Exploring Barlaston - Wedgwood Estate & Plume of Feathers With Neil Morrissey

We’re in the village of Barlaston in Staffordshire today, pretty little place. The presence of the Wedgwood Factory and museum are a key feature of the area. In the 1930s Wedgwood bought Barlaston Hall and the surrounding land in order to build a new modern factory. Their current factory in Etruria was suffering from subsidence due to coal mining and so they decided to move south of Stoke-on-Trent. 

Our run today takes us through the Wedgwood Estate, you might like to make that part of your visit pausing to look at World of Wedgwood, the V&A Wedgwood Collection showcases the history of the companies design work. 

We also run down a beautiful section of the Trent and Mersey Canal passing an alternative start point at the Plume of Feathers pub which is owned and run by Neil Morrissey the British actor best known for his role in Men Behaving Badly. Neil apparently is pretty hands on with his own beer and likes to get involved in the kitchen so he might actually be cooking your lunch if you visit.

As well as starting outside a pub today (The Duke of York), we also pass close to Upper House hotel which was originally built in 1845 for Josiah Wedgwood’s grandson so you have several options to wet your whistle along the way.

The Route

I started from Longton Road heading left and then left into Queen Mary’s Drive on the Wedgwood Estate. Head past Barlaston Hall and St Johns Church then take the path right across the field to Wedgwood Drive and turn left. Pass Wedgwood and cross the train tracks then turn left on the canal back into the village. Follow the Trent and Mersey canal to bridge 102 where we turn left and take the path over the fields to Hartwell Lane. Turn right and then at the village green take a left back into Longton Road.