Month: June 2019

Creativity Is An Act Of Defiance

I was walking through Elsecar yesterday when I spotted a pencil that had been left on a wall. It looked as though it had been left there intentionally, rather than accidentally dropped, and when I examined it I discovered a printed legend on the main body of the wooden shaft: "Creativity is an act of … Continue reading Creativity Is An Act Of Defiance

The Girl With The Awfully Big Hat

This tiny photograph was pasted onto the back page of the postcard album of my mother's uncle, Fowler Beanland. It was only when the print was scanned and cleaned up that I begun to fully appreciate it for the charming portrait that it was: a picture of a little girl with an awfully big hat. … Continue reading The Girl With The Awfully Big Hat

The Iconic R

The iconic "R" - the trademark of Ramsden's Brewery - still graces many a pub window in the Halifax area. The setting sunlight illuminating its stained glass presence had an almost mystical significance for many acolytes of Old Tom and Stone Trough Ales. Ramsden's Brewery and its beers are long gone, but the R still … Continue reading The Iconic R

The Line Out Of Town

The railway line out of Halifax, heading north-east, dodging around the mills and factories, plunging under Beacon Hill. It's a line I took out of town a couple of years before I took this photograph in 1970, a line I have taken back into the town I will always call home on many subsequent occasions.

Look Into Their Faces And See History

I have no idea who Mr George Day of Fairbury, Illinois was, or how the photograph of him and - I assume - his wife came into my possession. But now they are mine and I am prepared to share them with the world. They are fine figures, serious subjects, people who do not smile … Continue reading Look Into Their Faces And See History

Monochrome Valley

This is an illustration from a book I have yet to write, which - in my own mind, at least - is entitled "Monochrome Valley".  It shows Bank Bottom in Halifax in the early 1970s. Square Church spire and  Halifax Parish Church fight to be seen through the industrial smoke. I have a feeling that … Continue reading Monochrome Valley

The Tower On The Rocks

This strange little vintage postcard has an awful lot of white border and a somewhat anonymous rural scene, that could be here, there or almost anywhere. It only becomes of interest when the message on the reverse is read. It is addressed to Stanley Nunn Esq of Mandeville Road, Enfield in North London. You need … Continue reading The Tower On The Rocks

Pink Stone And Blue Cobbles

This is a somewhat colourful picture postcard of the Victoria Hall in Halifax which dates from the first decade of the 20th century. Such cards were hand-coloured, and one can suppose that the colourful imagination of the colourist got the better of them on this occasion. The card was sent to Mr G H Smith … Continue reading Pink Stone And Blue Cobbles