The ideal day out for a Dad’s Army fan

In his weekly The Bar Man column, Jeff Hoyle discusses a recent visit from an old University friend…Another visitor, this time Steve who I met almost 50 years ago at university. He made the long trek down from Whitehaven in Cumbria on the train, via Carlisle, Newcastle, Peterborough and Ely.After such an arduous journey, we felt that we had to show him something special, so after availing him of an opportunity to purchase a bottle of Marshland cider at the ever-expanding North Wootton Makers Market, we took him to Wisbech, where the church and its memorial to those who served in the far east was an interesting appetiser for a look round the museum with its glass case containing items as diverse as Cromwell’s death mask to the skeleton of a whale that swam up the Nene.

I was tempted by books on the pubs of Wisbech, but at six volumes and a total of £72 it was a bit hardcore even for me, as was the three-volume set on the history of Wisbech football.While I was trying to resist temptation in the shop, Steve spotted a quote from an 18th Century traveller about the vast expanse of hideous bigness that was the fen. That called for a tour, and off we set, through various Tydds and Walpoles, until we arrived at the magnificent church at Walpole St Peter followed by a cup of tea at the increasingly impressive Brothers in Arms in nearby Walpole St. Andrew.To round off his day, we took him for a quietish pint at Ferry Lane, where idle chatter revealed that he was a huge fan of Dad’s Army. That was next day sorted, a trip down to Thetford where the museum was open and a series of events were taking place around town.

It was my first visit to the Dad’s Army Museum, and I found it thoroughly enjoyable. There were a number of ‘cosplayers’ dressed as characters from the show. The period Marigold’s tea room was in full swing and the amount of minutia relating to the programmes has to be seen to be believed. I learned, for example, that one episode was filmed in the sand pits at Leziate. Up in the market square and through the streets, the festival was in full swing, with Corporal Jones’ butcher’s van attracting the crowds, who could then quench their thirst with a couple of Dad’s Army-themed real ales from the local Drenchfoot brewery.From there, it was a short walk down through the stalls, pausing to pay our respects at the statue of Tom Paine and on to the one he really wanted to see, Captain Mainwaring sat on the bench by the river. A day of tremendous excitement, but we still had the energy to stroll down to the Live and Let Live in the evening, where I found myself in an interesting conversation with a chap who had been to one of my historic pub talks who told me that he lived nearby in what was once the Brushmakers Arms.He has a copy of the deeds that show it was once called the Bull and then the Salisbury Arms. I assumed that was a reference to the Prime Minister, but the name change happened around 1880, while Gascoyne-Cecil, the Marquess of Salisbury didn’t assume office until 1895.Another mystery. As indeed is this one. Next year, True’s Yard is hoping to stage an exhibition about tattoos. There are several references around to a ‘Lynn Budda’ tattoo, but no information as to what it signified, who wore it or what it looked like. Any further insights would be very welcome.bar.man@btinternet.com