Author: jamesclay

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Stuff: Top Ten Blog Posts 2025

In 2025 I published 164, which is nowhere near the 410 I did in 2024. 

Though in 2024 366 of those were for the photo of the day. So that meant 44 real posts. In 2023 I published 99 posts. Whilst in 2022 I published 429 posts on the blog, though I really only published 40 “original posts” then, with 365 photo a day posts and 24 advent posts. In 2021 I published just 46 posts to the blog. I did 423 posts in 2020, in 2019 it was 68, in 2018 I did 89 posts.

The tenth most popular post was Then and Now Take Two Again – Canon’s Marsh Gasworks.

Ninth post was a post reminiscing about The Longleat Miniature Railway.

Longleat Jungle Express

The post at number eight was Bristol Harbourside in the 1990s Part One.

The seventh most popular blog post asked the question “the cafe on tv at weston super mare is it real” which was a post about people Google searching that phrase and ending up on my blog. Now those same Google searches send people to this page rather than the original post on Cyril’s Cafe.

The post at six was from January 2024 and was from my series of Then and Now post, Then and Now – Cheddar Yeo Sword.

Fifth most popular post about Changes at the railway station in Weston-super-Mare.

The post at four was also one of my photograph posts and was Then and Now – Knightstone Island.

The blog post at third was 6. Feathers McGraw from the 2018 sculpture trail.

The second most popular post on the blog was a reflection on Young Sheldon about The significance of the cow…

The top post for 2025 was the same as the top post for 2024 and 2023, it  was “I guess you guys aren’t ready for that yet. But your kids are gonna love it.” Which was Michael J Fox joining Coldplay on stage in New Jersey in 2016, playing Johnny B Goode from Back to the Future.

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RNLI Lifeboat at Portishead Marina

RNLI Lifeboat at Portishead Marina

Though I start my photo a day officially on Thursday, I thought I should start earlier to get into the habit of both taking a photograph and posting it online.

Every day during 2026 I am aiming to take a photograph and post it to Instagram and this blog. I have done a photo a day before in 2012, 2014, 2016, 2020, 2022 and 2024. I did try in 2018 but I had a few technical issues so stopped after a few weeks.

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1970s Christmas at Hanbury Hall

I had planned to visit Hanbury Hall, after being told on my previous visit that Hanbury Hall did a 1970s themed Christmas. As I was going to be up in Worcestershire I would visit Croft Castle. I also went to Berrington Hall. I did leave time though to get to Hanbury Hall. I arrived at Hanbury Hall an hour before it closed.

Hanbury Hall

A country retreat in the heart of Worcestershire. The William and Mary-style country house and garden, originally a stage-set for summer parties, offer a glimpse into life at the turn of the 18th century.

Current saving £348.40
One adult £17.00
Parking – Free
Total saving £17.00
Cumulative saving £456.60
Membership cost £91.20
Net cumulative saving £365.40

I absolutely loved the 1970s and 1980s themed Christmas.

It wasn’t just decorations, across the house were lots of memorabilia and items from those decades. They had magazines, books, games, toys and even kitchen equipment. In some rooms they had old TVs showing Christmas programmes from the 1980s.

The whole thing was awesome and I am glad I made the time to visit.

After enjoying my nostalgic trip down memory lane, I went to the cafe and had a lovely cheese scone.

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A festive visit to Berrington Hall

Made the decision to visit Berrington Hall. I hadn’t planned to visit Berrington Hall, but on my way to Croft Castle as well as the brown National Trust sign to Croft Castle next to it was a sign for Berrington Hall. When I was at Croft Castle, I checked the map and saw that Berrington Hall was just six miles away and would take about fifteen minutes to get there. So, no brainer really, I headed off to Berrington Hall. I arrived to find the main car park was full, and it was a little challenging to find the overflow car park.

Berrington Hall had gone for a Georgian Christmas theme.

We invite you to celebrate Christmas in true 18th-century style at Berrington Hall. Wander through the house as it glows with festive charm and experience the warmth, refinement and rituals of a Georgian country Christmas. Discover traditional decorations, atmospheric lighting, fireplaces filled with dried flowers, magnificent Christmas trees and a unique ‘below stairs’ experience.

They had also invited the Ludlow Male Voice Choir to sing carols in the house, which added to the festive feel to the place.

Berrington Hall

Standing proud and strong, this fine Georgian mansion sits within ‘Capability’ Brown’s final garden and landscape. In the house, discover jewel-like interiors, designed by Henry Holland and home to the Harley, Rodney and Cawley families.  There are plenty of walks through the parkland through woodlands, wildflower meadows and around Berrington’s pool, which is a Site of Special Scientific Interest.  The gardens are a treat for all the senses throughout the year, with bluebells and blossom in Spring, roses in summer and apples in autumn. 

Current saving £331.40
One adult £17.00
Parking – Free
Total saving £17.00
Cumulative saving £439.60
Membership cost £91.20
Net cumulative saving £348.40

It was interesting to compare Berrington Hall with Croft Castle. Berrington Hall had a certain Georgian elegance in the decoration, whereas Croft Castle was a more simplistic affair.

There was an impressive staircase.

The first floor was closed to visitors, but they had opened up the basement kitchens. I would like to make a return visit and explore the first floor rooms. 

I did enjoy looking at the laundry room with the huge drying racks.

I went to the stables café and had coffee and a toasted teacake. They did forget my teacake, so I had to chase that. It was a rather nice teacake.

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Christmas at Croft Castle

I had planned to visit Hanbury Hall, after being told on my previous visit that Hanbury Hall did a 1970s themed Christmas. As I was going to be up in Worcestershire I would visit another property as well. I looked over the National Trust website and chose to go to Croft Castle.

Croft Castle

Situated on the English-Welsh border, Croft is a quiet, ancient place steeped in British history and politics with a picturesque castle and medieval parkland re-fashioned during the 18th century. Surrounded by 1,500 acres of woods, park and farmland. Take a way marked walk to discover an abundance of nature at this special place.  The two acre walled garden is a wildlife haven, attracting butterflies, bees, birds and insects. It is the perfect place to enjoy the changing seasons, with daffodils and blossom in spring, roses and wisteria in summer and apples in autumn. 

Current saving £314.40
One adult £17.00
Parking – Free
Total saving £17.00
Cumulative saving £422.60
Membership cost £91.20
Net cumulative saving £331.40

It took over two hours to drive to Croft Castle, up the Wye Valley, through Hereford and pass Leominster. I drove up the road to Croft Castle and parked the car.

The house had a Victorian themed Christmas decoration.

The decorations were lovely and the house has some impressive rooms.

Wander through Croft Castle’s richly decorated rooms and experience Christmas past with a fresh, imaginative twist. From a twinkling forest of trees filling the Entrance Hall with a magical welcome, to the cosy Nursery capturing the excitement of Christmas Eve, each space invites you into a festive story.

Did think about getting some soup from the café but the café was very busy, no free tables and a long queue. The roasted parsnip soup sounded rather nice though.

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Then and Now – Hanbury Hall

This is a regular series of blogs about photographs of the same place taken years apart. I quite like those Then and Now comparison photographs that you see in books or on the Twitter or Facebook.  The first of the posts in this series was of a council building in Manchester.

I always thought I should give then and now photographs a go. However what I have started to notice is that I have been doing Then and Now photographs unintentionally over the years and have been taking photographs of the same thing or place from the same view or perspective years apart.

I took this photograph of Hanbury Hall in December 2025 using an iPhone 13.

What I hadn’t realised was that a couple of weeks ago in November 2025, I took an almost identical shot.

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Christmas at Tyntesfield

Tyntesfield House

After enjoying my National Trust membership in 2023, I decided I would rejoin the Trust for 2025.

I visited Tyntesfield back in February and again on a lovely sunny day in August. I was back to see Christmas at Tyntesfield.

Back in 2023 I had visited Tyntesfield at Christmas, and had enjoyed the Victorian Christmas themed rooms. The theme this year , though festive, was based around fairy tales and other stories. There was Cinderella, Jack and the Beanstalk, Rapunzel, and Alice in Wonderland, to name a few. It was nice, but I think I preferred the Victorian look they did back in 2023.

Tyntesfield

An ornate Victorian Gothic Revival house with extensive garden and parkland, just a stone’s throw from Bristol

Current saving £289.40
One adult £20.00
Parking – £5.00
Total saving £25.00
Cumulative saving £405.60
Membership cost £91.20
Net cumulative saving £314.40