In the main square of the small town of Messines, on the high ground of a ridge that saw the prelude to the infamous Battle of Passchendaele, stands a sculpture of two officers, one British and one German, with a football. This is Andy Edwards’ Christmas Truce memorial, a poignant reminder of a moment in December 1914 when the humanity of ordinary men on both sides of the conflict was spontaneously shared, only to be suppressed in the bloody campaigns reasserted in the days that followed.
An account of the incredibly tragic story behind ‘The Grieving Parents’, the brilliant German artist Käthe Kollwitz’s memorial to her son who was killed in 1914, and my experiences of drawing of this deeply moving sculpture
My blog of a 7-day (6-night) tour of Cycling UK’s fabulous 350 km King Alfred’s Way bikepacking route, an incredibly varied adventure through stunning landscapes and thousands of years of history
My story of a 6 day/5 night tour of Cycling UK’s excellent Rebellion Way, a 400 km bike-packing route around Norfolk, ridden in the beautiful weather of early September 2023. The ride, around two-thirds of which is on roads and one-third on bridleways, runs through beautiful landscapes and is packed with fascinating historic sites. This blog (in two parts) is written from the perspective of older cyclists (like me! – aged 68); we are inevitably slower, but also have priorities that may differ from younger and/or other riders who may be more focused on completing the route quickly.
My story of a 6 day/5 night tour of Cycling UK’s excellent Rebellion Way, a 400 km bike-packing route around Norfolk, ridden in the beautiful weather of early September 2023. The ride, around two-thirds of which is on roads and one-third on bridleways, runs through beautiful landscapes and is packed with fascinating historic sites. This blog (in two parts) is written from the perspective of older cyclists (like me! – aged 68); we are inevitably slower, but also have priorities that may differ from younger and/or other riders who may be more focused on completing the route quickly.
My blog of a 7-day (6-night) tour of Cycling UK’s fabulous 350 km King Alfred’s Way bikepacking route, an incredibly varied adventure through stunning landscapes and thousands of years of history
