Author: Alan Burnett

History Hits You With A Punch

We had a computer when I was at university. When I say "we", I mean the university had a computer. Just the one. An enormous mainframe job which had a building to itself. If you were lucky you might get to use it once in your university career. When I say "you" would get to … Continue reading History Hits You With A Punch

Brighouse River And Bank

This photograph of mine of Brighouse from fifty or more years ago has always been one of my favourites, and for years I have assume that it was taken from River Street, looking west towards the town. Stuck in the fag-end of lockdown, I have little better to do with my time these days but … Continue reading Brighouse River And Bank

Impossible Honley

We took a walk around Honley yesterday, with its cobbled streets and picturesque stone cottages. It was all very pretty and a welcome escape from a lockdown winter, but by the end of the walk I wasn't sure what was real and what was imagined.

Leather Settees And Decorative Bournemouth

I am not sure which seaside this "seaside snap" from the 1930s was taken at. If it was any other member of my family I would say Bridlington, Scarborough , Blackpool, or - if they were being adventurous - Skegness. This, however, is Auntie Annie (left) and Uncle Harry (second from left), and they led a … Continue reading Leather Settees And Decorative Bournemouth

Grass Is Green, Sky Is Blue

To prove a point I made yesterday, here is a hand-coloured postcard view the Lock-keepers cottage at Salterhebble from around 1905. The artificial intelligence behind this bit of colouring would have been a studio artist, but they would have worked on the same basis as their modern AI equivalent: grass is green, sky is blue, … Continue reading Grass Is Green, Sky Is Blue

50 Shades Of Reality

An old negative of mine from 50 years ago with a dusting of colour provided by some Artificial Intelligence App. The results of such experiments remind me of the artificial colouring of vintage postcards during the first decade of the twentieth century: the results are not exactly accurate, but are attractive to the eye and … Continue reading 50 Shades Of Reality

Ticket To Ride

Uncle Frank collected bus tickets. That's not all: he also collected tape recordings of tv adverts from the 1950s, cigarette cards, and the occasional stamp. It was a relatively harmless pastime, and nothing like as disruptive to the family as, say, Auntie Amy, who collected husbands. I still have some of his old bus tickets … Continue reading Ticket To Ride

Walking The Dog

One element of the Peace Agreement which brought an end to the Where Shall We Go For Our Daily Walk Marital War, was a stipulation, insisted upon by my wife, that we had to go for a walk up Greetland at least once a month. Yesterday was the day, and a beautiful day it was.