After breakfast, which was was busier but less chaotic than the previous day, we drove to Raby Castle. As the weather was fair when we arrived we chose to visit the gardens and grounds. We started with the walled garden then walked around the lower lake taking in views of the castle.

When we arrived at the castle courtyard we walked around the castle perimeter to get an appreciation of it before we went inside the castle. The castle is stunning and rich with history which the knowledgeable room guides were happy to share with us as we made our way around.

We had quiche for lunch in the café before we left to visit Staindrop and the Church of St Mary where significant (historical) members of the Neville family, that once owned Raby Castle, have their tombs. There was still time to spare so we decided to visit Brancepath Church as we journeyed back to Durham. We parked just outside the driveway to the church which took us past the castle where there was a sign outside saying queue here for the 4pm tour.

I found the church amazing. It looked old from the outside and modern, light and airy from within. It had a special feel to it and I would have liked to linger longer but Mr C had his eye on the castle tour.

When we arrived at the tour joining point we found that it was for pre-booked tickets  as part of the Heritage Open Days scheme. We were lucky, two people had dropped out and we were able to join the tour that was guided by the husband of the current owner. He told us of the history of the castle and the owners. The final room that he showed us was the chapel which he advised was consecrated and used by the village when the Church had been gutted due to a fire over twenty years ago. This explains the incongruity of the Parish Church’s interior and exterior appearance.

By the time the tour had finished it was nearly 6pm and we had not been able to book an evening meal in Durham so we opted for plan B. We drove to Seaham in search of fish and chips, eventually finding them in Gills, opposite the Eleven ‘O’ One, Tommy memorial sculpture. The food was cooked to order, we dined in, eating out of a box. The Haddock that I chose melted in my mouth.

After our long day out we returned to our hotel to chill with a cup of tea in our newly acquired mugs before venturing out to the Swan for a nightcap.

A church has graced the banks of the River Thames in Hurley since Saxon times.

Formerly a Benedictine priory the monk’s traditions of hospitality, care and spiritual renewal still continue to this day. And the chime of St Mary’s bells ring out across the village, as they have for over a millennium.*

In 1545 the estates passed to John Lovelace and much of the materials from the Old Priory were used to build the first Ladye Place Mansion. At this time the east end of the church was filled in and repaired to the shape it is today. At the turn of the 17th century, Richard, 1st Baron Lovelace of Hurley, installed the bell turret and the largest bell.

A major restoration took place in 1852 when the large porch over the South West Door was removed. The east end of the church was completely rebuilt and the existing east windows and the bath stone screen behind the Altar were installed.

In 1987, after many years of planning, thought and prayer, the Priory Room extension was built and dedicated by the newly enthroned Bishop of Oxford, Richard Harries, on 2nd July 1987.

The Lovelace Memorial was erected c 1605. The left-hand figure is Richard Lovelace esquire (1542-1601), son of John Lovelace, gentleman (c1515-1558).  At his death Richard Lovelace was Lord Lieutenant of the County of Berkshire and Constable of Windosor Castle. An earlier memorial to John Lovelace was destroyed in the 19th century.

The right-hand figure is Sir Richard Lovelace, knight, (1565-1634), son and heir of the other figure. He was knighted in 1599 at Dublin “in ye wars” against the Irish. He was created 1st Lord Lovelace of Hurley by Charles I in 1627. He was High Steward of Maidenhead from 1623 until his death, and was keeper of the rolls or records for the county of Berkshire. He erected this memorial and probably composed the epitaphs.**

The ancient cross. The wooden cross, which was removed from the tower of St. Mary the Virgin, Hurley, was originally placed in the middle of the Saxon Burial Ground about 1040. It was then thought that it was erected on top of the Priory Bell Tower, and on the dissolution of the priory was re-erected on the tower of the present church, which was the nave of the original priory.

This cross must be one of the oldest wooden crosses in England, and it is now safely placed high up against the East wall of the church.**

*From a church pamphlet
**From information board within the church