The Time Tourist

Hidden in a field a good half a mile walk from the nearest road is a fascinating glimpse into our medieval past - Wharram Percy Deserted Medieval Village Located on the Yorkshire Wolds, not far from the town of Malton, Wharram Percy presents an intriguing historic site and opens up questions like: why was a whole village abandoned? I visited this English Heritage site with my fiancée back in Summer 2018. We arrived at the car park mid afternoon, having been for a trip to the lovely Kirkham priory earlier that day. We weren't sure what to expect really. I was desperate to see the site, having a passion for the medieval period - especially for the lower classes of the time - but was unsure if it would be fully worth the trip. On the walk down the hill to the site we past an older couple heading back up (safe to say we were glad we were going down the steep hill rather than climbing up, especially as it was a hot and muggy day). We exchanged greetings with the passing couple ...

In a suburban area on the outskirts of York is a lasting reminder of our Cold War past, York Cold War Bunker. This is a fascinating, if somewhat scary, place to visit! The bunker was built in 1961 during a time when the threat of nuclear war was at an all time high. This partly subterranean building was constructed to be the headquarters of the Royal Observer Corps (ROC) Number 20 Group and was one of 31 bunkers of it's type across Britain. The ROC was set up in 1925 but during the Cold War, in 1954, adopted the role of nuclear reporting across the country. In the event of a nuclear explosion on British main land the ROC would be able to gather data and issue warnings. York's bunker had only three full time staff employed by the Home Office, an observer, a secretary and the deputy commandant. Anyone else who worked in the bunker, around 50-60 people, were ROC volunteers. These volunteers were split into three crews - each expected to operate for at least two weeks in ...