A six-month closure was this spring extended until October and the crossing fortified with security fencing to stop rebel walkers crossing the line. The crossing was closed in October 2022, but despite visits from engineers, it has not been fixed. According to Network Rail, it had to close the crossing because the new system was showing a green light when a train was approaching on the 100mph stretch of line. The crossing must be restored, and this historic access route reestablished between Mellis Common to the north – the largest area of unfenced common land in England – and the fields and woods to the south of the railway.”Ĭowpasture Lane crosses the railway at a pedestrian level crossing that last year was upgraded by Network Rail from a latched gate to red and green lights and an audible warning signal to guide walkers across. “Now it’s being closed again, this time by neglect and inattention on the part of Network Rail, who via the council have issued a rolling set of temporary closures, extending indefinitely into the future.
In the 1980s, it was the site of a major battle, led by Roger Deakin, to prevent it being ploughed over and lost. Robert Macfarlane, who is Deakin’s literary executor and has written extensively about his old friend, said: “Cowpasture Lane is a centuries-old footpath and right of way: a medieval green lane which has already been dramatically saved once from closure. Photograph: Sarah Lucy Brown/The Guardian The introduction of this article was amended on 2 April 2023 to credit Jackie Morris as co-author of the book, in line with the information provided in the subheading and elsewhere in the text.A six-month closure was this spring extended until October. It is a reminder that every acorn, tree and dandelion is a world in itself and a sacred part of our own.Īt Watford Palace theatre until 8 April then at Polka theatre, London, 13 April-7 May and Theatre By the Lake, Keswick, 24 May-3 June. “What takes years to grow takes second to crush,” we are told. The nature on our doorstep so often goes unobserved but contains wonders, Jay discovers. There is beautiful puppetry designed by Amber Donovan Kahn and lovely visual abstractions in Hannah Sibai’s set including artfully fluttering ocean waves and a giant luminous globe which looks like an oversized pop-up of Morris’s illustration in the book.
Erskine and Dollard’s tunes require sometimes awkward shifts and not every singer hits the most difficult notes but the elegance, invention and abundant sense of magic in this musical wins out. Sweet whimsy dominates the first half, which has a few disjointed moments, but the show gets smoother, picking up its pace. Sweet whimsy … Paula James, Toby De Salis, Miriam Nyarko and Alex Wingfield in The Lost Spells
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