It was Lewis Carroll, writing for Alice in Wonderland, who coined the phrase to which, I imagine, the cheerful enterprise Curious Tent Hire owes its name. I had a lovely chat with Bryony Villiers-Stuart, who runs the growing company headquartered…
Category: Business
Sinderhope Pony Trekking Centre
I called Lisa Collingwood-Philipson on 01434 685266 the other day to chat about the pony trekking centre up at Sinderhope that she’s run since about ’99. It’s no wonder the enterprise is such a success, since she’s so down-to-earth friendly!…
Upcycling: a new buzzword
Hearing this word more frequently these days, I asked Google what, precisely, it might mean: upcycle verb gerund or present participle: upcycling re-use (discarded objects or material) in such a way as to create a product of higher quality or value…
The Hexham Courant, our local weekly paper
Now published, and also appearing the same day in the shops, every Thursday, the Hexham Courant has been the local paper of record for many decades, having amalgamated papers from the surrounding towns and villages into its fold throughout the…
Langley Furniture Works
What a lovely piece on the 40th anniversary of Geoff Jackson’s Langley Furniture Works, in this week’s Hexham Courant! Between this item, and the information at the firm’s delightful website, in particular the individual photographs of team members hard at…
New goods lift at the Co-op!
So it’s a stock photo, because the Co-op’s new goods lift assembly and installation is all shrouded in plywood hoardings, that you can only just see from the deli counter if you look down the steps. I thought, ‘What’s that…
Old Stone Vets at Allendale
After we managed to divest ourselves of our daughter’s two lovely black cats, which went on to a new, permanent brilliant home as she embarked on a year plus surgical fellowship in Sydney, a question arose about vaccinations. We realised…
Pat Ashton-Smith, Textile Artist
Pat Ashton-Smith writes in to chat about her life on a hill above Allendale over the past decade. Pat runs bi-weekly embroidery courses at Catton Village Hall, and other workshops by advertisement, in addition to her own artistry endeavours in…
Dales Agri Sales Agency
I dropped in to the Dales Agri Sales Workshop the other day to thank Charlie Halliday for donating the brilliant round and extending table to the Charity Auction — it fits perfectly into our dining room! While I was there,…
Cart’s Bog Inn at Langley
At lunch the other day in the Cart’s Bog Inn, I had a quick chat with Stuart Davison, who I discovered is expecting to be celebrating running the place for a decade in March 2020. I remember so well when…