A Charitable Trust dedicated to the Heritage Drinking Waters of Britain.

Ed and Will and friends have formed a Charitable Trust, called Flowing Britain, to raise awareness of historic British potable springs and wells, for public education and health.

We believe everyone deserves access to safe natural drinking water, within an hour’s walk of their home.

Deep Inheritance

Water is the life-flow of the land. Not long ago, Britain was famed for her mineral-rich and health-giving waters, a natural gift from the creator, free flowing from the ground.

Many towns, villages and streets are still named after this heritage – Tunbridge Wells, Llandrindod Wells, Bath Spa, Spring Lane, Holywell…

Such springs and wells were hugely popular, as destinations for pilgrimage and tourism, for medical and spiritual health, and even for veneration as gods.

Murky Waters

Today, public tap-water is chlorinated, and sometimes fluoridated. The health risks of such wide medical treatment are well-documented.

And with industrial and agricultural chemicals leeching into ground-waters, general mistrust of natural water sources has become prevalent.

But the waters need not be unclear. Many ancient springs flow from miles underground, where chemicals cannot reach. Such deep-waters remain fresh, wholesome and delicious, and carry diverse mineral-contents, which may help aid a number of our surface-dwellers’ ailments.

Adam’s Wine

Flowing Britain aims to scientifically test a number of publically accessible water-sources, and publically map all results.

During our latest walk, three months from Somerset to Liverpool, we search for heritage drinking-water sources, and raise funds to test them.

We focus on clear and accessible historic wells and springs, with strong anecdotal evidence to suggest their safety.

We meet custodians to maintain continuous testing regimes, and encourage community access to the good waters.

Let’s Take The Waters

We want the public to enjoy the safe local option of heritage drinking water.

We see brass-cups on chains, in quiet and accessible community spaces.

We hope for a reinvigoration of British water tourism, with long-distance footpaths leading between tested historic water sources.

Please help the Flowing Britain Trust achieve these goals, by donating:

£5 buys work toward a website with interactive public map.

£150 buys a full test of a historic spring or well, with fully public results.

£2500 buys the regeneration of an overgrown water-source, including new stone-work, a bench, and a brass-cup on a chain.

£50,000 buys an ancient spring and surrounding land, to be held safe in perpetuity. It creates public footpath access to the water, and plants a community herb-garden.

Welcome to Flowing Britain. It is not getting dark.

Ed and Will, 2013

A year ago, an EFL Textbook called OUP Headway used our stories and songs to help teach English.

Since then, schools in Argentina, Bulgaria, Russia etc. have sent us their classroom questions.

Yes, we’re proud.

Our latest list of enquiries arrived yesterday, from Katerina in the Czech Republic, teacher at the Kurzy Klement language school in Pisek (twinned with Caerphilly).

In Katerina’s classroom are mugs emblazoned with the Union Jack, and on her wall is pinned a large map of Britain. We can’t help thinking, it’s often people far from the UK who hold the dream of Albion most strongly.

We seek to encourage this dream, wherever it’s found. For is this not the hedged and wild-flowered land, of green hills and forests, ancient chapels and castles, twinkling rivers and mountain lakes?

Here are the questions given by: Jirka, Jindriska, Vasek, Ilona, Jana, Andrea, Petr, Zdenka – and their teacher Katerina. And also here are answers:

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On boxing day, Felicity ‘Felix’ Ford had her thrilling radio show played on BBC Radio Oxford.

as heard on BBC Oxford, boxing-day 2010

It is a study in soundscape, social history, and the multi-layered reality of space. It looks at the many-parted understandings of the road, and land surrounding it, through the eyes and experiences of walkers, singers, motorcyclists, steam-waggoners, and many more.

You can listen to the whole thing on Felix’ website, the Domestic Soundscape.

And here is a clip of our contributions to the show:

Please enjoy. And our thanks to Felix, who is, we should say, one of the best sock-knitters we’ve ever met.

This is a long post, with a video at the bottom.

Please press MORE, and read it up.

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Under the the Elan Aquaduct

Running from the Elan Valley to Birmingham, there is a waterway wrapped in stone.

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“A year after Waterloo, income tax was repealed ‘with a thundering peal of applause’ and Parliament decided that all documents connected with it should be collected, cut into pieces and pulped.”

Politicians never did like people prying into their ‘private’ incomes. That seems as true today as ever.

So the window tax was concieved as an alternative.

Winchester cathedral precincts - a wink at the tax laws...

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I’ve one in my bonnet.

Bees are in trouble, with massive declines in their populations. We are losing hives, mainly in agriculature, but also wild hives too.

If you don’t want a rant, don’t read on:

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Did you know that milking cows naturally grow horns?

So where did all the horns go? Who decided that this natural expression of cow-ishness was wrong, and needed to be remedied?

Why do we only find milk cows with horns at farms like Plaw Hatch, near Forest Row?
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While sitting in the haunted village of Pluckley, taking a pot of ale for strength and courage, we listen to a seated gang of local fruit farmers, who are discussing the dire state of the local and national fruit industry.

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A speech by one of a pair of Romany brothers, as written in “The Gorse and the Briar”

“I hope the public-house or the inn will never cease to be a place in which the solitary traveller my find a fire and someone with whom to talk, but its real significance is lost; it is no longer the institution by which all those who set out on a journey depend, the institution which for centuries has mixed all classes together under one roof. The innkeeper has ceased to depend on the traveller, just as the traveller has ceased to depend on the inn.”