The Friends of Tilling returned to Rye on Saturday 5 September for their annual gathering celebrating EF Benson’s much-loved Mapp and Lucia novels and the town that inspired his fictional Tilling. The group was started in 2004 by friends Jonathan Dunlop and Darren Reynolds. Gyles Brandreth, writer, author and broadcaster, is president of the group and author Sir Alexander McCall Smith is its vice-president.
The day started with the Friends meeting at the station and walking up the hill to Rye Cemetery in glorious sunshine to visit Benson’s grave, and that of his mayoress Reta Jacomb-Hood.
The historic Mermaid Inn provided a wonderfully fitting setting for the lunch which followed, with members travelling to Rye to renew friendships and indulge their shared enthusiasm for Benson’s wonderfully observed world.
Rye Town Crier Paul Goring gave the visitors a particularly memorable welcome, delivering a wonderfully theatrical cry peppered with references to Tilling and its colourful residents.
After lunch, actor Ben Jackson read an entertaining article giving details of the back story of one of the characters in the books, Poppy, the Duchess of Sheffield.
As evening fell, the fictional world began to feel even more real. Guests dressed in period style for dinner, with some going a step further and arriving as characters from the books themselves. After dinner, the Elizabeth French trophy (and a bottle of prosecco each) was awarded to the winning team of the annual Tilling Quiz.
For a few hours, it was easy to imagine that Rye really had become Tilling once again, complete with its familiar personalities, eccentricities and gentle rivalries. EF Benson would surely have approved.
Next year a special gathering is being planned to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the publication of Lucia in London and also to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the death of Lucia’s favourite composer, the noble Beethoven.
Anyone interested in The Friends of Tilling can find out more at www.friendsoftilling.com or follow them on Instagram @friendsoftilling.
Image Credits: Kt bruce .