Bardon Mill Bob & Mike Ducker Well done to the Bowes which got Bardon Mill on to GMB, Channel 4 and the tabloids for its reopening, thanks to the genius ‘ordering food in the snow’ video and its social media clout. Well played by Ian and Terri-Lou. And now that we have the sound of laughter back on the green, next to come will be the clink of quoits, due to restart May 19! A rather different video with Andrew Birley reintroduces us to Vindolanda and its latest excavation news (google Roman Vindolanda: An Introduction 2021). The car park is also one place now to pick up the AD122 bus nine times a day every day between Hexham and Haltwhistle via The Sill now it’s summer. The bus also makes one stop in Bardon Mill by the Bowes first thing, at 8.54am, and last thing too.
For those who want to admire local art after a bracing walk in the countryside, why not head to Allendale, where a local artist is getting ready to open a new gallery. Recently named as one of the most eccentric villages in the UK by the Guardian, Allendale’s newest opening is Gallery in the Mill at Allen Mill, which will have its official socially distanced launch party on Saturday, May 1. The gallery has been established by local artist and former bed and breakfast owner Carol Davison, where she will display works inspired by Northumberland and her world travels. Her paintings specialise in landscapes ranging from Northumberland to the foothills of the Himalayas, which she was inspired by one a trip to the North of India.