Beacon Villages
Belstone - South Tawton - South Zeal - Sticklepath
Under Cosdon Beacon Dartmoor Devon UK
Under Cosdon Beacon Dartmoor Devon UK
| Addiscott & Dishcombe | ||
| Although you got here via a button called Addiscott & Dishcombe, that was only because the name Oxenham would have made it too long. In fact, the three locations are inextricably linked by their proximity and their history. White's Devonshire Directory states that 'South Tawton (Parish) consists of ... woods, orchards open pasture and forest. The Parish also comprises many scattered farmhouses ... and it's surface is picturesquely broken into hill and dale'. This 'walk around', which is fairly lengthy, bears that statement out perfectly. |  |
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We start from South Zeal heading over the leat and up the hill to Shelley. At the Methodist Chapel, we take a left turn, past Shelley Court, carry on to the road junction and then go straight over (signposted to Oxenham). This whole lane has hedges on both sides, goes up and down like a funfair ride and is just wide enough for one car. But then, it will be an event if you see a car! Eventually, you will come to another road junction and, if you bear right here, you will find the sign and the long entrance drive to Oxenham Manor, home of the Oxenham family from the reign of Henry III until 1814. For a detailed history of the Oxenhams log on to : www.pjoxenham.fsnet.co.uk/Oxenham |
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| If you now walk past the Oxenham Manor drive and take the first right lane (which is even smaller than the ones you have left) you then proceed, by a series of twists and turns, to walk past the Manor itself and on, heading south down the hill until you come to Addiscott, which is an estate with a farm and a collection of dwellings. Going past these, you come to a road junction. Turn right and at once you are at the granite cross, although depending on the time of year this may be partially covered by the hedge it stands in. This is one of the wayside crosses that were placed to mark to route for travelers to St. Andrews church at South Tawton. This is found at map reference 667933. |  |
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Carry on, past the wayside cross and you will arrive at Dishcombe, on the right, at the corner of the next road junction. Dishcombe was one of the original nine hamlets that together with South Tawton village made up the parish. It is now the home and studio of John Christian the renowned watercolour artist and water diviner. Although it may feel like it, you will be surprised to learn that, according to a description from "The National Gazetteer of Great Britain and Ireland (1868), you are now 219 miles E of Oakhampton" Maybe the compiler's maths was as good as his spelling? |
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If you turn left at this junction you would immediately find a gateway with a sign by the Woodland Trust, inviting you to walk in their woods. The trust was founded in 1972 by Kenneth Watkins, with the help of three friends, to "acquire and care for threatened woods for the public to enjoy and to plant trees." Dishcombe Wood was the Trust's first tree planting creation (1.8 hectares) in 1974, to preserve a line of hedgerow beech trees. 30 years later, the Trust cares for 1100 woods over 19,000 hectares and has 115,000 members. For more information check out : www.woodland-trust.org.uk |
| You may now return to South Zeal, depending on the weather, either by a footpath which cuts across from just outside Dishcombe to Shelley or, if it is too wet, by following the road past Dishcombe to the road junction that you crossed on your way to Oxenham. Turn left here and head for the nearest refreshments. |  |
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| * Alex the Animal Although the programme went out, originally, in 2000, repeats are still around in various parts of the world. I have had to change the link from bbcamerica, as this seems to have disappeared but Alex can still be found on http://www.tvtome.com/tvtome/servlet/GuidePageServlet/showid-14401/epid-205018/ I also found this on :http://www.villagevoice.com/issues/0346/tv.php In contrast, Alex Geikie's genteel background is a total impediment to passing in the seedy world of nightclub bouncers. From an impossibly sheltered rural background, this posh ninny arrives at his mentor's East London housing project wearing a tweed blazer, scared witless by signs of urban deprivation like a mattress on the sidewalk. His trainers teach him how to exude menace, while a speech coach demonstrated the correct way to swear. ("The word f**k is desperately important to all Londoners," he explains) Alex the wimp becomes Alex the Animal, and totally fools the experts. He also comes out in front of the cameras. Alex doesn't pursue his Faking It career as a tough guy, but he doesn't revert to type either. The experience of forced reinvention gives him the impetus to totally change his life. He is filmed cavorting with drag queen friends in his new hometown-Sydney, Australia. It's as though the trials of impersonating a totally new character revealed what a sham his "real self" was. "When I saw the show, I looked at myself and thought, 'Who the hell is that?' " he says in the recap. Faking It ultimately suggests something both inspirational and unsettling: that we lack any essential character, our personalities and life paths merely by-products of the opportunities presented to us. Another link with a good, longer write up is : http://www.allyourtv.com/shows/f/showguidefakingitbbc.html |
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