Wigtwizzle - Norman Smith's Travel Blog.

Bingley and East Riddlesden Hall

I don't really know how I ended up at East Riddlesden Hall but I did! I think I had intended to head up in to The Dales but the sun was shining and the autumn leaves were on the trees and the Hall and grounds looked very inviting.

"East Riddlesden Hall is a 17th-century manor house in Keighley, West Yorkshire, now owned by the National Trust. The hall was built in 1642 by a wealthy Halifax clothier, James Murgatroyd. There is a medieval tithe barn in the grounds.
East Riddlesden Hall perches on a small plateau overlooking a bend in the River Aire on its way downstream from the town of Keighley. Interesting features include well-restored living accommodation on two floors, two Yorkshire Rose windows, walled garden, the ruined Starkie wing and several ghosts (reputedly). A hiding place for Catholic priests was installed during the 16th century.
The property was extended and re-built by James Murgatroyd and his wife Hannah, using local Yorkshire stone, in 1648. He also built other stone manor houses throughout the West Riding of Yorkshire. In the great hall, a small fireplace can be seen above the main fireplace, where the floor for the first floor accommodation was not built. James Murgatroyd was a Royalist and this can be seen in royalist symbols and graffiti on and in the building. For example, the Bothy (now the tea room and shop) has the heads of Charles I of England and Henrietta Maria of France carved in the topmost stone work.
According to a NODA National News feature in 2007, the Murgatroyd family are reputed to be the inspiration for the Murgatroyd Baronets in the comic opera Ruddigore by Gilbert and Sullivan, and the opera has been performed at the Hall. W. S. Gilbert is supposed to have often stayed at the Hall. The feature comments that the Murgatroyds became notorious "for their profanity and debauchery". A legend arose that the River Aire changed its course in shame, in order to flow further away from the hall and its occupants(the river does indeed sweep into a wide U-bend to skirt the meadow, giving the building a wide berth). The feature continues "Members of the family were fined, imprisoned and excommunicated". It asserts that the character of Sir Despard Murgatroyd in Ruddigore is based on James Murgatroyd.
East Riddlesden Hall has been used as a filming location for the 1992 film Emily Brontë's Wuthering Heights and for the 2009 TV adaptation. It was also used in Sharpe's Justice episode from the Sharpe TV series in 1997. It also featured in series eight of the paranormal television programme Most Haunted." - Wikipedia

The signs outside said the place was shut but the sign on the entrance said the cafe and shop were open but as it turned out, neither were open. Still I had free access to the grounds and house even though I couldn't go into it. A lot of the gardens were dying off but, as you can see from the photos, the tree's were absolutely stunning. I think a return visit will be on the cards in the summer months when the gardens should be in full bloom. Also that would give me the chance to bring along my well-established tour guide Sal!.

St Ives, Bingley

River Aire, Bingley

East Riddleden Hall

Fallen leaves on bench

East Riddleden Hall

Autumn Colours

Kilnsey Country Park and Kettlewell.

Another afternoon out with my partner in crime Sal saw us head up to Wharfedale: firstly calling in at Kilnsey Country Park and then on to Kettlewell. The coffee in the cafe at Kilnsey always touches the spot, especially on a gloomy day like we had. We used to keep a little notebook in which we wrote scores of the cafes we visited on our travels and coffees they served. Out of a score of 5, I think Kilnsey scored 4.75 and was only ever beaten by Ripley Castle and equalled only by Lanercost Priory. Sad or what?

The nature trail is free during the winter months so we had a wander through that. There were some nice sculptures and you could get close up with a few farm animals but I think it is mainly designed for youngsters. The two pigs were quite loud and entertaining but the star of the show was the red squirrel which unfortunately has to be kept caged. We both commented on what a rarity it is to see a red in the wild these days. Even in the Lakes they are getting fewer and fewer.

We finished the day off with a nice pint in The Racehorses in Kettlewell. At this time of year the pubs are deserted even on a Sunday lunchtime. It's easy to see why a lot of then are slowly but surely closing down.

Kilnsey Country Park

Kilnsey Trout Farm

Kilnsey Country Park

Kilnsey Crag

Scooby Dooby Doo

Kilnsey Country Park

Kettlewell

Autumn in The Lakes.

This is just a series of photos I took the last time I was in the Lakes. They were taken at Thirlmere, then later in the same day in the Ambleside/Langdale area and finally at Coniston Water. Autumn has really taken hold in the last few weeks and some of the colours were superb. Also, by chance, I found a new viewing point for the Langdale hills. It's a hamlet called Skelwith Fold and it can be reached either by car or on foot from Clappersgate. I chose to walk and was well rewarded by the little effort it took.

I had originally intended to visit Tarn Hows but there was just nowhere to park. The car park was jammed packed as was all the off road parking. The Lake District is just so popular these days, no matter what the day or weather. So I headed down to Coniston with my tail between my legs and took my last photos from the Monk Coniston car park.

I have also added a few photos from the recently reopened Lingholme Gardens and Derwentwater.