Hidden Villages

What actually ARE the ‘Cotswolds’? Despite touring the area as a budding young Stratford actress in 1963, Penelope has never been sure about quite what defines this famous region. Starting in the celebrated ‘chocolate box’ village of Bibury, she sets off to reveal an unspoilt world of wealth - ancient and modern - created originally by sheep, wool and weaving.

Accompanied by her Batsford Guide, Penelope’s journey starts with a ferry ride across Loch Fyne, to the Kintyre peninsula. Penelope learns about the local Viking saga, now heartily celebrated by the villagers of Tarbert, before venturing north to see how the Crinan Canal, with the help of a holidaying Queen Victoria, transformed life here and created Scotland’s most beautiful short cut.

From puddings and tea, to flat caps and whippets, the age-old images of Yorkshire are known across the world. But what’s the reality? Penelope’s Batsford guide suggests there’s a “spirit of Yorkshire”, so from dales, to moors, to coast, she takes to the road to find out.

With its English accents, tea shops terraces, and habit of attracting writers like Virginia Woolf, refined little Manorbier quickly shows Penelope that Pembrokeshire enjoys a history all of its own. ‘Little England Beyond Wales’ is a cultural legacy stretching back 900yrs to when the Normans annexed the south of the county for themselves and built mighty Manorbier Castle.

In this beautiful one-off, Penelope puts together a selection of her favourites - from Devon and Cornwall to the stunning shores of the Lake District and the wilds of Scotland.