Local radio in this part of the world (Wiltshire/Somerset/Dorset) has
caught on to holy wells somewhat. I have recently found myself standing
welly-deep in Ladywell at Edington, talking to a rather bemused
interviewer who was (as usual) having problems equating 'well' with
'spring'. Cue usual explanation about well coming from anglo-saxon
'welle' = spring. Next weekend I shall probably be doing the same again
with two people from the Wiltshire/Dorset border who are interested in
holy wells and yew trees. Ladywell is good for radio as there is a
stong echo inside the well-house, and the flow from the spring is very
loud - plenty of good sound effects.
BBC Teletext carried a piece about the Holy Wells Web yesterday. They
got just about every detail wrong, including the URL of the website
(naturally), but I really welcome the publicity for holy wells. I
cherish the hope that, if people know more about them, they'll stop
filling them with rubbish and destroying them.
I'm also enjoying this spinoff from my usual documentary activities...
Katy
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Katy Jordan
Faculty Librarian, Engineering & Design
Library & Learning Centre
University of Bath
BATH BA2 7AY
Tel: 01225-826826 X5612
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http://www.bath.ac.uk/~liskmj/home.htm
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