Waterlooville man wins prestigious photography prize with stunning shot of Milky Way rising over Tudor ruins

The ‘hauntingly beautiful’ photograph of the Tudor mansion has won the top prize in the South Downs National Park astrophotography competition. Richard Murray, of Waterlooville, captured the night-time scene at Cowdray ruins in Midhurst, West Sussex.

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He claimed the winning prize in the context which attracted 60 entries. Mr Murray, who won a £100 prize, said: ‘We were blessed with crystal clear skies and I was lucky enough to be able to capture this shot of the Milky Way rising behind the Cowdray ruins.

‘It demonstrates that you don’t have to travel too far from town to enjoy the spectacular dark skies the South Downs National Park has to offer. The national park has such a wide variety of beautiful landscapes and buildings to photograph and is truly a special part of the UK, both by day and night.’

Most of the mansion was destroyed in September 1793 by a devastating fire. Repairs and refurbishments were being undertaken for the impending marriage of the eighth Viscount Montague.

The competition celebrates the national park’s status as one of only 20 International Dark Sky Reserves in the world, which recognises the region as one of the best places globally to stargaze.

South Downs lead ranger Dan Oakley said of the winning image: ‘It’s such a well-framed image and shows what the landscape would have been like a couple of centuries ago. It’s a great little chocolate box photo of the South Downs.’

Runner-up in the main category, was a shot of the moon rising behind Beachy Head lighthouse, near Eastbourne taken by Andrew Parker, who wins a £75 prize.

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The judges were wowed by the photography of a toad crossing a road near Cuckmere Haven, in East Sussex, by Peter Brooks from Eastbourne who wins a £100 prize.

Mr Oakley said: “I like this image because it’s a bit different. It sums up the theme of ‘nature at night’ and really highlights the fragility of nature.”

Mr Brooks said: “I took this particular image to highlight the dangers toads face when migrating back to their breeding ponds.”