Monday 7 June 2010

Shelter


The end of the first week of June brings a predictable change in the weather. The so-called "return of the Westerlies" or "June monsoon" has arrived with heavy downpours over most of western Europe. These collared doves seemed content to sit it out and wait for sunnier times.

Sunday 6 June 2010

Sludge Gulping



All harbours need a bit of maintenance now and then and Bridlington is no exception. The JCB is bolted to the deck of a barge and the guy operating it seemed be having great fun scooping out the mud and gunk that had accumulated over the years.

Saturday 5 June 2010

To build a bridge


In a bid to redevelop the Old Town, a fancy new footbridge is being built across the river. The fact that there is nothing on the other side of the river does not seem to deter these bold entrepreneurs. They are going to build a brave new world on the east bank where at present there is dereliction and decay. The project has been given  a name: the Boom (they've never heard of hubris in Hull!). It's that old "build it and they will come" spirit at work again. You can see what the bridge is going to look like here.



Thursday 3 June 2010

Glamrock meets Robinson Crusoe: no contest.


This run down, somewhat seedy establishment is a memorial to Mick Ronson. Who? He was the guy who played guitar with David Bowie in the glittery glamrock end of '70s. There used to be a kind of awning over a small stage but that appears to gone the way of all council cutbacks. Now it's just a cafe in Queen's Gardens with a tacky sign. 

In contrast to the ephemeral, pop music world, you may just make out a plaque on the wall. This is a celebration of Robinson Crusoe's departure from Hull in 1651. Not from that spot, you understand, since that wasn't a dock then, and nor yet for real since he was only  a figure in a book. The plaque states "he spent 28 years, 2 months and 19 days on a desert island an example of resolution, fortitude and self-reliance"
It goes onto to quote "Had I the sense to return to Hull, I had been happy"; well quite, but there'd been no story then, would there?

Wednesday 2 June 2010

Wallflowers

The fine weather has brought out the shy wallflowers to bloom in the sunshine.

Tuesday 1 June 2010