Renovating the Castle

I didn't book for either of the two talks in the castle, being given by the architects who have been given the job of renovating the Castle, but I did wander in while my washing was in the launderette to see the plans - which will be on display in Booth's bookshop this coming week.
It all seems very impressive.
They want to open up the original Castle gate, the one that's presently being held up with a wooden prop that's been there since 1992. I know this because I was involved in putting it there when I worked for Richard Booth and still thought of myself as a professional archaeologist - it was only supposed to be a temporary stop-gap until something more permanent was sorted out. They want to have steps down to the square, as there were before the Cenotaph got moved there, to link up the Castle grounds with the town better, so that it's more convenient to hold events in there. There will also be an accessible ramp going over the garden terraces somehow.
I met one of the ladies who had booked for the afternoon talk that morning, in the square, when she was squinting up at the gateway - in particular the crack in the gateway that needs urgent attention. She said she was going to bring that up at the talk.
The log fire was blazing away nicely in the back of the hall, and I met one of the architects there, warming up before he went to the other end of the room, which has a distinctly chilly draught. It was nice to see such enthusiasm for the project - after all, this is one of my favourite castles. He said that it was difficult to find a continuous history of the castle anywhere. There are highlights here and there where quite a lot is known about the occupants, but also periods where nothing much is recorded. I thought what a shame it was that we've lost Rob Soldat, the local storyteller and historian, who knew everything there was to know about the castle and the people who have lived there.