The Book of Brundall and Braydeston: A Tale of Two Norfolk Parishes is published by Halsgrove at £19.99
Derek James (E.E.N.) Review 24.01.2007.
VILLAGES CELEBRATE 6000 YEARS OF HISTORY
What does the future hold for Brundall?
Today I can reveal that the school will be much bigger - with a huge adventure playground and a skyscraper block for all the children to do their lessons in.
The river will be made bigger for bigger ships - it will have a beach with a swimming pool and a coffee shop where you can learn to ride jet-skis.
At the Memorial Hall there will be a quad bike track, a cinema, a dinosaur museum, a football team, a new slide and a new seat for grown-ups. There will also be a hairdresser's, a clothes shop and a massage shop.
That is the future - according to Danny (5), Harry (6), Jack (6), Jake (7), Jo (7), Jonathan (5) and Orianne (6) -who are all pupils at Brundall Primary School.
And who are we to argue with them?
Their thoughts are on the final page of The Book of Brundall & Braydeston: A Tale of Two Norfolk Parishes.
Produced by Brundall Local History Group, this is a fascinating publication, packed with pictures and memories, telling a story that starts thousands of years ago.
The book illustrates how the whole community, people of all ages and from all walks of life, can come together to present 6,000 years in the life of Brundall and Braydeston.
It is the latest in the series to be published by Halsgrove, who have produced a series of excellent books following the history and development of Norfolk villages.
So how did this come about?
In response to enquiries from local schoolchildren, a set of scrapbooks were compiled in Brundall Library between 1988 and 2000.
Inspired by her predecessor's work, library manager Barbara Ayers decided to co-ordinate the book.
She brought together 20 locals to form the Brundall Local History Group, which set out to collect contributions from residents, past and present. The amount of material they discovered was astonishing and it has resulted in a local bestseller. Man has lived in the picturesque village, a few miles east of Norwich on the banks of the river Yare, for at least 6,000 years. Many Neolithic flint axe-heads have been found in gardens.
The population of Brundall and Braydeston rose and fell over the years. In Domesday (1086) both parishes had about 90 residents.
In 1891, they merged and there were a total of 347 inhabitants. The number had doubled by 1921 and now it has a population of about 5,000.
It is a parish with a rich and colourful history and an exciting future.
VILLAGES CELEBRATE 6000 YEARS OF HISTORY
What does the future hold for Brundall?
Today I can reveal that the school will be much bigger - with a huge adventure playground and a skyscraper block for all the children to do their lessons in.
The river will be made bigger for bigger ships - it will have a beach with a swimming pool and a coffee shop where you can learn to ride jet-skis.
At the Memorial Hall there will be a quad bike track, a cinema, a dinosaur museum, a football team, a new slide and a new seat for grown-ups. There will also be a hairdresser's, a clothes shop and a massage shop.
That is the future - according to Danny (5), Harry (6), Jack (6), Jake (7), Jo (7), Jonathan (5) and Orianne (6) -who are all pupils at Brundall Primary School.
And who are we to argue with them?
Their thoughts are on the final page of The Book of Brundall & Braydeston: A Tale of Two Norfolk Parishes.
Produced by Brundall Local History Group, this is a fascinating publication, packed with pictures and memories, telling a story that starts thousands of years ago.
The book illustrates how the whole community, people of all ages and from all walks of life, can come together to present 6,000 years in the life of Brundall and Braydeston.
It is the latest in the series to be published by Halsgrove, who have produced a series of excellent books following the history and development of Norfolk villages.
So how did this come about?
In response to enquiries from local schoolchildren, a set of scrapbooks were compiled in Brundall Library between 1988 and 2000.
Inspired by her predecessor's work, library manager Barbara Ayers decided to co-ordinate the book.
She brought together 20 locals to form the Brundall Local History Group, which set out to collect contributions from residents, past and present. The amount of material they discovered was astonishing and it has resulted in a local bestseller. Man has lived in the picturesque village, a few miles east of Norwich on the banks of the river Yare, for at least 6,000 years. Many Neolithic flint axe-heads have been found in gardens.
The population of Brundall and Braydeston rose and fell over the years. In Domesday (1086) both parishes had about 90 residents.
In 1891, they merged and there were a total of 347 inhabitants. The number had doubled by 1921 and now it has a population of about 5,000.
It is a parish with a rich and colourful history and an exciting future.