Hawkstone Park bridge repairs under way

Work to repair one of the best-loved attractions at a Shropshire beauty spot is well under way, bosses said today.

The Swiss Bridge at Hawkstone Park and Follies, near Wem, is being repaired after the old bridge began to rot at one end. The little wooden bridge, which spans a 98-feet deep chasm, has starred in commercials for Benetton, children's TV shows and even a music video for indie band The Charlatans.

Now managers hope to have it fully reopened this month.

Park manager Roger Whitehouse said: "We have put the hand rails on and now moved the old cross timber out and the new one is in.

"It makes the bridge about two-and-a-half feet higher now than it was before it was closed.

"The new timber is also much heavier than the old one. It weighs two-and-a-half tonnes, a tonne more than the old one.

"It's a very big project because it's one of the most popular attractions at the follies. We are very pleased with the work the contractors have done. It's a superb job."

He added the bridge was being narrowed as part of the revamp but would still feature oak handrails donated by the Woodland Trust from an Ironbridge coppice about 10 years ago.

Work began two weeks ago when contractors had to transport the giant new main timber beam from the back of a lorry to the top of the park, which has no paved roads.

It was all hands on deck about 10 days ago when contractors moved in to begin the operation of getting the new timber to the right place.

Graham Reeves, from timber merchants GS & PA Reeves, near Wem, which sourced the timber, said the operation had been "great fun".

It took an hour using a tele-handler, which is a type of four-wheel drive tractor with a big arm on it, to get the timber to the clifftops.

The follies are set in a landscape of cliffs, crags, caves, deep woods and monuments built more than 200 years ago as an 18th century amusement park.

By Tom Johannsen