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Hidden Villages of Britain: Histories and Tradition Past and Present
Explore the most interesting and picturesque examples of British village life.
Based on the highly successful Channel 4 television series, Penelope Keith's Hidden Villages, this delightful travel guide follows Penelope’s journey through Britain. Organized by region, it ventures into idyllic towns in the Cotswolds, cozy cottages of East Anglia, and treasures nestled in the North Yorkshire moors. Discover the fascinating history, colorful characters, and curious customs unique to each village (like the tar barrel–burning at Ottery St Mary and cheese-rolling down Cooper's Hill in Brockworth) and see how they survive in the present. Whether you’re looking for a vacation destination, a guide to Britain's rural landscape, or something to inspire your innermost armchair traveler, this beautiful book—illustrated with Brian Cook’s iconic art—fits the bill perfectly.
Based on the highly successful Channel 4 television series, Penelope Keith's Hidden Villages, this delightful travel guide follows Penelope’s journey through Britain. Organized by region, it ventures into idyllic towns in the Cotswolds, cozy cottages of East Anglia, and treasures nestled in the North Yorkshire moors. Discover the fascinating history, colorful characters, and curious customs unique to each village (like the tar barrel–burning at Ottery St Mary and cheese-rolling down Cooper's Hill in Brockworth) and see how they survive in the present. Whether you’re looking for a vacation destination, a guide to Britain's rural landscape, or something to inspire your innermost armchair traveler, this beautiful book—illustrated with Brian Cook’s iconic art—fits the bill perfectly.
287 pages, Kindle Edition
Published February 15, 2018
About the author
Clare Gogerty
34 books8 followersAfter years in London editing consumer magazines, I decamped to the country to write books, manage a smallholding and create a magical garden. That’s going pretty well, although keeping sheep has proved trickier than I’d imagined. Chickens are easier. Anyway, I have kept to my intention and written a few books since I got here.
Next up are the first three titles in the Little Wild Library foraging series (Dandelion, Nettle, Clover), which will be published on 18 March 2025 (Verbena). These were much fun to write and I spent much time upended in hedgerows and preserving and brewing in the kitchen.
They will be followed sharply by 'The Water Remedy: folklore, ritual and wisdom', which is published on 25 April (Calon). This is a practical, mystical, mythological, geographical and poetic book which aims to make the reader appreciate, value and enjoy this vital, life-giving element.
The Witch’s Shadow Work Oracle Deck (Watkins), 40 cards with an accompanying booklet packed with myths, magic and legends to help you explore your shadow self, follows in June.
Next up are the first three titles in the Little Wild Library foraging series (Dandelion, Nettle, Clover), which will be published on 18 March 2025 (Verbena). These were much fun to write and I spent much time upended in hedgerows and preserving and brewing in the kitchen.
They will be followed sharply by 'The Water Remedy: folklore, ritual and wisdom', which is published on 25 April (Calon). This is a practical, mystical, mythological, geographical and poetic book which aims to make the reader appreciate, value and enjoy this vital, life-giving element.
The Witch’s Shadow Work Oracle Deck (Watkins), 40 cards with an accompanying booklet packed with myths, magic and legends to help you explore your shadow self, follows in June.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
December 17, 2019
Very interesting, curious, eccentric, lovely people living in a beautiful part of the world - lots of reasons to explore and enjoy
August 27, 2018
the text of this lovely book tells me that the artist was Brian Cook Batsford, who was the illustrator/designer of the covers of the highly collectible Batsford books. He was an artist who went to work for his uncle Harry Batsford’s firm, which produced a gorgeous series of books about rural life in Britain – with names like English Village Homes, The Beauty of Britain, The Legacy of England; How to See the Country and How to Look at Old Buildings.They featured villages, churches, castles, gardens and country roads, and some of these artworks, I now know. also graced the covers of H.V. Morton’s books as well, including In Search of England. (Some of my HVMs have their dustjackets, but alas, not this one!)
What made Brian Cook Batsford’s style instantly recognisable was his carefully drawn images and large areas of flat, bright colour and his bold use of clashing colours. He had an innovative technique too:
Brian pioneered the use of the Jean Berté watercolour printing process, in which plates were cut in soft rubber and printed with water-based inks, rather than oil. A separate plate was used for each colour, which accounts for the blocks of colour in Brian’s work. Brian had little regard for the finished product and threw away the covers of ‘wrappers’ as he called them, placing books on his shelves in their cloth bindings. Fortunately, the production manager at Batsford, Frances Lucarotti, kept every jacket safe in an album. (p.11)
The books were
a snapshot of British country life, chronicling the world of work – haymaking and ploughing, fishermen at their nets – as well as the villages clustered around the church or village green, and the rolling and verdant landscape that surrounded them.
Though most of the images in Hidden Villages of Britain are contemporary photographs, the book is in part an homage to the artist and there are plenty of his artworks to fall in love with. The book begins with an introduction about villages in general, and then there is a brief bio of the artist’s life, and then it launches into pictorials about eleven regions...
To read the rest of my review please visit https://anzlitlovers.com/2018/08/27/h...
What made Brian Cook Batsford’s style instantly recognisable was his carefully drawn images and large areas of flat, bright colour and his bold use of clashing colours. He had an innovative technique too:
Brian pioneered the use of the Jean Berté watercolour printing process, in which plates were cut in soft rubber and printed with water-based inks, rather than oil. A separate plate was used for each colour, which accounts for the blocks of colour in Brian’s work. Brian had little regard for the finished product and threw away the covers of ‘wrappers’ as he called them, placing books on his shelves in their cloth bindings. Fortunately, the production manager at Batsford, Frances Lucarotti, kept every jacket safe in an album. (p.11)
The books were
a snapshot of British country life, chronicling the world of work – haymaking and ploughing, fishermen at their nets – as well as the villages clustered around the church or village green, and the rolling and verdant landscape that surrounded them.
Though most of the images in Hidden Villages of Britain are contemporary photographs, the book is in part an homage to the artist and there are plenty of his artworks to fall in love with. The book begins with an introduction about villages in general, and then there is a brief bio of the artist’s life, and then it launches into pictorials about eleven regions...
To read the rest of my review please visit https://anzlitlovers.com/2018/08/27/h...
November 28, 2020
A well produced glossy book. It could have done with a gentle end piece. It ended rather abruptly, but otherwise covered the ground revealing a few unknowns for me.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews