Discover: Long Melford

Long Melford is one of Suffolk’s prettiest and most famous Medieval Villages

The village has a lot to offer to visitors, whether you have a particular interest in historic buildings, good food, fashion or even antiques. Long Melford sits on Suffolk’s border with Essex, and there is plenty of countryside walks and public footpaths right from your backdoor. The River Stour runs through Long Melford, which marks the border between the two counties.

Long Melford was used as the backdrop for the well-known TV series ‘Love Joy’ about the Antique Dealer who seemed to be caught up in detective work. Predictably Long Melford is awash with Antique Shops and there are some good browsing times to be had. There is also a frequent Antique Fair in the School House just 200 yards away from Spadgers and often Antique Book Fairs in the Village Hall.

The image gallery shows much of Long Melford; starting with the excellent Black Lion Pub and the Green both of which are just 150 yards from Spadgers. There are lots of good pubs and restaurants along the high-street as well as all the shops you could need.

The two stately homes in Long Melford are both within 400 yards of the cottages. Melford Hall is a wonderful building and cared for by The National Trust, it is host to many events and is a very interesting place to visit. Kentwell Hall is famous for its Tudor re-enactments and if you have never been to one this is an absolute ‘Must’. There are up to 350 Tudor actors living the life and through doing so bringing to life this fabulous Tudor Stately Home, the busy kitchens are amazing!

Long Melford, perched on the River Stour, is connected by a lovely walk up hill on a disused railway to the gorgeous medieval village Lavenham.

The Suffolk coast is about an hour’s drive away and is an absoultely terrific day out.

The aerial photography on this page is courtesy of Inside Suffolk – a guide to events and what Suffolk has to offer.

Antiques and Crafts
Clare and Long Melford in particular have a host of antique shops. Ones to look out for are:

– Clare Antiques and Interiors: The Mill, Malting Lane, Clare CO10 8NW – Four floors of furniture, pictures, carpets, books, ornaments, etc.

– Rippingdales Antiques and Collectables: 6 High Street Clare CO10 8NY – Collectables from the era of Cats Cradle cottage, mid-1800’s

– Long Melford Antiques Centre: Chapel Maltings, Little Saint Mary’s, Long Melford CO10 9HX

– Melford Antiques Warehouse: Antiques & Interiors, Hall Street, Long Melford, CO10 9JB

The Suffolk Coast
Joanna Symons, Telegraph Travel Newspaper

‘Popular though the Lake District and West Country are as tourist destinations, they can be rather damp. If you want to reduce the risk of a rainy holiday, statistics show that you should head east.

Suffolk for instance, had only about a third as much rainfall as the Lake District last summer. It also happens to have one of the loveliest stretches of coastline in Britain.’

The Met office regional statistics per annum:

Rain fall:

The Lake District: 2300 – 3900mm

Suffolk: 600 – 660mm