Cinnamon, cinnamon, cinnamon

I was walking down St Giles in Oxford with Paul Sutton and I don't remember who else. We met a poet, or at least someone selling poetry, or at least someone selling a book of words. And Paul bought a book, as you do, and I don't remember the poems, or the words, except for one last line, which was "Cinnamon, cinnamon, cinnamon". And we spent a long time making fun of it. But I still think of it, and it still makes me smile, so maybe it was poetry after all.

Lotherton Hall Change of Use

Less than ten years ago, you could get a year-long parking ticket at Lotherton Hall for less than £10. Under new proposals, from this October, that price (for a family) will have risen to £45.

In some respects I am not comparing like-with-like. The previous price was for parking and entry to the grounds (but not the house). The new price will include entry to the house. Still, it's a dramatic rise. If the house that we were living in at the time had increased in value at the same rate, we could have bought our new house mortgage-free; twice, which would have been nice.

Run by Leeds City Council, it was clear Lotherton Hall was underpriced, given the facilities that are available. There is a children's play area, a bird garden, deer park, extensive gardens, and a woodland walk. In winter they organised craft events where you could make your own Christmas decorations (particularly willow wreaths) for a donation. It was excellent.

Now, however, I think its use will change, and I think that's a shame. When you visited Lotherton Hall in summer it was crammed with families escaping Leeds for a little bit of countryside. Kids played football while parents sat around barbecues. There was a tacky fair where you could play hook-a-duck and buy an ice cream.

I don't want to romanticise this too much - perhaps it's the barbecue smoke getting in my eyes - but it was a great space for ordinary people to spend an afternoon.

Oh there's nothing as gay as a day in the country, under the wonderful skies.
For a city bred feller, field full of yeller, is quite a delightful surprise.

Well, perhaps not, but it seems inevitable now that this will change. The plans intend to take Lotherton Hall upmarket, "enhance the visitor experience". But really, haven't we got enough enhanced visitor experiences already? Is that what people living in the concrete-infested depths of Leeds really want?

Lotherton Hall isn't Harewood House or Bramham Park, but these new prices are taking it into that territory. Lotherton Hall is a nice bit of green space where you can run around to your heart's content without feeling that you must get the most out of the visitor experience.

If we visit again, I expect the mix will have changed to Boden families and older people in hats and coats. Which is a shame, because they have plenty of places to go already.