Castle Acre

Castle Acre is an historic, picturesque village in the Nar Valley, West Norfolk, 4 miles from the market town of Swaffham. There are remains of an 11th Century Cluniac Priory at the west end of the village and a Norman Castle at the East.
The village is situated on the Peddars Way (now a long distance footpath which links with the North Norfolk Coastal Path at Holme-next-the -sea) which was originally a Roman road and a major route for trade and for pilgrims to Thetford, Bromholm Priory and Walsingham.
Castle Acre also provided some of the settings for Stephen Fry's 'Kingdom' series including the bookie's (which used to be a butcher's shop), the pub (the Ostrich) and an antique shop (Castlegate Stores). 

Castle Acre Wildlife Some examples of the rich biodiversity to be found in the Nar Valley around Castle Acre. Most are from the river and water meadows but the butterflies are mainly from the castle surrounds which are a mass of wild flowers in summer. I apologise if I've misnamed any of the creatures pictured - the ones I see never seem to look like the ones in the books! Corrections are more than welcome! All... More...

Castle Acre River Nar A magical world of peaceful, gently flowing water with a richness of wildlife and strange plants. The river is flanked by water meadows which provide a natural run-off from the surrounding farmland.  The river is home to Moorhen, Grey Wagtail, Kingfisher and Heron, Water Vole, speckled trout and brilliant dragon and damsel flies. I'm adding photos of these as I get them to the Castle Acre... More...

Castle Acre Priory Castle Acre Priory at the west end of the village was founded in about 1090 by William de Warenne II and is, according to English Heritage, one of the largest and best preserved monastic sites in England. The ruins are forever changing as the light changes with time of day and season of the year. They can be complex, atmospheric, sometimes sinister but are always impressive and inspiring. (click... More...

Castle Acre Castle The castle started life as an 11th century stone, fortified manor house built over a late Anglo-Saxon house. Parts of the castle still remain including the 12th century Bailey Gate which is one entrance to the village. Further details from English Heritage and CastlesUK.net on the links page. (click on thumbnails for larger image.) More...

Castle Acre St. James' Church The 14th century church of St. James the Great with its 15th century perpendicular tower is at the west end of Stocks Green, between the Castle and the Priory.  (click on thumbnails for larger image.) More...

Castle Acre Village 'In its ancient hilltop setting above the gently flowing River Nar, Castle Acre is one of Norfolk's most attractive villages whose centre still has a timeless quality to it.' BBC Norfolk - sense of place Here are photographs of some of the buildings and other landmarks in the village. (click on thumbnails for larger image.) More...

The Water Meadow Cobwebs, Autumn morning Very early on a cold Autumn morning, before any people were about, the Cobweb Fairy visited the meadows and sprinkled the cobwebs with droplets of dew and a sprinkling of stardust . . . . . . . More...

Poppies at Castle Acre Some views of the poppy fields growing around Castle Acre. (click on thumbnails for larger image.) More...

Ouse Washes Molly Dancers The Ouse Washes Molly Dancers performing outside the Ostrich at Castle Acre - to find out more and when and where they're performing visit http://www.ousewashes.com/  The wonderful music is performed by OWMD (work it out) and is from their website (see above) which contains more of their tunes downloadable on MP3. If you don't get the music or the little loudspeaker symbol (top left of title bar... More...

Horticultural Show 2007 A few photos of the Castle Acre Horticultural Show held in the village Hall on Saturday September 8th 2007. . . . . . More...

Castle Acre from West to East This series of photos shows the whole village taken from about 2km. away using a 400mm lens. The series was stitched together to make a high resolution panoramic image. Can you spot the two Telecom engineers and the dog walker? (click on thumbnails for larger image.) More...