The valley of the Brit sounds like a valley in a foreign land where a lone and intrepid British explorer might have lived, but no, it's on the south coast of England. Nor is it, as I vaguely thought it might be, anything to do with the origins of the word Britain. In the days of King Alfred, King of Wessex, the river was probably called the Bride. William the Conqueror's Domesday Book recorded a village in 1086 called Bridetona, meaning the village of the River Bride. Bridport now is made up of several former villages.
The scenes shown are, starting top left and going clockwise:
Beaminster
West Bay
Loders
Burton Bradstock
Bridport
Powerstock
There are some little gems of information about several of these.
- Loders, a village of a few hundred people, has three distinct parts: Uploders, Yondover and Lower Loders.
- Powerstock used to be Poorstock until 1857 when the railway company wanted it changed before anyone thought it might have anything to do with their rolling stock.
- The beach near Burton Bradstock was used to film the fake suicide scene from The Rise and Fall of Reginald Perrin.
- Bridport has a square called Bucky Doo. Nobody seems sure why.
- Possibly the most interesting though, is West Bay which is part of Dorset's Jurassic Coast and listed as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. The layers of sandstone in the cliff can just about be seen on this picture, where traces of fossils are common.
The pity is that I used to live not far away at all but I've never been there.
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All of those names sound so interesting. Uploaders and Powerstock sound like they are related to computers.
ReplyDeleteGreat details Sheila! I think the fossils from this area are very important, therefore a UNESCO site.
ReplyDeleteSo many places I've never been to that are near. Guess I'm stuck in a rut! Wonderful card and thanks for the details. Happy PFF!
ReplyDeleteIn Britain all the names sound interesting, even dreamy...I must get traveling overseas!
ReplyDeleteI saw a Discovery program some time ago that talked about and showed the fossils at West Bay. Very interesting post for this PFF!
ReplyDeleteI've never heard of half of these places, except West Bay. I would love to explore the fossil records there.
ReplyDeleteWhat a fascinating read--and those postcards are so interesting. Thank you!
ReplyDeleteHappy PFF!
Looks like a lovely place, I visited Dorset once but seemed to have managed to miss all the places I should have seen. Bucky Do square is a gem of a word, sounds more like a cry than a destination.
ReplyDeleteI love your description of the lone Brit wandering around. Interesting info, and looks like a beautiful place.
ReplyDeleteSurnames and names of places are so interesting in Britain. Uploders, Yondover and Lower Loders make me smile...no Westside on Eastend there. I want to visit too!
ReplyDeleteLook like lovely place, beautiful.
ReplyDeleteWhat a great way to see the town..All beautiful shot.
ReplyDeleteawww! am a somerset girl myself! enjoyed this post about britain!
ReplyDeleteyou know i have never heard of this place, but should have done coming from the uk! I'm a bad english woman lol.
ReplyDeleteSounds really pretty and has alot of history which i like.
Tina from
Mummy Diaries
Gossip Avenue
Travel Shack
Game FreakZ
Isn't it sad that we so often fail to visit places so close to home! These sound quite interesting and certainly are picturesque, Sheila!
ReplyDeleteMerci de l'arrêt près et je suis heureux que vous ayez apprécié mes cartes postales ! Ayez un jour splendide d'amitié !
ReplyDeleteI loved your cards--I sent you on a journey to France and you sent me on a journey to England!! Thank you for telling the interesting history behind the places on the cards. Have a great day!
I haven't been to half these places either. You can choose which half and you would be right. Okay, I guess I missed the part where you explained why it is called the valley of the Brit. Is there a river in the south of England called the Brit? You sort of left off at Bride and I lost you.
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