Dorset County Museum, Dorchester

We keep being told to make the most of the sunny weather, before it all changes. That was the case yesterday - and it was again, too, today. 

Cue two hours on a bus to Dorchester, via Blandford. Strong rumour is that the service is being axed next month, so I had to finally get round to doing it. The journey wasn't as unbearable as I had feared and I was standing in a town, blinking in the sunshine, that I'd not been to before. 

This http://www.dorsetcountymuseum.org/ is Dorset's flagship museum and I loved looking down from the balcony here, in the Victorian Gallery. Big light and airy it lends itself to a wide shot. To my amazement, the Roman floors are absolutely real - they have been re-laid from their original locations, from Dorchester itself. Dorchester was a Roman hub (Durnovaria) as well as an Iron Age one, as well it being en route between London and Exeter, so was a stopping off point for travellers.

This Victorian Gallery is just one part, there's a good chunk of the Jurassic Coast artefacts held here and there's an Ancient Dorset section (nearby Maiden Castle - Freespiral, please note - is the largest Iron Age fort in the country).

I also took a good look at the literary section - 'Writer's Dorset' - we are in Thomas Hardy country afterall, with his house not far away and Dorchester being Hardy's home town, 'Casterbridge' was his name for Dorchester. This side of history is not really my cup of tea but I did take interest in the 2015 film version of his 'Far From the Madding Crowd', the DVD of which I bought later in the town. Here is Radio Times' review: http://www.radiotimes.com/film/cqzz6g/far-from-the-madding-crowd

However, I found Carey Mulligan and the cast particularly well suited and the sumptuous local photography too, of course. The original music score I thought really shone too. Again, costume dramas don't really get my heart beating any faster (I know that it does for some of you!) but the story was actually really good, with the heroine really rather ahead of her Victorian time. Recommended!

Last bus back was 3pm, another two and a bit hours.

I've included the outside of the Museum as an extra - it's really quite a distinctive and attractive frontage. Adult entry to the Museum is £7; less for Concessions.