I've spent a fair amount of my life taking photographs, and whenever I am tempted to question whether I would have been better off doing something else, I look at photographs like this one. It's far from being a great photograph; it's badly cropped and full of distracting shadows. But it's my father, and it's … Continue reading Priceless
Inconsequential Shed
Given enough time, even the most inconsequential images acquire value from a social and historical perspective. Walking under Halifax's North Bridge over half a century ago, I was taken by the hanging measuring bar on the old railway sheds. Within a couple of years, the building, the lines, and the hanging bar were but memories, … Continue reading Inconsequential Shed
Torn History
Every picture tells a story, but very often, half a picture tells even more of the story. The picture tells the story of that moment in time when the shutter fired - the family gathered on the doorstep. I have no idea who they are - the photograph was part of a batch of unwanted … Continue reading Torn History
Trident And TV
The industrial north has always excelled when it comes to contrasts: dark and light, green and grey, smoky chimneys and graceful statues. This photograph of mine is from the 1970s and shows the back of the Britannia Building, which stands at one end of Elland Bridge. Britannia sits aloft, holding a trident and a TV … Continue reading Trident And TV
Some Thoughts On Pubs
Looking back at my life, I must say that there have not been all that many times when I have been happier than when I was sitting in a pub. It isn't easy to analyse the attraction: it's not necessarily the drink - I'm quite happy to let a single pint share my evening with … Continue reading Some Thoughts On Pubs
Regenerative Pastures
Enough of all this modern stuff, with seagulls screaming and tall ships leaving. It's back home and back in time, back forty or more years, back to a Halifax in transition. Carpets had gone but commerce hadn't arrived, the chimneys were smokeless, but the trees hadn't grown. Ponies grazed on regenerative pastures.
The Leaving Of Liverpool
It's not the leaving of Liverpool that grieves me,But the thought I might not be home in time for tea.
Seagull Landing
The building in the background is the rather magnificent former Birkenhead Town Hall. The bird in the foreground is a seagull who told me his name was Stanley. The photographer was simply a visitor to Birkenhead.
An Iconic Daffodil
When I was a little lad we would come to New Brighton on holiday. We would get the train to Liverpool and then take the Mersey ferry "across the water". Very often, that ferry would be the Royal Daffodil. It was a delight to see a later version of that iconic vessel moored in Canning … Continue reading An Iconic Daffodil
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