The down your way book

Anthony Smith

Published by Arthur Barker , hardcover with dustjacket, illustrated

In the' footsteps of Anthony Smith and the Down Your Way presenter, Brian Johnston, on whose amiable interviews this book is based, the reader travels the length and breadth of the British Isles, to learn about occupations as different as toffee-making in Dumfriesshire and rare chicken breeding in Sussex; traditions as colourful as welldressing in Derbyshire and the Tynwald ceremony on the Isle of Man; the making of objects as diverse as needles, candles, bells, clogs, bee skips and cricket bats — as well as a host of other interesting occupations and curiosities.

Have you heard of Groaty Dick or the Tuttimen? What is the Biddenden Dole? Where would you expect to find the Barmoot Court, a pets' cemetery, or to see the ancient craft of cobweb painting?

The immensely popular and long-running radio series Down Your Way has investigated all these questions and many, many more. Now, to celebrate the 1500th edition of this evergreen programme, its producer Anthony Smith has gathered together many of its most fascinating discoveries in a delightful book, and has arranged them by subject for easy reference. The book is written with an infectious enthusiasm for all things British, past and present, and provides a delightful survey of many of the less familiar areas of Britain's rich and colourful heritage.