Portmeirion Pictures
We took Courtney’s parents to Portmeirion, a village built entirely according to the plans of one man, Bertram Clough Williams-Ellis. Not only did I find it endearingly pretty, but also fascinating to explore a personal fantasy made concrete.
Sailboat beached at low tide.
The Campanile, or Belltower, was one of the first buildings in Portmeirion, constructed so that people in the area could see something was happening there.
Noel Coward is reputed to have dashed off a play, Blythe Spirit, while staying in the Portmeirion hotel. George Bernard Shaw was also a visitor.
The Bristol Colonnade was originally built in 1760, and formed part of Arnos House in Bristol. Clough Williams-Ellis bought it and transported it brick-by-brick to Portmeirion in 1959.
More information about Portmeirion is available at the official website.
No mention of Portmeirion’s most famous attribute!?
Of providing the home, backdrop and stylistic beauty to the 60’s greatest television programme – The Prisoner.
Ignorant Americans – check it out. It’s a masterclass in paranoia, metaphor usage on the small screen, and just damn good fun!
I’d imagine that Mr C didn’t mention it because it’s the town’s most famous trivia bite; he probably assumed everyone knew it and it wasn’t worth mentioning.
I remember seeing somewhere that some of the buildings are actually just empty facades. Any confirmation on that LJC?
Looks like you also caught Wales on a rare sunny day. Lucky you!
Hey Liam, my mom collects Portmeirion dishes. Now I know where they originated! ;)
Yup, P, I omitted mentioning the Prisoner because almost everyone knows about it. And because I was so severely disappointed with the final four episodes, which are utter tosh.
All the buildings that look like cottages are habitable cottages, K, and you can rent them as self-catering holiday homes. There are a few follies and facades, but they’re obviously follies and facades. And there’s a grotto too. And a stone boat.
R, yes, the pottery designs originate from Potrmeirion, but the pottery itself is made in Stoke, in England.
who took the picture of the sand/hills?
that’s absolutely gorgeous, and whoever took it deserves praise :).
Thanks, Meg. That would be me, but Courtney took the two pictures of Prague that everyone likes.
We’d like to request a copy of the mudflat picture then. That’s in addition to the Dancing Puppets Of Ultimate Evil, please.
Digital copies.