory lane, the collection includes some wonderful descriptions of some of the country’s loveliest parts, with Yorkshire looming large as one would expect, with Bennett hailing from that part of the country.
The diaries part of Untold Stories include descriptions of lovely days out in Yorkshire and other places. The entry for 15th March 1998 describes a drive along a minor road from Hawes to Yockenthwaite to look at a Bronze Age stone circle, with snow drifts still present on the high ground. The road follows the infant River Wharfe, prompting Bennett to complain about how busy the Wharfe Valley always is. Then to the village of Hubberholme, where the church (St Michael and All Angels) has some interesting features, including a rood loft and woodwork by Robert ‘Mousey’ Thompson, so called because he used to include a carving of a mouse in many of his woodworkings, including in this case the church pews. The church is also where J. B. Priestley’s ashes are buried in the church yard, and there is a memorial plaque inside the church.
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| All Angels Church Hubberholme - geograph.org.uk - 1365997. Photo by SMJ, via Wikimedia Commons. |
During the October Half Term week in 2002 Bennett paid a visit to Fountains Abbey on a stormy day. He describes the tower, marvelling at its height, and his delight at discovering the original greyish white paint overlaid with black lines. Then he turns his attention to a hill south of the main buildings called How Hill where in the 12th century monks from St Mary’s, York, camped out before founding the abbey. Bennett is impressed by the fact that the two surviving yew trees here have survived the building of Fountains and its dissolution. What Bennett does not mention is that there is a tower on the hill and that recent archaeology has unearthed what is believed to be a medieval chapel built by the monks and dedicated to St Michael the Archangel. Also the fact that there are views from the top of the hill stretching over fifty miles. This plus other information about the site is available on the website of the National Trust, which runs the property.
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| Fountains Abbey view 02 2005-08-27. Photo by Klaus with K, via Wikimedia Commons. |
One of the latter chapters of Untold Stories turns its attention to Leeds. Like Bennett, I am often dismayed by the sixties architecture blighting the towns and cities of this country. However, in some of the larger cities one charming feature resisting the onslaught is the ‘arcade’. Cardiff, for instance, has some nice examples, while the most famous one is probably the Burlington Arcade in London. Bennett recalls how on his early trips to Italy he detected something familiar about the architecture, and the reason for this was the elaborate arcades he used to frequent as a child in Leeds city centre. He singles out the Thorntons Arcade and the County Arcade for particular praise. The County Arcade was designed by Frank Matcham, best known for his elaborate theatre designs.
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| County Arcade, Leeds (14th November 2018). Photo by Mtaylor848, via Wikimedia Commons. |
These are just some of the delights of Yorkshire described in Untold Stories. It is a big read to get through, but for anyone planning to visit the region I can recommend it as a precursor to the experience.
