Well, not so sure. This is the first time in 30 years that Berwick Kaler has not starred in the York Theatre Royal pantomime although he did write and co-direct it. He also appeared in the filmed section which has become an annual fixture.
The auditorium, Theatre Royal (dezeen.com)
I don’t think the issue was the lack of Berwick so much as that the pantomime can be a bit hit and miss. Some years you come away having laughed solidly all the way through, other years not so much although it is always very good with plenty of audience participation, great sets and costumes, no smut and Wagon Wheels aplenty!
Whether you like it or not is, of course, subjective. It was always going to be tricky continuing the pantomime after Berwick’s retirement but I think they have succeeded very well, particularly as the usual cast were all in there.
Foyer, Theatre Royal (dezeen.com)
Like last year, we had places in the Dress Circle, only this time on the side nearest to where you enter. The accessibility is just great, the lift is spacious and you don’t need to back out of it as it has doors on more than one side. They could maybe have created a wider corridor outside the lift but were probably restricted by the space available and have done the best they can. It would be good to know what their policy is on evacuation of wheelchair users in case of fire. Obviously, it’s not something you want to think about but I suppose one should.
The staff are all incredibly helpful and pleasant and the honeycomb ice-cream is delectable. The pantomime runs until 25th January.
As usual, we parked in Duncombe Place, braving its horribly rough tarmac.
Will we go next year? There’s plenty of time to decide.
The Budapest Café Orchestra play a wonderful mix of Eastern European dance tunes, gypsy music, Kletzmer, even variations on classical tunes. None of the band are actually from Budapest but how they explain this and their general banter is great fun.
As I have said before, the National Centre for Early Music needs a decent sized band, ideally above three, to really fill the place with sound and the four incredibly accomplished and versatile members of this group certainly managed to do that with their double bass, accordion, violin and guitar (or sometimes balalaika) plus percussion.
I read somewhere that the NCEM had been given some funding to increase accessibility, so I was interested to see if there had been any changes. The only one I could see was that the gaps between the paving slabs up to the entrance (from Percy’s Lane) had been filled in, making it much smoother. I was disappointed that the thresholds hadn’t been changed, they still give you rather a jolt but in general the place is very accessible.
We had joined their Access Scheme and had booked a Blue Badge parking space but unfortunately when we arrived both the accessible spaces had a car in them, with no Blue Badge on so we just pulled up and decanted me then Pete parked up in the one remaining ordinary space.
I went inside and explained the situation to the person on reception who was most apologetic and made a note so we shall just have to see what happens next time. At the end of the concert, one of the accessible spaces came free so Pete moved to that so I could get in the car. By the time we left, even though we were amongst the last people there the car park was still almost full so I think they probably weren’t concertgoers but people sneakily using a convenient parking place.
Not an ideal situation but at least they are trying to have a good system in place. It’s good to support somewhere accessible and we have never had a disappointing evening at the NCEM.
I thoroughly recommend The Budapest Cafe Orchestra if they have a gig in your area, you are sure to have a fun evening!
Recently we visited somewhere we’ve only been to once before at a different time of year, a couple of places we are very familiar with at all times of the year, somewhere completely new and somewhere we haven’t been to for 19 years!
Decent path surface, Fairburn Ings
All of them were great in different ways. It’s lovely to go somewhere that you’ve never been to before, as Fairburn Ings was for us, especially if you come away feeling that you would like to go back, that there is still more to explore.
Boardwalk and flooding, Fairburn Ings
It was also fascinating to visit the place we hadn’t been to for nearly 20 years, in this case St Nicholas Fields in York. They run all sorts of eco-themed events for kids and anyone who wants to get involved but it’s also a very peaceful and wildlife friendly place for a stroll. We lived very near it when it was first established and, as you can imagine, it looks very different now: little saplings are now fully grown trees!
St Nicholas Fields
That’s what I love about going back to familiar places: seeing how they have changed. When we went to Burnby Hall Gardens recently, I found that my memory of it was very hazy and it was actually much better than I remembered! This is partly because they have been developing it, creating new pathways, revamping the museum and generally making it more accessible.
The Rock Garden, Burnby Hall Gardens
Visiting places you are very familiar with could be seen as routine or dull but when it’s a garden or park, it’s different every time you go. When we lived near Rowntree Park we probably averaged a visit every week and while we don’t now go there as frequently as that, we know it well enough to notice small changes and developments.
Rowntree Park
It’s great to see that at least some of the roses planted next to the pergola have grown up the posts and over the top like they’re supposed to. I expect a lot of the children who visit would agree that the totem pole and ‘chess piece’ horse (if not perhaps the helmet which never seems to receive much attention) are fun additions to the park. The flowerbeds seemed to be doing very well on our last visit and there is always something of interest, whatever the time of year.
The pergola, Rowntree Park
The University of York campus also changes all the time, although that is often because new buildings are being added but it is still very pleasant with plenty of wildlife and good paths.
Tree maintenance going on at York Uni
More and more, I feel inclined to give my time and money, if we are talking about somewhere with an entry fee, to places that have made an effort to make themselves accessible to all, rather than ones that have made what seems to be more of a token gesture. There are also places which are reasonably accessible but it’s just not that convenient for me anymore such as ones where you really need to be use a proper overland type scooter because of the terrain, such as Golden Acre Park or Temple Newsam near Leeds or Thorp Perrow Arboretum near Bedale. If you can manage a large mobility scooter and cope with some jolts and bumps over the rough terrain, I still thoroughly recommend them.
Thorp Perrow
It’s a bit cold now for visiting outdoor places – fine you are walking briskly but rather too chilly if you are sitting on a scooter! I’m already planning and looking forward to next year’s excursions though!
It had occurred to me that after all this rain, Fairburn Ings might be flooded but it was a lovely sunny day so we thought we’d go anyway.
Distant views, Fairburn Ings
Fairburn is quite near Ledsham where we have been to the
Chequers Inn on many occasions and is easily accessible from the A1.
It was steeper than this looks!
The Ings are managed by the RSPB and they have reclaimed
former coal mine spoil tips to create different types of habitats for a variety
of wildlife.
Decent path surface, Fairburn Ings
The paths are generally quite fine gravel and there are also boardwalks. Most of the boardwalk areas were inaccessible due to flooding but the small bit we were able to do, part of the duck and swan feeding platform, was a great surface. We could have explored much further around the site than we did but it would have involved a long and quite steep slope so we just admired the view and turned around. There are various hides, all of which have level entry. There is really good access information on their website.
Entrance to visitor centre, Fairburn Ings
The visitors’ centre has level access and a power-assisted door
and sells lots of RSPB gifts as well as birdfeeders and food. It doesn’t have a
cafe but it does have a coffee machine and snacks and a little seating area
where you can eat or drink. There are loos including a unisex accessible one.
Accessible loo, Fairburn Ings
The staff member who welcomed us was really helpful,
pointing out on the map which parts of the Ings were best for wheelchair users
and which were not flooded!
Boardwalk and flooding, Fairburn Ings
Entry is free for members of the RSPB and for Blue Badge
holders (non-members are charged £4 per car).
This is definitely a place to revisit once the floods have
receded!
Our summer holiday this year was a very modest affair but
really relaxing and restorative just as a holiday should be.
Accessible entrance to Fox Cover
We had decided ages ago that we would “staycation” this year
in anticipation of Brexit-related chaos after the previous deadline of 31 March
(is that right? It’s all such a mess!). I don’t know if it’s because we
therefore weren’t geared up to a longer holiday or to going abroad or whether
I/we would have felt like this anyway but the thought of a long journey, even
one broken up into stages (or perhaps particularly one broken up into stages
with several different places to stay) would have been an utterly exhausting
prospect!
Fox Cover, Doxford Cottages
As it was, the journey up to Doxford Cottages only took three hours. We started out on the A1 but as there were signs flashing up that there was congestion ahead we switched to the A19 for a while. There was sunshine and showers on the way with one particularly monsoon-like downpour, fortunately not in heavy traffic, when even the wipers in superfast mode couldn’t cope. That meant it was particularly lovely to arrive at the cottage, Fox Cover, in sunshine!
Parking and drop off area for Fox Cover, Doxford Cottages
I’m sure any wheelchair user would agree that it’s also
quite a relief to arrive at an unknown destination and find that it is, indeed,
wheelchair accessible.
Fox Cover, Doxford Cottages
One of the first things we spotted on arriving was a really
cute little rabbit and we saw plenty more during the week as well as various
other wildlife spots, including a weasel, a mouse, woodpeckers, squirrels (they
used to have red squirrels which would have been lovely but grey ones are appealing
too!) nuthatches, chaffinches, lots of rooks and also bats.
Lots of cute bunnies live near Fox Cover!
Our delivery from Food Heaven arrived so we were
all set for a relaxing time. I’d been having a somewhat stressful time at work
so the complete switch off was very necessary. I barely looked at my personal
emails and certainly didn’t access work ones or accessed any social media and
we just caught the headlines on television now and again.
Peaceful surroundings at Doxford Cottages
Reading, doing puzzles and jigsaws was the order of the day.
Yes, it’s tame but it was also blissful.
There are a number of accessible things to do in the area.
Knowing that the weather was not going to be terribly good, we had only really
planned to go to the Alnwick Garden and to the coast.
The weather did exactly what was forecast: it rained solidly
all Sunday but we had planned to just relax that day anyway. On Monday we went
to Barter Books,
a huge second-hand book shop in the old station in Alnwick. It has a slightly
bumpy threshold but is accessible and has an accessible loo and a few
designated parking bays right outside the door.
Accessible and entrance to Barter Books, Alnwick
We have been here before but not for a few years; they have
developed the café since our last visit but there is still the same relaxed
atmosphere and, of course, thousands of books!
The Grand Cascade, The Alnwick Garden
The next day, as the forecast was good we headed to Alnwick
Garden (see my separate, more
detailed review). I had read reviews of this on Euan’sGuide
and knew it was accessible, which indeed it was as long as you don’t mind a
bumpy ride. Many of the surfaces were very uneven but it was a pleasant visit
overall and the walled garden is really attractive. I contacted the gardens
once we were home and they said that improving the path surfaces is part of
their development plans and they are going to include millions of fibre-optic
lights in them so that the gardens can open at night.
The Ornamental Garden, Alnwick Gardens
Another day we explored the coast which is lovely and
unspoiled with huge sandy beaches and big skies. We went as far as Bamburgh, an
immensely impressive castle which we had visited before when I was perfectly
mobile so this time we just admired the outside. I’m afraid I’ve been a very
bad blogger and not taken anything like enough photographs.
The Ornamental Garden at The Alnwick Garden
Because these days doing lots of visits is quite tiring,
it’s really important to us to have a cottage with pleasant surroundings and
preferably a good view. This cottage has that in spades and we have even booked
to go back next year. It’s important for us to get cottages booked up in plenty
of time as there are not that many cottages which are exactly suitable and with
the sort of surroundings we want. We had rather hoped we would be able to book
it for a short break but it was only available to book for a whole week during
the times when we want to go so we decided to go back next summer. I promise I
will take more photos next year!
Breezy Knees
Gardens has a September Garden which is a sight to behold. I really
recommend these gardens for everybody but they are especially good if you are
on wheels.
Even the approach to Breezy Knees Gardens is colourful!
We
visited Breezy Knees before, in August 3 years ago so it was interesting to
see how it has developed. As you might imagine, this time the September Garden
was at its peak and looking really fabulous and colourful.
September Garden, Breezy Knees
In other parts of the gardens, there were still plenty of
roses and myriad other plants: I suspect there will be something of interest at
any time of year.
There are a few gates to negotiate
This time, instead of using my scooter, I used my Powerchair
which did mean that we had to avoid some of the paths as they would have been
too rough. Dilemma! I am less keen on using the scooter these days, preferring
the chair but the scooter makes accessing the loo rather difficult. Using the chair
mean some of the paths would be very bumpy but you can more easily access the
loo if you need it!
Rather narrow loo doorway!Accessible loo, Breezy KneesThe car park, Breezy Knees
The car park is still very rough with loose pebbles although
someone if else was driving they could pull up next to where the tarmac path
starts to drop you off then move the car.
You could use this as a drop-off point if the gravel car park is a problem
There was less of a bump entering the reception/shop than I
remembered. Exiting it there is rather a bump which, because of the way the
threshold is designed would have been worse coming back through but the staff
member serving us said she would be happy to open the gate for us when we left.
Plenty of autumn colour at Breezy Knees
This is where the difference between a manual wheelchair and
a Powerchair is crucial: a manual wheelchair can be tipped to get over the
threshold, whereas a Powerchair can’t and many places which say they are
wheelchair accessible are not actually accessible with a Powerchair.
What can I say?
Staff attitudes are hugely important. This place is clearly
trying to make itself accessible (there are also plenty of benches for anyone
on foot who needs a rest) and the staff are welcoming, friendly and helpful. Their
website says that any new areas will have tarmac paths. I’m quite happy with
gravel as long as it’s the really fine type called self-binding gravel and even
grass is fine as long as it’s firm, although of course this depends on the
weather.
Gravel path, Breezy Knees
This visit was a lovely experience all round: seeing so many
beautiful flowers and shrubs was very restorative in these chaotic times!
We might have found our favourite cottage of all, plus some
thoughts on what adjustments should owners of accessible cottages make?
Do you come over all ‘hotel inspector’ when you stay
somewhere? We tend to, whether it’s a hotel, B&B or cottage, but with Fox
Cover at Doxford Cottages, there’s not much you could improve on!
Accessible entrance to Fox Cover
A cottage for two, it has a spacious sitting room / dining room
/ kitchen, large bedroom, bathroom with both a bath and a roll-in shower and
there is also a conservatory to sit in which overlooks the private garden and
the woods beyond.
Looking out from the courtyard garden at Fox Cover
It is one of nine cottages created from the old coach house
and stables on the Doxford estate in Northumberland, all of which have
beautiful décor. It was clean, comfortable and very well equipped, including
up-to-date local information.
Fox Cover, Doxford Cottages
Fox Cover is fully accessible, being step-free and with wide
doorways. There were grab rails in the bathroom by the shower and the loo. Inevitably,
everybody needs rails in different places but it did strike me as slightly odd
that the ones in the bathroom were placed as if you were left-handed. In the shower
area, the rails were on the left if you were to use them to stand up from the
shower seat (provided on request) as were the shower controls and there was no
drop-down rail to the right of the loo to lean on when standing up but there
was one on the left. There is a recommended setup for loos and washbasins that
many holiday cottages don’t adhere to it. In some cases I think this is so that
the loo can be used by people who prefer either a right-hand or left-hand
transfer but I suspect it ends up being not ideal for anybody. Perhaps cottage
owners should simply state whether it is a right-hand or left-hand transfer or
even create an accessible cottage for each configuration. Anyway, we coped but
for many disabled people, the bathroom arrangements are a deal breaker. It
staggers me that some places advertising themselves as disabled-friendly don’t provide
photos of the bathroom. Having said that, I have been very remiss in not
photographing the cottage interior myself – there are pictures on their
website though.
The owners have some equipment they can lend and are happy to
answer questions – I asked about the height of the bed, for example. A bit high
for me so we used a portable step. As a general principal, I think providing
normal height furniture should be the rule, with the possibility of ‘raisers’
if people need different heights. Having said that, a lowered hob in the
kitchen would have been useful. This sort of adjustment makes things accessible
for everybody: lowered kitchen surfaces are not inconvenient for non-wheelchair
users.
I really appreciated that I could sit at the dining table in
my power chair with no problem. In the past two places we stayed, Normandy
last summer and Norfolk at
Easter, we had to prop the table up on books which was far from ideal. The
dressing table was also a good height for a wheelchair user. At Valley View in
Herefordshire the height of the dressing table was adjustable!
Parking and drop off area for Fox Cover, Doxford Cottages
You can park right outside the cottage on the tarmac driveway to unpack or for drop-off and pickup but you need to move car to a gravelled area for more longer term parking. This was fine for us as Pete does the driving but if a wheelchair-user was the driver and couldn’t negotiate the gravel this could be problematic.
The lake, Doxford Cottages
For the more mobile, there is a track down to a lake in the grounds. There was quite a lot of flooding when we were there but even without that you would need a sturdy all-terrain scooter to explore the estate.
The path to the lake, Doxford Cottages
The Doxford
Cottages website has loads of useful information (although not an
accessibility statement) such as what you will find in your cottage including a
welcome pack of a bottle of wine, local honey, some tea and coffee and a pint
of milk. They also mentioned a local company, Food Heaven that provides meals and
other food items delivered to your cottage. We ordered three different ready
meals and quite a few other items such as ham, eggs, bread, fruit and
vegetables. A very friendly delivery driver turned up with it just after we’d
arrived and helped to unpack: if you aren’t there they unpack it and put things
in the fridge, bread bin etc. I’m not sure I would recommend them particularly
though – the meals were tasty but the other things weren’t particularly
special. Although it’s good to use local shops and services, it’s no good if
the items aren’t things you would choose anyway and shops aren’t always
accessible. There are supermarkets in Alnwick to stock up – we went to the
local Sainsbury’s during the week which is very modern and accessible.
Barter Books in Alnwick is accessible!
Although it rained quite a lot, we had lovely sunshine for
our trips out and just chilled out on other days with books, magazines, puzzles
and, yes, a jigsaw and did plenty of sitting outside in the peace and quiet.
Even before we had entered the cottage we had spotted a rabbit and saw many more
during the week plus a weasel, mouse, at least one woodpecker everyday –
sometimes two or three at once! – nuthatches and half a dozen or more chaffinches
plus, on the last evening, bats flying around! There are seed feeders opposite
the sitting room window which are refilled every day.
Lots of cute bunnies live near Fox Cover!
I did feel a little bit inclined to keep this place to
myself as it is so nice but as we have booked it for a week next summer
already, I may as well share!
The Grand Cascade, The Alnwick Garden
There are a number of accessible things to do nearby – we visited Barter Books in Alnwick and the Alnwick Garden, reviewed separately. The coast is lovely too and we will try out some more places next year.
The Alnwick Garden prides itself on its accessibility but what a bumpy ride!
We enjoyed our visit to The Alnwick Garden: the weather was sunny. the walled garden is lovely and it was good to see somewhere with accessibility designed into it from the start but some of the path surfaces were so bumpy that it was rather annoying. There are lots of very positive reviews on Euan’sGuide so I feel a bit ”bah, humbug” being negative but I found the constant jolting very tiring.
The Grand Cascade, Alnwick Garden
A couple of years ago, I think I would just have been
grateful that somewhere was accessible. Now, I tend to question why places
aren’t more accessible and what could be done about it? I’ve emailed the
gardens on the subject.
Entrance to the Ornamental Garden
The walled Ornamental Garden at the top of the slope is very
attractive as is the Rose Garden and there were lovely wild flowers by the side
of the path as you came down through the Cherry Orchard, but that’s not enough
to draw me back. It’s designed to be very child-friendly and there were plenty
of children really enjoying the little streams in the Ornamental Garden, the
various fountains in the Serpent Garden and the swings in the Cherry Orchard,
in fact some families were literally camped out on the lawn area below the
Grand Cascade but I didn’t see much interest in the giant-themed features such
as a huge pair of boots or a giant-sized pie, perhaps because of the notices
warning you not to climb on them.
The Ornamental Garden, Alnwick Gardens
It is clearly a very commercial setup: there is a large shop
and cafe, all very accessible and the plant centre, in fact many of the plants
around the gardens had signs saying that they were available to buy in the
shop. On the other hand, they also do lots of community outreach such as
activities for over 55s and for young people. They also lend out wheelchairs
and mobility scooters which you should book in advance.
The Ornamental Garden, Alnwick Gardens
We arrived by car and followed signs for Accessible Parking.
There are many members of staff in attendance to help and I’m pretty sure we
were directed to a general parking area but as the staff were aware of our Blue
Badge we had plenty of space as the next car parked leaving us ample room. Apparently
there is designated Blue Badge parking but this was the summer holidays so
perhaps it was full. It was up hill from there to the ticket office (we hadn’t
booked in advance) then through the main gates onto the terrace with plenty of
café tables and a view of the Grand Cascade. We had been given a map of the
gardens with the accessible routes marked but still managed to get a bit lost
as we made our way to look at the Serpent Garden and Rose Garden. I think maybe
I slightly missed the point of the fountains in the Serpent Garden, they just
seemed a bit dull to me! We wound our way through woodland to the top of the
slope on fairly good paths: other reviewers comment on this being rather hard
going for those pushing somebody in a wheelchair but at least there are benches
all round the gardens for a rest.
The slope down through the Cherry Orchard
The Ornamental Garden at the top is absolutely lovely with
little streams, good paths everywhere and some beautiful flowers and shrubs.
From there along to the Cherry Orchard the path was rather
rough and then the snaking path through the orchard was very rough indeed as the
tarmac surface had been worn away in many places plus the bends are quite sharp
so you had to concentrate on your steering. Towards the bottom, there were some
beautiful wildflowers growing amongst the grass.
Wild flowers, Alnwick Garden
Once we were on the flat we then encountered the worst bit
of path of the lot near the Poison Garden. This had a queue so we gave it a
miss.
We had a look in the shop which was light, airy and spacious
with lots of souvenirs, gardening books, some tools (very decorative and
expensive!) the usual jams and chutneys and also a small exhibition by a local
artist. We didn’t partake of anything in the café which was ‘food-court’ style:
different outlets but with central tables which I think were
wheelchair-friendly. There were also some very civilised accessible loos,
accessed via a spacious lift to the basement level. There are other accessible
loos around the site. Apparently the Treehouse tearooms are also accessible via
a ramp.
The Ornamental Garden
It was a pleasant visit and I would happily visit the
Ornamental Garden again but wouldn’t be inclined to pay the entrance fee just
for that! It’s great that access has been built in to the place, it is far more
than just a token effort but I feel less and less inclined these days to accept
poor access and to me, being constantly jolted constitutes poor access. I’ll be
interested to see their reply to my email about the path surfaces. I’ll keep
you posted!
Burnby Hall Gardens, Pocklington are renowned for their fabulous collection of waterlilies but there is a lot more to the gardens and they are brilliantly accessible – I just can’t quite decide which type of path I like best.
The Upper Lake, Burnby Hall Gardens
They have been doing some restoration and improvements so there
aren’t so many waterlilies as normal just now (they hold the national collection)
but plenty were out and looking lovely and there is much more to see. It’s
years since we have visited and they have created new paths since then and new
areas to explore, such as the Victorian Garden, Aviary Garden and a shady walk
with hydrangeas each side as well as the revamped rockery.
The Rock Garden, Burnby Hall Gardens
In the reception area/shop they gave us a map which is also on their website although the hydrangea path must be very new as it’s not marked. It was made of what I believe is called self-binding gravel: very fine gravel, claylike in texture and great for wheels. Other paths were resin, such as the ones in the Rock Garden which is lovely and smooth or tarmac with just a couple of loose gravel or bark chip ones which are easy to avoid if your wheels can’t cope with it. I also gave the path to the stumpery a miss as it was too bumpy.
Accessible viewing platform at Burnby Hall Gardens
It was easy to get right to the water’s edge too as there were viewing platforms especially for wheelchair users. Actually, I only remember one of them and you reached it by going over the grass but this was very smooth – more so than our lawn at home! I guess the gravel paths are the greenest option as they are permeable but might get muddy in wet weather.
Smooth paths at Burnby Hall Gardens
It was very busy when we were there but it was never a problem
and there was a lovely atmosphere – everyone was enjoying themselves! There is
a café selling cakes and light snacks with indoor and outdoor seating, accessible
loos (didn’t use them but got a photo and they look very civilised!) and
baby-changing. There were also plenty of benches as you go round.
The café, Burnby Hall GardensAccessible loo at Burnby Hall Gardens
The museum is accessible too. It houses artefacts gathered
by Major Percy Stewart, who lived at Burnby Hall, which is now council offices,
during his travels around the globe during the early 1900s. Stuffed animal
heads might not be to everyone’s taste but there are plenty of other
interesting objects and some interactive parts.
The Stewart Museum, Burnby Hall Gardens
The shop sells gifts and postcards and the staff were helpful and friendly. There is plenty of parking although not enough Blue Badge bays – there were a number of people using scooters and chairs and no wonder when it is so accessible – they hold an Age UK award for accessibility. Pete dropped me off then found a space elsewhere. There are details about parking on their website.
The Victorian Garden, Burnby Hall Gardens
We will definitely be going back – perhaps at different time of the year to see the garden in different moods. It’ll be interesting to see it develop as the lilies and rockery plants return to their former glory. I also like supporting somewhere so committed to making themselves genuinely accessible – they deserve our business.
The Van Gogh Immersive Experience was lovely, visiting that part of town
for the first time in years was not as great as expected.
The Van Gogh Immersive Experience has come to York having
previously been in Brussels and elsewhere – it’s at St Mary’s Church,
Castlegate, next to the Jorvik Viking Centre.
The main event is the 35 minute Immersive Experience where
you are, indeed, immersed in 360° projections of Van Gogh paintings accompanied
by music and some voice-over. They are not just static paintings though: windmill
sails rotate, trees and flowers blow in the breeze, rain falls, a train passes
through a sunny landscape and yes, you become enveloped in a starry, starry
night. They make imaginative use of the space, sometimes projecting different
pictures between the pillars, at other times one picture fills the room and you
are part of the landscape.
360° projections at the Immersive Experience (Visityork.org)
I think their
website said that it was wheelchair accessible but didn’t have
information about who could get a concession and whether an accompanying carer
could go free. I e-mailed them to enquire and they asked me to forward my
booking confirmation so they could make a note that I would be accompanied; this
all seemed a little complicated so I suggested they update their website
information to make all this clear and they have! Result! The staff on duty at
the venue were very helpful.
Entrance to the Immersive Experience
There is ample Blue Badge parking fairly nearby in the
Castle Carpark by Clifford’s Tower. The route between the two is a bit bumpy
but not too drastic – we came via the road as it’s a quiet one and the dropped
kerb at the top of the slope near the church is quite a good one. If your
wheelchair is too big to manoeuvre around to the entrance, you could go in the
exit. The seating was mainly deckchairs which was a jolly idea but many people
were struggling to get in and out of them, plus there were a couple of wooden
benches.
360° projections at the Immersive Experience
Unfortunately, the second part of the experience was in a
room up a small, steep little slope that my chair couldn’t cope with (I think
the stabiliser wheels back got caught in the angle as it was so steep). What we
missed was mainly some activities for kids, so that didn’t matter to us but
there was also some virtual reality headsets (at an extra cost) which I was
really looking forward to as I’ve never tried virtual reality so I was very
disappointed but I guess it can’t be helped: it’s an old building. It might be
that they could have tried a bit harder, though, it was a really steep slope
for anyone on wheels.
Reproduction of Van Gogh’s room at Arles
Afterwards, as the rain held off, we had a look round Coppergate
Walk as I have not been there for years. It was very busy and I don’t want to
do York down, but it was a bit scruffy, very commercial, with pop-up food
outlets and somewhat rubbish strewn. The sloping pavement meant that the
entrance to the Body Shop has a small step so wasn’t accessible. I wasn’t
worried about The Whisky Shop, the jewellers or the umpteen cafés but we were
able to pop into Boots and Fenwick’s which has changed mightily since I was
last there. The fabulous selection of greetings cards that they used to have on
the ground floor has now been moved to the lower ground floor and wasn’t quite
so fabulous anymore but there is a very spacious lift to get you there.
Van Gogh at the Immersive Experience (Visityork.org)
I have mixed feelings about being in town: it was good to
see some once-familiar places, but on the other hand a lot of the things you
can get in town, you can also get out of town where, as well as being more
accessible, is a lot less crowded. We used to be a bit snotty about out-of-town
shopping but now realise how incredibly convenient it is for anyone other than
the very mobile. On the whole, I can live without looking round shops anyway!
Do visit the Van Gogh if you can – it’s beautiful, it’s
different and it’s fun.
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