July 25, 2025 • 8 mins
"Few British cities can match eye-catching York and its wondrous layers of history. Northern England’s walled city was founded by the ancient Romans, was conquered by the Vikings and also boasts a trove of medieval riches. The city’s storied history is woven into virtually every brick and beam. All these ingredients underpin York’s star-power, serving up a stirring sense of Ye Olde England, when tripping the UK. But it’s so much more than just a living museum."
Read Mike's full article here.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:07):
You're listening to the Saturday Morning with Jack team podcast
from news Talks at be how Travel.
Speaker 2 (00:13):
Correspondent is Mike Yardley. He's here this morning.
Speaker 3 (00:15):
Hey Mike, Good morning Jack from the Rouchi Do or
future home of the Athletes village of the twenty thirty
two Olympics.
Speaker 2 (00:23):
Yeah, how good? Is it a nice morning?
Speaker 3 (00:25):
They're nice and warm, quite nice here hitting from about
twenty two. Stiflingly hot, but very pleasant.
Speaker 2 (00:33):
Yes, it's very nice. We break very nippy here, so
you know, I take that. I think Zach sounds pretty
pretty damn good. I mean, I know that they're very organized,
but like there, do you get a sense that they
still have I mean, obviously still a bit of work
to do, but like are they you know, do you
get a scen Does it feel like it's gonna like
it's an Olympic village where you are? You know?
Speaker 3 (00:53):
No, they need to build it. But I think there's
a lot of buying and support for the idea of
having the village in Maroochi. Also, it's about nineteen minutes
north of Brisbane, which is interesting, but something interesting over
night the rolling course was destined for the Fitzroy River
even further north. From Marouchi. But now a huge spanner
(01:15):
has been thrown on the works because apparently there's been
a booming population of crocodiles.
Speaker 1 (01:22):
Troy.
Speaker 3 (01:23):
Just imagine that for the Olympic Games.
Speaker 2 (01:26):
It would be extra I mean there's sort of enough
jeopardy as it is when it comes to a gold
medal race, but my goodness had to take them to
the next little, isn't it. Yeah, that's amazing. Okay. So anyway,
we're focusing on a destination slightly further afield this morning.
You're sharing with us your favorite science and stories in York,
which is where our producer Libya is from. It is
(01:50):
also where my family's from. Once upon a time, the
Thames have there's some strand of the Tame family from Yorkshire.
So the year ago. And it's a walled city, right.
Speaker 3 (02:00):
It is, Jack and walk these walls because they are
such a sublime piece of history that the Romans first belt.
I love walled cities because they always seem to encase
a city that is compact, you know, it's defined, it's
cobbled and cohesive. And York's walls are also a monument
to Constantine the Great, perhaps the city's most famous past resident.
(02:24):
It was really interesting. He commissioned these wars and actually
became Emperor of Rome while he was in York. So
I think a lot of the locals consider him a
local even though he was head of the Roman Empire.
Speaker 2 (02:37):
Yeah, oh that's amazing. So who are some of the
other kind of major historical figures who are intimately connected with.
Speaker 3 (02:43):
York well, aside from the Tamfano and being the birthplace
of producer Libby, two very bad buggers. Dick Turpin, the
notorious highway robber. He's buried in York. In fact, he
jumped off the gallows platform and killed himself before they
could hang him.
Speaker 1 (03:02):
Just imagine that.
Speaker 3 (03:03):
My grandparents Jack, They once told me that one of
Turpin's sidekicks is in our family tree, which may explain
quite a lot. And then there's Guy Fawkes who was
born just behind York Minster and one of the best
old boozes in York is the Guy Fawkes. And I
love this place. It's got marvelously wonky wooden floors. You
(03:26):
get a history lesson on Yorkshire's notorious plotter, and he
was actually a regular there before. Of course they named
it after him.
Speaker 2 (03:34):
Yeah, oh amazing. So how many years did it take
to build Yorkminster.
Speaker 3 (03:39):
Two hundred and fifty years, So with a bit of Patients,
christ Church Cathedral might indeed be finished one day. You know,
Patients is a virgin, But York Munster it is such
a honey hued colossus, towering above the tangle of all
of those slinky old streets, and it's emblazoned with over
(03:59):
one hundred stained glass windows. And then there's all the
little curious, amusing touches like the nose picking gargoyles, which
the kids absolutely love. The other great symbol of York,
by the way, is the Shambles are perfectly imperfect medieval
street that used to be home to York's potches. And
(04:19):
I was in fagut that the shadiness of the street
was actually deliberately designed so that the shelves of meat,
you know, were protected.
Speaker 2 (04:28):
Ah right, yeah, that makes sense. So what are some
of the kind of key experiences in the Shambles.
Speaker 3 (04:33):
Well, I just love the spectacle of it, because all
of those half timbered, crooked buildings, they seem to teeter
at the most implausible angles. You expect the whole thing
just to implode you know, it's just so extreme the
angles of those buildings. But obviously the street and its
history gives rise to some very pricey real estate. So
(04:54):
the Ariswagger shops in the street, but they do tend
to be boutiqui an artisan. So you can go to
places like Monk Bar, Chocolate Tears, Shambles Kitchin for very
poshnosh Jack if you happen to be shopping for a
wand you're in luck because the Shambles is home to
the shop that must not be named, which spells with
(05:17):
official Harry Potter paraphernalia. And I think the Shambles was
actually the inspiration for Diagon Valley in the Harry Potter ar.
Speaker 2 (05:25):
That's fun. Oh that's cool yeh, because I suppose I
mean they say it not even that far from Edinburgh? Really,
are you quite far north?
Speaker 1 (05:31):
Yes?
Speaker 2 (05:31):
So you could just duck down the train. Yeah, so
you mentioned the fancy Nash. What would be your top
if you recommend it eats in York.
Speaker 3 (05:38):
Well, it's interesting a lot of young professionals have been
flocking to York in recent years because house prices are
actually still decidedly cheaper than London. So that's given rise
to quite a new wave of very trendy eateries and bakeries.
To sort of shake things up, I went to a
place called the Shambles Sausage and Pie Company. Oh my goodness,
(05:58):
talk about gourmet. But you've got to be there before
midday to bag the best pies. Hexby bakehouse.
Speaker 1 (06:06):
Man.
Speaker 3 (06:06):
Go there for the slow cocked beef cheek and chili
jam sowdo sammis so good. Yeah, And if you want
to go old school, you cannot beat Betty's tea rooms
in cafe. It's the bomb. This is like your resolute
York landmark, and you will have to cure around the
clock to get a prime table. But the ambience, the food,
(06:29):
the cakes, the pastries, they are unbeatable.
Speaker 2 (06:33):
How good did you uncover any quirky haunts?
Speaker 3 (06:37):
Well? York is supposedly Europe's most haunted city. I was
talking to a local who was adamant that the Golden
Fleece Pub has fifteen resident ghosts. Oh wow, so there
are tours galore if haunted sightings as your bag. I
checked out a rather quirky trail called the cat Hunt.
(06:59):
And this all began over a century ago, Jack, when
a resident installed two black cat sculptures at apparently to
scare away the rats and the idea call on sort
of like scarecrows, I guess. So lots of locals sort
of pitched in and now there are all sorts of
black cat figures and sculptures. They even crown the roofline
(07:23):
of some buildings around York, so you can check them
all out on a dedicated trail, which culminates I have
to say at the cat Whiskers Cafe.
Speaker 2 (07:32):
Oh yes, very good. And what about what about if
you into a bit of train spotting, we should train
spot as head.
Speaker 3 (07:39):
Oh my goodness. If you are not a train spotter,
before you go to the Railway Museum, expect a very
quick conversion because this is the world's largest train museum.
It's got over one hundred locomotives. They've got everything. They've
got the Shinkansen, they've got the Flying Scotsmen, they've got
the world's fastest steam train, the Mallard. There are so
many amazing exhibits. It is kind of like a giant
(08:04):
train set made real. I found it white gob stopping
and it is absolutely a crowd favorite, not just with
the rain jacket Brigade. Jack.
Speaker 2 (08:13):
Yeah, that sounds amazing. I would love to go. I'd
really love to go. I was last in your core,
probably a decade ago, but I was only there for
a few hours. It sounds like a great spot, I reckon.
Thank you so much, Mike. We will make sure all
of your sites, stories, and recommendations for visiting York are up.
On the News Talk, he'd be website.
Speaker 1 (08:32):
For more from Saturday Morning with Jack Tame. Listen live
to News Talks he'd be from nine am Saturday, or
follow the podcast on iHeartRadio.
You're listening to the Saturday Morning with Jack team podcast
from news Talks at be how Travel.
Speaker 2 (00:13):
Correspondent is Mike Yardley. He's here this morning.
Speaker 3 (00:15):
Hey Mike, Good morning Jack from the Rouchi Do or
future home of the Athletes village of the twenty thirty
two Olympics.
Speaker 2 (00:23):
Yeah, how good? Is it a nice morning?
Speaker 3 (00:25):
They're nice and warm, quite nice here hitting from about
twenty two. Stiflingly hot, but very pleasant.
Speaker 2 (00:33):
Yes, it's very nice. We break very nippy here, so
you know, I take that. I think Zach sounds pretty
pretty damn good. I mean, I know that they're very organized,
but like there, do you get a sense that they
still have I mean, obviously still a bit of work
to do, but like are they you know, do you
get a scen Does it feel like it's gonna like
it's an Olympic village where you are? You know?
Speaker 3 (00:53):
No, they need to build it. But I think there's
a lot of buying and support for the idea of
having the village in Maroochi. Also, it's about nineteen minutes
north of Brisbane, which is interesting, but something interesting over
night the rolling course was destined for the Fitzroy River
even further north. From Marouchi. But now a huge spanner
(01:15):
has been thrown on the works because apparently there's been
a booming population of crocodiles.
Speaker 1 (01:22):
Troy.
Speaker 3 (01:23):
Just imagine that for the Olympic Games.
Speaker 2 (01:26):
It would be extra I mean there's sort of enough
jeopardy as it is when it comes to a gold
medal race, but my goodness had to take them to
the next little, isn't it. Yeah, that's amazing. Okay. So anyway,
we're focusing on a destination slightly further afield this morning.
You're sharing with us your favorite science and stories in York,
which is where our producer Libya is from. It is
(01:50):
also where my family's from. Once upon a time, the
Thames have there's some strand of the Tame family from Yorkshire.
So the year ago. And it's a walled city, right.
Speaker 3 (02:00):
It is, Jack and walk these walls because they are
such a sublime piece of history that the Romans first belt.
I love walled cities because they always seem to encase
a city that is compact, you know, it's defined, it's
cobbled and cohesive. And York's walls are also a monument
to Constantine the Great, perhaps the city's most famous past resident.
(02:24):
It was really interesting. He commissioned these wars and actually
became Emperor of Rome while he was in York. So
I think a lot of the locals consider him a
local even though he was head of the Roman Empire.
Speaker 2 (02:37):
Yeah, oh that's amazing. So who are some of the
other kind of major historical figures who are intimately connected with.
Speaker 3 (02:43):
York well, aside from the Tamfano and being the birthplace
of producer Libby, two very bad buggers. Dick Turpin, the
notorious highway robber. He's buried in York. In fact, he
jumped off the gallows platform and killed himself before they
could hang him.
Speaker 1 (03:02):
Just imagine that.
Speaker 3 (03:03):
My grandparents Jack, They once told me that one of
Turpin's sidekicks is in our family tree, which may explain
quite a lot. And then there's Guy Fawkes who was
born just behind York Minster and one of the best
old boozes in York is the Guy Fawkes. And I
love this place. It's got marvelously wonky wooden floors. You
(03:26):
get a history lesson on Yorkshire's notorious plotter, and he
was actually a regular there before. Of course they named
it after him.
Speaker 2 (03:34):
Yeah, oh amazing. So how many years did it take
to build Yorkminster.
Speaker 3 (03:39):
Two hundred and fifty years, So with a bit of Patients,
christ Church Cathedral might indeed be finished one day. You know,
Patients is a virgin, But York Munster it is such
a honey hued colossus, towering above the tangle of all
of those slinky old streets, and it's emblazoned with over
(03:59):
one hundred stained glass windows. And then there's all the
little curious, amusing touches like the nose picking gargoyles, which
the kids absolutely love. The other great symbol of York,
by the way, is the Shambles are perfectly imperfect medieval
street that used to be home to York's potches. And
(04:19):
I was in fagut that the shadiness of the street
was actually deliberately designed so that the shelves of meat,
you know, were protected.
Speaker 2 (04:28):
Ah right, yeah, that makes sense. So what are some
of the kind of key experiences in the Shambles.
Speaker 3 (04:33):
Well, I just love the spectacle of it, because all
of those half timbered, crooked buildings, they seem to teeter
at the most implausible angles. You expect the whole thing
just to implode you know, it's just so extreme the
angles of those buildings. But obviously the street and its
history gives rise to some very pricey real estate. So
(04:54):
the Ariswagger shops in the street, but they do tend
to be boutiqui an artisan. So you can go to
places like Monk Bar, Chocolate Tears, Shambles Kitchin for very
poshnosh Jack if you happen to be shopping for a
wand you're in luck because the Shambles is home to
the shop that must not be named, which spells with
(05:17):
official Harry Potter paraphernalia. And I think the Shambles was
actually the inspiration for Diagon Valley in the Harry Potter ar.
Speaker 2 (05:25):
That's fun. Oh that's cool yeh, because I suppose I
mean they say it not even that far from Edinburgh? Really,
are you quite far north?
Speaker 1 (05:31):
Yes?
Speaker 2 (05:31):
So you could just duck down the train. Yeah, so
you mentioned the fancy Nash. What would be your top
if you recommend it eats in York.
Speaker 3 (05:38):
Well, it's interesting a lot of young professionals have been
flocking to York in recent years because house prices are
actually still decidedly cheaper than London. So that's given rise
to quite a new wave of very trendy eateries and bakeries.
To sort of shake things up, I went to a
place called the Shambles Sausage and Pie Company. Oh my goodness,
(05:58):
talk about gourmet. But you've got to be there before
midday to bag the best pies. Hexby bakehouse.
Speaker 1 (06:06):
Man.
Speaker 3 (06:06):
Go there for the slow cocked beef cheek and chili
jam sowdo sammis so good. Yeah, And if you want
to go old school, you cannot beat Betty's tea rooms
in cafe. It's the bomb. This is like your resolute
York landmark, and you will have to cure around the
clock to get a prime table. But the ambience, the food,
(06:29):
the cakes, the pastries, they are unbeatable.
Speaker 2 (06:33):
How good did you uncover any quirky haunts?
Speaker 3 (06:37):
Well? York is supposedly Europe's most haunted city. I was
talking to a local who was adamant that the Golden
Fleece Pub has fifteen resident ghosts. Oh wow, so there
are tours galore if haunted sightings as your bag. I
checked out a rather quirky trail called the cat Hunt.
(06:59):
And this all began over a century ago, Jack, when
a resident installed two black cat sculptures at apparently to
scare away the rats and the idea call on sort
of like scarecrows, I guess. So lots of locals sort
of pitched in and now there are all sorts of
black cat figures and sculptures. They even crown the roofline
(07:23):
of some buildings around York, so you can check them
all out on a dedicated trail, which culminates I have
to say at the cat Whiskers Cafe.
Speaker 2 (07:32):
Oh yes, very good. And what about what about if
you into a bit of train spotting, we should train
spot as head.
Speaker 3 (07:39):
Oh my goodness. If you are not a train spotter,
before you go to the Railway Museum, expect a very
quick conversion because this is the world's largest train museum.
It's got over one hundred locomotives. They've got everything. They've
got the Shinkansen, they've got the Flying Scotsmen, they've got
the world's fastest steam train, the Mallard. There are so
many amazing exhibits. It is kind of like a giant
(08:04):
train set made real. I found it white gob stopping
and it is absolutely a crowd favorite, not just with
the rain jacket Brigade. Jack.
Speaker 2 (08:13):
Yeah, that sounds amazing. I would love to go. I'd
really love to go. I was last in your core,
probably a decade ago, but I was only there for
a few hours. It sounds like a great spot, I reckon.
Thank you so much, Mike. We will make sure all
of your sites, stories, and recommendations for visiting York are up.
On the News Talk, he'd be website.
Speaker 1 (08:32):
For more from Saturday Morning with Jack Tame. Listen live
to News Talks he'd be from nine am Saturday, or
follow the podcast on iHeartRadio.
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