| Description | Contains video from a documentary broadcast about the architectural history of English towns, including Beverley.
Timing. Action on film:
(00:27) Alec Clifton-Taylor travels into Beverley by train.
(00:46) He explains the lack of local building materials that led to the use of local clay for brick and tile making.
(01:07) Refers to the rivers leading into Beverley making it easy to import stone from elsewhere.
(02:25) Alec Clifton-Taylor explains the Latin origins of the word 'minster' and mentions minsters in other parts of the country.
(03:30) Mentions that since 1548 Beverley Minster has been a parish church, despite being superior to many cathedrals in Alec Clifton-Taylor's opinion.
(03:54) View of the South Transept of Beverley Minster.
(04:02) View of the West Front of the Minster.
(04:15) View of the large East Window which dates from 1416.
(04:26) View of the steeply-pitched roofs of the Minster covered in lead.
(05:21) Discussion about the stone used to build the Minster.
(09:10) Mentions that the design of the triforium was inspired by Lincoln Cathedral.
(09:35) The vault [ceiling] webs are plastered over.
(09:59) Explains that while the ribs are of stone the in-filling is brick. This brickwork is nearly 650 years old and is unusually well preserved.
(10:53) After stepping out onto the roof parapet, Clifton-Taylor points out some of the stonework. He goes back inside the roof to demonstrate the great tread wheel which was used to bring stonework up to the roof. It was still in use until 1977.
(12:55) Clifton-Taylor stands behind the Percy Screen above the High Altar to point out the Great East Window. This contains the only surviving stained glass in the Minster. It was collected and re-inserted in 1725. He also mentions the screen and organ case designed by Sir George Gilbert Scott.
(14:00) Mentions that the floor is an example of trompe l'oeil and dates from the eighteenth century restoration.
(14:19) To the north of the High Altar is the Percy Tomb, a superb piece of carving which has survived until today.
(15:06) Mentions that the Minster was well maintained by Beverley Corporation over the centuries.
(15:47) Explains that in recent years an ambitious programme of restoration has been carried out, notably on the stone work.
(16:29) Adds that nearly a mile away in Beverley is St Mary's Church, which was favoured by the Merchant Guilds. This church received many bequests.
(17:29) Mentions that in the Middle Ages Beverley was the largest town in East Yorkshire.
(17:47) Explains that away from the two churches, stone is quite hard to find in Beverley.
(18:14) Discusses the possible reasons for the early popularity of brickmaking in Beverley.
(18:49) Refers to North Bar and its construction.
(19:39) Explains that the elongated shape of Beverley is because it was built along the banks of several streams.
(19:59) Mentions that only one of the water pumps from earlier times survives.
(20:02) Explains that the reason for the abundance of water in Beverley is because the town is on a spring line where the permeable chalk of the Wolds to the north and west meets the impermeable boulder clay of Holderness to the east.
(20:35) Discusses the wool and cloth trade.
(21:24) Refers to domestic brick-building
(21:39) Mentions Newbegin and its brickwork.
(23:42) Refers to roofing in Beverley and the transfer from thatching to tiles.
(25:21) Mentions Lairgate Hall and Norwood House.
(29:14) Refers to the Courtroom of the Guildhall which dates from the 1760s.
(32:59) Mentions St Mary's Manor.
(39:19) Looks at the popularity of white bricks.
(35:24) Refers to Bar House.
(37:33) Discusses conservation issues affecting historic towns.
Film and Sound Archive access copy available onsite in the Audio-Visual Room |