Category Archives: History

Blakean Spirit

Posted on January 15, 2020 by

I wander thro’ each charter’d street, Near where the charter’d Thames does flow.  And mark in every face I meet Marks of weakness, marks of woe. William Blake London Last week I paid a visit to London to go and … Continue reading →

Posted in art, Cities, History, Literature | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

All Fall Down

Posted on December 20, 2019 by

Two weeks ago I read a news article about the demolition of the cooling towers at Ironbridge on the River Severn in Shropshire. Their final demise was witnessed by many who came to see the four great towers collapsing after … Continue reading →

Posted in History, Midlands, Northern England | Tagged , , , , , | 4 Comments

The Crossing Place

Posted on December 5, 2019 by

A pinch of the River Clyde; a squeezing of the water that flows west through Glasgow towards the sea; a watery place where shipyards once dominated the shoreline and the air shook with the hammering of rivets, the scrape and … Continue reading →

Posted in Cities, History, Scotland | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 11 Comments

Riasg Buidhe – an abandoned village on the Isle of Colonsay

Posted on July 21, 2019 by

It is not that easy to find but if you go to the recycling depot at the highest point on the road between Scalasaig and Kiloran on the Isle of Colonsay, then follow the rough track that leads towards the … Continue reading →

Posted in History, Islands, Scotland | Tagged , , , , , , | 9 Comments

A Berlin Interlude

Posted on January 13, 2019 by

What do you do on a drizzly grey day in Berlin? A midwinter day when the sun is enfeebled and hidden, cowering somewhere beneath a thick duvet of cloud. What do you do in a city that you do not … Continue reading →

Posted in Cities, History, Travel | Tagged , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Callanish

Posted on November 10, 2017 by

“a place appointed for worship in the time of heathenism” Martin Martin A Description of the Western Islands of Scotland circa 1695 Someone once said that the wonder evoked by historical sites is inversely proportional to the number of eyes … Continue reading →

Posted in History, Islands, Scotland, Travel | Tagged , , , , , , , | 9 Comments

Blyth Spirit

Posted on July 28, 2017 by

Back in April I took part in a writing workshop in Suffolk led by Ivor Murrell of Suffolk Poetry Society and Melinda Appleby of Waveney & Blyth Arts. The workshop encouraged the participants to immerse themselves in the sights, sounds … Continue reading →

Posted in History, Suffolk, Uncategorized, wildlife | Tagged , , , , , | 18 Comments

The Minster in The Saints

Posted on April 20, 2017 by

The Saints is a small, loosely defined area of northeast Suffolk just south of the River Waveney and the Norfolk border. Effectively it is a fairly unremarkable patch of arable countryside that contains within it a baker’s dozen of small … Continue reading →

Posted in History, Suffolk, Travel, wildlife | Tagged , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

Skellig Michael – The Edge of the World

Posted on March 17, 2017 by

Today is St Patrick’s Day and March 17 is the supposed date of the 5th-century missionary’s death. Patrick was the forerunner of many early missionaries who came to Irish shores to preach Christianity, the island more receptive to new ideas … Continue reading →

Posted in History, Islands, Travel, wildlife | Tagged , , , , , | 12 Comments

Ladywood: Two Towers and a Reservoir

Posted on February 4, 2017 by

It had been many years since I had been to Ladywood. This inner city borough of Birmingham had long been a mythic landscape for me even before I became aware of any sort of Tolkein connection. It was here that … Continue reading →

Posted in Cities, History, Midlands, Walking | Tagged , , , , , , | 8 Comments