Swan Man to Ilkley...

RickAns

RickAns

Dedicated Member
Saw this episode again the other night and was wondering about something. After looking at a map it seems like Holmfirth to Ilkley is about an hour away by car. A fair distance, considerably longer by floating swan I reckon! Is it possible for Lennie to make the voyage by river or canal? Have not found that kind of detail on any maps I have looked at online. Most have been geared more towards car travel than boat.

I paid closer attention to the guy steering the barge that snagged Lennie at the end of the episode. It looks to be his cousin (?) that rarely talks in later episodes. Nice way to bring in a future character. :)

Also, in an earlier episode there is a character called Culpepper (?) who floats by the trio without his canoe. Compo responded "What color?" when asked if anyone had seen a canoe. Sorry, can't remember the title to this episode. Does anyone remember where he was going to or from by the waterway and if it was possible to make the trip?

Thanks.
 
The character is called Armpepper and the episode is called Ballad For Wind Instruments and Canoe.
The episode was filmed in Burnsall on the River Wharfe. Burnsall is an hour away from Holmfirth.
 
Just rewatched that part of the episode. He was planning on doing 30 miles a day. Come out at the Humber, turn left and go as far as Whitby. But he fell out after about 3 miles.
 
RickAns said:
Saw this episode again the other night and was wondering about something.

I paid closer attention to the guy steering the barge that snagged Lennie at the end of the episode. It looks to be his cousin (?) that rarely talks in later episodes. Nice way to bring in a future character. :)



Thanks.
Click to expand...
The character was played by TOMMY CANNON. He was a "feed" to Bobby in variety (a la Morecambe and Wise) He didn't speak that much then!
They appeared under the stage name of Cannon and Ball .;)
 
Rick,

Here is a picture of Cannon and Ball taken recently they are still going strong . ITV channel in the UK offered some older Variety acts the chance to play Vegas in a show called Last Laugh in Vegas , where the acts were put through their paces and if they were deemed ready to take up the engagement they got to perform at The Orleans Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas .

The show ran for a few episodes culminating in them actually playing the Hotel . C&B were well received which was a surprise as their comedy is very much Northern English by design . You would probably not know the other stars but for Su Pollard who was the potty Chalet Maid Peggy in Hi-De-Hi


CANNON-AND-BALL.jpg
 
Thanks all.

I forgot those details, Adrian. Quite possible there is more than one Ilkley. The one that popped up on my map is almost due north of Huddersfield. Going to the Humber (from Holmsfirth) would be way east towards Hull which would be the wrong direction of Ilkley. Whitby is even further north along the coast and would put him several hours away from Ilkley by car. Making him even further away to Ilkley than he already is from Holmsfirth.

Lennie asked the guys when he first saw them if this was the right way to Ilkley. So I assumed he was trying to get to Ilkely via the water because of his swan boat. Which could be where I am going wrong in trying to over think this.

My main question is... is there a way between Ilkley and Holmfirth through rivers / canals? The route he described as his plan to take does not make sense to me. Yes, I know things don't always make sense in TV Land. I had the impression canal and waterway use was popular back in the day. That canals crisscrossed a fair portion of England before trains and rail use became popular.

I did not know about the Cannon and Ball shows. Will need to try and look some up.
 
RickAns said:
I had the impression canal and waterway use was popular back in the day. That canals crisscrossed a fair portion of England before trains and rail use became popular.
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Many, if not most, canals fell into disuse with the development of rail and road transport. Now some of them have been restored by enthusiasts, with a lot of heavy labor and donated money, and are used for recreational boating. Some of the boats are the owners' permanent residences. There are still some horse-drawn boats used for tours. I've had one of those tours as part of an HF Holidays canals heritage holiday.

Canal towpaths are wonderful for walking, too. When I visit Marsden, I usually take the train there from Huddersfield and after paying homage to the LOTSW locations I walk the half-mile along the towpath to the Standedge Tunnel. The first time I did that, an older couple and their dog were on the train. They got out at Marsden and headed back to Huddersfield in order to give the dog its weekly run. It's about eight miles, so both they and the dog must have been strong walkers.
 
Hello Rick ,

I looked on a site https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/ and the resultant Map extract is attached . Marsden where we see Lenny and the Swan boat is just below Huddersfield on the map at the end of the straight paler blue line which is the Huddersfield Narrow Canal . It looks like from putting the route in another site you can get to Bingley 5 Rise locks[which is South East of Keighley on the Map] from where it is a 9.4 mile trip by road only . Whilst Lenny could hitch a lift he would have to leave the Swan Boat [or fit it on a trailer and get Wesley to meet him and tow it] .

The route is below I was not sure of what to put in for Marsden as a start point looks like it starts from the far end of the Hudderfield Narrow Canal rather than the Marsden end so you could shorten the journey but it gives you an idea :-


This is a trip of 57 miles, 3 furlongs and 96 locks from Railway Lock No 42E to Bingley 5 Rise Aqueduct No 53.
This will take 40 hours and 49 minutes which is 5 days, 5 hours and 49 minutes at 7 hours per day.
From Railway Lock No 42E travel northeast on the Huddersfield Narrow Canal for 7 miles, 4 furlongs and 41 locks to Aspley Basin (Huddersfield), then travel northeast on the Huddersfield Broad Canal for 3 miles, 4 furlongs and 9 locks to Cooper Bridge Junction, then travel east on the Calder and Hebble Navigation (Main Line) for 12 miles, 6½ furlongs and 13 locks to Fall Ing Junction, then travel northeast on the Aire and Calder Navigation (Wakefield Section) for 7 miles, 4 furlongs and 4 locks to Castleford Junction, then travel northwest on the Aire and Calder Navigation (Main Line - Castleford to Leeds) for 10 miles and 5 locks to Leeds Bridge, then travel west on the Leeds and Liverpool Canal (Main Line - Wigan to Leeds) for 16 miles, ¾ furlongs and 24 locks to Bingley 5 Rise Aqueduct No 53.

ilkley.png
 
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Walking the tow paths sounds like a great idea for exercise, Marianna.

Great stuff there, Captain. Just the kind of info I was looking for. Thanks! Looks like a website I could easily spend a few hours perusing.
 
RickAns, I reread my answer and now I realize that it wasn't clear about which episode I was talking about. I was talking about the earlier episode 'Ballad for Wind Instruments and Canoes'.
 
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