Rooftops

At the start of a new month, I once again dive into my file of photographs taken over the last sixty or more years. Photographs make time stand still, and I see these pictures as little flakes of history. This particular flake dates back to around 1980 and was taken somewhere in Sheffield - please … Continue reading Rooftops

Ferry Cross The Mersey 2

I have somewhere in my possession a photograph of my brother and myself on holiday - always either Bridlington or New Brighton - and I, despite being only about six years old, have a Kodak Brownie camera strung around my neck. I would love to think that I was responsible for this picture of the … Continue reading Ferry Cross The Mersey 2

The Uses Of Zion

Coming across this old photograph - which I must have taken forty or more years ago - I was initially unsure of the exact location, as most northern towns and cities had a Mount Zion Chapel. I eventually narrowed it down to a building on Westfield Terrace in Sheffield, which has had a colourful history: … Continue reading The Uses Of Zion

Rooftops And Chimney Pots

I remember taking this photograph half a century or more ago, at a time when there was an outcry against TV aerials as despoilers of urban landscapes. I was always rather fond of them - there was an idiosyncrasy about them that is sadly lacking in their modern equivalents. Add a decent collection of chimney … Continue reading Rooftops And Chimney Pots

Half A World Away

A cobbled street of almost mountainous proportions, gas lamps casting light over a greyscale scene, and washing lines stretching from side to side like cut-price bunting: this was Claremount, Halifax, in the late 1960s. I took the photograph more than half a century ago, and more than half a world away.

Tired And Grainy

I must have taken this photograph almost sixty years ago. It’s grainy, low in contrast, tired, and of dubious quality. I asked AI to improve it, and it produced a version that was shiny, sharp, and so, so wrong. This is the Halifax I remember. Perhaps I, too, am grainy, tired, and of dubious quality. … Continue reading Tired And Grainy

Land, Sea And Sky

Skegness, 1982: Out there somewhere lies the sea. Somewhere behind us is the land. Between the two stretches an endless series of sand-filled boundaries - land and sea, sea and sky - inhabited by that hardiest of annuals: the seaside holidaymaker.

Bus Stop At The End Of The World

This is another example of my somewhat imaginative use of captions to mask the fact that, after the best part of fifty years, I can’t remember exactly where I was when I took this photograph. No doubt it was somewhere in West Yorkshire, where I found a rather isolated bus stop - hence: “Bus stop … Continue reading Bus Stop At The End Of The World

Market Times

I think I may have used this photograph of mine before for my daily calendar, but never mind - it is well worth a second outing. It shows Halifax Borough Market more than half a century ago. The clothing provides the main evidence for dating the image, while the sheer number of people reflects a … Continue reading Market Times