We travelled to Tattershall from our holiday accommodation by bicycle.

I locked up my helmet with the bikes as I didn’t want to wear it while exploring,  then headed towards the castle.

A human dressed as a 16th century peasant was doing tours so we decided to join him.

The first castle was built in 1231, but the castle that remains today was built by Ralph Cromwell between 1434 and 1447.

Cromwell had gained an important position in government as Lord Treasurer to King Henry V and wanted a grand castle to show off his status.  He did this by commissioning one built of bricks made from clay,  instead of the usual stone. Cromwell built it in the moat of the older castle as there wasn’t room in the middle. The older stone built castle was later destroyed during battles but the brick one has survived. Cannon balls could not bring down the 12ft thick brick walls.

We went down to the basement to start the tour

Beer was stored in the basement.  The Lords had full strength beer to drink but it was watered down with 50% water added for the staff to drink.  In those times children would have drunk the weak beer from a young age as the water wasn’t pure enough to drink.

There were some little rooms at the side of the main basement hall.  Small nooks in the walls would have had locking doors to store precious spices. Here I am in one!

We went up a spiral staircase to the first floor which housed the great hall.   Ralph Cromwell had a rabbit and a cabbage sculpted into the fireplace. R for rabbit & Ralph and C for cabbage & Cromwell.

We all went up more stairs to the next floor with the guide…

The hall on 2nd floor was known as The Audience Hall where meetings of noblemen would have been held.  There would have been tapestries on the wall but not the ones here.  These were put up by Lord Curzon who bought the castle in 1910 after it had been neglected for many years and he started to restore it. 

There is a dovecote on the 2nd floor which was installed during a period in history when peasant farmers took over the building.

The models behind me are wearing the sort of clothes worn by wealthy Tudor women, the one in white is wearing petticoats that were worn underneath dresses.

Hundreds of years ago the floors of rooms were covered in rush and straw commonly known as thresh. The raised step in doorways was there to hold the thresh and stop it coming out of the room. Hence the name ‘threshold strip’ that we use today.

The walls of Tattershall Castle are made of clay bricks that were produced by hand.  The tour guide pointed out a brick with human finger prints in it.  The clay bricks were removed from moulds by hand and occasionally the brick maker grasped them a bit too firmly and left finger marks in them.

Up on the roof of the castle there are three big chimneys.  Ralph Cromwell had them built this way to show everyone around that he was wealthy!

There are wonderful views of the flatlands of Lincolnshire all around.

The tour guide asked if I would like a photo with him. He told me that sometimes they have teddy bear picnics at Tattershall and have done teddy zip wire descents from the tower!

I climbed up to the walkway around the very top of the castle.

The appearance is rather like cloisters found in old abbeys.

On my way back down to the bottom I found acroom with dress up clothes for small humans.

Here I am as Lors Horace of Tattershall!

I sat and read the information about ‘Gong Farmers’ who were young boys employed to empty out latrine pits. They were only able to do it at night due to the smell.

The original toilet seat hole has been covered over but this was a loo.

In 1925 Tattershall Castle was bequeathed to the National Trust by Lord Curzon in his will.

It is a very interesting place with lots history.  I do recommend a visit if you are in the area.

For more information see:

https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/nottinghamshire-lincolnshire/tattershall-castle

Horace the Alresford Bear 7/9/2025

There is some confusion on the Internet about me and the sort of bear that I am. Some eBay sellers advertise bears like me as ‘Horace’ bears. I was not sold as a ‘Horace’ bear, my human named me Horace. I am a 1970’s Alresford Crafts Smiling Honey Bear.

Next to me in the photo is a W H Smith Horace Bear, and these bears were sold as ‘Horace’ Bears in the 1980s and were made in China.. Actually he is a really nice chap and worth rescuing if you see one in a charity shop.

Just to confuse things next to Horace is another Horace! This one was made by The Dean’s Rag Book Company in Pontypridd, Wales in 1997. He is a limited edition bear. This Horace has mohair fur and is fully jointed; another lovely little bear.

Google AI is very confused as if you search for information about a WH Smith Horace you will get information stating that Alresford Crafts made them which is not true and an indication not to rely on AI for anything.

I hope you found that interesting!

Horace the Alresford Bear 4/8/2025

Just a short blog to tell you all about my calendar, which you may have seen already if you also follow me on Facebook.

My 2026 calendar is available to buy (UK only) on eBay.  A PDF will be available for overseas followers sometime in the autumn.

It features 12 delightful photos of me and I have had excellent feedback for all of the 200 copies sold so far.  Buyers have commented on the excellent photography, the cuteness of the images and the quality of the printing and packaging.  

10% of the sale price goes to RSPCA.  

Here are a couple of pages:

These are being sold through eBay in order to simplify the process.

If you would like a calendar you can buy here: https://ebay.us/m/tn7aTa

Horace the Alresford Bear 1/8/25

It was a very hot day in July when we visited Tintagel Old Post Office

The building dates back to 1380, a very long time ago. Originally it just had one storey and one end would have been a barn for animals. It has undergone many changes over the years and became a Post Office in the 1870’s.

It was cool inside the building and gave us some respite from the hot sun outside. The dining table was laid with pewter plates and mugs.

This is the range where meals would have been cooked

We went up the first staircase (there are 2 separate staircases)

We found a bedroom set up as it would have been 150 years ago

We climbed up and had a look out of the window.

Back downstairs we found the sitting room and sat on the rag rug. Therug had been made in recent years but was of the type that would have been found in cottages 150 years ago.

There was another set of stairs going up next to the sitting room which were quite challenging for small bears to climb.

The stairs led to a sleeping platform where unmarried women and girls would have slept. The saying ‘left on the shelf’ (which referred to unmarried older women in past times) refers to the sleeping platform that they used to sleep on and were unable to leave!

Here we are on the platform – it wasn’t very big.

We looked down from the platform at the room below and noticed the old clock above the door and the exposed roof beams.

On the other side of the sleeping platform there is a another bedroom

We thought it all looked very cosy. The walls of the cottage are a metre think so it is well insulated against both hot and cold weather.

After going back downstairs we went out into the garden where there is a well.

We found a minature version of The Old Post Office!

The garden is very pretty and very ‘cottage garden’ in style. It is also a good place to escape from the many tourists who visit Tintagel.

The wiggly roof on The Old Post Office is covered in Cornish slate.

It is only a small garden so we were soon back at the well again!

The Post Box is still in use and a postman collected some letters while we were there.

Before leaving we watched an interesting animated video showing how the use of the building had changed over the last 900 years. At one time it nearly got demolished! I am glad it didn’t as it really is a delightful place.

Do pop in for a visit if you are in the Tintagel area, the Post Office is only small but very interesting.

For more information see https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/cornwall/tintagel-old-post-office

Horace the Alresford Bear 20/7/2025

Alresford in Hampshire is the town where I began my life. I was made by Alresford Crafts in the Town Mill back in the 1970s. I can’t remember much about those days but I always enjoy visiting. We were on our way to Canterbury for a holiday and decided to stop at Alresford on the way. I was very hungry when we arrived so the first stop was for lunch at Tiffin Tea Room.

Alresford is famous for growing watercress. In Spring each year they have a watercress festival, which oneday I would like to attend. I decided to have a cheese and watercress scone ploughman’s for my lunch which I very much enjoyed.

After lunch I set off on a nostalgic walk around town…

Here I am in front of The Station Mill, where many of my younger siblings were made. These days it is a health and fitness centre.

Next on the list was Alresford Station. I have very happy memories of travelling here on the Watercress Line steam train with Growler a few years ago.

I had a wander about on the platform hoping to maybe see a train, but there were none due to arrive.

I weighed myself on the scales!

In the gift shop I decided to buy a postcard featuring an engine like the one I travelled on back in 2016.

I was going to call in at the library but it was closed (I delivered a copy of my book to them when I visited in 2015)

It was a beautiful sunny day to be wandering around very picturesque town. My next destination was The Town Mill, where many bears and other cuddly animals were made, including me, in the 1970s.

Enroute I passed a splendid vintage car.

Finally I reached Alresford Town Mill, which is now an apartment block where humans live. It is in a nice place with a waterwheel and the River Arle running along behind it.

I stood outside the front door for a moment for a photo; it was about 50 years ago that I began my life there.

I walked down the road past the Mill feeling happy that I was made in such a lovely place.

The Old Fire Station is now a museum.We didn’t expect to be able to go inside as it only opens occasionally and wasn’t officially open. While I was posing for a photograph outside my human started talking to a friendly chap who had just come out of the picture framing shop next door. He was a volunteer at the museum and very kindly offered to open it for me to see some of my relations that live inside and a splendid fire engine.

The Merryweather horse-drawn steam fire engine inside the museum was built in 1893. Fire engines like this were used up until the early 1920s.

Here I am wearing a fireman’s hat:

Many bears and other cuddly animals made by Alresford Crafts live in the museum.

I was quite taken aback by the size of the resident Alresford Honey Bear. We both smiled at each other.

I explained to him about my adoption from a charity shop by Karen back in 2011, and my recent decision to wear clothes due to my fur beginning to wear out. He was a lovely chap.

A brown bear was very pleased to see me.

The owl behind me is just like the big one that lives in the corner of our dining room at home. There was even an elephant!

The Kangaroo had a little joey in her pouch and seemed friendly with another very fluffy owl.

The museum has some Alresford Crafts animals in a basket that they let children cuddle, which I thought was wonderful. The big rabbit was in the cuddle basket so I lifted her out for a cuddle.

I could have spent ages and ages saying hello to everyone; there are dolls too as Alresford Crafts also made collectable china dolls. We had to continue our journey as we had anothe 120 miles to travel to our holiday cottage

The humans bought me a special Alresford Museum fridge magnet as a souvenir.

I signed the visitor’s book and we thanked the kind man who had opened up the museum just for me.

I walked back up the road feeling very happy.

We managed to fit in along the river to the 13th century Fulling Mill before continuing our journey east.

This was my 3rd visit to Alresford, everyone seemed pleased to see me and it made me feel very happy indeed.

Blogs about previous visits:

My first return to Alresford in 2015 https://horacethealresfordbear.com/2015/06/28/going-back-to-my-roots/

Watercress Line Steam Train trip 2016 https://horacethealresfordbear.com/2016/08/23/returning-to-alresford-on-the-watercress-line/

Horace the Alresford Bear 24/6/2025

Our human sourced some wonderful outfits for us to wear on The Matthew for the cruise around Bristol Harbour with Piratitude.

When we boarded the band was busy doing a sound check.

We had a look around the ship while my human took some photos.  I have been on the Matthew before but it was Nye’s first time aboard.

A crew member helped set us the photo of us with the lifebouy.

It was a wonderful sunny evening and we enjoyed listening to the band as we cruised around the harbour.  The Matthew is a replica of the ship that John Cabot sailed to (and discovered) Newfoundland in 1497.  The journey was made again on this vessel in 1997.

We had lots of fun as I pretended to be the Captain and Nye a shipmate.

We had to be very careful going up and down the wooden steps.  The Matthew was  using an engine to travel around the harbour, but when she travelled to Newfoundland she would have had sailed there using sails and the wind.

We passed by the SS Great Britain…

The band was great fun and I was jolly pleased that Nye also likes to join in with a big.

After about an hour the ship docked and fish and chips were delivered for all board.

We were happy to drink lemonade, we don’t need rum or alcohol to be merry!

My human took this great photo of us with the band members.

https://horacethealresfordbear.com/2018/01/28/the-matthew-of-bristol/

We really enjoyed our trip, cruising on the wonderful Matthew and being entertained by Piratitude plus fish & chips made a very enjoyable evening.

Here is more about the band:

https://www.piratitude.com/home

More about The Matthew

https://matthew.co.uk/

My previous blog about The Matthew

Horace the Alresford Bear 19/5/2025

My human likes to stay in quirky holiday accommodation.  We were only in Oxford for one night for the May Day celebrations, so she booked The Malmaison Hotel, which is a converted prison!

I have never been inside a real prison but it was very much like prisons I have seen in films.

Humans aren’t allowed to use the stairs but I managed to climb a few for a photo.

There are various puns around the hotel, such as on the glass door at the bottom of the stairs ‘It’s Mal Life’.

Our room was on the top floor so we went up in the lift.

The cells still have prison doors on them.

I put my few belongings in the locker.

Then as always, I tried out the bed, which was very comfy.

There was a special machine for making small bear sized cups of coffee so I made myself a cup and ate one the chocolates.

It wasn’t long before if was time for dinner.

Off I went to the Brasserie.

I went outside on the way; our room was one on the top floor in the middle (behind me).

We were staying in A wing which was used as a prison until 1996.  The prisoners had much smaller cells. Our room and bathroom was 3 cells knocked together.

Here I am looking at the sign about dinner when we first checked in.

Dinner was delicious, I had seasonal vegetable risotto.

For dessert I had crème brûlée, a very generous portion which was very yummy so I ate it all.

After dinner we went into Oxford to an historic pub (The Lamb & Flag) for a drink.

The hotel looked very grand all lit up when we walked back to it.

I had a fairly early night as the next day we were getting up at 5am to join the May Day celebrations. I didn’t have breakfast at the hotel as it was way too early!

The following morning I put on my Oxford Morris outfit and set off to Magdalen Bridge to hear the choir sing then dance.

My blog about the May Day event is here: https://horacethealresfordbear.com/2025/05/03/may-day-celebrations-with-oxford-morris-2025/

Details of the hotel: https://www.malmaison.com/locations/oxford/

I had an absolutely splendid time!

Horace the Alresford Bear 5/5/2025

While we were on holiday in West Wales we visited the Dolaucothi Gold Mines which are looked after by the National Trust.

Next to the path leading to the entrance there was a special tipper machine which would have been used to tip the ore that had been mined out of the dram.

We went in to the reception area to show our National Trust cards and passed a mimng shovel that had been painted gold.

Once inside we began to explore. All the equipment in the mine are remnants from the 1930’s when gold mining was resumed briefly but wasn’t economical as they didn’t find much gold as it had already been extracted by the Victorians, and over 2000 years before that, the Romans.

We looked at the cage which would have been used in the 1930s to take miners and drams down the mine shaft. The Roman mine was discovered in the 1930s: miners were drilling deep into the rock and found a large cavern that had been previously excavated along with evidence that the Romans had been there.

Here we are pretending to ride in a dram!

It must have been a very hard life for humans that worked in the mines.

Here we in the remains of an open cast mine. The Romans dug the mines with picks and hammers which would have been extremely hard labour.

We went inside the building housing the winding equipment that was used in the 1930s.

In another shed there were lots of other very large tools, with a warning notice not to go inside the ‘bin’.

Growler was astonished at the size of the lathe.

There was a large tube containing first aid equipment that was of size that could be dropped down the mineshaft. It contained splints, blankets and a stretcher. Working in a mine was a very hazardous job.

Here we are sat on the first aid cylinder.

Outside the mining shovel had been painted bright yellow. I stood on the footplate which is where the human that operated it would have stood.

There are underground tours available for either The Victorian Mine or The Roman Mine. We opted for the Roman Mine, partly because it is floodlit and photographing me would be easier. Growler didn’t do the mine tour as there weren’t any hard hats small enough to fit him.

First of all we walked up lots of steps up a hill past lots of old mineworkings, then the tour guide unlocked the gate to the mine and we all went inside.

Here I am with the entrance behind me.

The guide told us that the gold deposits were found inside quartz, not white shiny quartz, but brown coloured quartz.

He told us all about how the Romans had created the huge cavern using just picks and shovels, and how they would follow a seam once a deposit was found.

Many of the passages in the mine had been blocked up with rubble. Here I am stood next to a very small passage through the rocks.

It was only a short tour of just one mining area, there are many more that aren’t open to visitors. I was quite happy to get back into daylight.

Growler was waiting outside and was pleased with the souvenir badge that I bought for him.

If we find ourselves in the area again we will visit the Victorian Mine. If you are interested in visiting please bear in mind that tours have to be booked in advance.

For more information see: https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/wales/dolaucothi

Horace the Alresford Bear 5/5/2025