Off Topic The Burly Arms

I take it you were drinking Kolsch all weekend then Bobby

 

Beautiful down here today.

 

So you're at Carsington water again i take it .

 

Nah mate, Lyme Regis today.

 

oh my mistake

 

Rookie mistake but forgiven

 

Found some good pyrite ammonites when up was up that way

 

Probably do Charmouth Wednesday, had a decent find last time we went.

 

Down the far end of the beach towards the Golden Cap is the best spot there. When I went there had been loads of cliff erosion so there was a bumper haul to be had

 

Going Golden Cap tomorrow, nice walk that.

 

I was up there in Feb, during a 35mph storm. It made for a challenging walk !

 

Should be calmer tomorrow

 

We love Lyme Regis , not in the summer school holidays though .

Hers a fact for you .

You know the Cobb ? There is a well known picture of it from the film The French lieutenant’s Woman .

Well in 1950 my Mum ( who was in the WRAF at the time ) fell off the top of it !

They had rescue boats out and about for this , but it did shake her up a bit !

 

.

 

I thought The Cobb was the name for the harbour wall

 

I think it is…. I’m trying to think how falling off it came about

 

It is , but this is the bit you go up a few steps and out to wards the sea . So she had nothing either side of her


See the picture at the bottom , it goes off out to see in the right hand side .


People visit Lyme from far and wide to see the steps where Louisa Musgrove fell in Jane Austen's Persuasion; or to see where Meryl Streep stood, looking forlornly out to sea in the film adaptation of John Fowles' The French Lieutenant's Woman, one of the most unforgettable scenes in cinema.

Inside the Lyme Regis Marine Aquarium, which is situated in one of the historic buildings at the end of the Cobb, you'll find an interesting presentation on the history of the Cobb including the films which made it internationally famous.



The Cobb buildings that now house the aquarium and offices were built in 1723. There was an earlier building on the site constructed in 1701 called Rose Cottage. This building was destroyed in a storm and subsequently the Town Council instructed a Mr Jefferd to build the two new buildings.



The buildings were used as a warehouse and storage as the Cobb was an active port attracting shipping and trade from all over the world. However, in later years the trade declined and the buildings were put to other uses.

At one time part of the building which houses the aquarium was used as an isolation hospital. Ships arriving at the Cobb from abroad carried the risk of importing diseases such as typhus, cholera and the plague. If a person from the ship were ill they would be placed in quarantine. This could be for a number of days to make sure the person did not infect the rest of the town. If the person was better after the period of isolation then they were free to enter the town, but if they died the town was saved.

Fixed to the front of the aquarium building is a long white toll board which displays the amount of tax levied on imports and exports to the harbour in 1879. The Cobb has always been expensive to maintain, and the tolls helped pay for the upkeep. The range of goods was extensive and the board makes interesting reading.

Below are some of the more interesting entries.

"for every fathom of latwood"
A fathom is a measure of depth; one fathom is 6ft. "Lathwood" were strips of wood to which rendering of plaster was applied when building the internal or external walls of a house.

"for every coach or four wheeled carriage"
In the nineteenth century many rural roads were so rough it was often easier to deliver them by sea.

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That’s easy , she’s bloody clumsy !

 

Or too much time in The Cobb Arms

 

That would only make her clumsier !