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Posted by Boofer (U3709461) on Saturday, 2nd May 2009
On Â鶹¹ÙÍøÊ×Ò³Èë¿Ú 2 next Friday immediately after GW there is a prog about Kenilworth Castle Garden and the work done by English Heritage which might be worth a look.
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There has been a great deal of discussion about this garden and whether or not it was right for English Heritage to recreate something that was only done as a temporary garden in the first place.
I'm looking forward to watching the programme to see what the fuss is all about (and hopefully later visiting the garden.
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I don't think English Heritage will come out of it looking good having seen the two previous programmes in the series but I think it should make good telly. Probably won't see much gardening or design though.
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Well that certainly made for interesting viewing. I found it quite extraordinary, it seemed like English Heritage has squandered £2 million on the Elizabethan equivalent of a theme park.
What struck me was that Simon T-h-u-rcan'trememberhowtospellit said that they had learnt so much through constructing it which was valuable. But valuable to who? It seems just a rather precious consortium of EH-ers. All the general public will learn is how to waste £2 million pounds. It felt like it must have been great fun for the elite involved in doing this project, but were they doing it for our benefit or for their own benefit?
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>it seemed like English Heritage has squandered £2 million <
Exactly, the hoity-toity woman who got preggers has never done a days proper work in her life.
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Aspidistra
I thought it was a good programme. However it just confirmed my suspicions of 'English Heritage'. Looked like a big ego trip for some of them, particularly liked the bit where he spelt his name at the press conference.
I did really feel sorry for the contractors and if it had been me I would have been back with a JCB.
Does anyone know if it was resolved and who paid?
Still might go and have a look but £2m could have been spent a little bit better.
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Yes, English Heritage do not come out of this series looking at all good. Comes across as an ego trip for those 'in charge' being the main idea. If you were a contractor would you want to be taking on an English heritage contract? I know I wouldn't!
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Definitely interesting viewing.
What we or EH learnt about gardening is debatable. The very steep grassed slope below the terrace for one thing.
Would like to know how the sandstone issue was resolved too, as the very distressed stuff had been removed by the contractor but it was not clear what it was replaced with.
Simon's discovery that the road became visible when you stood on the terrace was a lovely bit of telly.
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I wish I had £2m to spend on a folly! I did think the fountain was a work of art in its own right though.
'what-ever-his-name-is' had to try and find something to justify the massive waste of expenditure on this project - hence the 'we have learned' bit.
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£2 million??? so that's what they spend my subscription fees on??? They should stick to castles...
Still, I supposed I never begrudge the National Trust my fees, but then, they do have some fabulous gardens (plus I got a packet of free lettuce seeds with my quarterly magazine this morning )
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Who is accountable for the lamentable and questionably compromised design and amateurish project management of the Kenilworth garden work? The ego clashes based on tenuous self indulgent and allegedly nepotistic people is mind boggling- I would be a little less concerned if it was their money but its ours.
The only people who came out with any credibility from this programme was the construction manager & the sculptor ie realistic, practical, knew their job and doing the best they could with numerous frustrations.
The rest I suggest would be ideal foundation reinforcing for the fountain where they could discuss and satisfy their personal shortcomings and idosyncracies to their hearts content providing they are not on a lucrative public sponsored salary!!.
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Looked like a big ego trip for some of them...Â
In my professional life I've come across some egoists but this couple left me almost winded..
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Best plan a visit in July 2010, I reckon, as the planting will have bulked out by then and most are designed to be flowering in July.
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I too struggled to see what had been learnt by the exercise - the Tudors did not have JCBs or steel reinforcements for the aviary!! As the whole project was based on an interpretation of one letter with very little real evidence left - did it occur to EH (as in Time Team) to do a geophysical survey in order to establish where any beds may or may not have been??
The justification always seemed to be "well no one has a photograph of the original and so will be none the wiser".
What was it with raised beds?? When I studied GH as part of RHS course - we were told box hedging/santolina acted as the 'soil retaining feature'.
All in all a disappointing attempt at a reconstruction but may well prove to be a nice garden to visit.
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For us lucky lot in Wales there is a re-run of the Kenilworth House garden at 11-20pm tomorrow on Â鶹¹ÙÍøÊ×Ò³Èë¿Ú2 for those who missed it and who wish to join the controversy.
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I look forward to your thoughts of the good people of Wales, Welshcol
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Gosh......and here's me completely out of kilter with everyone for a change. I thoroughly enjoyed the programme, as well as the other one about Apethorpe. Ah well.
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Saw it on Sky and my "thoughts" are as given in thread 11 above.
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Oops sorry Welshcol!. PaulN, I think it was a very good programme, its just the content that horrified me. Did you feel it was okay to spend all that dosh on that project?
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All that dosh? I don't know where English Heritage gets its money from - donations, companies, the government, the Lottery, us tax payers? I enjoyed the programme as I think documentary making is a British forte. We are damned good at it. From the dotty music to the understated commentary, it was just excellent. I think if the end results in a superb garden based as best as they can manage it on a medievel garden, good luck to them. I for one would like to visit it.
As for £2million, I don't know if ANY GARDEN is worth that much.
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Well what else can you expect from a quango?
Our EEDA approved paying two German sculptors £250,000 of taxpayers' money, to erect the spires of the 10 lost churches of Dunwich off shore, sympathetically rendered in steel with concrete foundations to hold them in place. Awful.
Thankfully Dunwich is still as it always was... with it's excellent beach-side fish and chip cafe and a couple of miles of unspoilt nature reserve.
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