United Kingdom

4722 readers

119 users here now

General community for news/discussion in the UK.

Less serious posts should go in !casualuk@feddit.uk or !andfinally@feddit.uk
More serious politics should go in !uk_politics@feddit.uk.

Try not to spam the same link to multiple feddit.uk communities.
Pick the most appropriate, and put it there.

Posts should be related to UK-centric news, and should be either a link to a reputable source, or a text post on this community.

Opinion pieces are also allowed, provided they are not misleading/misrepresented/drivel, and have proper sources.

If you think "reputable news source" needs some definition, by all means start a meta thread.

Posts should be manually submitted, not by bot. Link titles should not be editorialised.

Disappointing comments will generally be left to fester in ratio, outright horrible comments will be removed.
Message the mods if you feel something really should be removed, or if a user seems to have a pattern of awful comments.

founded 2 years ago

MODERATORS

tom@feddit.uk

GreatAlbatross@feddit.uk

frankPodmore@slrpnk.net

Sycamore Gap tree destroyed in 'moronic mission', court told (www.bbc.co.uk)

submitted 1 day ago by Mex@feddit.uk to c/unitedkingdom@feddit.uk

22 comments fedilink hide all child comments

you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments

[–] tal@lemmy.today 1 points 10 hours ago* (last edited 9 hours ago)

Yeah, but I mean, it's probably far from being the only pretty tree in the country.

It sounds like it became a thing due to being in Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves.

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-tyne-66994729

While a popular spot for walkers and photographers due to its unusual setting, it became famous after featuring in the 1991 film Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves starring Kevin Costner. Afterwards it gained the nickname the Robin Hood Tree - although in reality it was some 170 miles (273 km) from Sherwood Forest.

It looks like there's a new Robin Hood movie coming out (The Death of Robin Hood), and IMDB says that the filming is in the UK and Northern Ireland (well...should probably be Great Britain and Northern Ireland, but whatever). Maybe they can find themselves another nice tree in the UK for filming. Maybe the National Trust or some council that wants a famous tree can point 'em in the appropriate direction.

...maybe use an oak or yew or something even more long-lived and historically-accurate too, as the sycamore is an import...

http://www.mikepalmer.co.uk/woodyplantecology/sycamore/greatbritain.htm

Jones (1944) found that the first definite record of sycamore in England is that of Lyte in 1578, but suggests that it is probable that it was introduced to Scotland at a slightly earlier date. Some workers have argued that the Romans could have introduced it, but no conclusive evidence can be found (Bleay 1987). Sycamore remained rare around houses and in hedges though by the 17th and 18th centuries nursery records show stocking and sale of young sycamores (Bleay 1987). However, it was not extensively planted until the late 18th century (Jones 1944).

That first record of introduction is centuries after King Richard the Lionheart was running around.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_I_of_England

Reign: 3 September 1189 – 6 April 1199

Robin Hood was supposed to be a contemporary figure of King Richard, so he probably wouldn't have been spending time around sycamores...