A lone Australian in a British graveyard

A lovely old cemetery near us is the Chorleywood Road cemetery which opened in 1856. The chapel has been converted into a home - at least the neighbours are very quiet.  We loved their outside lights with the dragons.  Imagine living in a graveyard - how fantastic.

Most of the graves are old and showing the signs of age, which is part of the attraction. Headstones tilting at all angles and covered with ivy.

I love the angels in graveyards and there were some really lovely ones amongst the more traditional headstones.

There were also quite a few Celtic crosses and these are always beautiful - they show off the skill of the stone masons that carved them over a hundred years ago.

This next shot is my arty shot that Ken wanted me to take - the shadow of the cross on the headstone.  I was pleased with how it came out.

On one of the headstones we found an unusual looking ladybird - I've checked online and it is the cream-spot ladybird or to give it its proper title, Calvia 14-guttata. I've never seen one of these before.

Scattered throughout the cemetery there are 43 Commonwealth War graves, 42 from the UK, and one solitary Australian. After I'd taken this picture we put some wild primroses on the headstone - a fellow countryman a long way from home. I looked up Private Volk on the Commonwealth War Graves Commission and he was from Mentone, a suburb of Melbourne, in Victoria.

After our visit to the Chorleywood cemetery we went to the Pinner cemetery and as they were about to close we only had time for a drive around, but we still managed to find the grave I was looking for - Screaming Lord Sutch. David Sutch was the cofounder of the Monster Raving Looney Party - look it up if you've not heard of them.

We hope you've enjoyed the delights of graveyards as much as we enjoy visiting and sharing them with you.

Until next time be good, stay safe, and visit an old cemetery - you might be surprised at the things you find.

Pamela and Ken
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