Midhurst Parish Church Events

THE MAGIC OF COWDRAY

It is difficult to explain the magic of Cowdray Castle; it has to be felt, seen and touched to be believed.

I got up at 3.30 am one early morning this June, and decided to walk the 400 yards from North Street Car Park, over the Causeway, to the wrought iron gates of the Castle.

André Durand - Cowdray Castle, November 2008

The gloaming, or half-light, that comes before dawn is truly amazing at this time of year. I could see the surrounding hills clearly although two to three miles away. Everything seemed alive and glowing, even the grass in the watermeadows where the resident herd of young cattle quietly dozed, unaware of their human neighbour. A layer of fine mist lay over the marshes.

The only sound was from a lonely blackbird singing its heart out at the oncoming dawn. The nightjar was silent here, preferring the commonland further up the hill where I had listened to his burr only ten minutes earlier.

I kept thinking of the times I'd photographed Cowdray, and each time the pictures told a different story, showed another face, revealed another secret.

Was there really anything in the Story of the Curse of Fire and Water? The fire in 1793 when the owners were away on holiday in Germany ran unchecked because nobody knew where the key was to the room with the fire appliances and water. The deaths of the owners in a boating accident on the Rhine before they knew of the fire, and the whole sad story of the subsequent demise of Cowdray, is a Greek Tragedy beyond compare.

Today, within yards of the Cowdray Ruins, boys kick footballs about, play rugby and dress in traditional ‘whites' for a game of cricket on a summer afternoon. The past and the present intermingle. Not much further off the sound of a polo commentary by 'Terry the Voice' is a noisy intrusion in an otherwise quiet countryside.

Yet I keep returning to the Castle, a place revered by painters, made famous by Turner and Constable, and still a mecca for artists and photographers trying to distill and capture its mysteries. The Magic of Cowdray is there for everyone. You just have to find a way of touching it, capturing that elusive quality and making it your own.

'THE MAGIC OF COWDRAY' by JOHN TRUEMAN

Christmas Candlelit Recital
with

Richard Durrant

Classical Guitarist

Saturday 6th December - 7.30 pm

To be held in Midhurst Parish Church

Tickets £10.00 Adutls, £8.00 concessions.

Available from "Stepping Out in Style
2, North St. Midhurst

or by telephoning the Parish Office (01730) 815356.

Tickets will also be available on the door.

Under 16 yrs - free, but must be accompanied by an adult.

Refreshments available during the interval.