WINDSWEPT fells, a picturesque river and the rich heritage of one of the region's most beautiful and charming valleys are centre stage in a new Wordsworth Trust exhibition.

By Duddon’s Side is a fascinating interactive display exploring the landscape of the Duddon Valley through the treasured words of William Wordsworth’s Duddon Sonnets on show at the Grasmere trust's Wordsworth Museum until June 27.

The Duddon was a significant influence on the great poet, who In 1820, published a series of sonnets that celebrate and explore the landscape of the Duddon Valley, expressing in particular his lifelong affection for the river.

As part of the ongoing project to Reimagine Wordsworth, Jeff Cowton, curator of the Wordsworth Trust, and Dr Christopher Donaldson, lecturer in regional history at Lancaster University, met with members of the Duddon Valley History Group to talk about their responses to locations throughout the valley that are mentioned in Wordsworth’s sonnets. Through a combination of examining photographs, exploring Wordsworth’s words, and listening to individuals sharing their own experiences and inherited associations with the landscape, the meetings provided a fascinating insight into people’s relationship with the wild and beautiful Duddon Valley.

Using these conversations as a starting point, artist Nikki Pugh then worked with Dr Donaldson to create the exhibition, which investigates landscape, history and memory in the Duddon Valley.

Featuring original manuscripts, stepping stones people can actually step on, a touch wall that plays the sounds of the river, and successive attempts by people to replicate Wordsworth’s journey down the Duddon Valley, the By Duddon’s Side exhibition takes on a theme of revisiting.

Located in the south of the Lake District, the Duddon Valley was home to prehistoric and Roman remains, medieval longhouses, and ancient farming communities. It has a strong industrial past of mills, quarrying and an iron furnace, and these days attracts tourists ranging from fell walkers and mountain bikers through to those taking a more leisurely approach to exploring the area.

Nikki Pugh is an artist who explores questions relating to how we perceive, move through and interact with our surroundings. Nikki harnesses various tools and techniques adopted from walking-based practices, guided tours, physical computing, locative media, pervasive gaming, installation and collaboration. In September 2016, she was awarded a Visiting Fellowship by the Centre for Mobilities Research at Lancaster University to help support a collaboration with Dr Christopher Donaldson

The Wordsworth Museum is home to the greatest collection of the Wordsworths’ letters, journals and poems in the world and is next door to the Wordsworth’s first Lakeland home - Dove Cottage.

For further information telephone 015394-35544.

Meanwhile, one of the Wordsworth Trust's talented Dove Cottage Young Poets, Hannah Hodgson, a real rising star of the poetry world, has won a Personal Achievement Award at the North West Cultural Education Awards, at Preston.

Impressed by Hannah’s attitude and the quality of her writing, despite severe personal difficulties, the Wordsworth Trust, as part of the Cumbria Museums Consortium, nominated Hannah for the award.

The 19-year-old Burton-in-Kendal writer is one of the talented Dove Cottage Young Poets, who meet fortnightly at Kendal's Brewery Arts Centre with popular published poet Kim Moore.

Wordsworth Trust education development manager, Bernadette Calvey, said: ‘We weren’t at all surprised, but very proud, to hear her being announced as the winner of the award at the ceremony, which she attended with her mum and staff from Cumbria Museum Consortium."

Cumbria Museum Consortium - an Arts Council funded partnership of the Wordsworth Trust, Lakeland Arts and Tullie House Museum - also won the Arts Award: Big Impact award, for work carried out with many schools and groups of children and young people throughout Cumbria, in completing their Arts Awards.