Astbury, Cheshire, England

Astbury is a mere stone's throw south of Congleton, but that does not reduce the character of the place in any way, even if a busy A34 passes nearby. The name is a corruption of "East Borough" and its church dates from the fifteenth century and is built of stone with no timber framing at all; you can forget about all churches in Cheshire following the same pattern, then. The really unusual bit is that the church tower and steeple stands apart from the rest of the building. They were carried over from an earlier building for some reason and that is why things are as they are with the original nave having been removed later. It may be at one side of a busy road, but you wouldn't know it on the basis of what you see above: a green lined on either side two-storey cottages, originally built for estate workers many years ago, that form a sort of guard of honour with the church at one end. It may be a small place, yet the photographic potential should draw me back time and again.