England’s Lake District was a highlight of my trip to Britain last spring. Earlier this month, on my publisher’s author blogspot, I recalled my visits to the homes of poet William Wordsworth. This is what I wrote:

I’ve wanted to visit England’s Lake District since my university days, when I took a course in Romantic Poetry. The Lake Poets, my professor said, turned to nature as a reaction against the country’s industrialization, not unlike the hippies of our time. None was more associated with the bucolic lakes than William Wordsworth, who was born in the region, travelled away for awhile and returned to marry and live the rest of his long life. Last spring I learned why he loved The Lake District so much when I spent a week there.

A walk near Grasmere – in The Lake District everywhere you look is a picture

On one of those fine days, my husband and I visited two of Wordsworth’s homes in the village of Grasmere. We arrived early at Dove Cottage, William’s starter house when he married, and got a private tour before a busload of tourists crowded the small rooms. The guide pointed out the poet’s favourite artifacts, which included a cuckoo clock that made William and his sister Dorothy laugh hysterically each time the bird popped out. Life was simpler then.

Dove Cottage, where we learned that during his lifetime Wordsworth was always referred to by his first name

William’s funny cuckoo clock

William built a terrace in the garden behind Dove Cottage to get a view of the lake, now obscured by houses and trees.

William earned some money from poetry and worked as a Distributor of Stamps, but much of his income was inherited from his father and an acquaintance who died young and left the poet money to support his talent. From Dove Cottage, we walked a 40 minute path to Rydal Mount House & Gardens, William’s more upscale home, where he lived from 1813 until his death in 1850. Here he wrote and revised many of his poems and published his most famous one, ‘Daffodils.’ The Wordsworths rented the house until his wife’s death in 1859. Their great great granddaughter later bought the property, opened it to the public in 1970 and still uses it for family gatherings.

Rydal Mount

I liked that the living room looks lived-in

Rydal Mount grounds

Rydal Mount’s huge garden looks much as it did in William’s time. William often said the grounds were more his ‘writing room’ than his office in the house. He was known to recite his poems aloud while revising them and often did this on his solitary walks through the countryside. William was born before the invention of trains and wasn’t rich enough to own a horse and carriage. He thought nothing of walking five hours to the northern Lake District town of Keswick, to visit his friend and fellow Romantic poet, Samuel Taylor Coleridge.

Writing, walking, wandering through gardens. What a wonderful lifestyle.

Willam’s and his wife’s grave in Grasmere lies next to that of his sister Dorothy, who lived with them and inspired many of his poems. Dorothy’s diaries reveal that she could almost be credited with composing the first draft of ‘Daffodils.’

We were too late in the season for William’s daffodils, but we walked past fields of bluebells.

For those who missed my post about Paul McCartney’s home on my publisher’s website, here it is:

A highlight of my spring trip to Liverpool, England, was a tour of Paul McCartney’s home, where he spent his teenage years. The address is on the public record and there are always people outside taking pictures, but the only way to see inside is to take a tour conducted by Britain’s National Trust.

The van drove us to the pleasant street in suburban Allerton. When the McCartneys moved here in 1955, these were rental Council Homes. Now they are owned by the residents, who must sometimes resent the influx of fans. On the other hand, it would be cool to live down the road from the former home of a Beatle, who visits the place on occasion.

The street where Paul lived

The home’s curator met us in the front yard. For the next hour, she walked us through the house and shared anecdotes. She told us that only one family lived here after the McCartneys, which made it easier to renovate the home back to its state during Paul’s time. The new residents had replaced the front windows, but The National Trust noticed that an identical house on the street had the original windows. They offered a trade, with the neighbours getting upgraded windows with installation for free.

Paul’s house with its original-style front window

Few of the original McCartney furnishings remain in the house. Paul has the piano in one of his homes, but the curator found a replica. Part of her job is to furnish the place based on the information available, such as old photographs and recollections of people who were there. Paul’s brother Mike is one of her best sources. Both brothers have homes across the Mersey from Liverpool and Mike often visits the house. Recently he unearthed photographs he took of Paul, John and George during their youths. These are now displayed in the living room. Paul also takes an active interest in the house, but Paul has many homes, the curator said, and is less available.

This portrait of Paul and Mike with their mother is in the back bedroom

Paul’s mother died a year after the family moved in. Yet Paul said he recalls his time in the house as mostly happy. This is a testament to Paul’s sunny nature, but his mother’s death touched him deeply. Originally Paul and Mike shared the large bedroom at the back of the house. After their mother died, Paul moved to the small room at the front because needed alone time. The curator added that when John Lennon’s mother was killed in a bus accident a few years later it cemented a bond between the two teenage musicians. Their shared sadness enhanced the chemistry that enabled them to write so many songs that touched the world.

Photos aren’t permitted in the house, but someone snuck this shot of Paul’s small bedroom and posted it on the Internet.

We topped up our visit to Liverpool with a Hop-on-hop-off bus ride that took us past the art college Paul, George and John attended, Ringo’s street and other Beatles sites. We stopped at Penny Lane for a photo op. The guide told us that that the real setting for that song was down the road at Smithdown Place. We drove past the barbershop and roundabout like teenage Paul did daily on his way to and from school. Presumably Paul felt the name Smithdown Place had a less melodic ring than Penny Lane.

Our tour of Beatles sites finished with the Cavern Club, a recreated venue of the place where the band made its breakthrough. A singer/guitarist, who wasn’t born at that time, entertained the packed room with Beatles songs. It was both nostalgic and currently happening. This July Paul McCartney made a surprise appearance at the Cavern to promote his new album release. He played for two hours to an audience of 350, who must have felt themselves the luckiest people in the world.

The Cavern today

George, Paul & John at the original Cavern Club

For those who missed it, here’s my August post from my publisher Books We Love’s website.

I became a teenager in February 1964, when The Beatles exploded on the North American scene. One week I was playing with dolls; the next week I was glued to top 40 radio and in love with Paul. So when my husband Will and I visited England this spring, it was natural for us to include a stop in Liverpool, home of the fab four. We discovered that Britain’s National Trust has bought John Lennon’s and Paul McCartney’s boyhood homes and offers tours to the public. Will and I reserved  spots on the 16 person van, not really knowing what to expect.

The driver took us first to John’s house in Woolton, an affluent middle class suburb. The home’s curator met us in the front yard and said that we can thank Yoko Ono for this tour. After John’s death, Yoko purchased the house and donated it to The National Trust, along with money to develop and maintain it. The National Trust later bought Paul’s home and hired a husband and wife to act as curators. The couple does research, buys artifacts from the boys’ time and conducts tours, which are the only way for people to see inside. No indoor pictures are permitted. The curator also asked us to turn off our cell phones to preserve the homes’ 1950s and 60s atmosphere.

The curator explained the basics of John’s story, known to most Beatles fans. When John was five, his aunt Mimi took over his upraising because she viewed his mother, her sister Julia, as irresponsible and John’s father was out of the picture. John adored Julia, the creative, rebellious and fun sister and was devastated by her death. The curator pointed out the intersection where Julia was struck by a bus. John’s boyhood friend, who has become a resource and friend of the curator, told him that Julia had stopped in to visit Mimi that night. The friend showed up, looking for John, and walked with Julia to the bus stop. Minutes later he heard and saw the crush, but was too late to save her.

The curator took us around to the back entrance, since upwardly mobile Mimi had reserved the front door for esteemed guests like the minister. Paul always entered by the kitchen too. Before she met Paul, Mimi was concerned about the working class teenager’s friendship with John. But Paul’s manners and refined speech passed her test. In contrast, Mimi later judged George Harrison scruffy and scorned his Liverpool scouse dialect. Still she let the boys practice their music in her living room, perhaps to keep an eye on them. Mimi was concerned about John’s growing disinterest in his school work, despite his academic abilities. In retrospect her view that John would be a failure if he didn’t go to university seems narrow and short sighted, what who could foresee the delinquent youth would become a famous Beatle? Mimi’s husband died when John was about aged 10. So that she could afford to give John the opportunities she wanted for him, Mimi took in boarders and slept in her small sitting room. Evidently John appreciated all she did. The curator said that John phoned Mimi every week until his death.

Gate to Strawberry Field near John’s boyhood home. John’s friend said that, as boys, they would climb the gate into the orphanage grounds to escape his Aunt Mimi’s watchful eye.

Inside the home, the curator guided us through the ground floor, decorated in Mimi’s 1950s style. A few of her original pieces remain in the living room. She converted the dining room to a bedroom for John and Cynthia when they married and had baby Julian. Of course, John was always on the road by this point and rarely home. Cynthia found the living arrangement uncomfortable since Mimi didn’t like the baby’s crying. Cynthia would take Julian into the back yard until he calmed down.

Aunt Mimi’s back yard

The curator let us wander on our own upstairs. We saw John’s small bedroom, with a guitar and posters like the ones his friend remembered being on the walls. When Mimi sold the house, John was rich. He and Mimi kept few of the original furnishings and items. John bought himself an even more posh house and later one for Mimi when she was tired of fans hanging around outside her door.

After our hour at John’s and Mimi’s home, the van took us Paul’s house, about a 15 minute drive away. I’ll blog about that visit next month. Before leaving the tour, I asked the curator of Paul’s house if The National Trust had plans to buy Ringo’s and George’s boyhood homes. She said this would be problematic. Ringo’s home has since gone through many owners and would be difficult to return to its state at the time Ringo lived there. George’s home is on a quiet court and neighbours would find the fans obtrusive. But I expect The National Trust will find a way around these problems if their tours of John’s and Paul’s homes become super popular with the world’s legion of Beatles fans.

Me and John across from Liverpool’s Cavern Club, which launched The Beatles to fame.

Before this May I had been to London, UK, twice. Like most tourists I spent most of my time on the north side of the Thames River. But five years ago my husband Will and I enjoyed a short walk and café meal along the river’s South Bank. So on this third trip we wanted to see more of this side of London and, in particular, visit the rebuilt Globe Theatre, which opened in 1997. On a sunny Sunday morning, we walked from Paul’s Cathedral across the Millennium Bridge to Shakespeare’s Globe and bought tickets for the tour and exhibition.

Me at St. Paul’s

The original Globe Theatre was built in 1598. Actor-playwright William Shakespeare owned a share of the company that chose the location across the river because it was outside of the City of London, which had laws restricting unsavoury activities like theatre and prostitution. Plays of the time had to take place under daytime’s natural lighting, which meant attendees couldn’t be working.

The Globe thrived for 14 years and presented many of Shakespeare’s greatest plays. In 1613, during a performance of Shakespeare’s Henry VIII, a stage cannon misfired, igniting the thatched roof and burning the theatre to the ground. Records state that only one man was hurt, but he was saved when his burning breeches were put out with a bottle of ale. The company built a second Globe with a tiled roof. It’s believed that Shakespeare never wrote for this new Globe, which was closed with all the English theatres in 1642 by the Puritan government. Two years later the Globe was demolished to make space for tenements.

Artist’s rendition of the original Globe

On the tour we learned that the modern Globe was the brainchild of American actor and director Sam Wanamaker. When he first

visited London

in 1949, Wanamaker was appalled to discover the city contained no acknowledgement to the theatre intimately associated with one of the world’s greatest writers. Wanamaker founded the Shakespeare Globe Trust, which raised funds and conducted research on the historical Globe. They discovered that the modern theatre couldn’t be built on the original site, since a historically designated building occupies the spot. So the new Globe is about 750 feet (230 m) away.

The Globe viewed from our Thames River cruise

The Trust’s objective was to construct a Globe as close as possible to the original, using the old building techniques, while taking into account modern fire regulations. The building is open air, with a roof made of reed thatch, based on samples found during the excavation of the original site. I had always assumed the Globe was round, but research determined it was 20-sided polygon. Little was known about the stage, so the designers relied on accounts of other theatres of the time. In the end, today’s Globe is as accurate a reconstruction as current knowledge could make it.

Inside the theatre, we sat on the tiered seats while the guide explained that the stage was designed with three levels. Elizabethan theatre goers would understand that characters descending from the ceiling painted heavenly blue with clouds were good guys, while those rising from a trap door in the floor were evil.

The guide pointed out that the most expensive seats in Shakespeare’s time were located high up on the side tiers, rather than lower and facing the stage, because the wealthy were more interested in being seen rather than having the best view of the show. The area in front of the stage, called the pit or yard, allowed the poor in for a penny. This must have been a smelly place, since the crammed-in people were drinking beer with nowhere else to go to relieve themselves. The modern Globe honours the tradition by selling standing room tickets for £5, but provides bathrooms in the wings. Still, today’s budget attendees must stand for three hours, among a crowd of 500 people and exposed to the elements. Umbrellas aren’t allowed. I would splurge for a seat. Prices range from £19-47 for this summer’s production of Hamlet, which is reasonable compared to London west end theatre. Since the Globe seats are hard with no backs, patrons can rent cushions and seat backs.

I think it would be marvellous to watch a Shakespeare play performed in the setting the playwright had in mind when he wrote his great works. But with so much to do in London, Will and I limited ourselves to the tour, which included a peek at the associated Sam Wanamaker Playhouse, an indoor candlelit theatre inspired by the old Blackfriars Theatre. We ended with a walk through the Globe exhibition about the building reconstruction and the history of Shakespeare’s time. It turns out the Globe name derives from a Latin quote by Petronius “because all the world is a playground,” which Shakespeare evidently borrowed and changed to “all the world is a stage.”

This blog post originally appeared on July 12, 2018, on my publisher’s website in the Books We Love Author BlogSpot.

For those who missed it, here’s my post that appeared on my publisher’s website on June 12th.

One thing I love about travel to the United Kingdom is that I can’t go anywhere without stumbling over a place associated with an author I’ve read or heard about. This May my husband Will and I started our holiday in England at the home of our friend Barb, who lives near Gatwick airport. While researching possible day trips, we discovered that writer Jane Austen had lived in Chawton, Hampshire, about a one hour drive from Barb’s town. Jane Austen’s House Museum is the only home where the author lived and wrote that is open to the public.

Susan & Barb at Jane Austen’s home, which was later divided into flats – hence the boarded up windows and door alterations

I’ve loved Austen’s writing since I studied Pride and Prejudice in high school English. I subsequently re-read the novel several times, watched numerous film versions of it and read all of her other books. Emma is my second favourite. Barb is not a romance reader and had never been drawn to the stories, but she offered to drive us to Chawton. We began our visit to Jane Austen’s former home with a picnic in her garden.

Jane lived in this house with her mother, sister Cassandra and friend Martha Lloyd from 1809-1817. Prior to this the women had rented a smaller place. But a childless couple took a liking to Jane’s oldest brother Edward, adopted him and left him their Chawton estate. Since his obligation was to provide for a widowed mother and husbandless sisters, he offered them the house for life. This was a great step up for the women, who could now live rent free with more disposable income. Their original garden, larger than today’s, provided them with an orchard and vegetable patch.

At the Austen home, we learned that Jane had already drafted her novels when she moved there at the age of 34. Content in this improved environment, she started work on revisions. Another brother, who lived in London, submitted her first polished manuscript to a publisher. Sense and Sensibility by A Lady was published in 1811 to public and critical acclaim. A bedroom in the museum displayed an advertisement for her second novel: Pride and Prejudice by the author of Sense and Sensibility. We asked a volunteer guide why Austen had published anonymously. The guide said that the novel was a fairly new written form at this time. Poetry was the viewed as the only true literary writing, while novel writers were considered somewhat sketchy, especially women writers. The guide added that Austen was known as the books’ author in literary circles, but the public was kept in the dark.

Jane’s writing table, more suitable for quill pen writing than a laptop, stands in front of the grandfather clock.

Jane Austen went on the publish the rest of her novels while living in the Chawton house. The guide believes that Jane would have continued to live there and write more books if she hadn’t become ill and needed to be closer to a hospital. Jane died too young, at age 41 in 1817, probably of Addison’s disease or stomach cancer.

Jane Austen, 1775-1817

The tour left me with the impression that Jane Austen lived a mostly happy life, enhanced by close family connections, friendships and writing satisfaction and success. But her own story shows the constraints for women of her time, forced to carve a fulfilling life in a world skewed toward men. Her novels reflect this experience and may be one reason why they still resonate with people today.

We finished the tour on a fun note–dressing up in period clothing. The next day Will and I left for London. Barb sent us an email saying the visit had inspired her second venture into Austenland, by reading a non-fiction history of Jane Austen’s time. Who knows? Jane might have picked up a new fan.

Why is When Words Collide my favourite? Here are my top ten reasons.

1. WWC is local, here in Calgary. I don’t have to spend money on airfare, hotels and restaurant meals to attend, although I might grab a bite with friends on the hotel’s Boomtown pub patio.

2. Not only local, WWC takes place close to my home. The festival hotel, the Delta Calgary South, is about a 15 minute walk or short drive away. I can come home for dinner or a breather from the activities.

3. Being local, I constantly run into people I know at WWC and don’t feel out of place.

4. But there are still tons of new people to meet. Writers, readers, editors, publishers and agents from Calgary, other parts of Canada and beyond.

5. I met my publisher at WWC: Jude Pittman of BWL Ltd.

6.. The Energy. This is what impressed me the most at my first WWC, the inaugural year of 2011.

7. The opportunity to promote and sell my books. Any registrant can volunteer to sit on a panel or do a presentation, and sell their books in the merchant’s corner, either on the shared author’s table, a table they or their group rent or through Owl’s Nest Books, the official bookseller.

8. It’s fun. The banquet photo above says it all and it’s not unusual to see people dressed in various costumes during the daytime. The year that author Diana Gabaldon was a Festival Guest of Honour a man showed up at her session wearing a kilt, in homage to her novel hero Scottish nationalist Jamie.

9. Learning. I’ve been around writing a long time and still learn more about writing and selling books at the many panels and presentations I attend.

10. The registration cost is $45-$60 ($30-$40 for seniors and students) for three full days and two evenings of programming. I can’t resist a bargain!