Heritage Open Day 4: The Remainder of the Day

The fourth in my series of posts about Heritage Open Day, featuring the Red Mount Chapel, The Guildhall, “Cormorant Platform”, the South Gate and the Bandstand.

INTRODUCTION

This is the fourth post in my Heritage Open Day series (there will be one more small post to finish the series) and features several classic sites, starting with…

THE RED MOUNT CHAPEL

I have shown pictures of the outside of this building in many previous posts, so therefore I am concentrating my attentions on the inside, which a little like that of the South Gate contains more than you would believe from looking at the outside. The only windows most of the building possesses are tiny slits, while the uppermost level has fleur-de-lys windows which are not visible from the ground. At various stages of this buildings history its true purpose had to be concealed, because it was not safe to be known to be a centre of Catholic worship (n.b. the danger was never from unbelievers such as me, who also could not declare themselves at the time I am writing about – it was from those whose interpretation of Christianity differed from that of the Catholics). Now for some pictures…

DSCN5578 DSCN5579

A prettied up fleur-de-lus window
A prettied up fleur-de-lus window
An original fleur-de-lys window
An original fleur-de-lys window

DSCN5582 DSCN5583 DSCN5584 DSCN5585 DSCN5586 DSCN5587 DSCN5588

After this we spent a bit of time outside waiting for signs of the spitfire fly past but none materialised, and we had to buy bread as a contribution to lunch, which thanks to my aunt was a feast. After lunch we started by paying a visit to the…

GUILDHALL

This is the second most iconic building in Lynn (behind the Custom House), due to its possessing this frontage…

This pic was taken yesterday - i got none of the outside on the day itself.
This pic was taken yesterday – i got none of the outside on the day itself.

Heritage Open Day however represented an opportunity to check out the inside of the building, including a ceiling that definitely dates from at the latest the early 1420s…

Decorative stonework in the Guildhall.
Decorative stonework in the Guildhall.

DSCN5592

The 1420s ceiling (maybe even older)
The 1420s ceiling (maybe even older)

DSCN5594 DSCN5595 DSCN5596

The plan was to visit the South Gate, and then go back to the park to catch some of the live music at the bandstand. A special tour bus (think routemasters of yesteryear!) caught our eyes but it was full, and it definitely was not worth waiting 20 minutes for the next. The walk to the South Gate needed little tweaking to take in one of my favourite minor attractions, which I have dubbed…

CORMORANT PLATFORM

Thankfully, the cormorants did me proud, and I was not required to provide any explanation as to my name for the structure…

DSCN5597 DSCN5598 DSCN5599

There were no further diversions before arriving at the…

SOUTH GATE

No external picture of this – I have shown many in the past, and on this day it was all about the inside of such buildings. Suffice to say that my companions for the day, my cousin Edward and his partner Rachael endorsed my earlier description of this building as a ‘medieval TARDIS’ – there is much more inside than you would believe possible from the outside…

DSCN5600 DSCN5601 DSCN5602 DSCN5603 DSCN5604 DSCN5605 DSCN5606 DSCN5607 DSCN5608 DSCN5609 DSCN5610 DSCN5611 DSCN5612 DSCN5613 DSCN5614 DSCN5615 DSCN5616 DSCN5752

Following a short cut well-known to me to not to that many others (at least when it comes it King’s Lynn I can say echoing Aragorn in the Lord of the Rings that “My cuts, short or long, don’t go wrong”) we arrived in the parkland area via the Seven Sisters gate, walking past the Walks Stadium (home of the mighty Linnets, a.k.a King’s Lynn Town FC – just another five promotions would see them in the premier league!) and the Guanock Gate to arrive at our last attraction of the day…

THE BANDSTAND

The Bandstand dates from 1904 and regularly hosts live music. For Heritage Open Day we had a brass band who produced some excellent music for us…

DSCN5617 DSCN5618 DSCN5619 DSCN5620