A WALK UP TO REAL WORLD STUDIOS
Bath/Box, England, 17th of August 2008
by ahand83
In 2008 I went on a holiday to the Channel Islands with my brother and sister-in-law. They agreed to take me on for a week, after that I was at the mercy of my own good humour. I made the oversees crossing from Guernsey to the south of England to walk the Southwest Coast Path, or parts of it. So it happened that I arrived in Poole by ferry the next week, from where I took a bus to, well somewhere I can’t remember really. What I do remember of the walk is that I got bored stiff quite soon, being out there alone with a pack on my back and nothing else to enjoy but grass, sheep and ocean. My 25-year-old selfconscience was looking for just a bit more commotion and adventure. So, what to do…? After a few long boring days I decided to head back to Poole from where I took a train to Bath. “Now I’m in England I might as well pay a visit to Peter Gabriel’s Real World Studios. If I’m lucky, I might bump into the man himself!” Those were my thoughts anyway
My interest in Real World began somewhere in the 90s. I had found an article about Gabriel’s album Us, by then just released. I read the album was written and recorded in an idyllic mini world, called Real World, a property safely tucked in by the green meadows of the English countryside. Nature, architecture and music blend together in one perfect place. Gabriel purchased the former water mill complex in 1987 after he’d become a mega star with his very succesfull album So. Gabriel was, and still is to me, a visionair. A man with dreams of a perfect world, which he translated into his new music studio complex in the village of Box, just a few miles from the lively city of Bath. That said, I just had to see this place with my own eyes.
When I arrived in Bath by train I went to look for a campsite. In my pack I had a tent and sleepingbag which I’d dragged with me since the start of this holiday. I remember it being heavy, walking down the Lower Avon river in search of the campsite. To walk meant not taking a bus, so I saved myself some money. Actually, I went on foot almost anywhere. That’s why I informed at the local tourist office the next day on the possibilities to walk to Box. They showed me how to get there and gave me a map of the city and it’s surrounding area. The next day I was on my way.
First I had to get out of the city. I strolled the sidewalks and eventually left the streets and traffic behind by taking a turn onto a path next to a canal. For a long time I followed this path. On the canal were a lot of people sailing their narrow canal boats which, I later learned, is a populair way in this region to spend the holidays. According to my map I had to leave the path at a large turn in the canal. After that I walked off my map so to speak, and I decided to follow the main road from that point on. You see, I didn’t have a smartphone with Google on me in those days, so I had to follow my nose and navigation skills.
Following the main road wasn’t an easy walk at all. It was a busy road with lots of traffic going up and down. Sometimes I had to stop and step aside to avoid getting ran over. Walking that road wasn’t the smartest thing to do, but I’d found it was the only way to get to Box. After a while I made a turn onto a more quiet road and I walked through the countryside once more. I remember seeing lots of sheep and haystacks. I senced I was about to reach Box …and then there was the sign. Box turned out to be a small and sleepy village, with some very old looking houses, a church with a mysterious graveyard, a community shop and a pub called The Queens Head. Mill Lane, where Real World is located, was a turn just from the main road. I had read that the studios were located next to the railway track so I kept my eyes open for a tunnelbridge. Then finally, after going through the tunnel, I reached my destination for that day… Peter Gabriel’s Real World Studios! How good it felt to be there, to behold the workshop of one of my Genesis heroes.
The main entrance to the office and house is a modest one, with just a small fence separating Mill Lane from, well, what heaven is to me. I hesitated for a bit. “Should I open this fence, should I knock on that door?” I decided not to, cause I didn’t want to be rude or disturb anyone. I walked a bit further down the road and saw the building where the wooden recording room is housed, the car park and the big room in the back. I found out there’s a public footpath on both sides of the premises where I entered to take some photographs. From the left side I could see the big room quite clearly, but I couldn’t see if anyone was inside. The big room looks like a Star Wars spaceship surrounded by a pond, flowers and a lawn. These days some very nice 360º surround views of the estate and it’s buildings are available on Google. Hidden between the bushes with my brand new Canon SLR camera, I felt like a paparazzi, waiting for Gabriel to come out of the building. It didn’t happen though. The trip wasn’t about that at all, but it would have been great if he had shown himself.
I walked a bit further up Mill Lane to look at the premises from the top of the hill. It looked just like I’d seen on pictures, with the old main building in the center. I sat there for a while and enjoyed the view. Visiting Real World was something I always wanted to do and now I’d had the time and opportunity, just like I did five years earlier visiting the Farm, Genesis’s recording studio in Surrey. Dreams may come, opportunities may not.
After my papparazzi undertakings and a short stop for a drink at the picnic area opposite to the premises, it was time to head back all the way to Bath. Same road, same canal. I was very tired when I finished my walk and arriving at the campsite was bliss. Man, my feet hurt! It was all worth it and I’ll do it again in an instant. If only the times were a bit different…