Why Whistler’s Wood must be saved

FEELINGS are running high in the Pound Street area of Lyme Regis over the possibility of Whilster’s Wood being developed by eco-homes.

This is not a new story.

The owner of the land, Quentin Craven inherited the land from his parents who were passionate about the wood which runs from Little Place in Silver Street, down to Pound Street - the only green area left in the town, once referred to as the “Lung of Lyme”.

The wood is known locally as “Whistler’s Wood” after the Whistler family who used to live in Little Place.

Sir Lawrence Whistler was a man of great reknown, being the Queen’s official glass engraver and an accomplished writer and poet.

He tried to bequeath the wood to Dorset County Council to protect it for all time, but negotiations finally foundered because the county felt it would be too expensive to protect and maintained.

I was lucky enough, as a little lad, to play ocasionally with the Whistler children in the wood because my mother was in service at Little Place.

My interest in this may be motivated by nostalgia but I am fully behind the group of residents who are contemplating forming a trust to protect the important amenity.

Mr Craven tried to get three houses built on the site and then applied for two. He was turned down by West Dorset planners but is now planning to appeal.

Fear that the Government inspector might grant his appeal has mobilised the residents into trying to protect the wood for all time.

They held a public meeting last week at which Daniel Whistler, the son of Sir Lawrence and Theresa Whistler, returned to his home town.

Mr Craven’s representative, design consultant Stuart Case, bravely attended the meeting and put forward the view that the best way to protect the wood would be allow the two units to be built, generating the necessary funds for its protection.

It was an argument that did not wash with the concerned residents.

They are now planning to meet Mr Craven in the hope of coming to an amicable arangement which will not include the building of homes, no matter how eco-friendly, in this charming and essential town centre open space.

Bad news week for Lyme

A DAY rarely passes when Lyme Regis does not feature in a national newspaper or in an obscure website, sometimes with the most bizarre references (some of which I have highlighted in this column in recent years).

Last week I discovered, via Google Alerts, that a German shoe manufacturer has named one of their boots after Lyme!

Most references are of a highly complimentary nature, underlining Lyme’s reputation of one of the prettiest towns in England.

But it’s not been a good week for Lyme on the publicity front. First we read that our town is one of the most expensive to live in, property-wise.

Then there was Lyme being named as one of the most unfriendly in England by a Virgin survey (I wouldn’t take much notice of that) and then the big one - the annual report by the Marine Conservation Society placed Lyme in a list of resorts where the bathing water was of a very low standard.

This appeared in The Times and prompted a quick response from Lyme Regis Town Council as a damage limitation exercise before the Bank Holiday. TV cameras were then in town on Monday, allegedly filming raw sewage flowing into the River Lym.

We should not underestimate the damage that this may do to the tourist trade in Lyme but we should remember that we pay the highest water rates in the country so our ire should be directed at South West Water.

Having spent millions on a new sewage treatment plant there can be no excuse for raw sewage being deposited into the sea in this day and age.

EVENT OF THE WEEK

I NEVER tire of looking at old photographs of Lyme so the Old Lyme exhibition being staged at the Malthouse at the Town Mill was a must event for me this week.

As always, Ken Gollop and Graham Davies have done a superb job on behalf of Lyme Regis Museum in presenting a photographic record of all sections of the town over the last 100 years or so.

There were countless images that brought many childhood memories flooding back, especially the Searchlight Tattoos in the 1950s that Cecil Quick used to organise on behalf of the Royal British Legion at Middle Mill.

I can well remember our family sitting on Bumpy Field, along with hundreds of others, watching the spectacular events such as motorcyclists riding through hoops of fire. My dad was a firemen so there was an additional interest for us as the Lyme Brigade always staged some sort of exercise.

It was a hugely ambitious event, brilliantly organised by Mr Quick and the Legion members, which necessitated the building of a huge wooden bridge to get the vehicles onto the tattoo site.

Other photos that caught my eye were of the over 60s walking race from the Dolphin Inn held on Regatta Day. It all started with a bet between customers at the cider house. Huge crowds gathered in Mill Green to see the race in which characters such as Chaffey and Winkle Solway competed.

Another event which I had forgotten about was the “Chinatown” children’s sports, also in the 1950s. As all locals will know, “Chinatown” was the Colway Mead estate, so called because the first residents were mainly from the laundry in Mill Green.

I suspect the exhibition is just as interesting to visitors as locals but if you have not seen it, it is worth a stroll down to the Town Mill.

Well done to Ken Gollop and Graham Davies for putting the exhibition together and to the museum for staging it in their usual professional manner.

It was the first event held in the new Malthouse, due for official opening on Saturday, an impressive venue which will be greatly used in the coming years.

www.viewfromonline.co.uk