Thomas Hardy's Birthplace Cottage. Higher Bockhampton, Dorset. Tour and life-story.

My film takes you on a narrated tour around Thomas Hardy’s birthplace cottage and tells you about the history of the cottage, details about Thomas Hardy, his family and his life growing up and living here. This is where Thomas Hardy wrote his early novels, including Far From the Madding Crowd. He was born in this cottage and spent his childhood here. He returned to live here briefly in his adulthood and lived here until he got married.
Thomas Hardy is one of the most renowned writers in English literature. Hardy published 14 novels, nearly 1,000 poems and 49 short stories. His novels captured the beauty of the countryside and the agricultural way of life.
Key Chapters
0:38 Intro,Visitor Centre and wood
2:17 Domicilium
2:42 The Cottage
4:25 The Parlour
5:40 The Self-Unseeing
6.13 The Office
6:52 The Sisters’ bedroom
7:47 Thomas’ Parents’ Bedroom
7:56 Thomas Hardy’s birth
8:35 Thomas’ Bedroom
9:16 Hardy the Writer
9:45 Emma
10:45 The Kitchen
12;03 The Garden
12:47 Rural Hardship
13:14 Bereft
13:35 Final Days
Thomas Hardy’s Life
Thomas Hardy was born in this cottage at the start of June in 1840 and grew up here.
Growing up Thomas was a frail, solitary child. He was a studious boy who was always reading. At 16 Thomas was apprenticed to a local architect. He walked daily to work in Dorchester until he took lodgings there. He continued to spend his weekends here at the cottage with his family.
Thomas went on to spend 5 years working in London, but was drawn back to Dorset and he lived here at the cottage. He worked on several church restorations but he continued to have plenty of time to write.
Hardy had met and fell in love with Emma Gifford, in St Juliot, Cornwall
in1870, while he was there working on a church restoration. After meeting Emma he wrote
A Pair of Blue Eyes, his third novel, which was semi-autobiographical. This was a turning point for Hardy; he had to give up work to finish the novel, which started his career as a writer. When Hardy returned to this cottage from Cornwall he was a full-time writer. He then wrote Far from the Madding Crowd, which became a bestseller and meant that he could then marry Emma, in 1874.
Visiting Thomas Hardy’s Birthplace
The Cottage is run by the National Trust. Important to note that you must book your ticket in advance of your visit via the NT website. Ticket price includes a guided tour.
The visitor centre has an excellent cafe for refreshments, a shop and toilet facilities. There is an ample car park (pay and display) plus scenic walks through the forest.
The walk to the cottage through the wood is scenic and tranquil. For visitors unsteady on their feet the cottage can be reached by a short walk up an accessible country lane.
Address: Higher Bockhampton, near Dorchester, Dorset, DT2 8QJ
Music Credits: Great Writers Intro
If You Close Your Eyes I Am Still With You by Late Night Feeler courtesy of You Tube Audio Library
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 creativecommons...
Music Credits: Thomas Hardy’s Birthplace
All courtesy of Epidemic Sounds
Ambience by Johannes Bornlof
Afternoon in Hammock by Franz Gordon
Aurelian by S.A,Karl
Tomorrow’s Rain by Hushed
Sentient by Gavin Luke
Returning Memories by Erasmus Talbot
Sound Effects credits:
Courtesy of Freesounds
Forest birds on loop by vkproductions
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
Other credits
Google earth, maps and street view courtesy of google.
Great Writers
This film is part of a series of occasional films celebrating some of the great writers and showing the places connected to them that you can visit today.
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