Colin Crosby Heritage Tours

Southwold

Southwold is an exquisite little seaside town on the Suffolk coast.

The town is built around nine greens, constructed as fire breaks after a disastrous fire. As well as some elegant Georgian houses, there are many colourwashed cottages, a traditional feature of Essex and Suffolk.

Southwold Pier, which was in a ruinous state until recently, has been superbly rebuilt by a local millionaire, and has a clever but amusing water sculpture.

The Battle of Sole Bay was fought off Southwold in the 17th century. One of the leaders of the English side was the Duke of York, who later became James II.

The magnificent mediaeval parish church is dedicated to St. Edmund, the martyr King of East Anglia. Among the treasures of the church is a Jack which chimes the hours.

A regular visitor to Southwold was Eric Blair, who achieved literary fame under the name George Orwell. Among his writings are "1984" and "Animal Farm", coining the expressions "Big Brother is watching you" and "all animals are equal, but some are more equal than others".

Michael Palin, most famous as a member of the Monty Python team and for his TV travel series, wrote a TV film about a teenager and his holidays with his parents at Southwold.

Probably Southwold's best known feature visually is the lighthouse, dominating the cottages which cluster round it. Nearby is Adnam's brewery, which still uses carthorses to pull its drays.

Across the River Blyth is Walberswick, once the home of the famed Scottish designer Charles Rennie Mackintosh.