Day Trip to Tutbury
Day Trip to Tutbury Castle and Denby Pottery
Our President’s great interest in Mary Queen of Scots made a trip to Tutbury Castle near Derby a very appropriate part of her year, as Mary made four visits during her English imprisonment and thoroughly hated it. For us on the other hand it is a delightful ruin with impressive views over the surrounding countryside. In the middle ages it was one of the most important castles in the country, housing over a thousand people, and in the ownership of the Dukes of Lancaster. The famous John of Gaunt was associated with it.
The highlight of the visit was the vivid impersonation of Mary by Lesley Smith. In full costume she delivered an hour’s enthusiastic impression of Mary as woman and Queen; we got her foibles and interests and the inner person as well as the events in her life. We also enjoyed tea and scones in what remains of the buildings.
On the way in the morning we had gone to the Denby Pottery, where we had lunch and ambled round the shops, particularly the one selling the remaindered crockery of the Pottery itself. It was altogether a delightful day.
John Fall
