Saffron Walden
Barnstorming!
Thursday 19 October 2023
Gordon Ridgewell has turned his focus on one of our county’s architectural gems. “I had a look at Prior’s Hall Barn – now owned by English Heritage and with FREE entrance,” he tells us. And English Heritage tells us: “Prior’s Hall Barn is one of the finest surviving medieval barns in the east of England. […] Read more >
An eye on the winter ahead…
Thursday 19 October 2023
Be prepared! An age-old adage that has served photographer Gordon Ridgewell well over the years… and one that is clearly held dear across the natural world. Gordon takes up the story: “I had a walk round Bridge End Garden in Saffron Walden on one of the last sunny days to find squirrels stashing away food […] Read more >
With this Ring…
Friday 6 October 2023
Just a simple shot from photographer Gordon Ridgewell to share the very essence of our beautiful Essex… “I had a ride out early the other morning as the mist was rising and captured this shot. “Audley End House stands in the parish of Saffron Walden. The Ring stands in the parish of Littlebury, over the […] Read more >
Of jabs and pumps…
Thursday 7 October 2021
No one catches the spirit of the age quite like photographer Gordon Ridgewell. Last month he went to Saffron Walden leisure centre for his Covid booster, benefiting from “a shot in both arms with the flu jab included”. It was also the time of the fuel crisis, hence the wry observation “Almost as many people […] Read more >
The signs are there if you look… so not so fast with that sharp tongue, Gordon!
Wednesday 11 August 2021
Photographer Gordon Ridgewell has had to perform something of a volte-face after one of his typically wry observations… Having snapped a signpost lacking any place names, Gordon made the withering remark: “If you want a mystery tour, come to north-west Essex as we have a confused signpost. Probably a paint job, but it looks funny. […] Read more >
Gordon shares the spring in his step
Thursday 25 March 2021
Spring is, in its familiar fashion, spluttering to life, but ace photographer Gordon Ridgewell is showing no such reticence as he sends us this picture of All Saints Church at Rickling, near Saffron Walden. “I’ve just had a ride out,” he tells us. “The sun is shining, the sky is blue, the flowers are out […] Read more >
Crocuses are living proof we’re on the way!
Friday 5 March 2021
As a chilly week draws to a close, our man Gordon Ridgewell shares a couple of images to remind us that spring is (almost) here. “I had to go to the doctor and had a walk around to find these crocuses at Walden Place in Saffron Walden. They are not saffron crocuses as they flower […] Read more >
Builder wins appeal for 150 new homes in Saffron Walden
Tuesday 9 February 2021
A developer has won an appeal to build 150 homes in Saffron Walden. The scheme, east of Thaxted Road, had been refused by Uttlesford District Council in February last year as the local authority said it did not provide sufficient green and amenity space. It was also unhappy with the siting of the play area. […] Read more >
‘Solar farms: it’s the landscape that pays the price’
Monday 8 February 2021
With the number of solar farms proposed for Essex growing seemingly every time we open a newspaper, it is timely to share this letter from Richard Haynes published in the Saffron Walden Reporter. Richard is a member of both CPRE Essex and the Uttlesford Local Plan Community Forum. Dear Sir, I refer to Edward Gildea’s […] Read more >
Our Lovely Essex: how things have changed in Saffron Walden!
Friday 19 June 2020
Gordon Ridgewell’s shot of Castle Street in Saffron Walden reminds us how much things can change. “In the early 1900s, 1,200 people lived in this street and it had five pubs, according to the 1911 census,” says Gordon. “When I was at school in the 1940s I was told not to walk here and policemen […] Read more >