In the Hevingham Mist

A foggy morning walk round Hevingham Woods, and the encroaching scraps of derelict scrapyard.

Dirty Toys and Burned Max Bygraves LPs: The Mousehold Heath Ranger's House

The Ranger's House at Mousehold Heath, Norwich. Built in the mid-1880s for the heath ranger - pretty much coinciding the time when the heath was given to the people of Norwich, so presumably the care of the heath prior was the responsibilty of the Church - and in use until the 1960s, it is now little more than a derelict shell with severe fire, smoke, and vandalism damage. Various plans have been mooted for the house - ideas range from it being used from a study centre to converted to social housing - but at the moment all seemed to have stalled. A few curious items littered about inside - heat-warped LPs, dirty toys - insinuate a pleasantly creepy vibe in the darkness.

'To Whomever Doth Find Me:' Cursed Wordsmiths and Derelict Cottages

A fairly gorgeous derelict cottage in the village of Bintree, Norfolk. Good light and cool paint-splashed walls, and, upstairs, an unusual find - held in place by a glass jar, a sealed envelope marked with the words 'To Whomever Doth Find Me' in flowery lettering. Naturally curious - and, I admit, glancing round me for signs of a body swinging from a noose - I tore it open.

Inside was a poem. Written by a figure calling him/herself The Cursed Wordsmith, there was also a note asking the finder to visit the author's Facebook page and there enter details of the poem - content, location found, etc - with the hope that others will be able to piece together the clues and find other poems left around similar locations in Norfolk. A literary treasure hunt, basically, and an undeniably cute idea. (According to said Facebook page, another poem has been found in a nearby ROC post, so perhaps the author is local to the Bintree / Twyford area with urbexy interests?).

Anyhow. Eyes peeled, people.