Home Sweet Sweet Home

Daisy Trio

6" x 6"

Oil on Panel

Framed

£145.00

Click Here to Purchase

During the heavy downpours in March, the flat roof of the wacky house I have been renting in Holt for the best part of the last five years finally gave in. Rain found its way into the living room, dinning room and bedroom. Damp and black mould began to take hold and parts of the kitchen ceiling collapsed. My Landlady was anything but sympathetic - she refused to make the necessary repairs and put the house on the market as a 'development opportunity' whilst insisting that I honour the tenancy agreement which runs until September. It would come as no surprise to anyone who has seen the house recently that I have simply taken my leave.

So to pastures new - I have bought myself a cottage in Fakenham ten miles or so to the south west of Holt. Fakenham in saxon speak is 'Fair Place or Place on a Fair River'. From a population of 150 in 1086 (Doomsday Book) this Norfolk Market town has grown to just under 8,000 inhabitants.

In "The Nowhere Guide" published in the late nineties Robert Woods listed Fakenham as 'the most boring place on earth'. Apparently he was referring specifically to Wednesday afternoons which is early closing day in town. Woods comment was taken out of context and ceased upon by the National Newspapers who reported that Fakenham had been 'voted'  'the most boring place on earth' which cost the Town Council considerable time, money and effort to prove that this was not the case. No doubt they were delighted recently when Fakenham 'was voted' the seventh best place to live in Britain in Country Life's quality of life survey.

So put that in your pipe Robert Woods and let it be known that the town boasts The Fakenham Museum of Gas and Local History which is the only surviving town gasworks in England and Wales - so there!

So happy and relieved to be a homeowner once more I have steeled in nicely and predictably Elgar and Turner have made themselves known to most of the local community. I have a purpose built conservatory that has become my studio which could have doubled up as an oven in the recent hot weather. Never-the-less I have put a collection of smaller pieces together for my offering in the Holt Festival Open Studios, some of which I will post over the coming days.