Philippa Pearce - Tom's Midnight Garden, etc.

[Eddie Muir]

Lovely photos, Courtenay. Where are the ones of the pub?

[Courtenay]

I did have dinner at a pub in Little Shelford, but although it was a nice-looking pub that served Thai food (I usually like Thai food) and supposedly had rave reviews, the food was awful. So I didn't take any photos of that one.

Anyway, why would I be posting photos of pubs on an Enid Blyton website — talk about lowering the tone!!

[Daisy]

It is — that's a tyre swing, presumably one that children play on. I think Daisy is just joking about there being a canoe out of sight, since Minnow on the Say (which I've recently read) is based on this same river and features a canoe, but there isn't one in the photo!

Quite correct Courtenay, I was joking. (And in fact you had already mentioned the tyre.)

[Courtenay]

Well, as I said, the water looked a bit low for canoeing at the moment, but we haven't had much rain since the early spring. It would be interesting to take a walk along the river itself, if there's a path along it (I'm not sure), and do some sightseeing! I'd like to explore the Shelford area further if I visit again some day.

I did wonder, reading Minnow on the Say, if the side channel of the river and the old bridge, which play a key part in the story, were real locations along the Cam. The river does have two channels just there in between the two Shelfords — you can see them featured on Little Shelford's village sign, flowing towards the sun at the top. The panel next to the sign (I took a photo of it too) says the easterly branch is artificial and was cut in the 17th century — the photo I've posted, with the tyre swing, is of the westerly branch, while the easterly had a little artificial weir in it. But both of them were flowing about equally, so I don't think that can have been the location Philippa Pearce was thinking of for the half-hidden old course of the river in the story, unless it's all changed since the 1950s. Going by the map, the split into two channels happens just downstream from Kings Mill where Pearce lived, but there are many other places where the river has branches or diversions or has otherwise obviously been modified from its natural course. I expect you'd have to know it as well as she did in order to pinpoint exact locations!

[Daisy]

Of course, that could have been an invention - the layout of the land can be adapted to fit a story quite easily.

[Courtenay]

Yes, I thought that too — I was just wondering whether it was based on an actual location along the river or just added for the purposes of the story. I think the latter is probably more likely! But as there certainly are side branches and other places where the course of the river has been changed over the centuries, those could easily be adapted in an author's imagination to fit that part of the plot, as you say.

[Stephen]

Back in the 80s, I remember Mum being incredibly happy to find a copy of one of her favourite books, 'Tom's Midnight Garden' in a second hand shop. Well I did have a couple of skim throughs myself and even went so far as to write a book review of it for school, although it was in my teenage years when I had somewhat gone off fiction, and it was mainly through what my Mum had told me about the basic plot (don't try this at home, kids!)

However, I've just fully read a second hand copy that I bought myself some while ago, and thought it was astonishingly good. It's very moving and gripping, probably even more so than my other favourite children's timeslip book, The Gauntlet. There's fantasy, atmosphere, romance, sadness, comedy, philosophy, and even a hint of science fiction. I knew the twist at the end which possibly somewhat ruined it for me, but it's still an extremely beautiful story.

It's at times like this I wish my clock would strike thirteen so I could go back in time to the 80s and tell the younger Stephen to give this book a proper go after all!

[Courtenay]

I remember the last time I re-read Tom's Midnight Garden (for the first time in a number of years), I was struck by how beautifully written and moving it is, even more so than I'd remembered — and it's been one of my favourites since I first read it aged 10! Glad you enjoyed it so much too, Stephen.

[Anita Bensoussane]

It's very moving and gripping, probably even more so than my other favourite children's timeslip book, The Gauntlet. There's fantasy, atmosphere, romance, sadness, comedy, philosophy, and even a hint of science fiction. I knew the twist at the end which possibly somewhat ruined it for me, but it's still an extremely beautiful story.

A perfect summing-up of Tom's Midnight Garden, Stephen. I found the book haunting as a child and was deeply touched by the ending. Two other endings that made a great impression on me were the final few pages of The Last Battle by C. S. Lewis and The Kingdom By the Sea by Robert Westall. I was in my twenties when I read the latter but I was still stunned by it.

[Eddie Muir]

You might be interested to know that the 1989 BBC version of Tom’s Midnight Garden is now available on DVD, from either Second Sight Films for £8.99 or Amazon UK for £15.12. I have a copy on its way from the former: the last one in stock until the middle of next week. The cost of postage from Second Sight Films is £1.50; I don’t what Amazon charges.



Here is the link for Second Sight Films:

https://secondsightfilms.co.uk/collecti ... ght-garden" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

They also have Moondial on DVD for £8.99 plus postage.

https://secondsightfilms.co.uk/collecti ... ondial-dvd" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Rob Houghton]

Thanks for letting us know, Eddie - much appreciated! This is the version I remember (I was going to say 'from my childhood' but I guess as I was already 18 at the time that's not quite true!).

[Eddie Muir]

You’re most welcome, Rob. I think the BBC’s 1989 version is the best film version of Tom’s Midnight Garden and I’m delighted that it is now available at a reasonable price on DVD.

[Anita Bensoussane]

Good news! Thanks for letting us know, Eddie.

[Eddie Muir]

You’re more than welcome, Anita.

[Courtenay]

That is good news, although I already did manage to get a copy of it (in the double release with The Demon Headmaster) a few years ago. But I'm so glad it will now be widely available — I was going to say "it's about time", but that sounds like a dreadful pun of the sort that usually goes with Doctor Who discussions...