WORDSWORTH DAFFS AT RISK - THE famous "Wordsworth" wild daffodils by the side of Ullswater are at risk from cross cross-pollination by cultivated species planted nearby, an expert has warned. Jan Dalton, president of the Daffodil Society, has advised removal of cultivated bulbs from across the road from the lakeshore near Aira Force where the daffodils were the inspiration 200 years ago for William Wordsworth's immortal poem.

May 2002

"GOLDEN HOST" SAFE   The daffodil debate drags on. Is the Wordsworth variety, which enriches part of the shoreline of Ullswater, really under threat? Concerns about the long-term future of the famous floral colony were first raised in the Lakeland Gardener, the journal of the Lakeland Horticultural Society. And in March of this year Jan Dalton, the chairman of the Daffodil Society, said the Wordsworth type was threatened by hybridisation with cultivated daffodils blooming on the other side of the A592, in Glencoyne Park. But now the Royal Horticultural Society has entered the fray via its magazine, The Garden, bidding to allay the fears of the other experts. "Wordsworth's daffodils are not under a cloud," says a headline. The article which follows is dotted with strange terms, like tetraploid and chromosomes - baffling to non-horticultural folk - but the clear message is that the "host of golden daffodils", which adds to the fame and the charm of Ullswater, can resist the attentions of the cultivated types growing nearby. The lakeside patch of flowers has attracted more controversy than the rest of decorative plants put together. Were they spotted by William Wordsworth or his doting sister, Dorothy? Did they really originate beside Ullswater or at Ryedale in Yorkshire? Or should the credit for the famous type go to the hamlet of Dockray, from where seeds were carried down to the lake by the Aira Beck?

June2002

O.B.E. MUSICIAN'S CUMBRIA LINKS - THE Hungarian-born violinist Kato Havas, who came to Cumbria for more than 20 years to run courses for string players, received the O.B.E. in the Queen's birthday honours for her services to music. She gave her first residential course in Cumbria in 1965. Up to 24 string players would go to the home of Ian and Dorothy Bewley, at Watermillock, near Ullswater, for coaching, workshops and recitals.

July 2002

FLORRIE REACHES 105 - Penrith's Florrie Lancaster has celebrated her 105th birthday and is probably the oldest woman in Cumbria. In her working life, Mrs. Lancaster was a member of the domestic staff at Halstead, Ullswater, when it was owned by the Carr family, of biscuit making frame. She is a lifelong teetotaller and non-smoker.

August 2002

SPECTACULAR FINALE - A weekend of events as part of the year-long Ullswater Festival ended with a bang as spectacular fireworks lit up the night sky. Around 1,200 people attended a concert by the Scottish Chamber Orchestra in the grounds of Leeming House Hotel, Watermillock, which culminated in the huge fireworks display.

November 2002

FIRST £1 MILLION PROPERTY SALE? - THE sale of Wreay Mansions, at Watermillock, on the northern shores of Ullswater, which made £1.3 million at a public auction in July, is believed to be the transaction recorded by Land Registry as the first £1 million property sale in Eden district. Wreay Mansions is divided into 13 self-contained flats. Its sale was conducted by Clark Scott Harden.

April 2003

JOKING WITH THE PRINCE - LOCAL dustmen enjoyed a joke with Prince Andrew, Duke of York, who was paying a private visit to the Ullswater Outward Bound Centre [Hallsteads]. Refuse lorry driver Johnny Rogerson gestured the prince to get out of the way as they were leaving the centre. The royal visitor asked Johnny why he was working during his lunch hour. Johnny said it was because they were so busy, but it would speed things up if the prince lent them a hand. "He said he would have gladly lent a hand if his helicopter had not been waiting for him, " said Johnny.

LAKE RESCUE - A fisherman whose boat overturned on Ullswater was rescued by a group of Outward Bound kayakists practising near the shore. The man, who had left his life jacket in the bottom of his boat, was pulled to safety. He was unharmed but was checked over by paramedics.

June 2003

TOP PRICE VIEW A strikingly beautiful view of Ullswater appears on a valuable solitaire set - a tea service for one - which has just been sold at auction for £26,450 [US$ 40,000 approx]. An account of the sale in Homes and Antiques says that the set, made up of tray, teapot, milk jug, cup and saucer, from the Worcester porcelain works of Flight, Barr and Barr, 1820-30, may have been painted by the top porcelain decorator, Thomas Baxter. A special feature is that each piece is painted with a scene from a Shakespeare play, as well as a named view. The image of Ullswater, which decorates the centre of the tray, is said by the magazine to have been "painted from Gobray Park, Cumberland". Gobray Park? The likelihood is that the painter did his work in Gowbarrow Park.

August 2003

NEW ROLE FOR CHRIS - Penrithian Chris Curry, general manager of the Leeming House Hotel, on the shores of Ullswater, has been appointed restaurant operations manager for The Village Bakery, based at Melmerby, near Penrith. The Village Bakery restaurant, where break is baked in a wood-dried, oven is visited by more than 50,000 every year. Mr. Curry will develop its use, including educational events.

February 2004

AMERICAN WHO RESTORED A CASTLE - The funeral of Gracia Howard, widow of Stafford Howard, of Greystoke Castle, was held in Kent on Friday, following her death at the age of 91. Mary Gracia Neville was born in New York City in January, 1913, and remained an American citizen all her life, forcing her, during the Second World War, to be subjected to an Alien Movement Restriction Order within England. She met Stafford Howard in England and they married in 1940. Their eldest daughter, Amanda, was born in 1941, followed by twins, Neville and Arianwen, the following year. After the war, Stafford Howard entered politics as a Liberal, following the long family Whig tradition. He stood for Parliament twice, unsuccessfully, in Gloucestershire and in the Penrith and the Border constituency. Mrs. Howard espoused this cause as enthusiastically as he did, acquiring a US Army jeep, painted red, with a large model of Big Ben on the back. The clock face bore the legend "What time is it? Time the Liberals were back. In 1950, Stafford Howard inherited the Greystoke Castle estate, which was virtually a ruin. It had become a tank training ground during the war, and then home to 2,000 Free Poles. Mr. and Mrs. Howard set about the mammoth task of turning it back into a family home and an agricultural concern. From the beginning, both took an active role in local affairs. Mr. Howard was a parish and county councillor, chairman of Penrith and Border Liberal Party, chairman of the Ullswater Outward Bound Trust, [based at Hallsteads, Watermillock 'Jake'] and served on the Lake District Planning Board and the Ullswater Preservation Society. She was instrumental in founding the pre-theological college in Greystoke and was a governor of the village school for 31 years and chairman for nine. When it was threatened with closure, she personally tackled the Secretary of State for Education, Sir Keith Joseph, and her efforts were rewarded in 1984 when the school was allowed to survive. In 1985, Mr. and Mrs. Howard retired from the castle, handing over to their son Neville. They moved to Algar's Garth in Greystoke, where they remained until Mr. Howard's death in 1991. Mrs. Howard then moved to Kent to be near her two daughters. A memorial service will be held in Greystoke Church.

September 2004

"GREEN" HOME PLAN REJECTED - An application for a "sustainable" house at Ulcat Row, near Ullswater, was rejected by Lakeland planners because it would be visually damaging in the open countryside. A 147-name petition in support of the application, by Mr. N. Potter, was submitted. It involved putting up a building which would resemble a traditional field barn and include photovoltaic panels, sedum plants, oak boarding, local stone and sheep's wool.

May 2006

CROWNING GLORY FOR JOAN - Writers rejoice to see their efforts in print in the form of a published book — especially the first. The hard slog of researching, writing and proof-reading has been worthwhile. At last, there is something to show for all the earnest endeavour and the expenditure on midnight oil. Imagine, then, the sense of achievement of Joan Eadington, a writer living at Cove Cottage, Watermillock, who has just had two of her works of fiction, written under her pen-name of Joan Eadith, published for a third time! Time-Warner Paperbacks 2006 have just issued The Joan Eadith Omnibus, a 327-page blockbuster, embracing two earlier books, Hospital Girls and A Very Loud Voice, both set in war-time Britain, which were initially published separately in 1995 and reprinted in 1997. Such a volume is a crowning glory on the career of Joan Eadington, a gracious lady of 80, who has been writing for more than half-a-century, penning stories for newspapers and the radio, as well as books.

November 2006

£1.7 MILLION FARM SALE - Knotts Farm, Watermillock, made a near record price of £1.71 million when it was sold by public auction.  The property, which is farmed by the Cartmel family and owned for generations by the Marshall family, was first offered in individual lots when it was auctioned at Pooley Bridge village hall, but bids were then invited for the six-bedroomed farmhouse and barns, plus meadow, pasture and woodland. Several bidders battled fiercely to push the price to £1,710,000, and it was confirmed that the farm would be sold as a whole. It was knocked down to a bidder from Yorkshire.