Yesterday, Mummy and I went to Audley End for a Victorian Travelling Show! Tilly was at a sleepover with her friend Katie, so we’ve had at least three Mummy-and-Vinia-Days (and yes, that does deserve capital letters, for those days are very rare and special). We packed a lunch that was almost entirely vegetables – which just goes to show how lucky I am – with cucumber, rolls, celery, carrots, humous, a Club bar, and I am sure there was more! The journey there took a full hour, but we listened to some music and talked about our ‘Road-Trip’ and what we were to do when we got there.
We went to the lawn after stroking some lovely horses we were going to see perform later, and ate our lunch on the picnic blanket. We thought it was going to rain some light showers, and go all cloudy after a while, but it stayed sunny and hot and sun-cream-weather! It didn’t even drip a drop! (I like that saying…drip a drop…drip a drop…) Anyway, once we had eaten lunch, we quickly nipped down to a large performance about Robin Hood!
I volunteered to act out the Sheriff of Nottingham, which was the best part with the most talking (‘best’ knowing me!), and, if I may say so myself, I think I did quite a good job of it. I was given a red velvet hat with gold tufts of fur and a very small cloak with the same style. We were given swords and bows in each different scene. The man would hold the microphone to his mouth and say, “Ah – but the Sheriff had something to say about that!”, and then he would hold the microphone to me and whisper, “I do indeed,” so no one would hear. I would repeat loudly, “I do indeed.” – “I challenge Hood for a duel” – “I challenge Hood for a duel!” – “Seize them” – “Seize them!”
We also watched some horses doing their stunts! Out of the riders, my favourite was the one acting as Calamity Jane, and out of the horses, I liked Malec (I think that’s how you spell it..) and Jasmine (the rider wasn’t quite sure if that was her name, but anyway) drawing. Malec did the most brilliant stunts, but Jasmine was the fastest. Malec was a shining black with a silky black mane and tail, and he had white lines and speckles down his nose. That’s the only way I can describe him, but really, he looked so cute and I want him!! Jasmine was a bay horse with a cream stripe down her nose. Calamity Jane did a really cool stunt on her camel-coloured horse, where she flipped to the side of her horse whilst it galloped and, upside-down, she lay on the side of the horse with her hands skimming the ground!
She was brilliant, but not as good as the guy acting the cowboy whose name sounded a bit like ‘Tetris’! He rode on four horses at once! Well, technically he did, but really he rode on two – but that’s still great! He stood up, one foot on each horse, with two others in front, both two reins to steer with, and only one voice to halt and things! He even managed to get the two horses in front to the left of the ones he was standing on, and walk across the horses to stand on the two in the middle! It was great!
He also got the horse to stand up on his hind legs while he waved a whip in the air, and he also got him to lie on his back and sit on his belly, holding his front legs! When we talked to the rider, he said that in the TV series ‘Poldark’ he acted as the double every time there was horse-riding involved.
We went into the big house, too, but not properly into it. We went in the dairy, and the kitchens, but the laundry was the best bit. You had a dirty old pillowcase where you had to clean it in the ways that the laundry maids did – you had to rinse it, scrub it on the wooden, knobbly board, whatever it’s called, put it through the mangle, and iron it with the iron, etc. It was fun!
There were lots of Victorian games. You had to try to pick up the bottle and stand it up with the wooden hoop, and hammer the dart till it reaches the bell, and that sort of thing. There were stalls, too, with gems and pebbles and shiny jewels. There were Celtic boxes for some reason (I haven’t learnt about Audley End yet), etc.
We watched some men doing funny jokes and things in a Fire Show. They ate and juggled fire! They wanted a volunteer, so I put my hand up as high as it would go, but they picked a different boy behind me. They threw fire round his front and back! It was really good.
Then things started to close, and we didn’t get a go on the swingboats 🙁 Ah well, though, the rest was very fun and made up for it! We had to go home, but to a delicious dinner of crumpets, cheese, prunes (huh?) and apricots and strawberries. Strange, but tasty.