Place Work & Folk August 2018 Update from Carol:

We’ve had more animation workshops this summer – see our SuperPig classic!… plus a masterclass in traditional oatcake-making (messy but tasty)… more interviewing of locals with remarkable recollections (stay tuned for more additions to BridgendPWF on Soundcloud… a doubling-down on our editing of existing recordings… the start of plans for a November gathering, Our Changing City (24-25 November -  contact me if you’re curious!), setting up workshops with Castlebrae Community High School… further workshops towards our Mosaic Timeline, based on Greater Liberton Heritage Project’s incredible research… and preparing for Doors Open Day on 30 September -  we can’t wait to see you there for late 50s/early 60s treats, games and other entertainments, featuring extracts from our informants’ most youthful escapades!

Our volunteers can highly recommend The National Museum of Rural Life, where we got a much clearer sense of how things might have looked at Bridgend in the days of the piggery and of the dairy farm. We loved the Tamworth pigs, the Clydesdale horses, the rare hens (we didn’t check whether they had teeth), petite Ayrshire cattle and a splendid farm cat. They do a fine soup at the café, and the museum is so good we need to go back for further study. But maybe the tractor trip up to the old farmhouse was the best of all, close to milking time and with the opportunity to handle vintage baking implements, wax nostalgic at the retro furnishings throughout the meticulously-preserved house (donated by the Reid family in the 1990s) and chat to superb, dedicated volunteers like George – who were most interested to hear all about Bridgend! Many thanks to Marion Lawton for our educational visit at no charge, and to the wonderful Venchie for minibus transport!

There are new volunteers still joining us and a trip to Whitmuir Organic Farm coming up on 4th September, many events and projects to plan for, plus the usual Tuesday evening meetings at 6pm. We can give you great things to do - join us for more adventures!

[email protected]. Mob: 07976 882038

Carol and some of our PW&F group visiting the National Farming Museum