The Current Outlook

Williamson Park, Lancaster, Lancashire, United Kingdom

Williamson Park is a park in Lancaster. Its focal point is the Ashton Memorial. The park was constructed by millionaire James Williamson, 1st Baron Ashton, and his father, also called James Williamson. The park now covers an area of 217,000 m², having been extended in 1999 into adjoining land, Whinney Carr, following a grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund.

Lancaster City Council run a website about the park which can be accessed here.

It was quite busy when I went today (a Bank Holiday in the UK) and the weather was very changeable. I went on to Glasson Dock after having a walk round the Park and it started to rain five minutes after I got out of the car!

This is a selection of photos I took today. If you’d like a hires image, leave a comment with your e-mail address and I shall send them on.

A sign for the Temple Shelter, which is further up. This is on from the far end of Williamson Park’s car park.

Here’s what it says (transcribed):

THE TEMPLE SHELTER
Originally designed by Sir John Belcher, the Temple Shelter stands some 100 metres south of the Ashton Memorial. The Temple lost its perimeter columns and roof many years ago. The restoration of the Temple took place between 1998 and 1999 as part of the Urban Parks Heritage Lottery Project in Williamson Park.

Another view over the park from further up the Temple Shelter hill:

Here’s a shot of the Temple Shelter itself:

A few looks at the Ashton Memorial:

This is a bench to the Rev. T. R. London, and was put up in 1863.

Here’s some shots from the second floor of the Ashton memorial building, overlooking Morecambe Bay and Grange-over-Sands in Cumbria:

This is a cobblestone mosaic of the red rose of Lancashire, our county flower and the symbol of Lancaster and Lancashire. The butterfly house is in the background.

Here’s a close-up shot of the glorious red rose:

A few more shots up above:

Another view of the exterior of the butterfly house:

The full view of the Ashton Memorial from the outside:

The fountain:

The bridge:

A sign at the entrance to Williamson Park. Here’s what it says:

WILLIAMSON PARK

In 1877 Williamson Park grounds were laid out and designed by Mr Maclean, a landscape artist of Castle Donnington. His plans also included the provision of an ornamental lake to compliment the park design.

According to press reports of the day he proposed “to drain part of the moor” into the lake. Given that the lake is situated at almost the highest point in Lancaster, exactly which moor he was refering to is far from clear.

The other features of the Lake are the stone bridge, which replaced the original rustic Timber Bridge. The waterfall also designed by Mr. Maclean and the Fountain designed by Sir John Belcher. The Lake was refurbished in 1999 together with the waterfall and the Fountain as part of a programme of works supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund Urban Parks Programme.

And that’s it. Comments and compliments would be gratefully received, as always.

MP George Galloway has said it could be “morally justified” to assassinate Tony Blair, but stressed he was not calling for his death.

There are words for people like Mr. Galloway. I quite like the term ‘vile fuckwit’. Most bloggers who talk about calling for his head mean it in a figurative way. Mr. Blair’s death wouldn’t mean anything to me. Seeing him suffer excruciating political pain and his eventual utter destruction is enough for someone like me. Not so, it seems, for the worthless indefatigable one.

Have a look at this. And nearly die laughing like I just have.

Bolton Abbey, North Yorkshire, United Kingdom

Bolton Abbey is a ruined 12th century priory in North Yorkshire. It gives its name to the village of Bolton Abbey. There’s very little there apart from a few houses, though.

Building work was still going on at the abbey when the Dissolution of the Monasteries resulted in the termination of the priory in 1539. The east end remains in ruins. A tower, begun in 1520, was left half-standing, and its base was later given a bell-turret and converted into an entrance porch. Most of the remaining church is in the Gothic style of architecture, but more work was done in the Victorian era, including windows by Pugin. The entire estate belongs to the Dukes of Devonshire and there is a large house on the site that is their residence when they stay there.

Anyway, here’s a selection of photos I took while I was there. If you’d like a hires image, please leave a comment with your e-mail address and I shall send them on.

This first image is the board you see just past the village shop that you see when you start out.

The text at the top reads:

The village of Bolton Abbey lies at the heart of the Duke of Devonshire’s estate in Wharfedale. It is incorrectly named after Bolton Priory whose romantic ruins complement the River Wharfe. The area has been popular with visitors for over a century and has been an inspiration to artists and poets such as Turner, Landseer and Wordsworth.

Here’s the side of the village shop and postbox. On the right you can see some of the Yorkshire countryside.

A view of the countryside over the River Wharfe.

Here’s a view of the river itself.

And here’s a view of the Abbey from a distance away.

Another shot of the river flowing. It’s beautiful, isn’t it?

And here’s a lovely view of the river and the bridge which connects to more Wharfedale countryside.

An imposing view of the ruins of the Abbey. The lead from the roof was taken off first under King Henry VIII’s Dissolution of the Monasteries and over a period of time the locals simply helped themselves to the brickwork.

Another shot of the ruins:

A notice informing visitors that they don’t guarantee the stability of the ruins and not to use it as a playground.

Another view of the ruins:

An image of one of the graves with the Celtic cross:

Another shot of what remains of the ruins of the Abbey:

Here’s the part of the Abbey that survives. It has remained under the Church of England ever since, which is why the St. George’s Cross (popularly the flag of England, which is currently attached to many motor vehicles up and down the country and has been for a month now - all to do with the World Cup) flies from the building.

Two more pictures of the outside ruins:

Now we come into the surviving part of the Abbey. They’re doing a wedding this Saturday, which is why the two women in the right of the image are sorting out flowers and arranging things for the event.

Here’s a board informing people about the glass used. I’ll transcribe it anyway, as it’s useful:

THE 14TH CENTURY GLASS

Each of the three windows in the far side opposite contains some C14th glass, most of it set in the decorative stone tracery in the upper sections.

Against a background of grey glass with fine leaf-patterns, there are ’roundels’ in red and blue, yellow and green. You will also find two marvellous crowned heads (possibly representing Edward III) and a tiny Paschal Lamb with its flag. The Queen’s head (possibly of a later date) may represent Philippa of Hainault, Edward III’s consort.

The glass evidently escaped destruction during the Reformation and the missing sections of the windows have been filled in with C19th/20th memorial glass.

…which can be seen in this pic.

And finally, a picture of the pews used in the church.

And that’s it for this week. Helpful and constructive comments will be gratefully received, as always.

What with me being hundreds of miles away, I can’t make it.

But I bring this to you from Tim Ireland over at Bloggerheads:

You are invited to attend Parliament Square in solidarity with Brian Haw tomorrow (Wednesday) morning at 11am ready for 11.30 (when Blair is due to drive past on his way to PMQs).

It is suggested that bells and whistles are used. Here’s why.

I am going to further suggest that, instead of being in Parliament Square (where police are sure to clamp down and round people up during this short period), you merely be in that general area with a *concealed* bell or whistle at the ready… and then let fly when Baby Blair’s motorcade goes past.

And, if anybody gives you any stick, remind them that:

1) SOCPA forbids the use of loudspeakers - *not* noisemakers.
2) SOCPA also fails to define what constitutes a demonstration.
3) So if they don’t get out of your face, you’ll be forced to have them arrested for demonstrating their ignorance.

Bolton, Greater Manchester, United Kingdom

Bolton is a large town (more populous than nearby Preston, which is a city) in Greater Manchester in northern England, and was traditionally within the county of Lancashire (although many people living there are proud of their Lancashire heritage). It is the largest settlement in the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, which borders the north-west edge of the Manchester metropolis and yet is notable for its proximity to the West Pennine Moors which surround the town to the north and east. The town itself had a population of 139,403 according to the 2001 Census, with the entire borough having a total population of around 264,800.

Bolton is famous for its comedians - Peter Kay (That Peter Kay Thing, Peter Kay’s Phoenix Nights, Max and Paddy’s Road to Nowhere, etc) is from Bowton, as well as several others, such as Dave Spikey. Peter Kay is a hero in traditional Lancashire with his nostalgic phrases entering the public consciousness although the quality of his material has declined in the past year or so.

Apologies if the pictures and notes are not up to the usual standard; it’s the very first time I’ve been Bolton. Couple that with it being raining for much of the afternoon means that the pictures are probably not perfect!

As ever, if anyone wants a hires version of a particular photo do not hesitate to leave a comment with your e-mail address and I shall send it on forthwith.

And here’s the photographs!

This first one is the Bolton town hall clock:

There was an international food market on at Bolton town centre this week, with market stalls from all over the world (German and Polish sausages, Spanish paella, Swedish apple cider, French baguettes and cheeses and so on). Here’s several pictures from the stalls:

An outside shot of the Bolton Albert Halls in Victoria Square:

Silver electric bollards with the logo of Bolton Metropolitan Borough Council emblazoned on it:

The sign in Victoria Square:

Bolton Council vans outside the Town Hall. Bolton magistrates court can be seen in the distance:

And finally: a short walk from the town centre brings us to the Bolton Indoor Market. It was starting to rain just after I took this (rather dark) image…

…which can be seen in this last photo!

And that’s it! Comments would be gratefully received from Boltonians and non-Boltonians alike!

Arnside, Cumbria, United Kingdom

Arnside is a village in Cumbria just over the border with Lancashire. It lies on the railway line to West Cumbria, which passes over the River Kent via the Arnside viaduct. Arnside railway station, which serves the village, is located on the Furness Line giving connections to Barrow-in-Furness, Ulverston, Grange-over-Sands, Carnforth and Lancaster. It is part of the Arnside/Silverdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

It’s quite a twee place although there are one or two very pretty and interesting little shops there and the people seem nice enough. It was a lovely Friday afternoon with the sun shining, so I decided that it would be a good idea to go out somewhere.

And now we come to the pictures. As ever, if anyone would like the full-size version of a particular photo do not hesitate to leave a comment with a working e-mail address and I shall send it on forthwith.

Just over the ‘border’ and here’s a two shots of Arnside’s railway station:

Looking out towards the River Kent:

A fountain memorial to “Richard Mobberley Clayton Grosvenor”, who died aged four of appendicitis:

A view of the main street in Arnside:

A warning sign:

Locals and others enjoying a pint and a smoke outside (while they still can!) in one of two pubs in the village - The Albion.

A train going over the viaduct:

A look at the village from the other end:

A few shots of the south Cumbrian countryside just round the border area:

Back into civilisation (aka Lancashire) is Silverdale railway station. I didn’t bother with getting any pictures of the town itself, as it’s even tweer than Arnside and there’s even less there. Anyway, the railway station is a very pleasant little place, as I hope these pictures show. Firstly, here’s the red rose:

And that’s it for this week! Any (constructive and helpful) comments will be very gratefully received.

Sharper CCTV images are needed so shots of suspected criminals can be matched to the proposed identity card database, a Home Office minister has said.

Now we begin to come to the real reason why the Home Office (and the Government) were so desperate in having their oh-so-precious ID Cards Act. They want to use CCTV with facial recognition and sharper images along with the Stasi database National Identity Register to spy on fundamentally innocent people while the detritus of society are allowed to continue their wrongdoing at their leisure. Quelle surprise!

The people who run this fucking country, honestly.

Families exiled from the Chagos islands in the 1960s and 70s to make way for a US Indian Ocean airbase have won a new victory in their long fight to return.

I’m glad that the High Court has come out on the side of justice and fairness once again. The Chagos Islanders have won a battle and they should savour their victory today. But they have not yet won the war.

(Via.)

A teenager has been fined £75 for leaving an ice lolly stick on a wall in Manchester city centre.

This story is another one for the ‘fucking little Nazi’ category, unfortunately.

If the council warden had any sense at all she could have just gone over and told her to put it in the bin. That would have been the end of the matter. But no. That worthless jumped-up official relished using all of the frankly miniscule power she has over people and fine the poor girl. We’re breeding an unhelpful and overzealous mindset in this country and I don’t like it one bit.