During these weekends you learn about wattle and daub, domestic crafts and thatching. Judging by the many well preserved thatched cottages, skilled thatchers have always been in demand in the area. It is also possible to "get on your bike" (or hire one) at nearby Grafham Water, and cycle around the park.The District Council supplies tourist information which states, a little peevishly: "As subsidies diminish and competition from the European market increases, farmers are looking towards diversification to make a living". One of the many activity breaks offered is a weekend of "Back to the Iron Age", which may perhaps be taking "Back to Basics" to an extreme."Back to the Iron Age" happens twice a year - dates for next year's events have not yet been confirmed but are likely to be in May and September. And there's more: Hinchingbrooke House, just outside Huntingdon - now a school but occasionally open to the public - advertises itself as Cromwell's childhood home.Activities at adjoining Hinchingbrooke Country Park have clearly been motivated by contemporary political leadership as much as that of the 17th century. Young Oliver, and his near- contemporary, the diarist Samuel Pepys, were both educated in a small, 11th-century building in Huntingdon town centre, now the Cromwell Museum. The centrepiece is a huge, wide-brimmed hat, once worn by Oliver Cromwell.

Neighbouring St Ives, which also lays claim to Cromwell, has a museum with a proud collection of Cromwellian artefacts. A helpful barman at the nearby Old Bridge Inn explained that this is due to the bridge's joint construction by the Huntingdon and Godmanchester town councils. A closer inspection revealed tasteful decoration on the Huntingdon side and a puritanical design on the Godmanchester side. Cromwell would have approved of the latter.The Oliver Cromwell industry thrives here. Locals tend to describe this as "not quite meeting in the middle".