Muchelney Abbey

Our plan for the day was to visit Dorchester having changed our plans and bypassed it earlier in the week. I was keeping an eye on the weather and thinking about a visit to Muchelney Abbey, a place recommended as a wet weather visit by the member of staff we got chatting to whilst visiting Sherborne Old Castle. We chose Muchelney Abbey in Langport  as sunshine and clouds were forcast there rather than the rain that was forecast in all other areas nearby. Muchelney Abbey is interesting with many rooms intact and has the only complete thatched monks’ lavatory in England.

Parish Church of St Peter and St Paul

While we were at Muchelney Abbey we had a long chat with the member of staff that was manning the entrance desk. We discussed the history of the area and some of its links to history in Shropshire. Later we walked around the corner to visit the Parish Church of St Peter and St Paul. As we entered we were surprised to see a groom with his best man and ushers and noticed that the church was all decked out ready for a wedding. They were just about to leave so were able to spend a few minutes to enjoying the features of the church without disrupting their preparations.

Barrington Court

We then drove to Barrington Court, restored by Colonel Lyle between 1920 and 1925. We enjoyed a walk around the gardens before lunch, after which we took a tour of the house.

Tintinhull Garden

There was still time to spare so we visited Tintinhull Garden which we had noticed earlier in the day whilst we were on our way to Muchelney Abbey. Before walking around the gardens we had tea and cake, in my case cranberry and yoghurt flapjack. The gardens were delightful.

Sparkling Elderflower Gin and Tonic

Before dining in the hotel, we had a sparkling elderflower gin and tonic aperitif. In celebration of World Gin Day the hotel was promoting this cocktail which included a sprig of elderflower from its own kitchen garden. Whilst dining we noticed that another couple had chosen the tasting menu and that they were being served at a much more leisurely pace than we had been the day before.

16 Comments CherryPie on Jul 18th 2019

16 Responses to “Sherborne – Day Seven”

  1. ....peter says:

    another day a new surprise Cherie… i like your travels they are so informative… and i can expect an aperitif or a meal at the end your day….peter:)

  2. So much history about the abbey.
    I bet the bricks used in the footpath are older than my home country!

    • CherryPie says:

      The footpath is in a National Trust property and they are always a bit lite on sharing the full history of their properties. I rather like the footpath but I can’t find any information about it!

      • >National Trust property and they are always a bit lite on sharing the full history of their properties

        He he… I wonder why… They should know that the more they are trying to hide, the more that’s going to pique our curiosity, right?

        • CherryPie says:

          The National Trust has moved away from promoting the history of the buildings that they own.

          The National Trust has become a corporate body and is currently promoting family friendly, gay inclusiveness and corporate bland food in their restaurants rather than celebrating the individualities of their properties under their care. The National Trust are focused on making money…

  3. Ginnie says:

    You had me at “the only complete thatched monks’ lavatory in England,” until I read about your sparkling elderflower gin and tonic aperitif. HA!

    • CherryPie says:

      Click on the photo for a larger view and you can see the thatched monks lavatory :-)

      I had not had even a whiff of Gin (or any other alcohol during our morning visit to the Abbey and beyond…

  4. I am not Christian, but I do love to see a wedding in a traditional church setting. Particularly in an old church like St Peter and St Paul which would look at its very best for the couple, family and community.

  5. Astrid says:

    You DO visit wonderful sites and it is a joy to follow you on your travels……
    hmmmm I gladly would have joined you with the sparkling elderflower gin and tonic aperitif. We tasted homemade elderflower wine the other day.
    Have a wonderful weekend, Cherry

    • CherryPie says:

      Thank you Astrid :-)

      It is usually me that does the research to find the places we visit. Sometimes Mr C is reluctant to go with my ideas but I know he will like them, which is why I choose them :-)

      I often have elderflower presse as a refreshing non-alcoholic drink when I am out for lunch. I have not hear of elderflower wine but I am guessing the taste is quite delicate.

      For a number of years my dad used to make wine, the best being ‘gorse wine’ It was quite awful to pick the flowers due to the thorns.

      I hope you have a wonderful weekend too :-)

  6. I love that part of the world (though encountered some maniac drivers there) and all of those are wonderful places to visit. Did you spot the roof in the church? It had some medieval floor tiles from the abbey, too, I think. AND it looks like you got luck with the weather. Excellent photos, CP.

    • CherryPie says:

      I have some pictures of the spectacular church roof.

      Due to the wedding distractions I forgot to look closely at the medieval floor tiles which were one of the reasons I wanted to visit the church after reading about them in Muchelney Abbey.

      We had amazing luck with the weather. I think we were in the one and only spot in England that was sunny that week!

  7. The Yum List says:

    I really do enjoy being outdoors especially when there is so much greenery.