Summer Walks 06 - TrustNews Sept 06
The subject of our initial meeting led by the well-known local personality and theatre buff, Phil Yates, was the DNS Railway Line. We met by the Chesil Rectory on Old Station Approach and walked up to the tunnel entrance. Here Phil explained something of the history of the line including its importance during the war, in particular before D-Day. After looking at the tunnel entrance and discussing signalling and engine marshalling and maintenance procedures, we walked along the line of the old track to the railway sheds and former yards at Bar End. We were fascinated to see that one of the original engine sheds was still in use....but not as a railway workshop. Phil related many stories of local and personal interest, making a memorable start to the walking season.
Our second Summer Walk on Thursday 8th June was led by City Archaeologist Graham Scobie, starting at the City Museum to investigate the enigmatic and intriguing subject of “Mediaeval Urban Bounce”. Regretfully in my absesnce, Trust members and walkers were entertained by Graham’s experienced presentation which had been given to other groups previously this year.
Another evening of glorious weather on 15th June took us to the fledgling University of Winchester for a walk led by Chris Higgins, Director of Estates. He met us at the old West Downs entrance and proceeded to give us a concise history of the place and of its academic heritage. We admired the way the existing school buildings had been preserved and integrated, both functionally and architecturally into the new university campus. There was much to see, both in terms of new, modern, relatively low cost student accommodation and existing art-deco/Edwardian design. The existing Masters’ House in the midst of renovation, made an exciting contrast and counterpoint to the award-winning student accommodation.
Architecture Week was celebrated with Keith Leaman, who asked David Gregory and Andrew Lowe to lead us on a short tour of several modern houses and house designs with which they had been involved and which would be interesting to discuss and compare. Starting with David Gregory’s semi-detached scheme on North Walls, we were fortunate enough to be able to get access to one of the units and given an on-site explanation by the architect. The limitations and difficulties of this particular site were clearly described and how a possible future development would be entertained. We followed Andrew Lowe into central Winchester where we viewed some award-winning schemes, King’s Head Yard, the old chocolate factory site, St Clement Street Dolphin Yard, past the large steel- framed townhouse development on the site of Minstrels, proceeding upwards to the Peninsular Barracks residential redevelopment, where the walk finished in front of the King’s House and the formality of the fountain pool and court and its coniferous lines of planting. On reflection, Winchester possesses more than its fair share of outstanding modern domestic design.
The fifth Summer Walk was led by Trust Vice-Chairman, Michael Carden. As in previous years and by popular request, we had a fascinating tour of the Hospital and Chapel of St.Cross. Walkers were treated to an in-depth tour, led by Michael, one of the experts on this ancient and surviving Romanesque building complex. The atmosphere and sense of history emanating from this unique group of precious buildings is truly magical. Once again we were blessed by wonderful sunshine.
For Walk Six on 6th July Richard Baker, architect and planner at Eastleigh Borough Council,presented a fascinating exposition of one of our major preoccupations – Shopping and Shop Design. Richard was able to speak of how much things had changed in the last 25 years. Starting from the Heritage Centre we rapidly skirted The Brooks Shopping Centre, emerging into the High Street, one of the oldest strips of shopping activity in the country. We were treated to a detailed analysis of the traditional shop unit and shop front and how this had evolved from individual owner-occupiers taking advantage of the “footfall” next to their town centre accommodation. We covered most of the length of the High Street up as far as the Westgate enjoying an interesting debate.
Our seventh excursion was led by Huw Thomas, who has done an extraordinary amount of research on the character and composition of Winchester’s High Street. It was quite appropriate that this walk should follow Richard Baker’s measured and quietly reasoned approach. We were led to consider the “Ghost of Winchester’s High Street” and the many Walkers anticipating some fun and games were not disappointed. Huw had prepared a large number of “before” and “after” photocopied photographs of the High Street and areas adjoining. Many of these were aerial views and people had fun identifying which buildings were familiar friends and which were forgotten echoes of a once well-known past. Huw’s principal theme was the completely different scale of the disappeared High Street and the unacceptable bulk of the Silver Hill Renaissance proposals. Unfortunately there was not a great deal of time available to debate such issues, but Trust walkers were showered with wonderful photographic material and went home inundated by the wealth of information made available.
For the eighth walk we met on 20th July outside the Porter’s Lodge in College Street and were met by Dr.Geoff Day, Fellows and Eccles Librarian and the College Archivist, Suzanne Foster.The subject of the evening’s meeting was “Unknown Winchester College” and some fascinating insights were gained by much of what was disclosed. At this point I must salute the last minute organisational skills of Dr.Day and the Winchester College team. The extremely large number of visitors at this one particular time and the nature of the rooms and spaces we were to see, had made it necessary at the very last minute to divide into 3 groups and some additional College Guides were recruited for the occasion.
We were able to visit the Warden’s Lodging and all the ancient rooms next door over the main College Arch. Some of William of Wykeham’s original filing cabinets, complete with linenfold panelling were in evidence and had not been materially changed since the College had received its Charter, which itself was on view. The importance of the original charter was explained and how, at certain moments of the College’s history, the Fellows had been forced to invoke it, sometimes defying a royal demand. We were entertained to much background and “insider” information on certain momentous historical events. After a narrow climb to the Muniment Tower, the evening ended in the Eccles Library, where several large botanical illustrations relating to Captain Cook’s expedition to Australia and New Zealand were on display.
David Brock of English Heritage met the assembled Trust walkers at the Grange, Northington on 27th July, on another balmy evening. As in previous years, David had prepared some interesting sequential notes which helped to explain the complicated architectural history of the “ruined” mansion. There were also notes relating to the “hidden landscape” which surrounded the Grange and was thus integral to it. We divided into groups to view the ruined house and were able to see most of the principal rooms including the amazing grand staircase. A leap of the imagination was required if one was to envisage the full spatial glory of Sambrook’s original design, including the breathtaking effect of the staircase chandelier. After we had walked around the Grange and seen its setting in the landscape and its relationship to the exciting new opera building, we were able to descend to the basement below. From here we entered the new auditorium past scenery props and the signs of recent Thespian activity. The lights were then switched on and we were left to admire the ingenious architecture of the auditorium which emerged.
The final walk was led by by the legendary Andrew Rutter RIBA, former City Conservation Officer, who demonstrated cases where proposals for potentially disastrous developments were averted. He started at Avalon House and the site behind presently occupied by flats and the multi-storey car park, where there were plans for a far more aggressive development, coupled with the development on the Chesil Street car-park of a large hotel looking something like an ocean liner. This led to the saga of the three-quarter ring road that would have laid waste to North Walls and Eastgate Street without really being able to remove through traffic from the town centre. These and many other development horrors were refused and, as anyone involved with the City Council at the time would know, much of the good advice which led to their refusal came from Andrew, though he would never make this claim.
Thanks are due to all those people who volunteered their time and expertise to act as Walk Leaders. Finally, thanks are due to the many “Regulars” who, fair weather or foul, gathered outside the Heritage Centre or agreed venue to make these events such a success – and so enjoyable.