Boats, buskers and the Bard

Tourists in their thousands arrive in Stratford-upon-Avon, many for just a good ol’ day out… Many of them will gravitate to the river.  A good number will take a trip boat ride, either on wide beam Jennifer May from Bancroft Basin, down through the lock, along the river to the church – and back, or a cruise on one of the three electric inspection style vessels that ply the river between the church and the Higher Avon.

Then there are boats to watch – rowing boats from the rowing club (proudly displaying a congratulations banner to club member Esme,Booth, a silver Olympic medallist), 

self-hire rowing boats,

training kayaks,

occasional paddle boards, cruisers, the foot ferry

as well as the steel narrow boats and broad beams that add colour and interest to the riverbank scene.

There was Cleddau, pictured directly opposite the RSC Theatres terrace.

(A recent change on the terrace is the removal of the high all weather fixed tables and benches, now located outside the 1930s  frontage,

replaced by a smart table service area under an array of large sunshades.

The change seems to have been a success, relieving the pressure on the cramped indoor café space).

The river bank in August is a busy place, families strolling, groups picnicking, youngsters playing ballgames, all ages licking ice creams – and geese patrolling…

Seen from the Tramway Bridge one late afternoon:

two ladies breast-stroking their way towards the theatre, it seemed…

A prominent feature at the far end of the Tramway Bridge is Stratford’s Big Wheel. “You’re going to have to go on it,” urged the Captain one day to a less than enthusiastic Boatwif.  In bright sunlight it was not easy to see what the camera was seeing…

By 11am the town, the parks and the public areas are beginning to seethe. If you want free entertainment there is plenty available.

There are buskers who can sing well (and some who cannot),

there are fire eaters (didn’t the children just love it when a fire eater put a blazing torch down his trousers!),

there are street performers who can whip up a crowd

and there are bubble sellers to amuse the smaller visitors. A spot in Henley Street, not far from Shakespeare’s Birthplace, seems to attract buskers who play more classical pieces (on one occasion on an electric harp) – and it was here that the second bride of this trip was spotted.

Oh how the Bard brings in the crowds… There are many businesses who use the Shakespeare connection for commercial purposes.

The Royal Shakespeare Company theatre buildings sit right on the riverbank.

There are two theatres here, in late summer showing in repertoire Pericles (in The Swan Theatre)

with The School for Scandal

and The Merry Wives of Windsor (in the Royal Shakespeare Theatre).

In 2021, to bring back live theatre after the lockdowns, an outdoor theatre was erected

– it’s back this summer for a condensed version of As You Like It.

Sneak view of the play in progress one afternoon.

Richard Sheridan’s The School for Scandal was a glorious explosion in pink

of scurrilous gossip, in which hypocrisy and self-righteousness in Georgian society is exploded in a most amusing way. Extravagant costumes based on 18th century French styles were used to great humorous effect, especially the very wide skirted dress of Lady Sneerwell.  An RSC production will always provide visual surprise – in this case the use of under stage lifts to bring up different domestic settings was amazingly effective. Judged a 4 star production by critics the Cleddau crew might have given it a 5 star rating.

Then there was The Merry Wives of Windsor. It’s a well-known play involving a hugely funny scene with a laundry basket. Presented as a British suburban sitcom, the cast’s modern day costumes worked really well. The set design involved a centre stage structure that was revolved to indicate various domestic and inn settings.

Again the under stage lifts were used slickly to great effect to bring up furniture, props and characters. There were several outstanding performances, especially by the tall (and well padded?) Sir John Falstaff played by John Hodgkinson. This was at least a 4 star production.

After two nights moored riverside (no charge) and two nights in Bancroft Basin (C&RT rules here)

Cleddau needed to move on.

There is a sharp right turn out of the Basin, under a very low bridge – and it was Cleddau’s “luck” to follow a boat up the first 3 miles and 13 locks of the Southern Stratford Canal.

Next destination - Lowsonford.

Stratford-upon-Avon  (river mooring) to Wilmcote: 3½ miles, 17 locks, 0 swing bridges

2024 Totals: 444½ miles, 12 tunnel passages, 232 locks, 31 swing bridges 

*2024 Monkton Moments*(Monkton Moment*- a reference to / recognition of Cleddau’s Pembrokeshire connections) – now 23 (3 lady walkers on the Stratford towpath, all from Wales; a boater with a house at Wiseman's Bridge)

Tudor Rose enquiries: 2

Footballs floating in the cut: 9

Supermarket trolleys visible in the cut: 4

Rescued: 1 garden gnome

Car in the river – 1

Brides – 2