Who's looking after the cafe? Episode

Maggie Jones

Maggie Jones

Dedicated Member
Can someone please tell me during this episode Compo is on top of Wesley's vehicle when he drives off. Due to the volume of Wesley's radio he can't hear Compo shouting to him and as they ride around the town they stop, I think, at traffic lights and Compo sees Nora undressed in an upstairs window. Is this the back of Nora's house as it appears to be in town? If I'm not mistaken Nora had just left the cafe to go home.
 
Cap n Mac said:
I was actually wondering about that, too. I guess I'm just used to the front of houses facing the streets. :)
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The house faces Scarfold. There's probably an historical reason for the Huddersfield Road address, but I have yet to stumble upon it.
 
I'm not convinced that the window where Nora seen is actually 28 Huddersfield Road, I assumed it was a another property pretending to be Nora's place to make filming easier.

I don't think the accuracy of the locations in that driving sequence was as good as it might be.

I'm sure someone with more local knowledge can help us here.
 
wstol said:
I'm not convinced that the window where Nora seen is actually 28 Huddersfield Road, I assumed it was a another property pretending to be Nora's place to make filming easier.

I don't think the accuracy of the locations in that driving sequence was as good as it might be.

I'm sure someone with more local knowledge can help us here.
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I don't think it really is actually the building either but just for the magic of television it is depicted as being Nora's. On one side of 28 Huddersfield Road is the lane called Scarfold facing the river and on the other side it faces Huddersfield Road so it is entirely plausible that Compo saw Nora in her bedroom at that location.
If you have watched the series for quite a while and have a map of Holmfirth then you start to notice in scenes where they say they are going to a certain place and they walk off in completely the wrong direction.
 
wstol said:
I'm not convinced that the window where Nora seen is actually 28 Huddersfield Road, I assumed it was a another property pretending to be Nora's place to make filming easier.

I don't think the accuracy of the locations in that driving sequence was as good as it might be.

I'm sure someone with more local knowledge can help us here.
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You are correct wstol, this would not be one of Nora's windows,also there is no traffic lights outside her house on the main road
 
With the help of your excellent map Terry and Google Maps Streetview it is possible to explore the locations where they filmed . Pete's photos are a good source if investigating film locations because they show the then and now. There are countless threads outlining what are in essence continuity errors in the context of locations. For example in the Secret Birthday of Norman Clegg when Truly and Norman leave to go for the bus from his House in Hill Street Jackson Bridge you see them walk along that street but they stand for the Bus at what is actually Dobb Lane at Holmbridge near Edie and Wesley's House which is miles away .

Another fine example , if we assume Wesley is in his Shed , is Edie opening the back door and offering up a gentle "Wasley can you please come in " followed by the inevitable " Wesley Pegden get in here now!!" The shed is probably at least 100 metres away if not more from the house and I know Edie has a voice that could cut fog but given the big hammer merchant was probably in the shed setting up his latest "explosion" even Edie would struggle to make him hear her.:)
 
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I had also thought that Wesley's shed was just outside the back door of their house. Maybe a house or two over, not down a lane behind the houses. Had wondered why in another episode Edie wanted Barry to drive his car from their front door to the shed to give Wesley some food. Makes more sense now after having looked over Terry's map.

Another thing I had noticed on my last watch through was thinking that Wally's pigeon hut was on the backside of their house. Did not realize it was the front side corner by the small wall that they often walk around. :D
 
RickAns said:
Another thing I had noticed on my last watch through was thinking that Wally's pigeon hut was on the backside of their house. Did not realize it was the front side corner by the small wall that they often walk around. :D
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Do I remember correctly that the garage connected to the first cottage on Scarfold was single story? If so, the background for the pigeon loft was on the roof. At some point, a second story has been added to the garage, apparently to add a bedroom to the cottage. It's Ripple Cottage, and may still be a holiday let, although it was on the market a few years ago.
 
Yes it was or near to it. There is/was also steps down behind the low wall at the end where the loft used to be that used to go down to the path by the river by the houses. Watched a couple of scenes where the lads use the steps to avoid Nora's brush. Don't know if they are there now.
 
Adrian Morris said:
Yes it was or near to it. There is/was also steps down behind the low wall at the end where the loft used to be that used to go down to the path by the river by the houses. Watched a couple of scenes where the lads use the steps to avoid Nora's brush. Don't know if they are there now.
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Yes the steps are still there, though sadly last time I was there someone had used them as a toilet
 
Marianna said:
Do I remember correctly that the garage connected to the first cottage on Scarfold was single story? If so, the background for the pigeon loft was on the roof. At some point, a second story has been added to the garage, apparently to add a bedroom to the cottage. It's Ripple Cottage, and may still be a holiday let, although it was on the market a few years ago.
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Yes the pigeon loft was perched on top of the garage, on the upper level there was also the outside loo's as seen in a couple of early episodes
 
maltrab said:
Yes the pigeon loft was perched on top of the garage, on the upper level there was also the outside loo's as seen in a couple of early episodes
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Isn't the garage on the far side of the steps leading up from Scarfold, and wasn't the loo on the near side, both relative to Nora's cottage?
 
Marianna said:
Isn't the garage on the far side of the steps leading up from Scarfold, and wasn't the loo on the near side, both relative to Nora's cottage?
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Yes you are correct. The loo was just on the other side of Nora's clothes line. In later episodes when the loo disappeared it was filled in by a raised garden.
I first noticed in the 1990 Christmas Special 'Barry's Christmas' that the outside loo building had gone.
 
RickAns said:
I had not realized the loo was gone! :fp:
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Putting the WC in an outbuilding was common practice when municipal water and sewer service began to be instituted in the UK, around the turn of the last century in the large cities and later in the smaller towns. Although householders were happy to have a plumbed-in bathtub and sink indoors, replacing the hip bath and wash stand / dry sink that had always been indoors, there was a strong yuck reaction to having the WC indoors when they were used to an earth closet in the yard. Benign neglect due to low income levels kept the WC in the outbuilding long after the yuck factor had faded away.

See https://www.channel4.com/programmes/the-1900-house for London historical context.
 
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I don't want to add greatly to the yuk factor but before the advent of Andrex [other brands are available] it was quite common practice to use old newspapers and magazines cut into squares and hung on a nail in the outside WC .
 
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