In a sweltering heatwave, it’s amazing to see how weeds do so well while grass withers. At the time of writing, with gardens begging for water and humans heading for the beach, it’s an interesting time for naturalists. Russell Jordan offers advice on lawns, ponds and emergency pea-sticks and Michael McCarthy has written an edited version of a recent talk he gave in Cerne Abbas. It is an engrossing investigation into Shakespeare’s knowledge of the natural world. Describing the bard as having ‘a profound sympathy for nature’, Michael points out that, in Shakespeare’s time, this was not quite in keeping with the biblical preaching of the time, “have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth”. It makes for fascinating reading. Still with nature, Dr Paul Lashmar highlights the story of Sharon Cooke, a horticulturalist who spent lockdown in Bridport with her husband’s family. Sharon now runs Andromeda Garden in Barbados, where she carries on the work of Iris Bannochie, ‘the queen of Barbadian horticulture’. While visiting Andromeda and talking about his book, Drax of Drax Hall, Dr Lashmar heard from Sharon that when Iris Bannochie began work on the garden, ‘Barbados was simply a land exploited for sugar, and a country without a long history of garden creation.’ One of the events we highlight this month is Empire of Lies, a film showing at Bridport Arts Centre in June. Starring Joseph Millson and filmed by Bridport-based Elliott Millson, the film is a fascinating and engrossing exploration of conspiracy theories, paranoia, grief and psychosis. Whether you’ve ever known someone who fell off the side of the earth or have experience of the effects of anger, sorrow and unresolved trauma, Empire of Lies leaves much to ponder.
