We started our day by traveling to Ely to see the cathedral. Ely is the third smallest city in England, and we got the opportunity to walk along the river and see beautiful flower gardens and ducks, of course. Along with swans and the occasional pigeon, they seem to be the mainland's fowl of choice :) Andrew showed us around Ely Cathedral with its octagonal spire and gorgeous architecture. The ceiling is composed of Victorian painted wooden paneling and the nave is designed in the Roman style. Just off of the northern transcept, there is an enormous lady chapel with a modern statue of Mary and beautifully intricate stonework. We found, to our great surprise that several famous films have used Ely Cathedral, including the newly-awarded King's Speech. The wooden throne with red velvet padding, on which the film's King (Firth) practiced for his coronation, was on display and we got the opportunity to take pictures with it and read the script. Other movies filmed there were The Other Boleyn Girl with Natalie Portman and Scarlett Johansson and Elizabeth with Cate Blanchett. This is also one of the few props left from the King's Speech, since the warehouse holding all the props and costumes recently burnt down. Afterward, we all had a morning snack of tea, pastry, and scones.
More than anything, we were amazed at the sheer size of the cathedral (formerly a cloister) in such a small city. It was absolutely gorgeous, and this is the first time we've seen an octagonal tower. Taylor with continue with our further adventures as we traveled to Norwich in the afternoon to see Dragon Hall and the outside of Norwich Cathedral, also caught up in the business of film-making.
Cheers! - Karen
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