Some of the usual suspects at the 2004 picnic ...

L to R: John and Julie Gale, Nick Snashall and Ros Cleal cool off in the shade: 7 August 2004. Other photos from that day are here and here and here and here.  My thanks to PWD for sending me this one.

Julian Thomas in 1985 ...

Another fine view from Dr Phillpotts, this time of Julian Thomas planning on his cutting which seems to have been dubbed "Slot City" according to the captions in the Chronicler's album. Good example of the way planning frames sometimes have to be carefully supported in mid air. Doubtless the plumb-bobs were in use to ensure accurate planning on gradients. Looks rather an interesting cutting and that's a seriously large spoil heap ... must have been getting near the season's end if the JCB was on site as well as the dumper truck. Backfilling can't have been far away.

Jane Fitt having a well earned rest ...

Jim Irvine tells me that Jane Fitt lives in Cyprus now so if you come across the blog, by any chance, Jane, here's a photo of you during a break in the 1980 season and I trust you're very well. Suspect that the sleeve on the right belongs to Julie Ann Souter. The glasses in the foreground look suspiciously like mine.

Atmospheric view of the hill ...

 

My thanks to Richard Savage and the Crickley Hill Trust for permission to reproduce this rather fine black and white photo of Crickley taken from the south east, from Richard's 1988 booklet "Village, Fortress, Shrine, Crickley Hill 3500BC to AD500". I've not seen many photos that show the houses at the bottom.

Is that a Mobile Exhibition I see before me ...

A 1990 view of that part of Ullenwood where in earlier years football was often played, by this time, gradually turning into a caravan and car park. On high magnification I think I can just make out the words "Crickley Hill Trust" on the side of the big yellow bus. For an interesting account of its activities see this piece by Marjorie Imlah which I posted a few weeks ago.

Rainy day 1982 ...

Sometimes, although it was rare, the damp just got to us and made everyone feel a bit miserable: this looks like one of those days: even Phil's van of which I have affectionate memories looks a bit gloomy. Also in the shot, Joyce, Mike Taylor, Peggy Poole and Duncan. Erecting the shelter was always a tough job especially on a windy day. We used to weight down the plastic with turves.

Guess what was going on here ...

Can anyone help with what Dr Phillpotts is about here: rapt attention all round? I only know because of the caption that accompanied his archive when he sent it to me. This is during a 1982 party... L to R: Alex West, Mike Adams, Duncan, Gail Boyle, Dave, Ambrosio, Rhian Locke, Franklin, John Gale, Jane the Scot and the Chronicler himself presiding. Update: Steve Vaughan writes: "It's the wedding. Rhian is being joined in unholy matrimony with the hapless youth on her right by the hanging judge himself. John Gale acting as best man, I think. 1982?." Correct on all counts Steve, and amusingly different from your beloved's answer which was as follows: I think Phillpotts may have been presiding over the annual Awards - certainly Ambrosio was voted 'Personality of the Year' one season, and I think I have a hazy memory of this party. Was John Gale ever 'Mr Crickley' - I don't remember. In fact the biggest surprise of this picture is I don't ever recall Mr Gale being that darned handsome in a Village People meets Errol Flynn sort of way. On Mr Crickley - for some reason we still have one of the limestone Mr Crickley plaques in our hallway. Last time we moved - the removal man picked it up and said "Who's Mr Crickley then .... a dog?"

Three adjacent cuttings 1981 ...

Fine shot from Dr Phillpotts of the 1981 cuttings supervised by Terry Courtney, Steve Vaughan and Mike Taylor. Spotted here and there L to R: Andrew Powell, [Dr Phillpotts thought Rowena Dutton] but Kate Dumycz (formerly Cole) is pretty sure it's Kate, Paul Noakes, John Parry, Mike Taylor, Michel, Alex West.

Do you need a few more people, Dr Cleal?

 

Sure you couldn't squeeze another half dozen in? F3351 seems to have been labour intensive at the start: L to R: Rosemary, David Hole, Guillaume, Dominique, Ros Cleal, Randel Motkin, Rob and a few others begin the task of working their way down to the bottom of the pit. The line of the baulk can be dimly discerned where the tape measure runs across the pit.

Iron Age Walls 1979 Cutting AXV again ...

Dr Phillpotts must have nipped up the photographic tower part way through the1979 season to take this shot. The hole for a rather large timber lacing beam is on the left at the base of the upper wall. The section to the right hand side of the gangbreak was yet to be dug. I posted a few days ago here Chris's shot of Dave Southwood and me a few days later finishing digging out the right hand section, the cleaned up version of which is the the lower photo here.

Post picnic serenity - July 2008

 

From the Vaughan collection: Philip Dixon and JP in contemplative mood after the picnic during the summer.  

The unknown posthole ...

 

One of mine from 1980, but I forgot to note where it was: possibly cutting O7. Good definition of the sides.

Hut angst ...

I asked the other day whether the number of huts grew over the years: heartfelt observations from PWD on the matter:

"The huts - ah what a saga of tortures. We started in 1969 with one hut. This had been used at Leckhampton in the spring of that year, and I recall spending a couple of days on Richard’s lawn with Bas Roscoe making and fitting a solid pine table top to swing up and form a shutter across the triple window opening, and adding extra internal struts to strengthen the frame. This hut survived well for the whole programme of nearly 30 years, and was used as the main finds hut. Initially it was also used to store all the tools at the end of the day. In 1970 and 1971 we acquired small huts, both painted grey I think, for tools, and Richard donated another hut when he moved from Cheltenham to Rodhampton at around that time. The growing size of the excavation team led to the acquiring of further huts when available, up to about seven, not all of which survived wind and rain. The tortures came in trying to get all the tools and huts up to site in one day (for cheapness of lorry hire), and the logistics were formidable, with at first only Richard having a vehicle, and so being reliant on him to fetch food and water for the team up on site. At first we all stayed in Richard’s house in Cheltenham, moving to Ullenwood for the first time in I think 1971. Ah me. Must have been younger then.."

Ferris the film buff ...

Ferris the film critic has been at work:

"I was surprised to see that Crickley Hill Man had posted a still from the seminal Ealing comedy 'It Ain't 'Arf Tepid, Mum' on his blog, doubtless in error. However, film aficionados will be pleased to see this still of the classic scene in which Private Arwel (played by Frank Pike) puts his back out while delivering a wheelbarrow load of plastic, anti-conker safety goggles to school-mistress Mrs Anderson (a bewitching Keira Knightley). Film buffs will also relish the first screen appearance of Phillip Seymour Hoffman, playing the Boy in the Stripey jumper who eventually comes to Private Arwel's aid by applying the Heimlich manoeuvre to his back, unfortunately then putting Arwel in hospital, in traction, for the next six months, much to the amusement of the other members of the hapless wartime concert party."

Jane Dineen's lunch ...

Jane Dineen plainly wasn't being allowed to eat her lunch in peace and from the look on her face and the fellow on the left, comment may have been passed on the depth of the sandwich. This is right at the end of the 1980 season: the team was returfing the cuttings and we'd obviously got to the point where the huts were coming down as evidenced by the stack of hut walls and roofs behind her. Note the vintage dumper truck at the top on the right.

Ullenwood July 1999 ...

My thanks again to English Heritage National Monuments Record for permission to reproduce Michael Hesketh-Roberts's 'Cold War' series. Here are shown the last pair of the huts at Ullenwood right at the top on the left. I don't remember the diggers ever using these particular huts for anything but I stand to be corrected if I've forgotten...

Late 20th Century encampment ...

View from the Neolithic enclosure bank towards the Iron Age Rampart with late 20th century encampment in the middle. Dated to 1988 or 1989 by careful examination of the food residues ... Did the number of huts creep up over the years? Think it might be Terry Courtney sitting in the chair to the right of the black van.

Arwel on the stump ...

Another Philpotts 1990 effort. Not sure JAB's audience is listening: L to R: Paul Noakes, Mike Webb, Nick Snashall, Arwel Barrett, Bernie Dawson and Terry Courtney. Not sure why the huts are in the middle of a patch of flowers ...

A man, his barrow and the Elsan tent ...

Ranging Rod, silhouetted against a grey sky, pictured at the moment of tipping the barrow contents down the far side of the spoil heap. The spoil heaps were of some size and it required strength and good balance to be able to negotiate a full barrow up the heap and along the planks, which always shifted a little as you came along. The bottom section of this barrow run would have needed a fair bit of momentum to succeed as it is reasonably steep. It may even have required a breach of the Ferris site rule "Never run with a barrow". In the distance, the faded green-blue canvas of the Elsan tent. I described here the slightly uncomfortable lavatory arrangements with which we used to have to contend before the Leisuredrome was built. This Phillpotts photo from 1979 makes me suspect that this was the last season with the Elsans.

Dear oh dear ...

1979 again: where do we start? Carole Anderson's apron, I think: which has some pretty colours in it. My random-knit sweater? Certainly it made an impression: later that year, I was in a cinema in Cambridge and was recognised by Jane Charman, who dug at Crickley in maybe 1977 and 1978: she yelled in front of the whole audience "Julian, the last time I saw you was on ATV Midlands, talking about cow bones, wearing that horrendous random-knit jumper!" I tried to sink invisibly into the seat and failed. In the back pocket of my jeans: trowel, WHS, forged tang. And, Arwel Barrett, what are you doing and what are you wearing? I think, to be fair, Arwel and I had just retrieved, more or less intact, the horse's skull that was found in F3351 on Ros Cleal's cutting. That's what's in the wheelbarrow on a bed of plastic bags. But it wasn't that heavy, so I'm not entirely sure why Arwel appears locked at that rather uncomfortable-looking angle. 

Roll of Honour - Sponsors and Trustees 1988

The annual feat of organisation of the logistics of the excavation was a phenomenal achievement by Philip Dixon, Richard Savage and their helpers. The inside cover of Richard's 1988 booklet lists the major sponsors amongst the many who helped.  Where are they now? Well, I've done a bit of hunting about to see what I can find: Gloucs County Council, Cheltenham Borough Council, Tewkesbury Borough Council, GCAT, Nottingham University, St Paul & St Mary, Crickley Trust, Dulverton Trust, Mcfarlane Walker Trust, Not much sign of Dowty Trust, Major Peter Birchall, Budget are no longer in Cheltenham, Mira has changed hands, Mike Cuttell had a little bit of local difficulty a few years back, H W G Elwes's honorary degree page has a biography of him, no trace of P J Kerr, Cherry Lavell's books are on Amazon, Lloyds Bank is about to own half the UK financial system, Tom Morris DLC MIBE was the original owner of the land which he gave to the County Council that now forms the Country Park, no trace of J R Newbury, Spirax Sarco make steam systems, the Spurgin Trust appears to have sunk without trace, Imperial Trident Life is now part of Lincoln Assurance and had trouble with the FSA, Tungum, Warner Fairfax get a mention here, but seem to have disappeared, Westbury were bought by Persimmon, and Whitbread no longer brew beer ...

1980 revisited ...

 

Philip Dixon and Dave Southwood in 1980 with, I think, Jim Gale in the background digging a feature. The cutting doesn't look all that busy, but if you look at the lower photo in this earlier post, you'll see everyone was beavering away to the right of this shot.

Hat of the Year 1985 ...

It could sometimes knock a chap out, all that digging. A occasional lunchtime snooze was not unknown, but few of us, over the years, snoozed under a hat as stylish as this effort, worn by Alan Lupton in 1985, which caught the Phillpotts eye.  Careful comparative examination of other pictures in the Phillpotts archive reveals that the legs above Alan's head belong to Nadine Munn-Baron and the foot to her left to Adrian Corrigan. 

Teabreak 1980 ...

Transcribed from the Phillpotts album for the 1980 season: L to R: Julie Ann Souter, Jane Fitt, Bernie Dawson, Maryam Ghaffari, John Boden, Robert Roberts, Claude, Elsa Charlot, Arnelle, Marine, with Rebecca Chambers, Cara, Anne and Debby Durham in the background

Planning after a downpour ...

 

It looks as though Ros would need a snorkel for the detail on some parts of the plan here: in the background Sonia Hollos. 1980 excavation of the Long Mound from the Phillpotts archive.

The wind of change is blowing through this hillfort...

... from SSW to NNE if I have worked out the angles correctly.  This view is, I think, of the Irvine hair, being blown almost directly north. Ranging Rod, as he was known from his splendid height, looks SE or SSE - can any readers help jog my memory for Rod's surname? 

To whom do the legs belong?

 

Along the Iron Age walkway on Cutting AXV in 1979. You can see quite how steep the modern angle of the rampart remains is here by the way the two spectators are standing. I know whose the legs are only because I wrote the answer on the back of the photo all those years ago. But can any of my readers figure out whose legs appear? Modest prize at the reunion for the correct answers ...