Port Sunlight Museum

There is now a museum that tells the story of Port Sunlight. There is a small charge for entry, but you can go back as many times as you want for free during the year. Find out more here: http://www.portsunlightvillage.com/page.asp?pageid=MUSVIL

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Port Sunlight Pub

Originally Port Sunlight did not have a pub, as Lord Lever wanted his workers to be sober, upright citizens. There was a vote in 1903, however, and the workers themselves decided that a public house was necessaty, so the local temperance hotel was converted, and became the Bridge Inn. It still retains many of its original features and if you wish to see downstairs and the old servants' quarters, the staff will be happy to oblige.

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Saughall Farmer's Market

There is a farmer's market at the Vernon Institute in Saughall every Saturday morning. There are the usual meat/cheese/bread/fruit&veg/eggs, but also a refilling station for bottles of washing up liquid etc. Worth a look.

 

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Harvest Moon

Harvest Moon is an independent coffee shop on Northgate Street. Very welcoming and friendly, they have an enterprising new manager who is Mexican, and who is delighted to cook authentic Mexican specialities. Recommended highly.

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Dog Physiotherapy

Our dog, Sam, has a deteriorating cruciate ligament. Because of this, he needs to go swimming. Unfortunately he hates swimming, and refuses to go anywhere near water, so his physiotherapist, Suzanne Cottriall, has been teaching him to swim at a nearby vets practice. She has done an excellent job, and in only two sessions he is looking far more comfortable and relaxed and is developing a nice doggy paddle. One or two more sessions should see him being able to go on his own. He also has exercises to do whilst on dry land. You can see more about her services here: http://www.animal-physiotherapist.co.uk

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City Road Steps

These steps lead down from City Road to the Canalside, and are a useful shortcut to the Egerton Street area. Nevertheless, I have never, in 30 years, actually seen anyone use them...

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Russell Street - Heron Court

Despite me saying that I don't think we do decoration of buildings as well any more, I spotted this weather vane on the new buildings that comprise Heron Court. However, I'm not sure it will be in as good nick as the previous two items in a hundred years time.

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Russell Street - Clock

Down on the same Russell Street building, there is a clock. When photographed, it appeared to be telling the correct time, which astonishes me. Maybe just a coincidence, and a stopped clock tells the right time twice a day. I'll have to sneak back and look.

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Russell Street - Office

Difficult to describe where this is, it is on a building that faces into a courtyard off Russell Street. It got me thinking that nowadays we just don't add ornamentation to our public buildings - signs seem much more utilitarian.

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Turner

Current exhibition at the Lady Lever is Turner - Travels, Light and Landscape. Running from the 14th Feb to the 1st Jun 2014, entrance is free. There are also various lectures and activities that you can go along to, including a guided tour by the Director of Art Galleries.

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Andy Hollingworth

Andy Hollingworth has an exhibition of photographs of comedians on at the Grosvenor Museum from 1st Feb to 11 May 2014. Wonderful photos that brilliantly capture his subjects, it's well worth a look. You can see more of his work here: http://www.andyhollingworth.com

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Lady Lever Art Gallery

Set in the heart of Port Sunlight, the Lady Lever houses a collection that includes many Pre-Raphaelite works, Chinese ceramics and Wedgwood jasperware. Entry is free, and they are open 10am to 5pm.

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Belle

Belle is currently living in Chester, on foster, and is looking for a new home. She is a highly confident, friendly, and outgoing dog, who needs a very active home where there is somebody around most of the time. She has been spayed and microchipped, and all her vaccinations are up to date. She needs to be kept busy, and to have something to occupy her mind with, or else she may become destructive. She is nearly one year old.

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Liberty Bell

Liberty Bell is a shop stocking various gift items and fabrics in Bridge Street Row. More importantly they also do creative craft courses, which are very popular, making items from kits, including the messenger bag and cushion in the photo below. More details on the workshops can be seen here: http://liberty-bell.co.uk

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Support Hoole Park

The Council have, without consultation, sold off part of our park. Poster says it all, really.

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Port Sunlight

Easily reached from Chester on the line to Liverpool, Port Sunlight is a model village which was built by Lever Brothers to accommodate workers in its soap factory (now part of Unilever); work commenced in 1888. The name is derived from Lever Brothers' most popular brand of cleaning agent, Sunlight.

Port Sunlight contains 900 Grade II listed buildings, and was declared a Conservation Area in 1978.

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Istanbul BBQ

The Istanbul BBQ is down on Brook Street, and is proving very popular with locals. I can definitely vouch for its' authenticity - eating there was just like sitting in a restaurant in Istanbul - apart from the weather, sadly.

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J Mowle & Co

There was once a thriving industrial area in Chester along the banks of the canal. The Egerton Iron and Brass Foundry, operated by James Mowle & Co. in 1871 and Mowle and Meacock by 1892, was once located between Crewe Street and Albert Street, but was demolished by 1910 when Egerton Street school was built on the site. This girder (on the bridge under the canal at City Rd) seems to be all that is left of them.

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Archery

Ever wanted to have a go at archery? Queens Park High School are offering the chance to try it on Tuesday evenings, 7 - 9pm. You can email them at enquiries@qphs.cheshire.sch.uk or ring 01244 981500.

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Chester Wine Festival

Chester is having a Wine Festival, from March 20th to the 23rd. There are various events, including Civil War pub tours (as well as plenty of wine-tastings). You can find out more here: www.thechesterwinefestival.co.uk

 

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Second Entrance

A long time ago, from construction until back in the 1960's, there was a second entrance to Chester Railway Station, with a turnstile where you could pay your 2d and cross a bridge onto the station platform. Enterprising youngsters also used it as a shortcut when they were late for school. The entrance was on Hoole Road, round about where the yellow door in the wall is in the photo below.

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It's Coming Down!

The hideous concrete block on Hunters Way is coming down. This must mean the Odeon Arts Complex might actually happen. Hooray!

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Snowdrops

The snowdrops are out in Chester again. Spring must be coming soon!

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A Late Quartet

I went off to see A Late Quartet yesterday evening, which was being shown in St Marys On The Hill. An atmospheric setting lent an extra poignancy by the death of Philip Seymour Hoffman.

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Engraving By Amanda

If you need a new dog tag (or anything else) engraving, the most reasonable place to go is to Engraving By Amanda in Chester market. She certainly does a quick and reasonably priced dog tag, and a slightly slower but much better quality job on glass engraving.

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Window Sills

Down at the Railway Station there are some very worn-down windowsills, as you can see below. I was told that this is on the platform that the mail trains used to pull in at, and is a result of postal workers using it to sharpen their knives, the better to cut mail bags open.

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Staffordshire Blue Bricks

Chester Railway Staion is built mainly from Staffordshire Blue bricks, a type of local brick with a very low water absorption rate. You can read more about them here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Staffordshire_blue_brick

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Chester Railway Station

Chester Railway Station, or Chester General, as it was once called, was a joint station between the Chester and Holyhead Railway, the Chester and Crewe Railway and the Birkenhead Railway. Later these became the London and North Western Railway and the Great Western Railway (GWR). The joint station dates from 1848, replacing at least two earlier termini of the railway companies concerned.

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Chester Film Society

Chester Film Society show interesting, non-mainstream films in a variety of places. Next one showing is 'A Late Quartet' at St Marys Centre on Tuesday 4th February, and it is open to all, not just members of the society. Price is £3.50, a real bargain. You can find out more here: www.chesterfilmfans.co.uk

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City Road Tunnel

Back in the days when the Queen Hotel and Town Crier were owned by the same people, there was a tunnel underneath City Road, connecting the two. If you lean over the railings at the Queen Hotel, you can just see the top of the bricked-up remnants.

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Town Crier City Rd

The Town Crier, down at the station end of City Road, was originally owned by the same people as the Queen Hotel. But whilst the Queen Hotel was for the first class passengers coming off trains, the Town Crier was for the hoi polloi in second and third class.

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Fake Owls

All around the platforms of Chester Railway Station there are fake owls, placed there to deter the pigeons, I imagine. Once you start noticing them it feels quite creepy.

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Greg Russell and Ciaran Algar III

Greg Russell and Ciaran Algar were playing at the Bear & Billet yesterday evening - tickets sold out within 24 hours, obviously their fame is spreading. This year they are up for the BBC Folk Horizon award - a full list of nominees can be seen here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b03ldc63/profiles/winners-nominees
They will be releasing their second album in June, and will be playing again in Chester at the time of the launch, so look out for it - and book quickly!

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Contemporary Art Space Chester

The Russell Kirk exhibition was held in Contemporary Art Space Chester, on the University Kingsway campus. The walls of the corridors leading down to the exhibition were lined with undergraduate work, most of a very high standard and well worth a look. You can see more about CASC here:
https://www.facebook.com/CASCgallery?fref=ts

 

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Thomas Brassey

Thomas Brassey was born near Chester, and was educated in the city. He became the world's foremost builder of railways in the 19th century, and, whilst mostly building in Britain and France, also worked in Spain, Italy, Holland, Canada and the Crimea. The plaque below commemorating him is in Chester railway station, and you can read more about him here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Brassey

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Yo! Sushi

A Yo! Sushi opened up in the city centre last year, and we tried it out. The food was good, and interesting, but it was more of a lunch place than somewhere for an evening meal.

 

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Russell Kirk

Russell Kirk is a local artist - he's the one who makes all the creatures for the Watch parades. He currently has an exhibition on atContemporary Art Space Chester (of which more later) to promote his new book, BOMB. The exhibition is open weekdays, 10 - 4.

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Eventi Per Tutti

We went to Carluccios last night, for a meal with operatic entertainment. Both the meal and the singers were excellent, and I highly recommend it as an evening out. Carluccio's have a series of events travelling around the country, and I'm really sorry I missed the pasta-making evening. You can read more about them here: http://www.carluccios.com/events

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Jack Sawbridge Sculptures

There is an exhibition of sculptures in the Cathedral currently. They are intriguing, and there is something quite womb-like about them. You can see more at http://jacksawbridge.com/

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Roman Road

Not the most wonderful photo, for which apologies, but you should just about be able to make out the surface of the Roman road which is literally centimetres beneath the floor of the Odeon Cinema.

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Saints Days Calendar

Around the Cathedral Cloisters there is a sort of calendar of windows commemorating various Saints days. There isn't one for every day (there just aren't enough windows), and I think they must have started enthusiastically then tailed off, as there seem to be more for January than any other month. This is the one for today, January 17th.

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