Thors Cave - better out than in

There will be a mad rush into Dovedale this weekend I’m pretty sure. As well as being the bank holiday weekend, it is forecast to be warm. Hooray. At last.

So, if I were you, I wouldn’t go up to Thor’s Cave this weekend; it will be crowded, and it’s a small enough interior anyway.

Actually, it’s just a simple cave in the hillside – nothing to get worked up about anyway.  The climb up to it (on steps, nowadays) somehow makes one hope it’s going to be impressive, but it’s not. The view out from the mouth of the cave is the most interesting thing.

… apart from the fact that the film version of Bram Stoker’s fantasy-horror novel ‘The Lair of the White Worm’ – which actually is set in the Peak District – did use this very cave as a location.

Camouflagued factory

The factories owned by JCB always fill me with admiration.  In Staffordshire we have three – at Rocester, Cheadle and Uttoxeter (all close to each other) but each is beautifully designed to ‘damp’ down their effect on the skyline.

The places in which they are sited (except for the Uttoxeter one perhaps) are deep in countryside, and I think it’s great how the company has been sensitive to the way that buildings can spoil the view – so they have done their best to keep them camouflaged.  Even the garish gold-yellow sign is almost sun-like.

This one is the Cheadle factory.

Schoolboy remembered

What sad story does this grave tell? 
It is unusual to see a portrait on a gravestone in England, yet here is thirteen year old Edward Baddeley portrayed, and dressed in his schoolboy cap.
One can only imagine his grieving parents wanting to see their child fully remembered.

Of the little the grave inscription tells us, the only other telling fact is that young Arthur died at nearby Rudyard in June 1900. 

This grave is to be found at St Michael & All Angels Church, Horton.


This post was featured on the Cemetery Sunday website 

Tunstall Shard sucks up light

The Tunstall Shard is a spectacular piece of large modern sculpture standing slap bang in the shopping area of Tunstall.
It’s made of stainless steel and reflects sunlight fiercely. Local people are really proud of it.  More than one stopped to talk to me and praise it as I stood looking at it.

Somehow, in the taking of this photo, the light from the sculpture sucked up all the luminescence, making the rest of the scene look dark somehow.
Don’t know how that happened.

You are here, wherever you are

There is something spooky about this sign, which I saw in the main building at the City General Hospital in Newcastle.

When it says: "You are here"... but, erm, where is here, exactly?  it doesn't say.

I had surreal imaginings about having to endlessly wander blank corridors, only to be told (by sign after sign after sign) that I was forever and ever "here".   Spooky.

No waggons, carts & cattle

There's a lot of the past in Staffordshire - perhaps too much.  Whether it's the industrial-past or the historic-past, it sometimes sticks around too long.

For example, the notice you see in this photo hangs prominently in Lichfield in the Cathedral Close, which leads up to the cathedral itself (you can see one of its spires in the background).
It says: "The road through the Close, not being a public thoroughfare, no waggons carts & cattle are allowed to pass through.  By order of the Dean & Chapter".

Now, is that a charming relic of a bygone age, or the dead hand of the past forcing itself upon the present?

Danger - quicksand!

Quicksand is not a common threat to walkers in Staffordshire - though it does crop up.

This rather dramatic poster can be seen at the eastern edge of the National Memorial Arboretum.  The whole NMA site can be treated as a long and interesting walk, though its actual purpose is much more serious of course.

The loving care of bankers

This rather touching sculpture of an ‘embryo man’ has a quite mundane interpretation.
The man is sitting within the shape of a 50p coin; and this 1976 piece is a tribute to the way that Trentham Gardens, here in Staffordshire, welcomed the staffs of the major banks, which re-located here during the Second World War.

Recent events might make people such as you and me rather sceptical about the inscription, which tells us that the work “…symbolises the all-embracing concern of the clearing banks for the financial well-being of their customers”.
Yes, well, I guess many people might be less inclined to believe that now!

Link:  The Fifty Pence Coin sculpture 

Sumer is icumen in

What a bizarre country we live in.  Just a few weeks ago, it was unremitting bleak, snow-ridden weather.
And today?  Brilliant, hot sunshine with Spring flowers hastily bursting into bloom before they lose their season altogether, and blossom seemingly instantaneous.

Bagnall village was just one of the many places where this type of fiercely red tulip was putting on a show.

Time's death-struggle

In this tombstone carving you see a winged figure (Time) hovering over a corpse/skeleton, and both appear to be clasping an arrow. It's clearly a struggle of some sort.
Fellow blogger Beneath Thy Feet explained the significance of it to me as Time arrriving to claim his due at the moment of the person's death.  The arrow I guess represents the inevitable trajectory of existence - towards death.
The superscript motto reads: Time and Death shal be no more

So far I've found two of these type of carvings in Staffordshire: one in Audley churchyard, and this one, which is in Horton churchyard.

Taking a photo from the left side of the same carving more clearly shows the woman praying (she who is to become the skeleton I suppose), an hourglass, and, erm... three shapes whose significance I don't know!  If you know what these three shapes represent, I'd be very happy to hear...



This post was featured on the Cemetery Sunday website   

Crooked road leads to...

The Crooked House in Himley is one of your more out-of-the-way pubs. It's down a long, abandoned, unlit, narrow lane, and new visitors are never quite sure they're on the right route.

Fortunately, happy lttle signs (such as the one in the photo), advising drivers not to go so fast that they will end up in the river, do remind you that you're on the right road. 

Maybe it's the Black Country sense of humour...(?!!!)

Strangeness in Stafford centre

The strange designs and skilful workmanship that can be found at St Chad's church, in Stafford town centre, are really fascinating. The early-medieval carvings, both inside and outside the church, are so intricate that they could only have been done by professional, travelling masons.

The masons' names are forgotten now, but the founder of the church, a man called Orm, has his involvement inscribed in the stones inside.

As I said, the church is slap bang in the town centre, and is usually open on Saturdays.  If you go in then you'll find that the external stone pillars shown in this photo are just the start of some amazing & strange sights.

This post was featured on the City Daily Portal 'Creative Artisans' theme

Stoke ladies top the Midlands

Turned up to see the Midlands Ladies League Cup Final at the Marston Road stadium in Stafford, and quite a match it was.
Stoke City Ladies (who have already won the league by a long margin) were clearly the stronger side, but Leafield Athletic played their part too.  Stoke (in red & white) won 8-4 in the end before a crowd of around 400.

I was well impressed with the pace, power, skill and bravery on the pitch, and surprised at how much women's football at this level has progressed.
Amazingly, the World Cup referee Howard Webb (you can see him in the left of the photo) turned out to oficiate at this game, and that is quite a compliment.

Getting eco-friendly in Longton

In the back streets of Longton, they've renovated the old America Hotel (in front), and built on to it a brand spanking new structure - now taken over by CORE (Centre of Refurbishment Excellence). 
CORE is a sort of learning centre for people in the construction industry wanting to know about eco-friendly methods.

I suppose the CORE building itself had better be a good example of what they are promoting, or it would fail in its own mission!
Actually, inside and out, it looks okay.

Canal crosses canal

The Hazlehurst Aqueduct by the Hollybush pub at Denford carries one canal over the top of another, and has been doing so since 1841, as the plaque indicates.
The fact that there is a plaque there, and the fine appearance of the aqueduct itself, gives a hint of the pride the engineers must have felt in building it.

Under it, according to the story recounted in Pint Sized History Of The Staffordshire Moorlands, James Brindley, who designed the structure, had one day come back to Denford to admire his work – and he caught a chill. He died of it.  Hmm.

Incidentally, don't confuse this structure with the Hazlehurst Junction bridges, which are further down the Caldon Canal.

George & Dragon in trouble

Oh, the plight of the English pub!
On St George's Day today, I guess it's a good idea to reflect on the disappearance of so many of our pubs. An astonishing number of eighteen pubs a day are closing in this country.

I like pubs a lot, though I'll only have a pint or two on each visit; I won't stay all day.  And maybe it's people like me who are causing the demise; we just don't drink like we did in the old days. 
However, it's as well to remember that pubs have been diminishing in number since the 1870s, so it's not entirely a new phenomenon.

The George & Dragon at Rough Close has been closed for some years now, although a forlorn To Let sign is still erected on the roadside in the bid for some saviour to come along.

This post was featured on the City Daily Portal 'St George Day' theme

Contemplating nature in a pit

There aren't many spots in grimy old Stoke on Trent where one can truly relax and also contemplate Nature.

Westport Lake may be an exception. It's still quite busy with dog walkers and so on, and it's now acquired a visitor centre, but it seems a calm place to me.
You'd hardly believe that it's hidden behind one of the most run-down parts of the city, though, yes, it is a regeneration project - in which a nature reserve has been created out of what was an old marl pit.

There is a story that it was the site of a former ground for Port Vale FC before the ground just sunk away and forced the club to move on. That can't be true, can it?

Lichfield's German twin

The fad for twinning with other European cities seems to be fading away (though it's true that many twinning associations still exist). In the same way, you don't see many signs now for towns announcing their 'nuclear-free' status either.

However, even to this day, Lichfield twins with Limburg an der Lahn, an historic town in the Rhine Valley.
It's still a good idea for nations to speak unto nations, so I like the suggested idealism at least of such projects.

The Colours of the Playground

The colours in this photo of the playground at Hanley Park all seem to work together, from the green of the grass to the blue of the playground equipment and the brown of the flats beyond.
I like that it's largely empty too.

Inaccessible castle

We are not known for authentically old castles in Staffordshire (though Tutbury has some special ruins).  Which is why it's a shame that the ruins of the imposing thirteenth-century Chartley Castle are not accessible to the public.
I had to take this photo on a zoom lens to avoid trespassing.

The castle is most famous for being one of the prisons of Mary Queen of Scots.

The beauty in Brewood

I'd never heard of St Mary of Cleophas (aka St Mary Clopas), but a little research shows that she was the mother of two of the Apostles, and was one of the “Three Marys” who followed Jesus, and was present at the Crucifixion (which is why, I guess, she is holding the Crown of Thorns in her right hand).


Anyway, it wasn't her story but the beauty of this piece of stained glass in Brewood Parish Church that drew me to take the photo.
Old churches really are unrecognised art galleries, with some amazing stuff... in my opinion.

The very rare flag of Staffordshire

To see the flag of Staffordshire flying anywhere is pretty rare, but then there is some confusion about what the flag is. 
The flag in this photo is actually the flag of Staffordshire County Council.   A proposal to see a separate flag for the county itself (based on the Stafford Knot) has not yet matured I believe.
However there is a campaign to see this county council flag given more prominence - and to see it in other places than just on the few council buildings that do it fly it.

I saw this example in Tunstall, outside the Brittain Adams company offices.  Brittain Adams is a long standing local firm.

Playtime at 107 in Burton

Walking into the big car-park that fronts the old building on '107 Station Street' in Burton is a bit like entering an architect's playground.
The old brewery building (on the right) has been revitalised by a property development company, but they also had some fun with what looks like huge lego bricks during the process.

Rudest house in Staffordshire

Madeley Old Hall is slap bang in the centre of the village, overlooking the Pool. It's an interesting seventeenth century building in its own right, but new passers-by always look shocked by the motto written over the ground floor windows.  It reads "WALLK KNAVE . WHAT LOOKEST AT" - which is just about the rudest thing I've heard a house utter!
Still, I guess it stops those who might wish to stare in its windows...

The hall is now a 'boutique' bed & breakfast

Bad time for lambs

It's been a tough year for lambs. Quite a few haven't made it because of the lengthy periods of freezing & snowy weather, and there's a disease doing the rounds too, the Schmallenberg virus (SBV) infection, which can leave them deformed at birth.

So, the last week of sunshine has been very welcome. The temperatures haven't risen much until the last day or so - but this little one looks healthy.

Skull and... smiley faces

The prsence of the caredfully-placed brooding skull atop the Jana narrowboat rather belies all the smiley faces...

The boat was photographed on the Cauldon Canal at Consall Forge.

Slppery gravestones

Saint Giles Church in Newcastle-under-Lyme was rebuilt in the nineteenth century. The builders (it seems) couldn't be bothered to remove all the soil they had to dig up so they almost literally chucked it to one side, creating the hillock you can see next to the church to this day.

The gravestones too seem to have been disturbed at the time, and - with space in this urban centre very limited - seem to have been rearranged in the clumsy jigsaw fashion you see in the photo...  Walking over them is not to be advised on wet days, when they are almost waxy in their slipperiness.

This post was featured on the Cemetery Sunday website   

Christ's own wash systems

'Christ' wash systems??? I did a double take on seeing this logo on the side of a van. 
Admittedly, in West Africa, businesses often name themselves in a way that might bring them blessings, eg The Holy Ghost Hair Salon, or Christ The Redeemer Newsagents - but this was a first for me in England.

However, it turns out that Christ is the family name of a German engineering firm, and that Christ Wash Systems is famous for producing a 'sophistocated girlie calendar' - like the Pirelli one - every year.

Well, I guess it is Easter-time, so Christ should get a mention of some sort on this blog!

Graffiti marks the passing

Most urban/wild graffiti in Staffordshire is now removed as soon as it goes up - and I understand prosecutions have happened too - so you don't see much of it round here now, especially the more arty 'signatures'.

However, this subway, under the A38 at Shobnall, is a virtually abandoned one, more used for livestock than pedestrians I expect, and someone must have felt a little more at ease here to paint to their heart's content.
The colour is intense; and the blue/white image reminds of Matisse's paper cut-out pieces.

What I also like is the thought that, for this particular subway, the art is the permanent thing while the (virtually absent) pedestrians, and the artists, that have passed through are the ephemeral aspect, conspicuous by their absence.

This post was featured on the City Daily Portal March 2013 Theme

Rest in peace, mum

The death of a mother often comes with the bitter feeling that you never shouted from the rooftops just how much you appreciated her life and efforts.

I guess this family may have had similar feelings; but they certainly wanted the world to know that they mourn her passing.

Greatest ever's football shirt

Port Vale Football Club are having a strange run at the moment.  After looking as though they would run away with the League Two title, they have run into a poor patch of form indeed, winning only two games in the last eight.  Their recent run of losses seems inexplicable.

But The Vale's greatest achievement was just under sixty years ago in 1954 - when they reached the FA Cup semi-final. In the team was possibly the club's greatest-ever player, Roy Sproson.
The club even has a replica shirt for sale, with the great man's name on it.

Related Link:  Roy Sproson on onevalefan

Bad, bleak winter

Sometimes a 'bad' photo can tell more of a story than a 'good' one.  I took this more by accident than anything else and was going to delete it, when I thought better of it.
It has been a nasty, sleety late evening, with snow coming on; and somehow this photo described that sort of miserable weather better than any other I had taken.

There's almost a touch of Edward Hopper about it (IMHO).

One, Staffordshire

I thought it was a rather cute idea to give 'Staffordshire Place' as the name to the square which is surrounded by the huge new county council buildings in Stafford. So, therefore, the mian entrance has the address '1 Staffordshire Place'.
It implies that the building is to be the centre of life in the county, which is (I think) what the originator must have had in mind.

After all, there is an address of Number One London, so why not a Number One Staffordshire?

Buttercross farm shop thrives

There seem to be loads of farm shops across Staffordshire nowadays. They sell their own farm produce (obviously) but also other specialist locally-produced foods.

I hadn't come across Buttercross Farm Shop before. Just south of Loggerheads, you have to pull off from a stretch of the A53 and up a long drive.
Like all farm shops, it seems a little lonely - but the provisions are arranged so excellently, and look so interesting, one is seduced into buying...
I bought a gourmet sausage roll, coffee beans and something called Chokolit.

Spring heralds the walking life

For me, the Spring Equinox opens the 'long-walks' season.
Winter is okay for walks under six miles, but, in winter's cold weather and wind-chills, I find myself yearning for the pub at the end of the walk all rather too prematurely...

However, as it is the Spring Equinox on March 20 - and so starts the time when it's just a joy to be outdoors - I can start planning longer walks.

This post was featured on the City Daily Portal 'Spring Equinox' theme

Burning for seven years

The smell of acrid smoke comes at you as soon as you turn on to the footpath through Haying Wood in the district of Hollywood near Silverdale. At first, I assumed it was some household in the area burning sea-coal, but here in the photo is the culprit. 
It is literally a mound of mining 'spoil' from the nearby former pit - and it is on fire.

The tip itself is over 100 years old and was abandoned, but then for some mysterious reason, it ignited back in 2006, when flames were seen coming from the top.

Of course, it's not practical to do much but let it burn itself out. However, there must be a lot of coal dust in there to have kept it going until now - seven years later.

Link: Official report into the Hollywood Spoil Fire

The rotting Burslem Sunday School

The once magnificent Burslem Sunday School (built in the 1830s) is now an ugly mess. After fire destroyed most of it, it was 'made safe' in the late 1980s, and now all that's left is this dilapidated front portico.  If it were an animal, you'd want to put it out of its pain. 
It's listed though, so I guess it can't be touched, and so it just sits ... rotting.

To see a photo of what it was like in its greatness, click on Potteries.org

Too much snow

Snow is back ... again, again.  As I've pointed out before, we are not used in England to these recurring bouts of snowfall over the season.

This time, Nature seemed to enjoy the joke, by sending blizzard conditions, with the snow-flakes whipping around in a blinding fog, followed thirty seconds later (I kid you not) with an equally blinding sudden sharp sunshine. This rotation occurred a good half-dozen times during the day.
But - because the sudden sunshine melted the preceding snow in moments - nothing much has stuck.

Frankly, I've had enough of snow.

History - popular stuff !

The annual Staffordshire History Day event today - lectures & lunch was all it was - was, even at £17 a ticket ... a complete sell-out! About two hundred people crowded into the lecture hall.
At the lunch-interval, some history societies also manned stalls - to show off their activities and sell some of their booklets, and they did a busy trade.

I suppose it all just indicates the amazing popularity of local history.

Ex-electricals

This huge skip of discarded elecrical equipment completely astounded me.  I'd gone to the municipal tip to get rid of some stuff, including an aged microwave.

But the sight of an industrial skip full to overflowing of old electricals really brought it home to me how much ours is a throwaway society. (I'd tried to get the microwave fixed but the guy at the repair shop said it simply wasn't worth his or my bother.   Which presumably explains why this skip is so full.)
I couldn't believe that a local tip could 'fill' up so quickly.

However, I was told that it doesn't all go to landfill.  Apparently a lot of this stuff is sent abroad to be minced up into plastic pellets.