The scenic route

Blenheim and the Cotswolds are among the highlights of Shakespeare's Way, the 146-mile long distance footpath between the RSC Theatre at Stratford and the Globe in London, unveiled this summer.

Yet for theatregoers in Oxfordshire the road to Stratford tends to be the fast lane of the M40, negotiated in darkness after three hours of concentration in the theatre.

It's a journey that many lovers of the Bard will be repeating more than usual. For rather than having nine or ten plays to see over the year, the complete works of Shakespeare are being performed in an historic undertaking by the RSC.

With 23 RSC productions and visiting companies from Poland to Chicago on offer, it is a good year to recognise it does not always have to be about praying for a roadworks-free A34.

The theatre can be the end of a memorable journey, even for those already familiar with what 'Shakespeare Country' holds, with only the slightest of detours necessary to uncover hidden gems or be reunited with Cotswold treasures, vaguely remembered from the days when you could get away at weekends.

Heading to see the RSC's fine production of Julius Caesar at the main theatre via Moreton-in-Marsh, we found a little piece of the Cotswolds that will always be the Lord's cricket ground. It is part of the Mill Dene Garden, on the edge of the village of Blockley.

Wendy Dare and her husband Barry, a chartered accountant, found the garden early in the 1960s when it was a beautiful but half-derelict Cotswold Water Mill.

Wendy recalled: "We were living in London at the time and came here on holiday. We simply lent over the wall and thought, 'isn't this a lovely place'. At the time neither of us knew a thing about gardening."

But transforming it into a two-and-a-half acre garden, intimate and highly individual, has become the great passion of Wendy's life.

Later they were able to acquired a virgin field of pasture facing north, turning its Cotswold 'brash' into a shady woodland area, while a steep valley facing south had its sides terraced into the 'cricket lawn', with seats brought in from the old Mound Stand at Lord's.

The views from the top of the garden across the Cotswold hills, with the village church behind, are stunning, all the more so from seeing it from such a haven of peace, with the constant sound of water. You will find grander gardens in the Cotswolds but with its mill stream, rose walks grottos and cricket lawn, none more lovingly cared for and few with a better 17th century archetypal stone-built pub as The Bell at Willersey around the corner, to stop off for lunch. The family garden is now visited by about 6,000 people a year, while Wendy's skill as a gardener was recognised when she was invited to be one of the judges at the Chelsea Flower Show.

If you want to move from the tastefully individualistic to the downright eccentric, there is Snow's Hills Manor, about 30 minutes away. The Manor's grounds offer sublime views across a Cotswold valley, which comes close to matching the outlook from Dover Hill.

The main part of the house dates from the 16th century but by the end of the Great War had degenerated into a semi-derelict farm. That was when the remarkable craftsman Charles Paget Wade arrived with his superb collection, created with some of the money he inherited from estates in the West Indies.

Its 22,000 items include clocks, bicycles, automaton, toys and one of the best collections of Samurai armour outside Asia. His strongly-held view that none of the items should be labelled is still respected, meaning that extra demands are put on the wonderfully well informed volunteers who make themselves available for questions.

Another place I've often passed immediately before crossing the bridge into Stratford, the Alveston Manor Hotel, was to be the final destination before heading for the play. A pre-theatre drink at the hotel's oak-panelled Manor Bar settled the issue. As far as Stratford is concerned, this is the summer to give the M40 a miss and spoil yourself with the complete works.