So, we've apparently got until Wednesday to use up all those £20 notes with Elgar on them we've been hoarding under the futon. I thought they'd got rid of 'im years ago, and thought it an utter disgrace then as now. But here's a tale they won't remember. When the Elgar note first came out, it coincided with the house you can see in front of Worcester Cathedral being put up for sale. The estate agent quickly capitilised on the fact and made a big thing about it in the press. That's it really.
Bah! They should put English composers on all the banknotes, not take them, off. As well as Elgar, you could have Vaughan Williams on the tenner, the wonderful Mr Purcell on the fifty quid, and Britten on the fiver – even though he never recovered from that bang on the head in the late 1960s when all those crotchets and quavers fell out, causing such a challenge to Peter Pears, Rostroprovich, Richter, and his other musical pals.
My wife and I actually went and viewed that house when we were moving out of London. It was incredibly attractive, but the side wall was visibly bowing outwards, and because it is built on a medieval undercroft it is listed to the eyeballs. It was obvious we would have to sell both our children to rich Californians to restore the place. The house and its position are absolutely fabulous.
I am a designer, writer and photographer who spends all his time looking at England, particularly buildings and the countryside. But I have a leaning towards the slightly odd and neglected, the unsung elements that make England such an interesting place to live in. I am the author and photographer of over 25 books, in particular Unmitigated England (Adelphi 2006), More from Unmitigated England (Adelphi 2007), Cross Country (Wiley 2011), The Cigarette Papers (Frances Lincoln 2012), Preposterous Erections (Frances Lincoln 2012) and English Allsorts (Adelphi 2015)
"Open this book with reverence. It is a hymn to England". Clive Aslet
Preposterous Erections
"Enchanting...delightful". The Bookseller "Cheekily named" We Love This Book
The Cigarette Papers
"Unexpectedly pleasing and engrossing...beautifully illustrated". The Bookseller
Cross Country
"Until the happy advent of Peter Ashley's Cross Country it has, ironically, been foreigners who have been best at celebrating Englishness". Christina Hardyment / The Independent
More from Unmitigated England
"Give this book to someone you know- if not everyone you know." Simon Heffer, Country Life. "When it comes to spotting the small but telling details of Englishness, Peter Ashley has no equal." Michael Prodger, Sunday Telegraph
4 comments:
Bah! They should put English composers on all the banknotes, not take them, off. As well as Elgar, you could have Vaughan Williams on the tenner, the wonderful Mr Purcell on the fifty quid, and Britten on the fiver – even though he never recovered from that bang on the head in the late 1960s when all those crotchets and quavers fell out, causing such a challenge to Peter Pears, Rostroprovich, Richter, and his other musical pals.
My wife and I actually went and viewed that house when we were moving out of London. It was incredibly attractive, but the side wall was visibly bowing outwards, and because it is built on a medieval undercroft it is listed to the eyeballs. It was obvious we would have to sell both our children to rich Californians to restore the place. The house and its position are absolutely fabulous.
Whenever I see Elgar banknotes I always think of the scene at the clinic in the TV comedy 'Peep Show'.
I bet you've got a post coming on about the sale of Tate 'n' Lyle and their Silvertown refinery...
Indeed TIW. I'm just trying to find out if they're getting shot of Lyle's Golden Syrup. Spooning it out, perhaps
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