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Follow the Brown Signs Blog - May, 2012
The Brown Sign Torch Relay Day 13: From King Canute to Millennium tapestries
May 31, 2012
The Olympic torch makes another of it's classic higgedly piggeldy journies today from Stoke-on-Trent to Bolton, including an eastward detour via Macclesfield (where I once sat in a KwikFit for 5 hours while my car exhaust got replaced after it fell off rather dramatically while ascending a steep hill in the peak district, not exactly the fondest of memories of Macclesfield I'm afraid).
Just up the road from Macclesfield though is Knutsford, somewhere I didn't have the pleasure of visiting but from the sounds of it I'd happily have spent 5...Read more >>
The Brown Sign Torch Relay Day 12: You just keep on pushing my ball over the borderline
May 30, 2012
The Olympic torch is being carried back into Wales from Chester today as it heads to Stoke-on-Trent taking a very long way round. A closer look at the map shows me that it doesn't cross the border just once though, as far as I can work out it crosses back and forth 4 times today and you won't be surprised to hear that I find this exciting. When I was travelling I was intrigued by the borders between countries, it's one of the reasons I travelled overland the whole time so that I...Read more >>
The Brown Sign Torch Relay Day 11: Love by way of churches, gargoyles & eagles
May 29, 2012
Today the Olympic torch is being relayed from Bangor, just south of Anglesea, along Wales' north east coast then back just across the border to Chester.
The live location tool shows me that the torch is coming up to Rhyl so I did a bit of research around the area and got interested in a church which is commonly referred to as "The Marble Church". It's in Bodelwyddan which is a few miles south of Rhyl so it just about counts as being along the torch relay.
The church was commissioned by Lady Willoughby...Read more >>
The Brown Sign Torch Relay Day 10: Boats, birds and abbey ruins
Today the Olympic flame travels north from Aberystwyth, going part-way down Wales' pointing finger to Pwllheli, then out again and up along the coast on the Menai strait (between Anglesea and the mainland and where I ticked off my equestrian centre brown sign on my big trip of Britain) and on to Bangor. The torch's journey includes a little detour to the top of Snowdon on the steam train that I did a video about for the Fan in a Van competition, God I love it there so bad.
I was...Read more >>
The Brown Sign Torch Relay Day 9: The world turns upside down in Aberystwyth
May 27, 2012
OK, today I've been so busy working at my proper job that actually pays my rent that I've had to speedily choose a brown sign for today's Alternative Brown Sign Torch Relay of Britain, not that it makes it a bad one, oh good golly no.
The torch travels north from Swansea to Aberystwyth today, mainly along the rugged coastline and how fabulous it would be looking on a day like today too. Finally when I had time to log onto my favourite website of the moment www.London2012.com the live location function...Read more >>
The Brown Sign Torch Relay Day 8: Country parks with names I can’t pronounce
May 26, 2012
Ahhh Wales, I've always had a soft spot for you and now here we are running through your valleys and mountains enjoying your gorgeous rusty scenery... oh happiness. I really really love Wales guys, can you tell? So the map on the London 2012 website shows us that the torch is being relayed from Cardiff to Swansea today, up to the edge of Brecon Beacons National park down then south east and finally along the coast to Swansea. An area of green on the map above Bridgend caught my eye...Read more >>
Brown Sign Torch Relay Day 7: Love many, trust few, always paddle you’re own canoe
May 25, 2012
It's day 7 of my alternative torch relay of Britain and we're metaphorically jogging with our flaming torches (which we might sell on ebay later if we're a bit strapped for cash) from Worcester and over the Welsh border to Cardiff, passing through more of Herefordshire, famous for it's cider and Hay-on-Wye literary festival. The Wye river cuts through our route today and so far we've had our feet very much planted on terra firma so I think it's important we spend some time on the water, it's an absolutely glorious day...Read more >>
The Brown Sign Torch Relay Day 6: Turn on the Waterworks
May 24, 2012
Yesterday on the way home I went to the very big effort of buying an official London 2012 map which has the whole Olympic torch relay route marked in it (picture attached). I say effort because it was 11.30pm and I was buying it from a petrol station that wasn't open, so I had to loudly direct the not very good English speaking cashier to the correct one, lots of exasperation and me going red ensued. Finally though I got it and now I can add pictures of the route...Read more >>
The Brown Sign Torch Relay Day 5: A kaleidoscope of butterflies
May 23, 2012
My Alternative Torch Relay via the brown tourist signs of Great Britain continues and we find ourselves hurtling excitedly into day 5. The torch's destination today is Cheltenham travelling from Bristol (where a company who once made the error of employing me as their travelling saleswoman were based. Needless to say much of the time they thought I was on the road doing my job I was actually randomly following brown tourist signs and thus making myself very late for meetings and generally being terribly unprofessional - even then I...Read more >>
The Brown Sign Torch Relay Day 4: And by Hecks it’s a good ‘un
May 22, 2012
Today the Olympic torch travels from Taunton to Bristol, not via the coast or motorway but on the picturesque country roads through the little towns and villages of Somerset (as ever you can see why I sit and watch the Olympic torch bearers for hours on end live here). The torch had just gone through a town called Street in Somerset when I looked, so I had a gander at what Street had to offer the tourist via The Brown Sign Way on the Visit Shepton Mallet tourist information website (which...Read more >>