Author: Alan Burnett

Five From A Slaithwaite Stall : 3. Lady Ormonde.

My third £1 purchase from the second hand stall in Slaithwaite was this delightful nineteenth century carte de visite from the London Studio of the society photographers William and Daniel Downey. William Downey (1829-1915) was born in South Shields and worked as a carpenter and boat builder before opening his first photographic studios in South … Continue reading Five From A Slaithwaite Stall : 3. Lady Ormonde.

Five From A Slaithwaite Stall : 2. In The Limelight

There used to be a a shop in Huddersfield called something like "Global International Mobile Phones And Repairs", which sounded all very grand, but was no more than a little chap in a broken down room with a counter made from a piece of wood balanced on two packing cases. Trades and industries that are … Continue reading Five From A Slaithwaite Stall : 2. In The Limelight

Five From A Slaithwaite Stall : 1 Pendlebury Wave

We were in Slaithwaite yesterday visiting the excellent Slaithwaite Art Festival, and afterwards called in one of the many antique emporiums in the village. There I found on one of the stalls a fine collection of old Victorian photographs. I managed to limit myself to just £5's worth, and came away with five excellent examples … Continue reading Five From A Slaithwaite Stall : 1 Pendlebury Wave

Great Chips Of The World : Series III, No. 5 – Saphire

Variety : Saphire (new variety of the classic Marfona potato) Appearance : Early main crop, smooth skin, white potato Chipability : Produce well-defined chips with crispy skin and fluffy white interiors

Picture Post : A Street I Must Have Known

This was taken in Sheffield in the early 1980s. I am not entirely sure where it is, but it is a street I must have walked down, a street I must have known.

86 Years On The Prom

This is Fred and Hazel walking along the promenade in August 1932 (there are people out there who will recognise which promenade it is, and - in the great traditions of the internet - will tell me). George V has just opened Lambeth Bridge and Forrest Mars has just produced the first Mars Bar. Aldous … Continue reading 86 Years On The Prom

Picture Post : Arthur Points The Way

This is a new scan of a negative I must have shot some thirty-seven years ago at a Yorkshire Miners' Gala in Rotherham. It was a few months before the start of the miners' strike, and there is Arthur Scargill pointing the way. Somehow it has turned itself into a sepia print - which is … Continue reading Picture Post : Arthur Points The Way

Perspire And Archive

Everybody these days seems to have a motto: some cheery little maxim that manages to condense the ethos of their organisations into a few meaningless words. On my way to the park the other day to walk the dog, I noticed that the local school was dedicated to "Aspire And Achieve" - which is a … Continue reading Perspire And Archive