Murton and 'The Wanderer'

Just now, BBC iPlayer is showing the second series of Grand Tours of Scotland, presented by film-maker Paul Murton. In the spirit of Victorian tourists, who saw Scotland as a Romantic idyll, Murton follows a tattered copy of Black's Picturesque Guide to Scotland and uses as many forms of transport as possible. The first leg of his journey, from Berwick-upon-Tweed to Melrose, is completed in a bow-top gypsy caravan pulled by a single horse, Jack.

On the road, Murton relates the story of the eccentric founder of pleasure-caravanning, 'gentleman gypsy' Dr. William Gordon Stables. Having been invited to see the interior of a gypsy caravan, Stables was so impressed that he commissioned his own version to be built. The result: The Wanderer, a mahogany coach-built vehicle drawn by two horses, which provided everything that Stables required on the road, from his writing desk to running water. The Wanderer is now owned by the Caravan Club.

As Murton discusses with Stables's great-grandson, Stables viewed high living on the road as a precious lifestyle which benefitted the health. He related the first tour of The Wanderer - taken in 1885 from Berkshire to Inverness with his valet, dog and cockatoo - in The Cruise of the Land-Yacht 'Wanderer': Or, Thirteen Hundred Miles in my Caravan (duly added to my Amazon Wish List - yes, it is available!)

Murton misses a trick by not showing us the interior of his caravan, but there are some nice close-ups of its external paintwork.

Episode 1 is available until Wednesday 14th December.

Welcome

A warm welcome to my blog, which I have set up as a place of musings, chatter and general notes-to-self about my ongoing research topic: the material culture of the English Romani gypsies.

The colour, spirit and warmth of gypsy art has always attracted me, but my fascination was really inspired by a book I found in a charity shop in 2009. Enchanted by the title - The Moon in my Pocket - and the lovely wrapper illustrations, I handed over the slightly breathtaking sum of £25 (which I have since learnt is not expensive). This purchase introduced me to the writings of Rupert Croft-Cooke, a friend of the gypsies in the 1940s. It is to him that I dedicate this blog.

Rupert Croft-Cooke, The Moon in my Pocket: Life with the Romanies (London: Sampson Low, Marston & Co, 1948).

The front and spine illustrations are by the British artist Laurence Scarfe (1914-93), who worked in many visual disciplines, including illustration, graphic design, fine art, mural painting and ceramic decoration, at the Royal College of Art, Central School of Art, Brighton Polytechnic and elsewhere. His papers from 1935-83 are held by the Victoria and Albert Museum's Archive of Art and Design.

Incidentally, the chimney of the caravan (vardo) is in the wrong place, which must have irritated Croft-Cooke no end. (In a later book, he mentions losing respect for illustrators who fail to place the chimney to the immediate left of the front door. More on this later!)