29.8.07

Kent & East Sussex Railway


kent_1
Originally uploaded by fred pipes.

The joy of being semi-retired is that you can take your Bank Holiday any old time! On Monday, I went against the flow cycling out of Brighton to go foraging for blackberries and sloes in Patcham. I'd wanted to visit the Kent and East Sussex Railway Open Day but discovered the country buses didn't run on Sundays and Bank Holidays. So, it was Bank Holiday Tuesday then. Once upon a time you'd make for the busiest interchanges, like Crewe, to spot trains, now you have to get to the deepest countryside. I used to be sniffy about light railways (and still am a bit about narrow gauge railways) but this is a delightful 11-mile track from leafy Tenterden to Bodiam Castle, through the Rother valley. I got the train to Hastings and planned to get the two-hourly 349 to Bodiam (trying to find bus info on the web is a nightmare - sites like Traveline take you all round the houses!). When I arrived at Hastings station, however, I noticed a 340 already in heading for Tenterden, so hopped on and my bus pass took me into Kent! The route took me twice past the railway - at Northiam and Rolvenden - and eventually at tenterden it was a short walk down Station Road to the ticket office. I'd just missed the 13.15 (pulled by a WD 'Bucket' saddle tank) so went for a cup of tea and a toasted teacake and caught the 14.20 pulled by a little Wainwright P class tank no. 753, in the livery of the S E & C R. I had a 3rd class compartment to myself and was able to enjoy the sulphurous fumes and cinders in my face, jumping from side to side of the non-corridor compartment with each bend! Oh what joy! I decided not to get off at the shed at Rolvenden as the logistics of catching my last bus were too tight. Spotted 2 other WD saddle tanks and an ugly USA class loco in grey with WD1960 painted on the tank. [Full list of locos can be found on the Wikipedia page.] The other train passed us (without stopping, as we did on the way back) at Wittersham Road. Then it was on to Bodiam and a fine view of a proper castle, ie one with battlements and a moat! On the way back I was joined by a family of mum, two kids, and 'Steve', who'd been to visit it. Back at Tenterden I had an hour to kill so visited the Colonel Stephens museum (an extra £1.50!). Therein I discovered a fascinating coincidence. Holman Fred Stephens, who built this and other light railways, was the son of Pre-Raphaelite Frederic George Stephens, and godson of William Holman Hunt! Inside the museum was another loco - Gazelle, an 0-4-2 from the Shropshire and Montgomeryshire Railway, described as the smallest preserved [standard gauge] locomotive in the world. Great day out: I'd seen three castles (we passed Pevensey Castle and Hastings Castle on the train), lots of wildlife, including a fox by the tracks just outside Hastings station, and seen a beautiful old loco built in 1909 still in steam. Bliss.

16.8.07

Edinburgh Festival 2007


Edinburgh Festival 2007
Originally uploaded by fred pipes.

Apologies that this is more like a list than a blog! It's my annual pilgrimage to Edinburgh.

Thursday 9 August: travel up to Edinburgh on GNER up the east coast. Spotted 6225 Duchess of Hamilton (or was it 6233 Duchess of Sutherland visiting? a tea trolly got in the way) outside York Railway Museum, possible the most beautiful loco ever built. Child playing with Thomas the Tank Engine toys doesn't even look up. Customary pint of 80/- at the Cally Bar at Haymarket, followed by walk to Sam's, then walk to Pleasance courtyard for a few more pints.

Friday 10 Aug: Hangover, vow to 'never again'. Visit Warhol exhibition at the Mound. Sam is a 'friend' so we get to the front of the queue and free entry. Play with the silver balloons (I take an illegal photo!), liked the children's room with the robot paintings. Walk to Fruitmarket to see the Alex Hartley exhibition (he who climbs buildings) and have a sit down. Up to Halfway House on Fleshmarket Close for a pint. Took in a couple of galleries on Fopp Street, notably John Stezaker's montages at Stills and a comic book thing I couldn't see the point of at Collective. Free comedy at Canon's Gate - inc. the whole of Peter Buckley Hill's one-man show. Sam and his friend Kenny sneaked out. Off to Udderbelly for more pints - spotted Nicholas Parsons in the queue.

Saturday 11 Aug: Art Bus to the Modern Art Museum to see the Richard Long exhibition - lots of mud, mud, glorious mud! Shame they didn't sell souvenir pots of ... mud! Met Paul at Guildford Arms then bus to pub near Queen's Hall, thence to see the Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain. They did a great 1.5 hour set, but didn't do 'Smells like Teen Spirit'. I had an early night (watched miserable Mike Leigh film 'All or Nohing' on TV with a wee dram).

Sunday 12 August: Festival Sunday on the Meadows, just behind Sam's flat. Saw (heard) some comedy: Paul Sinha, Josie Long and Al Pitcher, all very funny. I'd just about pushed my way to the front and a view, when an American woman with guitar came on and cleared the tent. Sat outside the Speigeltent in the rain for a bit then went for a meal at Kushies and then to the Bow Bar and met Nick. Up to the Underbelly (I asked Sam what this building was used for when the festival wasn't on - he said nothing, it was too dangerous!). In the Belly Dancer we saw Fisher King Leven, of which Jackie Leven was the star. Didn't really work - they were all good, but each sat and waited for his turn.

Monday 13 Aug: day trip to Newcastle. I've been through Newcastle on the train for the past 11 years and always wondered what it looked like so got up at the crack of dawn for a day oot on the toon. Got metro to Monument and walked to the Laing Gallery. I love Victorian art and this is a gem. It has a lovely room of 1930s paintings too, all beautifully captioned. Star is Holman-Hunt's 'Pot of Basil' but there is a whole wall of John Martins and a Burne-Jones. I was delighted by an exhibition of watercolours by the Richardsons, and the Thomas Bewick collection of wood engravings. Had lunch with old friend Yvette and she told us aboot the electric bus. My tip: forget about the metro, etc - get a £1.50 day saver and use the electric bus (Quaylink) - it goes everywhere you want to go (except Seven Stories and the Biscuit Factory). So I got one across the swing bridge and into Gateshead to the Baltic, went up in the lift and walked down (Beryl Cook show was on, plus Dazed & Confused vs. Warhol, with silver balloons you could photograph, but weren't allowed to touch!), across the Millennium eyelash bridge for a lovely pint of Gladiator at the Crown Posada - no idea where that name comes from! Back on the bus to the Sage for a coffee then back to the station via the Bigg Market (didn't spot the Fat Slags tho). Train was running 40 minutes late so thought I might miss Stewart Lee (the 41st best stand-up ever) at the Udderbelly. Got cab and they kindly let me in! He was great and did a very brave Josie Long silent surreal ending! Spotted him the next day with a bag of chips in his hand but forgot to shout 'Weightwatchers' at him!

Tuesday 14 Aug: bus to Talbot Rice Gallery (outside which I spotted the above Stewart Lee!) to see David Batchelor's show Unplugged, basically totem poles of pound-shop objects ordered by colour. There were some geodesic spheres made from sunglasses that Nick Sayers would have liked, but the drawings were disappointing. Windows have mysteriously been revealed in one wall! Walked down to the City Arts Centre and got a concessionary admission with my bus pass to see the huge 'Hand Heart and Soul' arts and crafts exhibition. Some beautiful objects and paintings, I particularly liked Basil Spence's perspective of a church complete with comical figure mowing the lawn. Met Nick at the Stand for our annual trip to Simon Munnery's AGM, always good value. After a one-hour show we were led down to Arthur Smith's art gallery for another hour and half of chess-pool, motions and various pieces of Sherlock Holmes and Germaine Greer. Lost my brolly while going to loo so got taxi to Pleasance and Andrew Lawrence's show 'Socal leprosy for beginners and improvers'. I'd never seen him before. He was young and edgy, both nervous and offensive in a very funny fast way. Nick and Sam both got picked on (we were on the front row) but he left me alone!

Wednesday 15 Aug: home. Dumpling business lunch with Sam and Rob at Chop Chop then on the 12.58 from Haymarket to Euston, changing at Crewe! It was a ridiculously cheap ticket and I've always wanted to change at Crewe so went for it. Never again. The journey was along the west coast was pretty at first, through mountains and the lake district, but tedium soon set in and on the penultimate leg on Thameslink I was squashed in by a bloke with laptop! It took 9.25 hours to get home - not recommended! Thanks to Toni my courgette survived my absence and there weren't too many phone messages or emails either. Now I need a rest!

2.8.07

Mia Riddle at the Albert


Mia Riddle at the Albert
Originally uploaded by fred pipes.

Went to see Mia Riddle and her band last night at the Albert, the first time I'd been there since the smoking ban - a great gig marred slightly by a dodgy pint of Harvey's (the first ever)! There was a small barrel on the bar downstairs and the first pint tasted like nectar. The next pint from upstairs, dredged from the bottom of the barrel, was just not up to scratch and I left half of it! First on was a guitar duo called Tandy Hard - great voice, but the miserablist songs made Leonard Cohen sound like George Formby. We needed cheering up and Pog never fail to deliver, tho most of the songs were about nightmare relationships! Kerry was off in Mongolia looking after orphan babies, so bass stand-in was Simon. After a rousing 'In Heaven' we were taken there again by Mia's angelic voice. She was with full band, including a dishy banjo player, Laurel Wells, who must be a bit of a model/fashion designer judging from her MySpace site. Had to rush home for a glass of Soberano to wash away the bad Harvey's taste... Took some truly atrocious photos - just can't get the settings right for low-lighting.