Radcliffe and Maconie have finished their trek along Hadrian's Wall and loved it.
Radio 2 presenters
Mark
Radcliffe and Stuart Maconie completed the
Hadrian’s Wall Path National Trail
on Thursday afternoon, 10th September when they arrived at Segedunum
Roman Fort in Wallsend.
The pair got the last of the six Hadrian’s Wall Path National Trail
Passport stamps to show they had successfully completed the 84 mile
route and collected their certificate and badge for walking the Wall.
They started from owness-on-Solway on the Cumbrian coast on Friday the
4th of September and have been broadcasting and tweeting - sorry -
along the way.
The two seem to have thoroughly enjoyed their walk. Mark Radcliffe
said: "You feel as though you’ve achieved something, you really
do. You can do it in a week and there are loads of nice
places to stay.
“The countryside is glorious. When you go up on top of those
crags it’s amazing. When you get to high ground and you can
see for miles around you feel on top of the world in every sense.”
Stuart Maconie said: “I would absolutely recommend it to
people. It’s been a real walk of contrasts and the
archaeology and the history is a big part of it. And we’ve
had great food and drink all the way along.”
Hadrian’s Wall Heritage Ltd (HWHL) have had a big hand in the programme
and all along have stressed the importance of conserving the heritage
site both for visitors and local producers and tourism businesses.
Stuart Maconie at
Housesteads on Hadrian's Wall
The presenters and their production team also stayed in a range of
accommodation along the Wall including the Farlam Hall in Brampton, The
Twice Brewed Inn near Bardon Mill, The George Hotel in Chollerford,
Matfen Hall in Matfen and Keelman’s Lodge in Newburn.
Mark and Stuart have also been joined by guests and musicians for their
live programmes, including indie folk band Noah And The Whale, Maddy
Prior from Steeleye Span who lives close to the Wall in Cumbria, folk
quartet The Unthanks, British Sea Power and singer-songwriter Richard
Hawley.
Before broadcasting their final programme from Segedunum Roman Fort
Mark and Stuart had the chance to come face to face with Emperor
Hadrian, or at least a marble bust of the man who ordered the Wall to
be built. The bust is currently on loan from the
British Museum, and forms part of the View of an Emperor: Hadrian's
Marble Portrait.
More about the path at
www.hadrians-wall.org
and
www.nationaltrail.co.uk/hadrianswall
