Old Times at Otterbourne

The narrator sets out to gather the fragments of a village that existed long before railways, churches, or the penny post could reshape it. Drawing on old records, scattered artifacts and local legend, the work offers a gentle, almost conversational tour of memories that are fading from living memory.

From a Roman road traced through the park and a buried medallion to the Saxon establishment of a parish under Archbishop Theodore, each era is sketched with clear detail. The text walks listeners past the narrow, three‑mile‑long estate that once guarded river and meadow, past the Domesday‑book entry linking Otterbourne to Norman baron Roger de Montgomery, and even hints at the Danes’ hidden lane and the king’s hunting routes through the Giant’s Wood.

Interwoven with these facts are quiet reflections on the landscape—chalk downs, heather‑covered hills and the Itchen’s otters—that invite the audience to picture life as it unfolded along the old lanes, long before modern conveniences arrived.