I chose a coronation chicken sandwich which was delicious. Mr C’s choice arrived as a sandwich rather than the baguette that he had ordered. This was swiftly replaced.

We parked in the long stay carpark which involves a short walk into the village. We couldn’t resist visiting the ‘Man Cave’ with its eclectic range of stock. I was quite taken with the model of a police telephone box reminding me of the Tardis in Dr Who but neither of us were tempted to make a purchase.

Mr C was disappointed to find that the cookshop was closed for the day with a sign on the door stating ‘sorry for any inconvenience’!

We visited the Broadway Museum and Art Gallery which is housed in a delightful old building, Tudor House. After visiting the museum Mr C encountered his third disappointment of the day… Stopping for liquid refreshments at a nearby tearoom Mr C chose a vanilla milkshake. He took a sip only to find that is was banana flavoured, one of the few food tastes he does not like. This too was quickly replaced.

By now it was time to return to the car and set off homeward. We intended to enjoy ‘fine dining’ on the patio but heavy traffic slowed us down so we dined in a local restaurant, The Water Rat instead.

We set off on our journey in glorious sunshine; planning to have lunch on the way. The SatNav was advising  an hour’s delay on the motorway so we decided to take a detour which led us to a lovely café that we have previously visited, The Café Craycombe at Fladbury in the Vale of Evesham.

We enjoyed our lunch sitting outside soaking up the rays.  I chose a tuna and sweetcorn baguette which was delicious.

After lunch the motorway delay seemed to have subsided so we rejoined it, stopping off at Gloucester services for a drink. Inside the services was hectic so I found the perfect seat overlooking the outside pool and the wildlife area. Back on the road the SatNav detoured us off the motorway onto delightful country roads although towards the end of our journey we got stuck behind a tractor on a narrow lane with no chance of overtaking.

We eventually arrived in Sherborne and, after a slight confusion with parking, we checked in to the Eastbury Hotel. We were taken to our lovely room overlooking the garden. After unpacking our bags we took advantage of the complimentary Sloe Gin that was conveniently waiting for us.

We freshened up before walking to The Green restaurant for dinner. The food and service was as good as we remembered it from our previous visits in 2019. I chose skate wing followed by meadow fresh nougat. We returned to the hotel for a nightcap where I sampled the local Sherborne Castle rose wine. I wasn’t disappointed.