Mouse Man

Here's something else that makes me happy - traditional craftsmen in wood. I came across a mention of a man in North Yorkshire called Robert Thompson, on Archie Miles' blog. He's a photographer who went to the workshop to take pictures of some of the furniture which is still produced there. Robert Thompson was called the Mouse Man because he carved a small mouse on every piece of furniture he produced. The workshop now employs 35 craftsmen, and they still carve a mouse on every piece of furniture they make.
I've sat on some of his stools - there were several pieces of his furniture at one time in the Black Swan (or Dirty Duck) in Rugby, though I think they were sold off with a change of ownership, which was a shame. It was a lovely old pub, with stone flagged floors and a rambling floor plan, and a traditional skittle alley out the back where you threw "cheeses" at the skittles. These days, it's CAMRA listed, but only seems to offer pool as a pub game.