Above: for the bank holiday weekend the remains of this castle were open to the public. It is on private land and normally can only be seen from a distance. Supposedly this tower was one of four (at the corners of the square castle) but Pevsner doesn't mention this, so who knows if it is true. Long queue to go inside. Not much to see, and you can only go up one storey. The outline of the castle and moats (now dry) can be seen in the field.
Above: between the tower and the manor house a mock medieval camp had been set up with metalworkers, falconry, shire horses etc. I experienced a sense of inertia walking around, perhaps it was the wind that made me feel so tired. The exhibits were fairly authentic so long as you didn't look too hard.
Above: there was a display of sword fighting by a medieval re-enactment society, including king of the hill. The weapons are accurate reproductions so presumably they have casualties from time to time. Admittedly they didn't hit each other very hard.
Above: there had also been archery earlier in the day, but this had finished by the time I got there. Quite interested in archery. Might go and see it at the Olympics next year (if the tickets are available).
Above: I wandered over to the church but there were teas being served inside so I couldn't really look around. Also an exhibition. Some interesting truncated medieval carvings.
Above: walking back through the village there were long lines of canalboats in the river in a sort of regatta.
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