Random Knaresborough quirkiness

Knaresborough has quite a few trompe-l'oeil-style murals scattered around the town, on buildings and in the railway station. I rather liked the jovial choir-master and his choristers, on a building opposite the parish church, and the church reflections in the windows on either side too. 

Elsewhere in town there's Civil War reference, with a Cavalier and a Roundhead dishing out some nasty treatment to those walking beneath. On the front of a pub called 'Blind Jack's'  there is Blind Jack himself with his fiddle. Born into a poor family in Knaresborough and blinded by smallpox at the age of six, Jack Metcalf (1717-1810) started his working life as a fiddler, playing in pubs. By grabbing opportunities as they arrived, he ended up with a distinguished career as a civil engineer, building turnpike roads across the north of England. Read about him HERE - fascinating.

Blind Jack is also commemorated by a statue in the town square:

So is Ursula Southeil (1488-1561), known as Mother Shipton, a soothsayer and prophetess, reputed to have been born in a cave by the river. Born with deformities, she was taunted as a witch and so learned to keep her own company, studying herbs and making potions. She was reputed to be able to see into the future, and made many prophecies. Much of what is said about her seems to be folklore and myth, but there seems no doubt that she was a real person.   

In the church, in the chapel that commemorates the Slingsby family, Sir William Slingsby (1563-1634), a soldier and later an MP, stands casually in a niche holding a shield with the family coat of arms. A rather dashing chap! 

Finally, and a bit random - I was amused by this sign. I've heard of a 'walking bus' (chaperoned groups of children walking to school) but never a 'pedes-train'!