Rosieville

There are currently signs pointing to "Rosie" as you approach Miserden, and the road through the village has been covered with gravel. Not only that indicates filming in progress: the Carpenter's Arms is currently "The Woolpack" and strange posters adorn the noticeboard under the tree. Yes, the BBC are doing a remake of Laurie Lee's "Cider with Rosie" and clearly despaired of securing any peace for the project in its true location, nearby Slad.

The Roadmender

Dialogue with teams of present day road repairers is not easy on account of the noise their machines make. So you bustle past, to get out of their way. Not so on Folly Lane above Slad yesterday. Surprisingly, it's unadopted, so here was a riparian owner with his DIY kit - two wheelbarrows, a spade, a rake and a bag of the black stuff. And time for a chat.

The three of us had parked near the Woolpack and climbed up the path on the South edge of Worgan's Wood. From the East side of the Painswick Valley, we looked over to Whiteshill and Pitchcombe before turning onto the Painswick Old Road at Brownshill Court (its once fine entrance looking very neglected). Wick Street was entirely new to me, a delightful hamlet with a fine early 17th Century manor house - not attracting a lot of sun in the Winter though I guess.

It was a warm day for some steep climbing, and a pint of Old Spot at Laurie Lee's local went down beautifully. Hannah, recently installed as mine hostess, offers a sensible, slightly minimalist pub lunch: the best soup I've tasted for a while! Our cup overflowed when we saw Kathy Lee in the other bar.

Cotswold stealth

Walking around the Slad Valley this afternoon, the company agreed that you could smell the money. It's a far cry from the Slad of ninety years ago, as described by Laurie Lee in Cider with Rosie! That money is plentifully lavished on house, horse and (in this case) a car with something of the look of a stealth bomber. I wondered what the catsuit - sorry, carsuit - alone had cost with its dinky pockets for the wing mirrors.