Abbey memories
I was touched and surprised to see a beautiful photograph of Roche Abbey on the Contents page of the February edition. I was born and brought up 70 years ago in the small mining village of Maltby – a leisurely one-mile stroll from Roche Abbey. In those days of few cars and limited public transport, Roche Abbey was a favourite place to visit on a Sunday afternoon.
With a child’s lack of knowledge of other ways of life, I assumed everyone had a ruined abbey on their doorstep. It took me around 20 years to realise how very privileged I had been in this respect. My grateful thanks to you for such a wonderful surprise, and also for the fascinating article [on the dissolution of the monasteries] by Hugh Willmott. Chris Andrews, Doncaster