Steventon Country Fair - Celebrating 250 Years of Jane Austen at "The Cradle of her Genius"

Last Sunday, I was back in Steventon for Steventon Country Fair, a special event held to commemorate 250 years of Jane Austen. There hasn't been a country fair in Steventon for over 50 years, and usually the "Pump Field" where Jane's childhood home, Steventon Rectory, once stood, is closed to visitors and not clearly visible from the road. It was a unique occasion to celebrate Jane at her birthplace and explore the site of Steventon Rectory - the "cradle of her genius" - closer than ever. Therefore I have decided to feature the occasion here in my blog and return to the school topic a little later!

The hay on the field had been cut and the overgrown hedges cut neatly for the occasion. A horse and cart had been brought to the field for "the Arrival of Jane Austen" - one of the highlights of the event where everyone gathered on the field to watch "Jane" arrive.

After that, visitors paraded around the arena in their Regency finest.

There was elegant Regency dancing from the Hampshire Regency Dancers. 

Morris dancing with three different groups performing to traditional folk music helped bring the country fair atmosphere to life. 

Garston Gallopers 

Mayfly Morris 

The highlight of the event for many were the special guests: Historian Dr Lucy Worsley and Adrian Lukis - Mr Wickham from Pride and Prejudice 1995! 

Dr Lucy Worsley

I enjoyed listening to Lucy Worsley's amusing and entertaining stories about the various homes of Jane Austen that she narrated in her usual expressive, cheeky style! 

She also showed us a map of the site during Jane Austen's time and a floor plan of Steventon Rectory, both which were very interesting to see. 

Adrian Lukis (Mr Wickham)

And of course it was wonderful to see Mr Wickham in real life and hear his inside stories in a Q & A about filming Pride and Prejudice. For example, he was asked which character he would choose to play (if he was younger!), and he replied "Mr Collins"! 

Spinning wool

Traditional games, such as axe-throwing, were set up, and traditional craft demonstrations, such as weaving and lace-making gave visitors an idea of village life at the time of Jane Austen. 

Whitchurch Silk Mill team demonstrating weaving on a loom. 

Moreover, there was a number of stalls serving delicious food, some of it made by the villagers. There were also various stalls selling items, such as Regency accessories and books. 

Guests could roam the field freely and peruse the two things left of Steventon Rectory: the now fenced well (hence, the name "Pump Field"), which was situated behind the Rectory, and the impressive lime tree planted in front of the Rectory by Jane's oldest brother, Rev. James Austen, when he was Rector of Steventon. 

Visitors exploring the Pump Field. 

The Old Rectory well. 

James Austen's lime tree. 

From the field, we got a good view of the New Rectory on the opposite field, which was built for Jane's nephew, Rev William Knight, by Edward Austen Knight after the Old Rectory was pulled down in the 1820s. 

The New Rectory 

It felt so incredibly special to be part of this unique event, and I hope you enjoyed reading about it and getting a good view of Jane Austen's birthplace. 

Kudos to the village community who put together this beautiful event, showing excellent community effort!

Jane Austen's Statue Unveiling at Alton Assembly Rooms

Regency Week is here and, marking 250 years from the birth of Jane Austen, a statue has been unveiled in front of the Alton Assembly Rooms. Today, on Regency Day, excitement built up as crowds of Janeites paraded from the market square and then gathered around the Assembly Rooms to witness the unveiling. 

After opening speeches by Caroline Jane Knight (second left), descendant of Edward Austen Knight, and Cllr Annette Eyre, the Mayor of Alton, the statue was unveiled by the Mayor together with Jeremy Knight (also of the Knight family of Chawton House). 

Cllr Jannette Eyre, Mayor of Alton's opening speech. 

Unveiling of the statue by the Mayor of Alton and Jeremy Knight.

The sculptor, Mark Coreth, collaborated with the Morris Singer foundry to create the bronze sculpture. He explained that he wanted Jane Austen to "rise from her books" and designed the sculpture to reflect her actual height (close to 5'8", which was a significant height for a woman of her time). 

Mark Coreth

The statue is situated in a newly created "Regency Garden" with a Regency-inspired planting scheme and flowers mentioned in Jane Austen's letters. I'm sure the Alton residents will enjoy sitting on the "carriage benches" in this garden and take in their surroundings.

It was wonderful to be there this beautiful (if hot!) day and soak up the atmosphere. This is the busiest, most bustling and lively Regency Day I have seen!

What do you think about the new statue? 

Celebrating the Launch of the Overton Jane Austen Trails

This weekend saw the launch of the Overton Jane Austen Trails. Overton is a village close to Steventon where Jane Austen often went shopping and to visit her brother, James, who was Curate at St Mary's Church - you may have read my blog post about Overton from a few years ago and seen the buildings with connections to Jane Austen. 

I was excited to learn that there would be trails dedicated to Jane Austen's Overton;  it is so lovely to be able to walk in the footsteps of Jane Austen in these lovely, idyllic localities around the home of her childhood and youth, and a trail is always a great help! 

The launch weekend has included a variety of events, such as guided walks, talks, exhibitions, fairs and performances. Today, I attended the unveiling of the Overton Jane Austen Trails Information Board in front of the community hall and the library, right at the heart of Overton. 

The Board was unveiled by the Deputy Mayor of Basingstoke, Cllr Colin Phillimore, who spoke about his love for the local area and its connection to Jane Austen. 

The Community Centre was buzzing with stalls, a very popular cafe serving Regency style treats and a stage set up for performances and talks. 

I met the talented artist behind the gorgeous map, Jo South, who had various art prints featuring the local area on display. You can access her work on her website and on her Facebook page where you can see short videos of how she created the map and also photos of the trail markers being set up by volunteers at various locations. 

I was delighted to notice several shop windows decked up to commemorate the occasion and I actually purchased some Regency accessories at one of the shops! 

I also had a delicious meal at the White Hart, which was a coaching inn during Jane Austen's times. Coaches would depart for London from here. 

If you are interested in doing a trail, there are three trails to choose from:  

• a 2 1/2 miles circular walking trail
• a 9 mile waymarked walking trail with shorter options 
• a 12 mile cycle trail

I cannot wait to do one of these trails and share with you how I get on! 

Click here for further information on the trails: www.overtonjaneaustentrails.org. 

Another Exciting Regency Week!

Alton Regency Week - one of my favourite events of the year - started off with the traditional Regency Market last Saturday. The atmosphere was quiet but festive, with tempting stalls, carriage rides, Morris dances and guided walks. It was wonderful to see so many in costume, enjoying the sunny day in gorgeous Alton. 

It was lovely to meet many friends, old and new, admire their gowns and bonnets and and share our news. 

Jenny Colquhoun was back with her fluffy friend, Freddie Wentworth, who was smartly attired in uniform as he always is! 

Hazel Mills had been busy sewing gowns and reticules besides industriously writing her detailed, fascinating posts in "Jane Austen Daily" on Facebook. 

The Jane Austen Literacy Foundation was represented by Carla Balakgie and Julia Grantham - sadly its founder, Caroline Jane Knight, was not able to make it this year. 

Sophie and Abbie had a great selection of Indian-inspired accessories for sale this year. 

Some of the shops had fantastic window displays up.

This year, I decided to learn more about the local history of Alton and join a guided walk by Bob and Carol. It was fascinating, very informative but also very entertaining. I will take you on my tour in my next post. 

I spotted this cafe during my walk! Needless to say, it was very busy on the day. 

On Sunday, I joined the annual charity walk from Jane Austen's House to Chawton House, in aid of the Jane Austen Literacy Foundation. I always love being part of this event to support such a worthy cause. 

 We assembled near the Jane Austen statue for a group photo. 

A short walk across the field to the barn where our picnic was held. Jeremy Knight, a descendant of Jane Austen's brother, Edward, told us that he had salvaged the building from a local Sainsbury's car park, and what a fitting location for an old barn this field is!

Jeremy, Carol and Paul Knight in the barn. 

Local author, Zoe Wheddon, came to talk about her new book, "Jane Austen: Daddy's Girl", which describes the huge influence that George Austen had on Jane Austen. I enjoyed Zoe's earlier book, "Jane Austen's Best Friend", where Zoe explored Jane's relationship with her closest friend, Martha Lloyd.

Zoe Wheddon with Sophie Andrews ("Laughing with Lizzie") and Abbie. 

Our lovely host, Carla Balakgie.

Judges Tony Grant (blogger of "London Calling") and author Helena Kelly, announced the winner for this year's Short Story Competition: Ann Evans who wrote "The Dawn Chorus". This was followed by Ann's lively reading of her cleverly written short story, which delighted us all.  

 

Hazel Mills then entertained us with her detailed stories about Jane Austen's contemporaries. So captivating - one even had a Poldark connection! 

An altogether enjoyable day in great company!