Monday, December 24, 2007

Post Script. Roger Bigod's Christmas

I mentioned in the post below (Merrie Christmas) that I'd post an Akashic moment re a Christmas spent with my current hero Roger Bigod, Earl of Norfolk and his wife Ida de Tosny, former mistress of King Henry II.
I asked Akashic consultant Alison King to go back to the early years of their marriage, before Roger was granted the Earldom.
Here's a snapshot moment.

Alison: Oh, this is Roger feeling ohhhhh, this is lovely. This is not at all like his usual calm self. Shivers down the back, a spark in the left side near his solar plexus. Smiles, happiness, ohhhh, spiciness! A myriad of tastes and colours. This is the slim, slight, light younger man. I comment that Alison had once compared him to a ballet dancer. Yes, not tall, but with that kind of muscular formation. I am getting the shivering feelings again. They are playing hobby horses and the horses are all incredibly decorated. He’s watching this (Alison laughs). They’re having an indoor tournament, but instead of spears they’ve got kind of dumbbell rattles with a ball on either end of the stick and they’re assaulting each other. It’s hilarious. There are bells on the hobby horses as well. It’s not ever so serious because the hobby horse jousters are doing it theatrically for the audience, so it’s a bit of a performance. I think they may be re-enacting recent conflicts and taking the mickey out of people. One person theatrically fell off his horse and the other person was over him with his dumbbell and got his small sword out (Alison waves to demonstrate). Everyone’s cheering. ‘Yay!’ Obviously the one who fell got his just deserts. Alison whoops with laughter. Now there’s a man dressed as a woman. Flicking the wimple and the hair and adjusting the jewels on the headdress. It’s a little bit like Les Dawson in drag – the over-accentuated female movements. He’s telling jokes about who loves who in the castle. It’s telling tales and generally really just embarrassing people – ‘I could tell you a tale or two, but I wouldn’t of course because that would be telling.’ And then he goes on to reveal all. Is Roger the butt of any of these? Not so far. I don’t know if the man who is dressed up is pretending to be the gatekeeper or pretending to be the gatekeeper’s wife and getting all the gen from that. So it’s like party pieces from the castle staff? Yes! I’ll see if Roger has a performance to do. Yes, but his isn’t funny. It’s sword play. He does the twirly swords. (Alison demonstrates – a bit like a cowboy twirling a colt 45). Roger is very clever at this. He’s thrown a sword, somersaulted and caught it. That’s the grand finale. Then he puts the sword in the floorboards and gets a round of applause. A bit of a naughty thing to do, but it’s only once a year. Ida sings a song. Someone’s playing a stringed instrument. It’s got a big round body with a little neck and only a few strings. It’s played with a bow and it stands upright on the table. That’s the end of the party. Everyone can have some more mulled wine and then get back to their private conversation.

1 comment:

Carine De Vos said...

This is so facinating ! I love to read these reports, it's like getting a look through the curtain of time !