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Ron Brind Posts: 19044 Joined: 26th Oct 2003 Location: England | quotePosted at 16:49 on 5th November 2007 Why isn't the former home of C S Lewis' the Kilns, which in my opinion is part of Britains Christian heritage, open to all? The Founder and President of the C S Lewis Foundation (Mr Stan Mattson) in Redlands, California (who currently own the former home), says he will never open it up on a full time basis, and that it is not a public place, nor yet a museum! I think it should be all three; open, public and a museum to a man who has changed the hearts and minds of millions of people throughout the world, indeed who continues to do so! Why do the American people support this Foundation? In some cases members of the Foundation who have travelled with me on the C S Lewis tour that I operate here in Oxford, have found it impossible to get an internal viewing! That can't be right, surely? What do other people feel about this situation, please comment through this forum. See http://www.englandukhotelaccommodation.com to help me preserve the Lewis legacy, http://www.cslewistours.com to book your C S Lewis tour and/or http://www.visitthekilns.com for general information from one who was there at the time! Regards Ron Brind
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Paul Hilton  Posts: 2605 Joined: 21st Nov 2004 Location: UK | quotePosted at 16:13 on 10th November 2007 One can appreciate Ron's sentiments as east of Oxford at Great Missenden can be found the Roald Dahl Museum; another celebrated childrens author. Going south to Chawton, Hampshire, the former home of Jane Austen is open to visit inside with a great many things from her days still there to see. Indeed, visiting England using author's homes or villages/towns where they lived would take you to many interesting places to see, even to include American authors such as Mark Twain's home near Chelsea, London. Ron's posting made me dig out my old copy of Alice in Wonderland which is anotated at the front as being given to a young girl named Gladys Redman as a present for her in 1919 from a French lady. I'm sure that has happened countless times over, around the world. |
| Paul Hilton Posts: 2605 Joined: 21st Nov 2004 Location: UK | quotePosted at 20:50 on 10th November 2007 It occurred to me that if you were based in Oxford on a holiday and interested in English literature/authors, you could do rather well on days out visiting places associated with them in various ways. Off the top of my head, such authors would include: C S Lewis, Lewis Carroll, J R R Tolkien, R D Blackmore, Jane Austen, Dame Agatha Christie, Richard Adams,Charles Dickens, William Shakespeare, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, and Thomas Hardy. Apart from Shakespeare in Warwickshire and Hardy in Dorset, the others you can find connections with in just 2 counties---Oxfordshire and Hampshire. |
| Ron Brind Posts: 19044 Joined: 26th Oct 2003 Location: England | quotePosted at 20:18 on 12th March 2008 Paul You say "Ron's posting made me dig out my old copy of Alice in Wonderland". I was talking about C S Lewis not Lewis Carroll - So does that mean you are in line with some 70% of 'Brits' in Oxford who during a small survey that I carried out (197 in fact) thought that C S Lewis wrote Alice in Wonderland? C'mon you can be honest, we won't mind. Ron Brind Author: A Guide to the C S Lewis Tour in Oxford |
Peter Evans Posts: 3864 Joined: 20th Aug 2006 Location: UK | quotePosted at 01:15 on 13th March 2008 You have upset me now Ron. I thought my mom made that story up "Alice in Wonderland" to keep me quiet as a kid. |
Posts: Joined: 1st Jan 1970 | You must admit Ron, unless it's your forte, the two are very confusable Q.Which king of England defeated Robert the Bruce at the Battle of (I think) Bannockburn? A. Napoleon. Q, Memphis was the capital of which great ancient civilization? A.Tennessee On a literary note I once visited Howarth Parsonage and found it very moving, not least the horse hair couch on which Emily expired.
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| Ron Brind Posts: 19044 Joined: 26th Oct 2003 Location: England | quotePosted at 19:35 on 17th March 2008 Don't disagree with that, but it does make you wonder when possibly the greatest apologetic of the 20th Century is barely recognized in his own City! Oxford of course!! We can but hope and perhaps the next Lewis book in the Chronicles 'Prince Caspian' which is about to be released, will help. |
Jacqueline Morstad Posts: 17 Joined: 18th Apr 2008 Location: USA | quotePosted at 01:07 on 26th April 2008 Well, not to disparage my compatriots...much...but most people in the USofA, if they even hazzard a guess, would say both Alice in Wonderland and The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe were written by "that guy who wrote The Wizard of Oz." |
Ricardo Malagueño Posts: 25 Joined: 18th Feb 2008 Location: Argentina | quotePosted at 15:52 on 14th May 2008 Is 'The Kilns' the same house featured in the film Shadowlands? I love that kind of houses, and when I designed the house I am now living in, I always had in mind that kind of typical English cottages. Ricardo |
| Ron Brind Posts: 19044 Joined: 26th Oct 2003 Location: England | quotePosted at 16:05 on 14th May 2008 Hello Ricardo, welcome to the forum even though you joined some months ago! As for the house, I can't be sure until I have found our copy of 'Shadowlands' and watched it through again. It's been a few years since I've seen it, but as I know the property very well inside and out, it won't be hard to determine. My guess is that it was not the property shown. |
What concerns me is that many contestants on The Weakest Leak might be representative of the depth of general knowledge among the Great British Public....
