Redhill on the A38 in North Somerset and its village church of Christ Church.

Whenever I have occasion to use the A38 in North Somerset I try and stop by at Christ Church in the village of Redhill.  The reason for this short detour is to pay my respects at the grave of my great-grandparents and also do a little tidying up around their grave.

The village church of Christ Church, Redhill, North Somerset.

My great-grandparents lived and raised 12 children at Hyall House, now named Meadow Cottage, in Lye Hole Lane just on the other side of the A38 from Redhill.  Many of their relations, and several of their children, are also at rest in the graveyard of Christ Church.

I usually leave the A38 at Churchill and head for Lower Langford where I turn north through the country lanes to Wrington and then follow Long Lane to Redhill.  Long Lane might be long but it is very narrow in places.  It also passes through the picturesque Barley Wood Estate which was owned between 1784 and 1828 by the English religious writer and philanthropist Hannah More (1745-1833) for whom Barley Wood House was built in 1801.

In 1897 the Barley Wood Estate came into the ownership of Henry Herbert Wills, a director of the Imperial Tobacco Company, and stayed within the family until the death of Captain Douglas Wills in 1973.

On reaching Redhill,  Christ Church, a grade ll listed building built in 1843, is tucked away behind a line of trees opposite the old School House, now a private residence.  Many of the houses in the village have wonderful views of the Vale of Wrington and the northern slopes of the Mendip Hills.

Having paid my respects I usually park in a peaceful lay-by a few hundred yards west of the village in Long Lane to enjoy the scenery before rejoining the A38.

The view from Long Lane, just west of Redhill, across the A38 towards the northern slopes of the Mendip Hills and the village of Blagdon.