The North Norfolk village of Stiffkey made the national news yesterday (01.11) when the case of the Stiffkey footbridge was featured on BBC Radio 4’s PM programme. Some months ago, the National Trust decided to remove the footbridge across a creek on Stiffkey Marshes. The bridge facilitated access to the marsh and is considered by the locals as a safety feature, allowing egress from the marsh if someone is cut off by the tide. The Trust is the custodian…
Stiffkey in North Norfolk is a pretty village with houses lining each side of the main coast road, the A149. Unremarkable now, the village was nationally in the public eye in 1932 when the rector of the parish, Harold Davidson, was accused of immorality by a Consistory Court convened in Norwich. The charge related to Davidson’s work as a counsellor and carer for London’s prostitutes. This caused a great scandal and the court’s decision was that Davidson should be defrocked. Many thought the decision wrong and his friends and followers supported him to the end of his life. He is buried in Stiffkey churchyard. Approximately 3000 people attended the funeral.