Kent Big Weekend 2013

Once again Kent and Medway residents have the chance to apply for free entry tickets to many popular attractions in Kent over the weekend of 23rd/24th March.

The closing date for applications is the 18th February and tickets are allocated by ballot. Over the last few years we have usually been lucky enough to get tickets and had some enjoyable days out.

Participating attractions this year include Leeds Castle, Wildwood, The Historic Dockyard and Royal Engineers Museum.

For further details please see the Big Weekend web site http://www.mykentbigweekend.co.uk

Good Luck!

UPDATE - we won tickets for the Canterbuy Tales....

Olympic Torch Relay - Drama in Gravesend

The Olympic Torch Relay bandwagon finally hit Gravesend earlier this morning.

As it was passing very close to our house and would almost certainly be a once in a lifetime event we joined the crowds lining the streets.

The torch itself was preceded by police outriders to clear the traffic and then sponsor vehicles.

Finally the torch appeared carried by 23 year old Anna Skora...

Suddenly someone, who later turned out to be a 17 year old "man", darted out from the crowd and made a lunge for the torch.

Within seconds he was laid out unceremoniously by two police officers and arrested. Fortunately Anna, although visibly shaken, stayed on her feet and the relay continued.

As for the 17 year old, he finished the day with a ride to the local constabulary. Fortunately for him the police got to him before the hostile crowd otherwise he would have probably spent rest of the day at A & E!

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Rochester Dickens Festival

As I mentioned in my previous post, many towns and villages in North Kent like to exploit their connections with the famous author Charles Dickens.

A Dickens Festival is held annually in Rochester and this year took place from the 8th to the10th June. Incidentally 2012 marks the 200th anniversary of Dickens' birth and the 9th June was the 142nd anniversary of his death.

The highlight of the Festival each year are the parades where participants dressed as characters from Dickens' famous novels are lead through the streets of Rochester by marching bands and strolling musicians up to Rochester Castle grounds. A traditional funfair is also held on the Castle grounds over the weekend.

Here are a few pictures to give you a flavour...

HRH Queen Victoria

Fagin

Scrooge - Bah Humbug!

Miss Havisham

The Council laid on a  free park and ride bus service from Chatham Historic Dockyard to Rochester so we did not have to worry about finding a parking space (which can be a problem even on a normal weekend.).

The event was very well attended and there were tourists there from all over Europe, Japan and the USA as well as the locals.

All in all it was a good (and inexpensive) day out which I would recommend to everyone

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Steam Open Days at Preston Court Farm

If you're looking for somewhere (free) to go in Kent next weekend and have an interest in all things steam, I would recommend a trip out to Preston Court Farm (nr. Canterbury).

On 31st December 2011/1st January 2012, Preston Steam Services will once again be hosting their annual open days.

Preston Services trade in everything from full sized steam locomotives, steam rollers and traction engines to hand built scale models.

Many have been rescued from far flung corners of the earth and shipped back to Preston for storage before eventually being sold on to steam enthusiasts for restoration.

We braved the bitter cold on News Years Day 2011 and had an enjoyable time exploring. Apart from the stored engines and locos there was plenty of other things to see. Here are a few pictures to give you a flavour...

A few of the restored traction engines on display and in steam.

A showman's engine which would have been used at fun fairs etc.

A steam powered organ playing in one of the barns (very loudly!).

Little man testing the catering facilities. The burgers and bacon rolls were going like hot cakes.
Jenny, one of the steam rollers on show. She was built in 1925 by Wallis and Steevens.

If you have a spare £ 40 k and plenty of time and energy you could become the new owner of locomotive No 1. She was built in Glasgow by Neilson and Co in 1892 and used to haul coke wagons at Beckton Gas Works in East London.

A 1912 J I Case traction engine awaiting some T.L.C.

A collection of traction engines. On closer inspection most of these appear to have been rescued from North and South America.

Last but not least one of four Orenstein and Koppel steam locomotives dating back the mid 1920's. They were operated by the sugar company San Martin de Tabarcal in Argentina to haul sugar cane to the refinery.

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Trevithick's Industrial Dartford Celebration

This weekend (7th/8th May) Central Park, Dartford will once again be filled with reminders of Britain's industrial heritage such as the steam traction engine "Challenger" pictured above.

She was built by John Fowler & Co in Leeds in 1914.

Around the same time each year the Trevithick's Industrial Dartford Celebration takes place. Central Park is filled with traction engines, vintage buses, cars and tractors of all shapes and sizes.

The celebration honours the memory of the pioneering Cornish steam engineer Richard Trevithick who worked at J & E Hall & Co in Dartford in the twilight of his career.

He died in the town and is buried close to the Dartford Martyr's Memorial off East Hill.

One day I will write a more detailed post about Richard Trevithick. He had a very colourful life but came to a sad end despite the major contributions he made to British engineering.

Admission to the park is free and it's well worth a visit if you are in the area.

Here are a few more pictures taken at last year's event....They don't make them like that any more. 1921 Foden steam omnibus.

A bit more up to date. This Routemaster RML2345 entered service with London Transport in 1965 but was later painted green and based in Northfleet, Kent. She operated the 480 service between Dartford and Gravesend. She has now been restored to her original London Transport livery and is privately owned.

Two steam rollers, "Moby Dick" (in the background) and "Rhoda" both manufactured in Rochester, Kent by Aveling and Porter.

Finally and fittingly a 1912 Hallford bus built in Dartford by Trevithick's employers J & E Hall & Co Ltd.

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Another Royal Wedding

Unless you happen to have been living on Mars for the last few months you will no doubt be aware of the forthcoming nuptials of Prince William and Kate Middleton next week.

Of course, this is certainly not the first Royal wedding and back in March 1863 one took place which brought the town of Gravesend, Kent to the attention of the world.

The wedding was between Prince Albert Edward, son of Queen Victoria and later King Edward VII, and Princess Alexandra of Denmark.

To the consternation of Queen Victoria, Prince Edward was a playboy and lady's man (he had a string of mistresses during his lifetime). This was deemed inappropriate behaviour for the heir to the throne and it was decided to arrange a suitable marriage.

Prince Edward's sister Princess Victoria of Prussia was given the role of matchmaker and eventually nineteen year old "minor" royal Princess Alexandra was selected as a suitable bride. The wedding date was set for the 10th March 1863.

Preparations for the royal wedding were meticulous and said to have cost over a million pounds - a small fortune at the time. The nation and the Royal family had been in deep mourning for many years following the death of Queen Victoria's husband Prince Albert from typhoid and the wedding was seen as chance to finally move on.

On 28th February, the "Rose of Denmark" as Alexandra was popularly known, began her long journey to England. She left Copenhagen and proceeded to the port of Korsor where she boarded the Danish royal yacht Slesvig for the voyage to Hamburg. From there she passed through Hanover, Cologne and Brussels before arriving at the port of Antwerp.

On 5th March, Princess Alexandra boarded the British royal yacht Victoria and Albert for the voyage to Gravesend. The yacht was accompanied by a squadron of Royal Navy warships decked overall in bunting and flags and firing a twenty one gun salute.

On the morning of the 7th March the royal party reached the Kent coast. Guns were fired in welcome and local dignitaries from Margate sent by boat to greet the Princess. The Victoria and Albert proceeded into the Thames Estuary accompanied by a large flotilla of pleasure boats packed with well wishers.

The banks of the Thames were lined with spectators eager to catch a glimpse of the Princess. At 1120 in the morning on the 7th March the Victoria and Albert came safely alongside at the Terrace Pier, Gravesend to tumultuous applause from the gathered crowds.


At considerable expense the town corporation appointed a professional decorator to plan and co-ordinate the flags and bunting on the nearby houses. Stands for up to 1200 people were built at the pier entrance and garlanded arches erected every forty feet along the route of the royal procession through the town to Gravesend railway station.

At the same time the Victoria and Albert was making fast at the pier Prince Albert's royal train arrived at the station. The Prince was driven by carriage to the pier and went aboard to meet his future bride who incidentally he had only met a handful of times previously. The Prince is said to have kissed the Princess before disembarking.

The couple were greeted by the Bishop of Rochester and the lady mayoress presented the Princess with a large bouquet of flowers. As the royal couple walked along the pier sixty young Kentish girls dressed in red and white in honour of the Princess, strewed violets and primroses before them.

All the while church bells rang and guns were fired from naval ships in the river and from Tilbury Fort on the opposite bank of the Thames.

The royal couple and their entourage were taken by carriages to Gravesend station and from their proceeded slowly via London to Windsor Castle to meet Queen Victoria. All along the route massive crowds clamoured to see the Prince and Princess.

The wedding took place on 10th March at St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle and Alexandra eventually became Queen consort on the death of Victoria in 1901.

Despite being more or less an arranged marriage and her husband's well documented affairs, it lasted over forty seven years.

Wonder how long William's and Kate's will last?...

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Vaisakhi 2011 in Gravesend

The Sikh community paraded through the streets of Gravesend, Kent this Saturday, as they do every year in April, to mark the festival of Vaisakhi.

Vaisakhi is one of the most significant holidays in the Sikh calendar and also marks the start of the Hindu solar new year.

A new Gurdwara (Sikh temple) has been under construction in Gravesend for several years now and is expected to be completed soon. The first Sikh settlers arrived in Gravesend as early as the 1920's.

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Kent Big Weekend Out - 26th/27th March 2011

Following the success of last year's event, Visit Kent is organising another Big Weekend Out on 26th and 27th March.

KENT residents are able to bid for free tickets to over 100 different attractions throughout the county including Rochester Castle, Wildwood, Chartwell (home of Winston Churchill) and the Romney, Hythe & Dymchurch Railway.

As demand is expected to be high for certain venues, tickets will be allocated by ballot and not on a first come, first served basis.

Hurry, as you only have until 17th February to apply for tickets.

Full details are available here

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Kent for less than a fiver!

Kent for Less than a Fiver

If you're planning a day out in Kent this year, here are ten suggestions of fun places you can go, or things you can do, for less than a fiver.

Yes, that's right, even in these austere times it is still possible to have a good day out in Kent, without breaking the bank.....

1. Take a Walk



There are over 4000 miles of public rights of way in Kent including long distance paths such as the North Downs Way, Pilgrims Way, Saxon Shore Way and Darent Valley Path.

Not only is this an excellent way to see the beautiful Kent countryside, you can also keep fit at the same time.

Best of all, walking is free.

If you are looking for ideas on where to go walking, I have written about a number of walks I have made over the last few months or you could also check out the following sites -

Rambling in Kent by Twisden

Kent County Council

2. Visit a Country Park or Nature Reserve


There are many country parks and nature reserves dotted throughout Kent, some run by KCC and others by organisations such as the Forestry Commission and RSPB.

Admission is usually free although in some, parking charges apply.

One of my favourites is Shorne Country Park near Gravesend where you can find the spider tickling a worm (pictured above). Parking during the week is currently £ 2 and on weekends/Bank holidays £ 2.50

There is a visitor centre/cafe, various waymarked paths suitable for all ages and even outdoor exercise equipment.

Activities are laid on for kids at various times during the year, for example - Easter Egg hunts, Christmas trail etc.

For details of some Kent country parks, please see here.

3. Visit Rochester Cathedral

Rochester Cathedral which can trace it's history back to before the Norman Conquest is well worth a visit and entry is free. The architecture is breathtaking and if you are lucky you may hear the choir singing - very atmospheric.

I would highly recommend a visit to the adjacent Cathedral tea rooms where they serve delicious home made cakes.

4. Spend A Day by the Thames

This year regattas will be held in Gravesend in June (date TBA) and on 24th July.

Apart from the rowing races, a fun fair, charity stalls and other entertainment will be provided alongside the river on the Gordon Promenade.

Entry to the Promenade is free.

5. Attend Whitstable Harbour Day


Whitstable Harbour Day takes place during the Summer. This year's date is still to be confirmed.

Various commercial and historic vessels are open to the public and there are charity and trade stalls lining the quayside. Entertainment is provided such as salsa bands (and one year, even sand dancers!).

Admission free.

6. Visit Hall Place, Bexley

Hall Place is an historic manor house in Bexley surrounded by gardens with magnificent topiary. Entrance to the house and gardens is free.

Inside the house there is a museum with an eclectic range of exhibits from wedding dresses to old bones!

7. Visit The Hurricane & Spitfire Memorial


Admission to the Hurricane and Spitfire Memorial at Manston Airport is free, although they greatly appreciate donations to assist in the upkeep of the aircraft.

Please see my earlier post for more details.

8. Visit South Foreland Lighthouse, St Margarets Bay

This historic lighthouse stands on top of the white cliffs at St Margarets Bay just outside Dover and is well worth a visit.

Excellent guided tours are provided by the National Trust and the current entrance price is £ 4.20 for adults. The tour ends at the top of the lighthouse where you are afforded excellent views over Dover Harbour and across the Channel to France.

For more information, please see here.

9. Visit New Tavern Fort, Gravesend

The New Tavern Fort next to the Promenade in Gravesend was first built in around 1780 and remained in active use until the early 1900's.

It's most famous resident was General Charles Gordon (of Khartoum) who had a house within the grounds (later destroyed by a V2).

At weekends between April and September the labyrinth of tunnels below the fort where munitions were once stored, are open to the public. There is a nominal entrance fee.

Various exhibits illustrate the fort's history from the 1780's onwards as well as that of the town of Gravesend itself during World War II.

10. Visit The Guildhall Museum, Rochester

I would recommend a visit to the Guildhall Museum in Rochester. The building dates back to 1687 and is very impressive.

The museum has numerous interesting artifacts and exhibits relating to the history of Rochester and some of it's more colourful characters like Sir Cloudesley Shovell.

An area of the museum realistically recreates one of the numerous prison hulks which once anchored in the River Medway and where French prisoners of war and convicts were incarcerated in terrible conditions.

Quite spooky!

Admission is free.

I hope you have found this post informative and enjoyable.

Please feel free to leave any comments. They are always welcome.

Gravesend Classic Bus Day - Pictures

On Sunday 11th July, Gravesend town held it's annual Classic Bus Day in absolutely glorious weather. As all rides on the buses were free, we decided to have a cheap day out (for a change!).

There were approximately a dozen different vintage buses running during the day on the old London Country routes through North Kent. These included the two AEC Regal IV's shown above which date from 1953 and 1951 respectively.

AEC - the Associated Equipment Company - manufactured thousands of buses and trucks, including the world famous Routemasters, between 1912 and 1979 and was based in Southall, Middlesex.

An AEC Reliance bus in Maidstone and District bus company livery. This bus (390 DKK) first entered service in 1958.

This was the oldest bus on display. STL2692 dates back to 1946
RML2589 is an AEC Routemaster bus which entered service in 1966. We had a ride on this bus from Gravesend to Dartford and then on to Longfield before returning back to Gravesend.

Someone really enjoyed their ride on the bus! (only the second bus he's ever been on - a real sign of the times).

Another Routemaster - RMC 1486. She was built in 1962.

More pictures of the buses can be found here on my Flickr pages

If you have enjoyed reading this post you are welcome to leave a comment. They are always very welcome.

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