In Search of the Holy Grail

...or maybe just an afternoon out?

My brief trip out to the David Stirling Memorial on Sunday prompted a return journey to Doune this afternoon, this time to have a look around the castle, which is now under the care of Historic Scotland.

I arrived just as a wedding party were having their photographs taken - the wedding had taken place in the Great Hall of the castle - and, needless to say, the place was rather busy. However, within 15 or 20 minutes the party had left on their way to the reception and the castle was left to a surprising (for me) number of tourists.

It had been a long time since I had visited Doune Castle, where many of the scenes from Monty Python and the Holy Grail had been filmed, and I had forgotten how many rooms had been restored and were open to the public. It was quite an adventure, climbing the steep spiral stairways, and I was thankful for the sturdy metal hand-rail and some of the steps were quite worn. The excellent audio guide featured the voice of Terry Jones, of above Monty Python fame, and was quite amusing in parts.

A most relaxing and pleasant couple of hours. And my Blips are still up-to-date!