The Blandford Express

  From Dorset Gallows to Van Diemen’s Land is the unlikely but true story of political corruption, hangings and transportation in the English town of Blandford. It is available as a paperback from  Amazon.  The book uncovers the extraordinary tale of two ordinary men, a shoemaker and a butcher. Driven by belief and dissatisfaction they are swept along by events. Sentenced to be hanged in Dorchester Gaol for their protests, they are instead, following clemency appeals,  transported to Van Diemen’s Land -  on the other side of the world. ‘A must read for anyone with an interest in Dorset’s history. (Mick Robertson, BAFTA Lifetime Television Award winner & former ITV children’s programme Magpie presenter.) ‘My father’s ancestor (Richard Bleathman) was one of the so-called Dorset rioters. He was effectively a political prisoner and therefore convict-royalty.’ (Ria Bleathman, company director, Melbourne, Australia.) ‘An appealing slice of English history with a s...

Richard Hann (1830-1904) was Constable No. 1 of the Dorset Police . He served at Blandford’s newly opened Police Station, located at the corner of Edward Street and Salisbury Road, from 1865-1867. Among his cases were: Isaac Newton of Blandford was brought up before the Court, in custody of PC Hann, summoned with leaving his wife and family chargeable to Blandford Workhouse. The prisoner was committed for one calendar month with hard labour . (Dorset County Chronicle 13 th July 1865) George Paul of Blandford was summoned by PC Hann for allowing his horse to stray on the highway at Pimperne on the 13 th August last.   The case was adjourned till the next Court sitting. Later, George Paul was fined five shillings (25p) for allowing cattle to stray on the highway. (Dorset County Chronicle Thursday 7 th September 1865) Edward Foster appeared to a summons charged with being drunk and riotous in the public street. Although he pleaded not guilty the case was proven by Constables ...

Late on Saturday 23 June 1906, Blandford was struck by a great storm. It followed a day of extreme heat and the oppressive atmosphere gave a warning of the tempest which was to come. Lasting a couple of hours, the violent storm caused chaos across the Blandford district killing cattle, stripping trees of all leaves and damaging property. That evening, railway signalman Charlie Whiting was on duty in the signal box at Blandford station. He was to suffer a lucky and narrow escape. The Western Gazette reported: ‘Forked sheet and ribbon lightning illuminated a pitch black sky in all directions with scarcely a second’s intermission. Rain tropical in its violence accompanied the tempest while in some places hailstones added to its intensity.’ Because of the unusual shape and size of the hailstones, where they fell not a single greenhouse survived. The 1906 storm was remarkable also for its temperatures , the range being between 55 (13) and 81 degrees Fahrenheit (27 centigrade). A tree s...

Rampisham Down was a major BBC World Service shortwave transmission station and home to a vast array of antennae and masts. Its location, between Dorchester and Crewkerne,  was chosen for its remoteness and suitability for radio transmissions with little interference. The station supported services in multiple languages including English, Russian and Arabic. BBC Rampisham Down was established in 1939 just before World War II and during the war’s early years it was subject to several attacks from the German Air Force. Transmission halls on the 189 acre site were separated by heavy blast walls. The facility played a key role in international broadcasting for several decades and represented an alien landmark on a rural landscape. During the Cold War, Rampisham provided broadcasts to countries where access to news and information was restricted. Transmissions in Russian were regularly jammed by the Soviet authorities. During the severe winter of 1963, heavy snow falls caused Rampisham ...

  Lent Crocking was an old Dorset custom that used to take place on Pancake Day. It was similar to ‘ trick or treat’ although some would say it was ‘ just blackmail’ . Boys would gather in the evening and parade through the villages each armed with a collection of relics of broken pots, washing pans, jugs, dishes & plates. The broken pots originally signified that as Lent was beginning they were of no use. A lead youth would step forward and knock on a door. As William Barnes wrote: ‘When the door is opened, the hero, who is perhaps a farmer’s boy, with a pair of black eyes sparkling under the tattered brim of his brown milking hat covered with cow’s hair and dirt like the inside of a blacksmith’s nest, hangs down his head and with one corner of his mouth turned up into an irresistible smile pronounces in the dialect of his county.’ ‘I be come a-shrovin’ Vor a little pankaik, A bit o’ bread o’ your baikin’. If you’ll gi’ me a little, I’ll ax no more If you don’t gi’ me nothin’...