British Film Institute video archive

The British Film Institute has recently made a wealth of archival and historical films available free to access online for the first time. Among the many videos now available are several showing life and work in Nottingham.

There are three relating to Raleigh cycles:

• Raleigh: Fred Mitchell
• The TI Raleigh Campagnolo racing team during the 1982 Tour of Romandie in Switzerland
• Nottingham's Lord Mayor launches a scheme in 1973 in which riders in Nottingham will be able to use the new city centre pedestrian streets

There is also a fascinating tram ride through Nottingham city centre filmed in 1902:

• Tram ride through Nottingham

King John's Palace at Kings Clipstone on Time Team

The new series of Channel 4's Time Team has just started and the episode devoted to the excavation of the medieval royal palace and hunting lodge at Kings Clipstone will air on 1st April. At long last the programme has   made it to darkest Nottinghamshire - it's only taken 19 years!

While we wait with eager anticipation there are some nice photos of the dig on the Nottingham University website and a report and photos on the Mansfield Chad site.

Hyson Green flats feature on BBC2's 'The Reel History of Britain programme

The Hyson Green local history project, 'On the Flats', will feature on next week's 'The Reel History of Britain' programme, presented by Melvyn Bragg.

Entitled 'Streets in the sky', the programme "will explore housing redevelopment in the ‘60s and ‘70s – including how high-rise housing like Hyson Green Flats was said to promise a better way of living when it was first built."

The programme goes out at 6.30pm on Tuesday, 27 September on BBC2.

• The Reel History of Britain: Streets in the Sky page on the BBC website

Time Team in Notts!

A few posts ago I bemoaned the fact that Time Team had consistently ignored Nottinghamshire over 18 series of exploring the archaeology of the UK (and occasionally beyond). I now learn that this week the team have been working on King John's Palace, a medieval hunting lodge and royal palace at Kings Clipstone, near Mansfield - that'll teach me!

There are some nice photos on the Nottingham University website and a report and photos on the Mansfield Chad site.

New Nottinghamshire community history website

The 'Our Nottinghamshire' website has been launched with the aim of encouraging people to add their memories, stories, photographs and comments on Nottinghamshire.
The website is available at  http://www.ournottinghamshire.org.uk/

Time Team avoid Nottinghamshire again

I'm enjoying the current series of Time Team (while quietly hoping that Channel 4 don't mess about with the scheduling like they did last year) but find myself musing on the fact that this is series 18 of TV's longest-running archaeology show and yet again the team give Nottinghamshire a wide berth! Is it something we said???

What sites in the county would be sufficiently interesting to lure Tony and his chums here? Here are a few suggestions:

•  Haughton Hall, near Walesby, was a magnificent medieval house, surrounded by a moat, set in impressive parkland. There is a ruined medieval chapel a short distance away from the site of the hall, presumably associated with the deserted settlement of Haughton, and a duck decoy refashioned from a motte and bailey castle (see the following articles on the Notts History website "Haughton to the verge of splendour" and "Haughton Hall")
• Greasley Castle, a mid-14th century fortified manor house near Eastwood (see article covering brief excavations in the 1930s and the Greasley Parish website for further information)
• Cromwell Roman villa just north of Newark is clearly visible from the air but (as far as I know) hasn't been excavated
• Medieval-18th century coal pits near Strelley village on the western outskirts of Nottingham
• The English Civil War defensive earthworks around Newark-on-Trent
• Clipstone Peel in Sherwood Forest, identified by Dr David Crook, was "a sophisticated wooden palisade with external ditch and gates ...  [it] included a gatehouse, hall, royal chamber, a chapel, bakehouse, grange, and animal sheds" - it only lasted a few years in the early 14th century before being dismantled (further information on The Gatehouse website)

Any others?!

BBC's Turn Back Time Flickr project

"Turn Back Time is a new BBC TV living-history series that transports four empty shops and a group of contemporary shop-keeping families back to the high street's heyday in the 1870s." The series will also cover the families through the following 100 years.

The BBC have a number of projects and activities accompanying the series, including a group on the photo-sharing website, Flickr, that allows people to upload "then and now" photos of high street shops in their area.

Nottinghamshire museums, libraries and the archives office are also running events (workshops, talks, walks and exhibitions) in association with the project.

• BBC Nottingham news article
• Turn Back Time Flickr Group

BBC Hands on History website

The BBC Hands on History website has recently been launched. Initially the website focuses on the Normans and includes an interactive map of the UK featuring walks, trails and great day trips to Norman sites and buildings around the country: Southwell Minster and the early Norman church of St Mary and St Martin in Blyth are included.

The website also includes free activity packs which families can download, including 'I Spy' guides for Norman churches and castles.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/handsonhistory/

Robin Hood Month, May 2010

The county and city councils are busy promoting a wide range of Robin Hood-related events planned for next month. 'Robin Hood Month' is designed to tie in with the release on 14 May of the blockbuster movie, starring Russell Crow and Cate Blanchett.

There are talks on Nottinghamshire in the middle ages, the medieval architecture of the county, medieval herbs, a day school organised by Nottinghamshire Archives, story walks in Sherwood Forest, archery lessons and much, much more:

• Nottingham City Council: The Home of Robin Hood


• Nottinghamshire County Council: Robin Hood Month

Robin Hood in The Guardian

There's an very interesting and entertaining article in today's Guardian newspaper about the Robin Hood legend. Among the several experts the journalist talks to is David Crook, editor of the Thoroton Society Record Series publications and former assistant keeper at The National Archives. David is currently writing a book about Robin Hood and thinks he has traced him to Yorkshire in 1225 (not music to the ears of Nottinghamshire's tourist industry!). He has discovered a character called Robert Hod (described as 'an outlaw and evildoer of our land') who may be the same person as Robert of Wetherby who was hunted down by the Sheriff of Nottingham and his men.

Fascinating stuff so I recommend you take a look at the whole article:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2010/apr/14/robin-hood-russell-crowe

Grants for Nottinghamshire churches

English Heritage and the Heritage Lottery Fund have awarded grants amounting to £250,000 to restore a handful of Nottinghamshire churches. £107,000 will be given to St. Martin of Tours church in Bilborough and smaller awards will be given to St. George's in North Clifton and St. Wilfrid's in South Muskham and The Roman Catholic Church of the Good Shepherd in Woodthorpe, Nottingham.

English Heritage press release: http://nds.coi.gov.uk/Content/detail.aspx?NewsAreaId=2&ReleaseID=411359&SubjectId=15&DepartmentMode=true
Nottingham Evening Post article: http://www.thisisnottingham.co.uk/homenews/Notts-churches-given-163-250-000-boost-preserve-heritage/article-1842283-detail/article.html

D H Lawrence on BBC1's One Show, 9 November

The 'A Place in a Book' feature on the next edition of BBC One's The One Show will focus on D H Lawrence's controversial novel, Lady Chatterley's Lover. Presenter Giles Brandreth will visit places associated with the novel in the author, including High Park wood at Moorgreen and the D H Lawrence Birthplace Museum on Victoria Street, Eastwood.

The One Show is broadcast on BBC1 at 7pm, 9 November 2009.