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Category Archives: Just plain daft
Start me up!
I’m hoping some of the transport buffs or maybe even Ralph Ferrie expert Tony Winn might be able to help with this one that partner-in-crime [Howmuch?] found this week in a junkshop – what appears to be a press photo of one of Ralph’s vintage trucks, with a young lad pulling on the starting handle.
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Posted in Brownhills stuff, Clayhanger stuff, Environment, Events, Followups, Fun stuff to see and do, Interesting photos, Just plain daft, Local History, Local media, News, Reader enquiries, Shared media, Shared memories, Walsall community, Walsall Wood stuff
Tagged Brownhills, Brownhills Carnival, Brownhills local history, Carnival, Charles Ferrie, classic, Godfrey Hucker, HGV, local blogs, Local History, Lorry, New Photos, Oakparkrunner, Ralph Ferrie, Staffordshire, Transport, vintage
12 Comments
Down the drive at the side…
The young David Evans has been at it again, and been has chatting to former teacher,Mrs. Eleanor Holland, who’s supplied this wonderful image of the St. John’s School Infants Class of 1960.
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Posted in Brownhills stuff, Environment, Fun stuff to see and do, Interesting photos, Just plain daft, Local History, Local media, News, Reader enquiries, Shared media, Shared memories, Walsall community, Walsall Council, Walsall Wood stuff
Tagged 1950, 1951, 1952, Brownhills, Brownhills local history, David Evans, Eleanor Holland, Events, interesting architecture, Lichfield, Local History, New Photos, Rhyl, Shire Oak, Silly, Staffordshire, teachers, Walsall Council, Walsall Wood, Walsall WOod ounty Primary, Youth Centre
18 Comments
Brownhills canal indecent exposure incident
Worrying news reaches me of an indecent exposure incident on the canal in Brownhills last Wednesday night (23rd July 2014), when a lady cycling on the towpath between the Pier Street pedestrian Bridge (near Tesco) and Catshill Junction witnessed a naked man on the far side of the canal near the Silver Court Gardens site.
Posted in Brownhills stuff, Clayhanger stuff, Environment, Events, It makes me mad!, Just plain daft, Local Blogs, Local media, News, Reader enquiries, Shared media, Social Media, Spotted whilst browsing the web, Walsall community
Tagged 23rd Jult 2014, act, appeal, bridge, Canal, Catshill Junction, Clayhanger, crime, cyclist, Events, flasher, incident, indecent exposure, lewd, local blogs, Pier Street, Police, Silver Street, The Bridge, towpath, Wednesday
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Have you just lost a pair of dogs in Brownhills?
This just in from top Brownhills rozzer PC Simon Bytheway – two dogs have been spotted roaming loose in Lichfield Road, Brownhills up by the Memo – one is a German Shepherd and the other a black Labrador…
Posted in Brownhills stuff, Environment, Events, Just plain daft, Local media, News, Reader enquiries, Shared media, Social Media, Spotted whilst browsing the web, Walsall community
Tagged Brownhills, found, German Shepherd, Labrador, loose, lost dogs, Memorial Hall, PC, Police, Simon Butheway, The Memo
1 Comment
A clean sweep at Chasewater – at last
I’m pleased to see that, in all probability, people power has worked over the issue of the filthy state of the walkways around the boating lake at Chasewater, which this week have been cleaned to a decent standard – you’ll remember that last week, I posted about the disgraceful mess there.
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Posted in Bad Science, Brownhills stuff, Chasewater, Environment, Events, Fun stuff to see and do, Interesting photos, It makes me mad!, Just plain daft, Local media, News, Reader enquiries, Shared media, Social Media, Walsall community, Wildlife
Tagged bird, boating lake, bread, Brownhills, Canal, Chasewater, consideration, Councillors, cynical, ducks, feed, feeding, geese, hazard, Lichfield, mess, New Photos, pollution, poo, Reservoir, Rose Maria Burnell, seed, shit, Silly, Staffordshire, swans, Things to do, wildfowl, Wildlife
8 Comments
Philip Larkin’s Lichfield – talk tonight!
I see that there Kate Cardigan from the wonderful Lichfield Lore is going from strength to strength with her informal and fun Lichfield local history group, Lichfield Discovered. This evening, (Monday, 14th July 2014) the group will be staging a talk about … Continue reading
Posted in Environment, Events, Followups, Fun stuff to see and do, Interesting photos, Just plain daft, Local Blogs, Local History, Local media, News, Reader enquiries, Shared media, Shared memories, Social Media, Spotted whilst browsing the web
Tagged 14th july, 2014, Discovered, event, Events, Kate Gomez, Lichfield, Lichfield Discovered, local blogs, Local History, Lore, Philip Larkin, Sandfields, Silly, St Marys, Staffordshire, Talk, Things to do, Twitter
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Chasewater – you can’t polish turds
Of late, Lichfield District Councillors and Staffordshire County Council have been cock-a-hoop about Chasewater – they’ve suddenly discovered our local reservoir, and just how fine it is – but there’s a bit of a problem.
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Posted in Bad Science, Brownhills stuff, Chasewater, Environment, Events, Fun stuff to see and do, Interesting photos, It makes me mad!, Just plain daft, Local media, News, Reader enquiries, Shared media, Social Media, Walsall community, Wildlife
Tagged bird, boating lake, bread, Brownhills, Canal, Chasewater, consideration, Councillors, cynical, ducks, feed, feeding, geese, hazard, Lichfield, mess, New Photos, pollution, poo, Reservoir, Rose Maria Burnell, seed, shit, Silly, Staffordshire, swans, Things to do, wildfowl, Wildlife
10 Comments
Down with the kids
Yet again, the young David Evans has played a blinder and come up with some fantastic images of the classes and staff at Walsall Wood County Primary, which was the school that formerly existed in the youth club building at Streets Corner.
[caption id="attachment_19576" align="aligncenter" width="300"]
Image courtesy Eleanor Holland & David Evans.[/caption] Continue reading
Posted in Brownhills stuff, Environment, Fun stuff to see and do, Interesting photos, Just plain daft, Local History, Local media, News, Reader enquiries, Shared media, Shared memories, Walsall community, Walsall Council, Walsall Wood stuff
Tagged 1950, 1951, 1952, Brownhills, Brownhills local history, David Evans, Eleanor Holland, Events, interesting architecture, Lichfield, Local History, New Photos, Rhyl, Shire Oak, Silly, Staffordshire, teachers, Walsall Council, Walsall Wood, Walsall WOod ounty Primary, Youth Centre
9 Comments
A different class
A quick one here from the young David Evans, who’s found a couple of gems from the postwar years of the Walsall Wood County Primary School at Streets Corner – this is the building that David returned to recently and documented so beautifully.
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Posted in Brownhills stuff, Environment, Fun stuff to see and do, Interesting photos, Just plain daft, Local History, Local media, News, Reader enquiries, Shared media, Shared memories, Walsall community, Walsall Council, Walsall Wood stuff
Tagged 1950, 1951, 1952, Brownhills, Brownhills local history, David Evans, Eleanor Holland, Events, interesting architecture, Lichfield, Local History, New Photos, Shire Oak, Silly, Staffordshire, teachers, Walsall Council, Walsall Wood, Walsall WOod ounty Primary, Youth Centre
11 Comments
I walk the line
This Sunday morning (15th June 2014 at 11:00am), there’s going to be a rather excellent event put on by Lichfield Discovered, a side project of Kate Cardigan from the wonderful Lichfield Lore – a walk along the line of the great, legendary and hotly debated Hanch Tunnel.
Posted in Environment, Events, Followups, Fun stuff to see and do, Interesting photos, Just plain daft, Local Blogs, Local History, Local media, News, Reader enquiries, Shared media, Shared memories, Social Media, Spotted whilst browsing the web
Tagged 2014, 29th June, Chris Pattison, Dave, David, Discovered, Drain, event, Events, Facebook, free, Hanch, Kate Gomez, Lichfield, local blogs, Local History, Lore, meeting, Moore, New Photos, Sandfields, south staffordshire water, Staffordshire, stories, subterrenea, Sunday, Talk, Things to do, tour, Tunnel, Twitter, Urbex, walk, Water
3 Comments
Local history for a distant son
I thought today I’d just do a small post highlighting a couple of sites that will be of interest to many readers, but mainly to blog stalwart David Oakley, who I sadly gather hasn’t been in the best of health lately.
Posted in Bad Science, Churches, Environment, Events, Followups, Fun stuff to see and do, Interesting photos, It makes me mad!, Just plain daft, Local History, Local media, Local politics, News, Panoramio photo discussions, Reader enquiries, Shared media, Shared memories, Walsall community, Walsall Council, Walsall Wood stuff
Tagged A brief history of Darlaston, Bev Parker, birthday, Bullstake, Darlaston, Darlaston Remembers, Darlo, David Oakley, fallen, FH Lloyd, GKN, green, industry, Local History, Local politics, Redevelopment, Rubery Owen, Staffordshire, Walsall Council, Walsall politics, war memorial, Wilkings and Mitchell
3 Comments
Anyone fancy some detective work?
South Staffordshire Water historian Chris Pattison continues to send me fascinating bits and bobs of local water-related history he finds in the company archives, and every one of them has been an absolute gem.
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Posted in Brownhills stuff, Clayhanger stuff, Environment, Followups, Fun stuff to see and do, Interesting photos, Just plain daft, Local History, News, Reader enquiries, Shared media, Walsall Wood stuff
Tagged 1865, Archives, Brownhills, Brownhills local history, Chris Pattison, Dave Moore, G. Williamson., handwriting, help, Local History, memorandum, memorial, Mystery, New Photos, request for supply, scans, south staffordshire water, SSWW, Staffordshire, Walsall Wood
25 Comments
Flight paths
This Thursday evening (12th June 2014 at 7:30pm), there’s going to be another great event staged by Lichfield Discovered, a side project of Kate Cardigan from the wonderful Lichfield Lore – this time, it’s a walk around the site and remains of the old RAF Lichfield base near Fradley.
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Posted in Environment, Events, Followups, Fun stuff to see and do, Interesting photos, Just plain daft, Local Blogs, Local History, Local media, News, Reader enquiries, Shared media, Shared memories, Social Media, Spotted whilst browsing the web
Tagged 12th June, 2014, aerodrome, air, Airport, base, Dave, David, Discovered, event, Events, Facebook, Fradley, free, Kate Gomez, Lichfield, local blogs, Local History, Lore, meeting, Moore, New Photos, RAF, Staffordshire, Steve Lightfoot, stories, Talk, Things to do, Thursday, tour, Twitter, walk, war
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Military speaker to tell story of the South Staffords in the Great War
This is just a quick note to flag up what looks to be an interesting, engaging and relevant talk by an excellent speaker coming up at Walsall Local History Centre next Monday evening, when Major Ted Green (Retired) will present an illustrated talk entitled ‘The South Staffords in World War 1’.
Posted in Environment, Events, Followups, Fun stuff to see and do, Interesting photos, Just plain daft, Local Blogs, Local History, Local media, News, Reader enquiries, Shared media, Social Media, Spotted whilst browsing the web, Walsall community, Walsall Council
Tagged 2014, 2nd June, Black Country, First World War, Great War, history, lecture, Lichfield, Local History, Major Ted Green, Monday, New Photos, oral history, Regiment, South Staffs, Staffords, Staffordshire, story, Talk, Walsall, Walsall Council, Walsall Local History Centre, WW1
1 Comment
Take to the water this Sunday!
There’s an interesting, fun-looking event taking place this Sunday (25th May 2014) at Chase Watersports Centre, at Chasewater – it’s a twelve hour continuous waterski event in aid of the Stephen’s Story appeal for the Teenage Cancer Trust.
Posted in Brownhills stuff, Chasewater, Environment, Events, Followups, Fun stuff to see and do, Just plain daft, Local media, News, Reader enquiries, Shared media, Shared memories, Social Media, Spotted whilst browsing the web
Tagged 12 hour, 2014, 25th May, Brownhills, charity, Chase, Chasewater, Chasewater Dam, Events, Facebook, inflatable, Lichfield, Reservoir, Silly, Staffordshire, Stephen Sutton, Stephens Story, TCT, Teenage Cancer Trust, Things to do, Wakeboard, waterski, watersports centre
1 Comment
Ballot dance
I’ve agonised over what to write here for days – it is, of course polling day here in Brownhills and Walsall today, and you get double bubble; not just chance to vote for one of your three councillors, but you get chance to vote for your European MP, too.
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Posted in Brownhills stuff, Clayhanger stuff, Environment, Events, Fun stuff to see and do, It makes me mad!, Just plain daft, Local Blogs, Local media, Local politics, News, Shared media, Social Media, Spotted whilst browsing the web, Walsall community, Walsall Council, Walsall Wood stuff
Tagged Brownhills, Clayhanger, Council, Councillors, Election, European Parliament, Events, Lichfield, local blogs, Local politics, Mike Bird, Politics, poll, Shire Oak, The Plastic Hippo, Things to do, UKIP, Walsall, Walsall Council, Walsall politics
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Our hidden heritage – and how to save it
Sandfields Pumping Station champion and public historian extraordinaire Dave Moore has been in touch with a last minute tipoff of a free talk tomorrow afternoon (Wednesday, 21st May 2014) at The Museum of Cannock Chase at 3:00pm.
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Posted in Environment, Events, Followups, Fun stuff to see and do, Interesting photos, Just plain daft, Local Blogs, Local History, Local media, News, Reader enquiries, Shared media, Shared memories, Social Media, Spotted whilst browsing the web
Tagged 2014, 21 May, 3pm, Architecture, at risk, Black Country, buildings, Cannock Chase, Dave, David, Discovered, event, Events, Facebook, free, heritage, Hidden Heritage, Kate Gomez, lecture, Lichfield, local blogs, Local History, Lore, meeting, Moore, museum, Sandfields, social medial, Staffordshire, Talk, Things to do, Twitter
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Lost – Keep your eye out folks
I’ve had a couple of notes about lost items at Chasewater yesterday – a camera and a GPS – one of which got mangled by the server, so I’d appreciate the person involved contacting me again.
Posted in Brownhills stuff, Chasewater, Environment, Events, Just plain daft, News, Reader enquiries, Shared media, Social Media, Spotted whilst browsing the web, Walsall community
Tagged Afternoon, appeal, Bench, Brownhills, Burntwood, Camera, Canoe Club, Chasewater, Chasewater Dam, Events, Garmin, GPS, GPSmap 64s, Lichfield, Lost, Memory card, Nikon, reader, Reservoir, Silly, Staffordshire, Things to do, Watersports club
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Don’t forget – Brownhills Common Bioblitz this Friday and Saturday
Are you interested in wildlife, or maybe have a budding David Attenborough or Chris Packham in the family – wnt to bring out your inner Bill Oddie or Simon King – If so, Brownhills Common is the place to be this Friday and Saturday.
Posted in Brownhills stuff, cycling, Environment, Events, Followups, Fun stuff to see and do, Interesting photos, Just plain daft, Local Blogs, Local media, News, Reader enquiries, Shared media, Social Media, Spotted whilst browsing the web, Walsall community, Walsall Council, Wildlife
Tagged 16, 17, 2014, Bio, Bioblitz, Blitz, Brownhills, Brownhills common, Chasewater SSSI, Children, Common, conservation, Countryside Services, Cycle rides, cycling, Events, Facebook, free, Greenspace, Heathland, Kevin Clements, kids, local blogs, Local History, Management, May, Morgan Bowers, Natural England, Nature, Special, Things to do, tickets, Twitter, Walsal Wildlife, Walsall, Walsall Council
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Closer
Kate Cardigan Gomez, irrepressible wonder behind Lichfield Lore has organised a walk and tour around Cathedral Close in Lichfield tonight (Monday, 12th May 2014) with her other project, Lichfield Discovered – it starts at 7:00pm outside Lichfield Heritage Centre.
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Posted in Environment, Events, Followups, Fun stuff to see and do, Interesting photos, Just plain daft, Local Blogs, Local History, Local media, News, Reader enquiries, Shared media, Shared memories, Social Media, Spotted whilst browsing the web
Tagged 12th May, cardigan, Cathedral Close, close, community, Discovered, Evening, event, Events, Facebook, history, Kate Gomez, Lichfield, local blogs, Local History, Lore, Monday, New Photos, Patrick Comberford, Staffordshire, Stores, stroll, Things to do, tour, Twitter, walk
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Living by numbers
Right, after embarrassingly missing some local events at Chasewater last Monday after promising to advertise them, I’ve decided it’s time to bite the bullet and start a community diary.
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Posted in Bad Science, Brownhills stuff, Environment, Events, Fun stuff to see and do, Just plain daft, Local media, Local music, News, Reader enquiries, Shared media, Social Media, Spotted whilst browsing the web, Walsall community, Walsall Council
Tagged activites, Brownhills, calendar, Canal, Chasewater, Clayhanger, community, Diary, Events, Facebook, Lichfield, Local, Pubs, Things to do, Twitter, Walsall Council, Walsall Wood, whats on
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Blitz the common!
Are you interested in wildlife, or maybe have a budding David Attenborough or Chris Packham in the family – wnt to bring out your inner Bill Oddie or Simon King – If so, Brownhills Common is the place to be on Friday 16th and Saturday 17th May 2014.
Posted in Brownhills stuff, cycling, Environment, Events, Followups, Fun stuff to see and do, Interesting photos, Just plain daft, Local Blogs, Local media, News, Reader enquiries, Shared media, Social Media, Spotted whilst browsing the web, Walsall community, Walsall Council, Wildlife
Tagged 16, 17, 2014, Bio, Bioblitz, Blitz, Brownhills, Brownhills common, Chasewater SSSI, Children, Common, conservation, Countryside Services, Cycle rides, cycling, Events, Facebook, free, Greenspace, Heathland, Kevin Clements, kids, local blogs, Local History, Management, May, Morgan Bowers, Natural England, Nature, Special, Things to do, tickets, Twitter, Walsal Wildlife, Walsall, Walsall Council
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The model
Oh my goodness, this is unusual – but knowing you lot, you’ll be able to help – top bloke and long-time friend of the blog Ian Morton-Jones has been in touch to ask a very interesting question about a model boat he took a picture of at Chasewater in 2012.
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Posted in Brownhills stuff, Chasewater, Environment, Events, Fun stuff to see and do, Interesting photos, Just plain daft, Local media, News, Reader enquiries, Shared media, Social Media, Walsall community, Walsall Wood stuff
Tagged Barmouth, boating lake, Brownhills, Chasewater, club, Events, Facebook, Ian Morton Jones, Lichfield, Lifeboat, Model, Mystery, New Photos, Reservoir, RNLI, Silly, Staffordshire, Things to do, Twitter, Walsall Council
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The Tat Man cometh
I know it’s short notice, but there’s a great show going on this afternoon at 2pm in the museum at Lichfield Street in Walsall – ‘The Life and Times of the Tat Man’ is a continuation of the great shows created by Dave Calcutt, Glen Buglass and the team working on the history around the Bayards Colts.
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Posted in Events, Followups, Fun stuff to see and do, Interesting photos, Just plain daft, Local History, Local media, Local music, News, Reader enquiries, Shared media, Social Media, Spotted whilst browsing the web, Walsall community, Walsall Council
Tagged 2014, 3rd may, amateur dramatics, Bayards Colts, Dave Calcutt, Events, free, Glen Buglass, Lichfield, Life and Times of the Tat Man, local blogs, Local History, Mummers, museum, Performance, Saturday, Silly, Street Theatre, Theatre, Things to do, Walsall, Walsall Council
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Getting the Bird
Two Brownhills community activists lock horns in the Walsall Advertiser letters page over the subject of Ravens Court – the exchange is interesting, and deserves to be read widely.
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Posted in Brownhills stuff, Environment, Express & Star, Followups, Interesting photos, It makes me mad!, Just plain daft, Local media, Local politics, News, Panoramio photo discussions, planning, Shared media, Spotted whilst browsing the web, Walsall community, Walsall Council
Tagged 215 Notice, Blofeld, Brownhills, Brownhills local history, Brownhills Market, Canal, Cheap tat, Clayhanger, Compulsory purchase, Derelict, Events, Facebook, John Bird, Lichfield, Local History, Local politics, Mike Bird, New Photos, New Tesco, planning, Politics, Ravens Court, Redevelopment, Retail, sympathy, Tesco, Tesco Development, teve Wade, Vandalism, Vivienne Aston, Walsall, Walsall Advertiser, Walsall Council, Walsall politics
16 Comments
Egg-straordinary fun at Holland Park tomorrow!
I’ve just noticed this one taking place on Easter Sunday morning (Sunday 20th April 2014) at Holland Park, Brownhills – an easter egg hunt (careful how you say that), kicking off from the play area at 10:30am.
Posted in Brownhills stuff, Clayhanger stuff, Environment, Events, Fun stuff to see and do, Just plain daft, Local media, News, Reader enquiries, Shared media, Spotted whilst browsing the web, Walsall community, Walsall Council, Walsall Wood stuff
Tagged 10:30am, Brownhills, Clayhanger, Easter, Easter Sunday, Egg, Events, free, fun, Holland Pak, hunt, kids, Lichfield, Monday, Palfrey, Parks, Streetly, Sunday, Things to do, Tuesday, Walsall, Walsall Council, Walsall Wood
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Pity the poor landlord
Five years ago, when I started this blog, one of the largest looming topics was that of the then proposed new Tesco Store in Brownhills – we’d been through a consultation, and the proposal was to build a large hypermarket fronting the High Street.
Posted in Brownhills stuff, Environment, Express & Star, Followups, Interesting photos, It makes me mad!, Just plain daft, Local media, Local politics, News, Panoramio photo discussions, planning, Shared media, Spotted whilst browsing the web, Walsall community, Walsall Council
Tagged 215 Notice, Blofeld, Brownhills, Brownhills local history, Brownhills Market, Canal, Cheap tat, Clayhanger, Derelict, Events, Facebook, Lichfield, Local History, Local politics, Mike Bird, New Photos, New Tesco, planning, Politics, Ravens Court, Redevelopment, Retail, sympathy, Tesco, Tesco Development, teve Wade, Vandalism, Walsall, Walsall Advertiser, Walsall Council, Walsall politics
19 Comments
The rise and fall – a walk into history tomorrow!
Kate Cardigan Gomex, irrepressible wonder behind Lichfield Lore has organised a walk and tour around the remains of the incredible Fisherwick Park estate with her other project, Lichfield Discovered – it takes place tomorrow, Saturday 5th April 2014.
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Posted in Environment, Events, Followups, Fun stuff to see and do, Interesting photos, Just plain daft, Local Blogs, Local History, Local media, News, Reader enquiries, Shared media, Shared memories, Social Media, Spotted whilst browsing the web
Tagged Capability Brown, community, Discovered, Donegal, event, Events, Facebook, Farm, Fisherwick, ha-ha, Hademore, hall, history, Kate Gomez, Lichfield, local blogs, Local History, Lore, Maquis, New Photos, orangery, Panoramio, Park, Staffordshire, stroll, Things to do, tour, Twitter, walk, Woodhouse
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Going Back
I’ve noticed over the five years that this blog has been running that it brings out often hidden sides to readers, and uncovers talents folk didn’t know they had – the young David Evans of late has been discovering a new talent for a genteel, polite form of Urban Exploration.
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Posted in Brownhills stuff, Environment, Fun stuff to see and do, Interesting photos, Just plain daft, Local History, Local media, News, Reader enquiries, Shared media, Shared memories, Walsall community, Walsall Council, Walsall Wood stuff
Tagged Brownhills, Brownhills local history, David Evans, Events, interesting architecture, Lichfield, Local History, New Photos, Shire Oak, Silly, Staffordshire, urban exploration, Urbex, Walsall Council, Walsall Wood, Walsall WOod ounty Primary, Youth Centre
34 Comments
School’s out… or is it?
Due to industrial action by teaching staff, some schools in the area will be closed today, Wednesday 26th March 2014 – to find out the latest information about the status of your school, visit the Walsall Council School Closures webpage here.
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Posted in Brownhills stuff, Clayhanger stuff, Environment, Events, Express & Star, It makes me mad!, Just plain daft, Local Blogs, Local media, Local politics, News, Reader enquiries, Shared media, Social Media, Spotted whilst browsing the web, Walsall community, Walsall Council, Walsall Wood stuff
Tagged Brownhills, Closure, Events, Facebook, industrial action, information, list, NUT, planning, School, schools, Strike, teachers, union, Walsall, Walsall Council, Walsall School Closures, Walsall Wood
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The final lot
The demolition is by now nearly complete – after 155 years extant, and about 40 of those derelict, the former St John’s School in Walsall Wood has now largely reduced to pallets of bricks and oddments of scrap.
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Posted in Churches, Environment, Events, Followups, Fun stuff to see and do, Interesting photos, Just plain daft, Local Blogs, Local History, Local media, Local politics, News, Panoramio updates, planning, Reader enquiries, Shared media, Shared memories, Social Media, Walsall community, Walsall Wood stuff
Tagged application, Brownhills, Brownhills local history, Cawarden Brick, Cawarden Brick and Tile, demolish, Demolition, Derelict, history, houses, Lichfield, Local History, Local politics, New Photos, Panoramio, planning, reclamation, Redevelopment, Rugeley, Shire Oak, St. Johns School, Stuart, Things to do, Walsall Council, Walsall politics, Walsall Wood
2 Comments
Making a splash!
You readers really are a remarkable bunch – last Friday, I featured a couple of images posted on social media by Chris Leggett of the Express & Star, as part of their bid to gain funding to digitise and open to the public their photo archive – a huge treasury of newspaper images that current exist in print form only.
Posted in Brownhills stuff, cycling, Environment, Events, Express & Star, Followups, Fun stuff to see and do, Interesting photos, Just plain daft, Local History, Local media, News, Reader enquiries, Shared media, Shared memories, Social Media, Spotted whilst browsing the web, Walsall community
Tagged 1973, archive, Bid, Brian Stringer, Brownhills, Brownhills local history, caught, Chris Leggett, crash, Cycle rides, cycling, Events, Express & Star, Facebook, Helicopter, Karen, Kenneth Cornwell, Lichfield, lines, Local History, Malcolm Wright, Malcom Wright, New Photos, overhead, parachute, photo, Reservoir, Show, Silly, skydiver, Staffordshire, Stowe Pool, Stuntman, survey, tangle, Things to do, Twitter, winch
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Breaking down the walls…
The tenacity and charm of the young David Evans continues to be rewarded, and he has again created great pictorial documentation of the demolition process being undertaken on the former St. John’s School in Walsall Wood.
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Posted in Churches, Environment, Events, Followups, Fun stuff to see and do, Interesting photos, Just plain daft, Local Blogs, Local History, Local media, Local politics, News, Panoramio updates, planning, Reader enquiries, Shared media, Shared memories, Social Media, Walsall community, Walsall Wood stuff
Tagged application, Brownhills, Brownhills local history, Cawarden Brick, demolish, Demolition, Derelict, history, houses, Lichfield, Local History, Local politics, New Photos, Panoramio, planning, reclamation, Redevelopment, Shire Oak, St. Johns School, Stuart, Things to do, Walsall Council, Walsall politics, Walsall Wood
2 Comments
The parachutist, the helicopter and the Brownhills daredevil
Last year, I asked readers to show support for the Express & Star in their bid to gain funding to digitise and open to the public their photo archive – a huge treasury of newspaper images that current exist in print form only. 
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Posted in Brownhills stuff, cycling, Environment, Events, Express & Star, Followups, Fun stuff to see and do, Interesting photos, Just plain daft, Local History, Local media, News, Reader enquiries, Shared media, Shared memories, Social Media, Spotted whilst browsing the web, Walsall community
Tagged 1973, Aldridge, archive, Bid, Brownhills, Brownhills local history, caught, Chris Leggett, crash, Cycle rides, cycling, Events, Express & Star, Facebook, Helicopter, Kenneth Cornwell, Lichfield, lines, Local History, Malcom Wright, New Photos, overhead, parachute, photo, Reservoir, Show, Silly, skydiver, Staffordshire, Stonnall, Stowe Pool, Stuntman, survey, tangle, Things to do, Twitter, winch
12 Comments
Demolition, man
Thanks to the keen eye and subsequent alert by reader, fellow local blogger and freind of the blog @thestymaster, plus the outrageous cheek, charm and loquaciousness of the young David Evans, I can present internal and external shots of the former St. John’s School in Walsall Wood, currently undergoing demolition.
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Posted in Churches, Environment, Events, Followups, Fun stuff to see and do, Interesting photos, Just plain daft, Local Blogs, Local History, Local media, Local politics, News, Panoramio updates, planning, Reader enquiries, Shared media, Shared memories, Social Media, Walsall community, Walsall Wood stuff
Tagged application, Brownhills, Brownhills local history, Cawarden Brick, demolish, Demolition, Derelict, history, houses, Lichfield, Local History, Local politics, New Photos, Panoramio, planning, reclamation, Redevelopment, Shire Oak, St. Johns School, Things to do, Walsall Council, Walsall politics, Walsall Wood
16 Comments
Dazed
I’ve had a request from the young David Evans to re-run some photos from a post I created in 2011 – David has requested this as new reader and commenter Roger Mosedale has joined us in the last few days, and David feels that he may be able to help with the school photos here.
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Posted in Brownhills stuff, Churches, Clayhanger stuff, cycling, Followups, Fun stuff to see and do, Interesting photos, Just plain daft, Local History, Local media, News, Reader enquiries, Shared media, Shared memories, Walsall community, Walsall Wood stuff
Tagged 1932, 1953, 1955, Brownhills, Brownhills local history, choir, Clayhanger, cycling, Cycling Proficiency, David Evans, Ebenexer, football, Lichfield, Local History, New Photos, Roger Mosedale, school photos, Shire Oak, Silly, soccer, Staffordshire, Things to do, violinists, Walsall Wood, Walsall Wood Primary
6 Comments
Walsall Wood trounce AFC Wulfrunians
The Woodmen yesterday faced AFC Wulfrunians at Castlecroft, and took yet another wonderful win, bringing their unbeaten run at 15 matches – Bill Shaw was at Wolverhampton to witness the great mach…
Posted in Environment, Events, Followups, Fun stuff to see and do, Interesting photos, It makes me mad!, Just plain daft, Local media, News, Reader enquiries, Shared media, Social Media, Spotted whilst browsing the web, Walsall Wood stuff
Tagged 1 4, 2014, 8th March, AFC Wulfrunians, away, Bill Shaw, Castlecroft, Events, FC, football, Footy, Good of the Wood, home, match review, Report, result, soccer, support, Things to do, Victory, Walsall Wood, Walsall WOod FC, Westfields, win
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Duck soup
Hi folks – this is a plea for a bit of common sense, and it would be really nice if folk could perhaps think about it a little bit – It’s a nice weekend, and with that, we all like to go for walks and visit our local parks and greenspaces.
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Posted in Bad Science, Brownhills stuff, Chasewater, Environment, Events, Fun stuff to see and do, Interesting photos, It makes me mad!, Just plain daft, Local media, News, Reader enquiries, Shared media, Social Media, Walsall community, Wildlife
Tagged boating lake, bread, Brownhills, Canal, Chasewater, consideration, ducks, feed, feeding, geese, hazard, Lichfield, mess, New Photos, pollution, Reservoir, Rose Maria Burnell, seed, Silly, Staffordshire, swans, Things to do, wildfowl, Wildlife
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A century in 12 objects…
I see that there Kate Cardigan from the wonderful Lichfield Lore is going from strength to strength with her informal and fun Lichfield local history group, Lichfield Discovered.
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Posted in Environment, Events, Followups, Fun stuff to see and do, Interesting photos, Just plain daft, Local Blogs, Local History, Local media, News, Reader enquiries, Shared media, Shared memories, Social Media, Spotted whilst browsing the web
Tagged 100 years, 12 objects, century, Dave, David, Discovered, event, Events, Everyday Items, Facebook, history, Kate Gomez, Lichfield, local blogs, Local History, Lore, Moore, museum, New Photos, Panoramio, Sandfields, Silly, St Marys, Staffordshire, Talk, Theatre, Things to do, Twitter
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Woodmen continue unbeaten run
Walsall Wood FC last night extended their unbeaten record to 14 matches, when they drew with Heath Hayes FC away one all.
Posted in Environment, Events, Followups, Fun stuff to see and do, Interesting photos, It makes me mad!, Just plain daft, Local media, News, Reader enquiries, Shared media, Social Media, Spotted whilst browsing the web, Walsall Wood stuff
Tagged 1-1, 2014, 4th March, Bill Shaw, draw, Events, FC, football, Footy, Good of the Wood, Heath Hayes, match review, Report, result, soccer, support, Things to do, Victory, Walsall Wood, Walsall WOod FC
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Brick by brick
Today, thanks to the eagle eye of reader, fellow local blogger and freind of the blog @thestymaster, plus the dedication and guile of a couple of regular blog readers and contributors, we have managed to catch the last days of a local, doomed landmark: St. John’s School, in Walsall Wood.
Posted in Churches, Environment, Events, Followups, Fun stuff to see and do, Interesting photos, Just plain daft, Local Blogs, Local History, Local media, Local politics, News, Panoramio updates, planning, Reader enquiries, Shared media, Shared memories, Social Media, Walsall community, Walsall Wood stuff
Tagged application, Brownhills, Brownhills local history, demolish, Demolition, Derelict, history, houses, Lichfield, Local History, Local politics, New Photos, Panoramio, planning, Redevelopment, Shire Oak, St. Johns School, Things to do, Walsall Council, Walsall politics, Walsall Wood
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Brownhills School: driven to distraction
The ongoing issue of Brownhills School’s withdrawal of community access to it’s facilities rumbled on this week, as the Walsall Advertiser published another excellent report about how the Spotlight Youth Theatre Group were told they’d have to move from the school last December.
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Posted in Brownhills stuff, Environment, Followups, It makes me mad!, Just plain daft, Local media, Local politics, News, Reader enquiries, Shared media, Social Media, Spotted whilst browsing the web, Walsall community
Tagged Brownhills, Brownhills School, club, community, Doug Birch, Express & Star, facilities, football, governors, Head, Headmistress, Helen Keenan, history, lessons, Letter, Lichfield, Local Committee, Local politics, mining, Report, Richard, School, Shepherd, Silly, Sir, soccer, swimming, trust, Walsall Advertiser, withdrawal
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Woodmen send Westfields west!
Walsall Wood FC delighted fans yesterday afternoon (1st March 2014) as they expanded their unbeaten league run against Hereford’s Westfields FC in a goal-packed match, bringing their winning streak to a lucky 13 games.
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Posted in Environment, Events, Followups, Fun stuff to see and do, Interesting photos, It makes me mad!, Just plain daft, Local media, News, Reader enquiries, Shared media, Social Media, Spotted whilst browsing the web, Walsall Wood stuff
Tagged 1st March, 2014, 5-2, allpay.park, Bill Shaw, Events, FC, football, Footy, Good of the Wood, Hereford, home, match review, Report, result, soccer, support, Things to do, Victory, Walsall Wood, Walsall WOod FC, Westfields, win
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Walsall Wood FC v Westfields FC: Away match today!
February 8th 2014, Walsall Wood v Westfields away at allpay.park, Hereford – get down there if you can for some great local football!
Posted in Environment, Events, Followups, Fun stuff to see and do, Interesting photos, It makes me mad!, Just plain daft, Local media, News, Reader enquiries, Shared media, Social Media, Spotted whilst browsing the web, Walsall Wood stuff
Tagged 1st March, 2014, allpay, away, Events, FC, football, Footy, Good of the Wood, Hereford, Lichfield, match on, Park, Saturday, soccer, Things to do, Town, Walsall Wood, Walsall WOod FC, Westfields
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A quick note about advertising
When I stated this blog way back in May, 2009 I did so with the firm belief that I would never attempt to make money from it, or carry paid advertising.
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Posted in Fun stuff to see and do, Interesting photos, It makes me mad!, Just plain daft, News, Reader enquiries, Social Media, Walsall community
Tagged ad free, ads, advertisments, advertorial, adverts, Blogging, integrity, Jason Sheldon, Junction 10, removal, reputation, spam, Wordpress
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Brownhills School: Express & Star catches up
Just a quick note to point out that the Express & Star have finally got around to covering the Brownhills School community facilities withdrawal story, with a few extra details.
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Posted in Brownhills stuff, Environment, Followups, It makes me mad!, Just plain daft, Local media, Local politics, News, Reader enquiries, Shared media, Social Media, Spotted whilst browsing the web, Walsall community
Tagged Brownhills, Brownhills School, club, community, Doug Birch, Express & Star, facilities, football, governors, Head, Headmistress, Helen Keenan, lessons, Letter, Lichfield, Local Committee, Local politics, Report, School, Silly, soccer, swimming, trust, Walsall Advertiser, withdrawal
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Brownhills School: News of community facilities withdrawal spreads
Recently, as many readers will be aware, I covered the shocking story of how Brownhills School – formerly Brownhills Community School – has elected to stop all community access to its facilities, resulting in a large degree of disquiet in the town.
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Posted in Brownhills stuff, Environment, Followups, It makes me mad!, Just plain daft, Local media, Local politics, News, Reader enquiries, Shared media, Social Media, Spotted whilst browsing the web, Walsall community
Tagged Brownhills, Brownhills School, club, community, Doug Birch, facilities, football, governors, Head, Headmistress, Helen Keenan, lessons, Letter, Lichfield, Local Committee, Local politics, Report, School, Silly, soccer, swimming, trust, Walsall Advertiser, withdrawal
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Accentuate the positive
It’s good to see that local cyclist, railwayman and blogger Aiden McHaffie has recently had some success in bringing to resolution a case of bad HGV driving, as recorded in a bike cam YouTube video.
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Posted in Bad Science, cycling, Environment, Events, Followups, It makes me mad!, Just plain daft, Local Blogs, Local media, Local politics, News, Reader enquiries, Shared media, Social Media, Spotted whilst browsing the web, Walsall community, Walsall Council
Tagged Accident, Aiden McHaffie, bike, Cam, Company, complaint, cycle safety, cyclesafe, cycling, Facebook, injustice, Linda Mason, local blogs, police failure, positive, West Midlands Police, Youtube
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Putting the Staffordshire Hoard in Context
This is just a quick note to flag up a great talk by an excellent speaker coming up at Walsall Local History Centre on Monday 3rd March 2014, when Dr Chris Upton will be hosting a talk ‘The Kingdom of Mercia and the Staffordshire Hoard’.
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Posted in Environment, Events, Followups, Fun stuff to see and do, Interesting photos, Just plain daft, Local Blogs, Local History, Local media, News, Reader enquiries, Shared media, Social Media, Spotted whilst browsing the web, Walsall community, Walsall Council
Tagged 2014, 3rd March, Anglo, Archeology, Brownhills, Brownhills local history, Chris, Doctor, Find, Gold, lecture, Lichfield, Local History, New Photos, Saxon, Staffordhire Hoard, Talk, Treasure, Upton, Walsall, Walsall Council, Walsall Local History Centre
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That rings a bell…
That there young David Evans has been very busy – not content to loaf around convalescing like any normal person after his recent operation, he’s been preparing some new local history projects, and updating others.
[caption id="attachment_17624" align="aligncenter" width="300"]
Image generously supplied by David Evans.[/caption] Continue reading
Posted in Churches, Followups, Fun stuff to see and do, Interesting photos, Just plain daft, Local History, Local media, Local music, News, Reader enquiries, Shared media, Shared memories, Walsall Wood stuff
Tagged Aldridge, Brownhills local history, David Evans, Hand, Hand of glory, Lichfield, Local History, New Photos, Pubs, Ringers, Shire Oak, Silly, Staffordshire, Stonnall, Things to do, tintabulist, Walsall Wood
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