Black and White

   Half - timbered buildings fascinate me. They epitomise Old England, and the english yearning for a rural past that, in truth, wasn't much fun to live in. No plumbing, no heating, chuck the contents of your chamberpot out of the window...no thanks.
   I once spent a week in a half - timbered farmhouse in Wales. The floors weren't level. Every room as on a different level from every other room. There were narrow, twisty staircases in odd places. And I banged my head on roof beams and door jambs ten times a day. Nicer to look at than to live in, I'll admit.
   Apart from the link with history, though, it's the contrast between the black timberwork and  the white plaster that catches my attention. Most of the survivors are pretty high - status buildings, and the designers went overboard with the decoration. So the timbers form complex geometric shapes
   There's loads of examples round here. Bramall Hall, Baguley Hall, Wythenshawe Hall, the Shambles in Manchester, and a few miles further south, the all - time classic, Little Moreton Hall
    Some of these buildings only date from the 1500's. Timber was cheaper than stone, so these primitive structures were thrown up long after there were more durable alternatives. And yet they age very well. The timbers warp and sag, but the buildings still stand.
   Such is their magic that Mock Tudor has become an architectural style in its own right.In Speke, near Liverpool, there are mock tudor houses with thatched roofs that can't be more than 90 years old.
Thatched roofs! That's what I mean about the yearning for the past. Though with toilets, obviously.