The Grand Tour.

I went out just after nine to find a paper. I walked all round the place and couldn't find a newsagents, never mind one that was open, so I had to wait until the supermarkets would start selling. It was a cracking day so as soon as the Archers had finished we went out for a walk to follow one of the guided walks that we had picked up[ from the Tourist Information. We chose The Curiosities walk. All the walks started at the ruins of the castle that overlooks our mooring.

All that is left of the castle is the outer curtain wall after Oliver Cromwell ordered to have it pulled down. The courtyard now makes a lovely little park and the old Victorian Bandstand is a gem.

|in the centre is the Town Hall that was started in 1773 and designed by John Carr of York. Just to the left is the thinnest house in Newark. Can you spot it? On the right, too small to see, is the town pump and bear baiting post! The market square is one of the largest in the country and there is a path marked out across it where the way had to be kept clear of debris to allow the governor during the civil war to pass between his house to the church.

This brass is in the road outside the church and is to commemorate the reunion of all the worlds Newarks getting together. What a good idea for Hull to have in 2017.

The Charles I Coffee house is reported to have sheltered Charles I'st wife Queen Henrietta. The two buildings show the developments of the housing as the 15th Century one on the right uses more timber than the 16th on on the left.

This Arcade was built in 1897 by brothers George and Fred Atter. At the far end was a pie shop and so it became Pie Corner.

This is the regency gothic club house of the oldest bowling club in the area as it started in 1809. The motto under the balcony reads 'Let no man be biased'.

 This is the Old White Hart, the oldest surviving in in Newark as it date from the 14th century. The ornate facade was added in 1459 and restored in 1980's but the colour scheme and materials are authentic.

This is the Ossington Coffee Palace. It was a former temerance hotel built in memory of a former Speaker of the House of Commons in 1882. The plaster panels around the building show the chaos caused by drink along with religious scenes.

Newark was obviously a centre of maltings and breweries and there are many remains around the town and near the river. This is just part of the Northgate Brewery that has been nicely converted to apartments and shops and looks very nice. It was the brewery for Warwick and Richardsons beer.

On the way round I picked some more elder flowers. We stopped for coffee and cake in one of the many little tea shops and cafes which were doing a thriving trade with the good weather. The river cruises were doing a roaring trade and they penned up through town lock. When returning to their berth it was obvious that he had done it before as it was gracefully done each time. It is now thundering but if it remains dry we may go and have a beer somewhere later.