Our trip to Brewhouse Yard Museum was a resounding success. I had a google this morning and rang, and was allowed to drive up the drive and park in a blue-badge space in their admin Car Park.A very good museum with very good exhibits and there were rooms from Victorian times onwards together with period shops, the contents of which were fascinating because we could remember so much. Sugar in blue-paper wraps, butter pats (made of sycamore we learnt because the wood doesn't transmit a smell or tsaste to the butter) Carter's little liver-pills, Zebo, Borax.................I could go on for another page at least. Y was thrilled to see a coach-built pram like she used to have and a TV like the ones we clustered round to watch the Coronation. We didn't have a TV at home at that time and some of us lads were invited up to 'Spag' Harris's house to watch his. 'Spag' taught us geography at the Grammar School and I simply can't remember the circumstances of his nickname. And the museum has it's own caves and this time they were on the same level so I was OK.
Just next door is The Trip to Jerusalem and we both realised it was about 20 years since we had been in.It doesn't alter much. Well I don't suppose it could do so easily. If they were overcrowded they could perhaps excavate a couple more rooms into Castle Rock. We decided to have lunch there and I'd forgotten what fun it was to eat your meal in a cave. Sand dropping from the roof into your beer used to be a problem, but it didn't happen and I guess the rock surface has been sprayed to prevent it. Yet another tradition lost.
Currently it s a Hardy Hansons pub so I guess the food was their normal franchise catering. Very pleasant though and we had had a great day. Another item can be ticked off our list of things to visit locally. It is a mistake not to enjoy doing things of interest because they are on you doorstep.
Re Comments. This afternoon we watched the Dimbleby programme and both thought it superb after a perhaps rather silly start with the computer-generated buildings to spell Britian. But the hour whizzed by and we are looking forward to the 16th Century. Now to Brian Sewell. He is irritating and as Jill says, 'mesmerising' at the same time. The rather difficult bit is that he really knows his Art, and what he says is worth listening to if you can cope with how he says it. And Bungus is quite right that we don't need to know about Dali's distasteful deviances at least not in the broadcast media. If someone needed to know for serious research a scholarly biography would be the place.
Smoked Salmon on toast Jill. The salmon is cold and either served on a bed of scrambled egg on toast, or traditionally, by itself on 'cobblers'. Cobblers is made by toasting a slice of brown toast and then, carefully with a sharp knife, cutting the slice open horizontally. You finish up with a toasted bottom and an untoasted top which you butter liberally and then cover with thin slices of smoked salmon. Delicious. Just don't ask me why it's called 'cobblers'.
.Is it that time already? I'm off to watch Springwatch. Sleep tight.
2 comments:
So it is like Melba Toast, only you don't toast the inside? You would need a thickish slice of bread. Will give it a go next time we have some salmon. We too have it chopped up in scrambled eggs, and I like it with pasta,(hot) but Ro doesn't.
You are so right about tending to ignore attractions on the doorstep. It is ages since we went to Osterly or Ham House, both within a 15 min. drive, and Kew Gardens, (almost walking distance). We must do something about this....
One notable omission from your ‘products of the past’, which I feel obliged to mention, is 'Blakey’s Segs' which I always had in the heels of my shoes (I remember being amazed when starting as a Mixed Infant that some boys wore BOOTS). And the coach-built pram name I remember is 'Tansad'.
Strange about your 'Spag'. My parents and I watched at the house of my friend’s family 5 doors away. He was known as ‘Spadge’ (his surname being Speight) and I met him again after a gap of 30 years, having obtained his phone number and address on google (only one Speight in Stevenage) when he came up to Newark to see me some months ago.
I remember the Trip’ from my college days although we tended to favour the ‘Sal’, the 'Bell', the ‘Flying Horse’ and the 'Black Boy’ (where one of our 'failed' third year collegues became assistant manager).
I thought Hardy Hansons had recently expired which caused me no pangs as I never liked their ale (unless there was no other).
After Jill’s worried comment of yesterday I thought I might have to be deliberately controversial. But then I managed to find something about which I can readily disagree. So far as I am concerned Brian Sewell, apart from being irritating, is only annoying; not 'mesmerising' at all.
All right, he knows his Art, but he is pretentious and opinionated and narrow minded (that’s just my opinion of course – you may not find anyone else anywhere who feels the same). So (in my view) perhaps twenty percent of what he says is worth listening to if you can cope with how he says it.
I spent a n couple of hours today making Spiced Gooseberries (excellent with Smoked Mackerel). I picked a kg from our one bush yesterday (there’ll be another pound or two later) which made 4 jars. While the oven was on to sterilise the jars I made a rice pudding (with a 19p pint of milk from Netto’s reduced shelf) and also cooked Gandy potatoes not altogether unsuccessfully.
Your ‘cobblers’ toast is sort of halfway to Melba Toast which Sandra is good at (it burns easily). To me, ‘cobblers’ means dollops of scone mix (savoury or sweet) floated on a stew of meat or fruit (rather like dumplings).
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