Underhill

Malcolm Miller has devoted most of his life to the study and explication of the Chartres cathedral. It's no wonder that he's getting worn out--that's no excuse for rudeness, but I think we could cut the man a little slack for all the years of great tours.

AnthonyGA

He has been dealing with clueless tourists for decades. He has indeed devoted his life to that cathedral and knows everything about it. I'm sure he gives tours to pay the bills—how else can one earn money after devoting one's life to Chartres cathedral? But it is surely frustrating to give very summary explanations to people who, in the final analysis, couldn't care less about Chartres. It's the same type of burnout that many people who deal with tourists suffer, only worse, because Miller's work with the cathedral isn't just a summer student's job, it's an entire life.

I did notice that he was very brusque in the tour I took with him, but I also noticed that he knew his stuff, and he clearly knew far more than he could possibly put into words during a tiny little tour. And from the slight tremor that crept into his voice when he described the beauty of some of the stained glass work (and the portions that have been cleaned are extraordinarily beautiful), it is clear that his study of the cathedral is a labor of love.

PalQ

I'm sorry besides rudeness there is just no excuse for demanding that folks who have been waiting patiently for his announced tour at an announced price pay twice or "i've got better things to do" and it was the haughty way he said it.
Malcolm's irritability is not a recent development - at least 20 years ago on a tour i saw him berate local youths who dared ride their mopeds by him as he was deciphering an exterior portal - he ranted and raved at them and claimed they did it on purpose, which no doubt they did, like kids may, just because it would get his goat. It was on this tour long ago that i also saw him berate a parent about his child rustling around.
I'm sorry his extortion of doubling his fee or taking his toys and going home - that's unexcusable and apparently, to wit above posts, he does it routinely.

DejaVu

I doubt he says anything that couldn't be found in one of the many, many scholarly and non-scholarly publications about the cathedral. Why pay for unwarranted arrogance and rudeness?

111op

Well, a good guide can distill the essence of a place down for you. I think that a good guide is worth the money.

But then, I wonder how many will remember the details after the tour. So in that sense, learning all the details is not terribly important in the first place.

PalQ

<Why pay for unwarranted arrogance and rudeness?>
Exactly!

Pausanias

Just to put in a good word -- I took Malcolm Miller's afternoon tour this December. He was sober, erudite and witty. Frankly, we were charmed and bought a copy of his book "Chartres Cathedral". We're planning on returning to Chartres this summer and taking a morning and afternoon tour with him.

Underhill

What I remember vividly from our tour with Malcolm Miller about 20 years ago was his demonstration, using two lines of teenagers, of how flying buttresses work. It ended with one of the kids hanging by his hands from the interlocked hands of the others, with nary a problem.

Woody

We visited Chartes Cathedral in March 2005, and went on Malcolm Miller's morning and afternoon tours. We were very pleased with his tours, as his narrations made the stained glass come alive.

I have previously recommended his tour to others. But now, after reading some of the recent negative reviews, I have mixed feelings.

Woody

PalQ

Yeh it's a conundrum to recommend as i also was enthralled with his tactic of teaching the principles of flying buttresses and of the three tours i've taken with him two were fine and no problem - excellent in fact.
But it's tough to recommend as it seems 90% of time you'll be very happy and 10% of the time you may be paying for verbal abuse or wait and then he'll be a no-show or demand more moolah.
I guess the value of the tour exceeds the potential problems and i've reconsidered my feelings about it. Vive Malcolm!

Underhill

A while back I read that Mr. Miller had an assistant to take some of the tours. Any up-dates on that info?