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New film reveals Gloucester's Tudor interior design secrets

BBC Group of people sitting in Gloucester Cathedral for the film screeningBBC
'Secrets of Westgate Street' has been made to showcase the fascinating story of the historic street

Tudor interior design is among the new discoveries about Gloucester's history revealed in a film.

Secrets of Westgate Street was made for the Gloucester History Festival, postponed in September after the Queen's death, now running over 2023.

It shares new information about Westgate's "exciting" historic buildings, uncovered in repair work.

Academics say they found evidence many timber-framed buildings had brightly-coloured interiors in the city.

They said there was also new evidence on how buildings were built and how old wallpaper that was uncovered showed the changes in taste and fashion over the past 300 years.

New discoveries include rare, possibly Tudor, wall paintings in the Folk of Gloucester and evidence of brightly-painted interiors of Gloucester's timber-framed buildings.

Andrew standing in front of a Tudor painting
Andrew Armstrong city archaeologist Gloucester City Council

Archaeologist Andrew Armstrong said some of the findings had given a "beautiful insight into how well decorated and maintained domestic space was in Tudor Gloucester".

He said during the restoration work they uncovered "really delicate... [and] beautiful different sets of patterns" on a wooden beam.

On another panel he said there was a "more complex set of images, some really beautiful piece of decoration in what must have been a reception room or similar in the 15th or early-16th Century".

wooden beam with flower detail
Mr Armstrong said he can see leaves and flowers in "what the experts call a foliate design" in a wooden beam

President of Gloucester History Festival, Dr Janina Ramirez, said finding something that had not been seen for "hundreds or thousands of years... you can't help but get a tingle down your spine".

"You're touching the people of the past and this idea that history is under our feet, over our heads, and all around us here in Gloucester.

"These discoveries are just proving that," she added.

Dr Janina Ramirez in Gloucester Cathedral smiling while wearing a red and black top
Dr Janina Ramirez said uncovering history gives her a "tingle down the spine"

Dr Ramirez said the theme of royalty and monarchy was going to be "big" for the spring festival.

"And there's a real tie to Gloucester here," she said.

"I don't think many people know, but Gloucester Cathedral is the only place where a English King received his coronation outside of Westminster."

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