Category: Radio Gloucestershire
Date: 18.03.2005
Printable version
As the City of Gloucester prepares to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the first play about Dick Whittington, 大象传媒 Radio Gloucestershire's Mark Cummings is preparing for the biggest walk of his life.
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To share in the city's celebrations, the lunchtime presenter has decided to follow in the footsteps of the Gloucestershire lad who made the journey from Pauntley to London more than 400 years ago.
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Leaving Pauntley on Friday 27 May 2005, Mark will travel by foot, horseback and boat to the capital city where he hopes to arrive a week later on Saturday 4 June.
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By only using the means of transport which would have been available to travellers in the middle ages, he'll be gaining the full experience of the original journey.
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Presenter Mark Cummings says: "I'm really looking to selling the story of Dick Whittington around the world.
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"We've had interest from all over the place to what we are doing.
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"So many people think he's a fictional character, so by completing this adventure we hope to tell the story in a creative, if exhausting way!
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"It's a two fold challenge, to help promote Gloucestershire with its many wonderful stories and characters and to explore this amazing character of Dick Whittington by revealing the truth about his life and the impact his work still has today."
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Mark is no stranger to challenges and he's already cycled the height of Mount Everest on a bike and travelled around Britain with a rugby ball to raise awareness of male cancer.
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Listeners in all corners of the world can keep up to date with his progress on bbc.co.uk/gloucestershire as he'll be contributing to Radio Gloucestershire programmes along his route.
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A specially commissioned drama narrative entitled The Hitherto Unrecorded Memoirs of Richard Whittington, Mercer will also be broadcast daily during the week of the walk.
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Alan Morgan, writer and producer of the drama, says: "Those listeners who think of Dick Whittington as a pantomime character swaggering along with his sandwiches wrapped in a red spotted handkerchief on the end of the stick are likely to be learning a thing or two about this remarkable man who served as Mayor of London four times.
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"Hopefully some truths about the man will emerge in our programmes, and believe me the truth is more remarkable than the myth."
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Notes to Editors
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Mark Cummings will be taking the following route:
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Friday 27 May - Pauntley, Dick's birthplace in Gloucestershire, to Gloucester
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Saturday 28 May - Gloucester to Cirencester
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Sunday 29 May - Cirencester to Lechlade
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Monday 30 May - Lechlade to Wantage
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Tuesday 31 May - Wantage to Ridgeway on horseback, Goring to Caversham
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Wednesday 1 June - Caversham to Henley to Maidenhead by Thames Way
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Thursday 2 June - Maidenhead to Richmond by boat aboard HMS Fringilla
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Friday 3 June - Richmond to Barnes Bridge by Thames path, Hampstead to Highgate
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Saturday 4 June - Highgate Hill to the City of London.
