So we got as far as the chimney realising that it needed raking out and re-pointing in parts as the old mortar had deteriorated and fallen away. There are various possible causes, but in this case it was the result of Mortar bees tunnelling through the lime and nesting; the water can then get in, freezes and  cracks out the mortar. Not to do this work now could mean either that the repair is overlooked and then the chimney becomes unstable, or at the very least, our lovely new thatch could end up damaged with foot prints and so on.

Where clients have their own builders, we are happy to work with them, but in this case, the builder was unable to break away from his other work, so Alan re-pointed the chimney before continuing to thatch around it. We finished by stripping the next section, and again fitting tiles beneath the eaves…ready to start again Monday.

Stitch the dog, meanwhile, decided to test the insulating properties of reed…