The idea for this photo came bit by bit, as I sat on the train down to London looking at the first picture in the sequence, which is of Hebden Bridge station. Decided to take a photo of that on the screen for some reason and then just ran with it. I suppose I could have gone further and further, but I did have other work to do….
One of my more indolent weekends. In twenty years’ time I’ll probably be this guy.
Hebden Bridge’s annual festival of creativity, the Handmade Parade, has featured on this blog every June since I started, and probably will continue to do so. It’s impossible to capture the whole experience in one shot, but I feel the need to show some happiness in the world this weekend, so here’s my choice.
I don’t watch TV so I don’t know who the woman on the left is, but she’s clearly something to do with TV presenting because the gaggle of lighting technicians and cameramen seen here are just a portion of the posse of hangers-on, outside broadcast vans, police outriders and so on, that surrounded her in front of the National Football Museum this morning. Anyone care to provide the ID?
UPDATE: Apparently this is Michelle Ackerley — they were filming a piece for BBC’s Crimewatch (hence all the coppers, which I did think were otherwise a bit excessive)
He looks comfortable and well-dressed enough to assume this is not some permanent accommodation arrangement. Perhaps the explanation is just that this was another warm June day (though muggy).
A row of tents, from which are emerging a range of nice-smelling foodstuffs each lunchtime, seems to have established itself recently on Bridgeford Street on the uni campus. Probably it is just an exam season thing, but they seem to be getting enough business to make it a viable permanent fixture.
Another day in London, ostensibly to work (well, I did have one meeting), but mainly to fuel my social life. I took the opportunity this afternoon to wander along the Thames and do the tourist thing, and here’s one of its most recognisable buildings — surely everyone in the world could put a location to this shot. These Italians were chilling out by the river, along with thousands of other people.
Today marked the first time ever I have been to an academic conference and witnessed a play as my after-lunch session; let alone one aimed at teenagers and dealing with the issue of emotional relationship abuse. But I have to say Love Hurts? was very good. Well done to Sue Moffat of the New Vic theatre and her three talented actors. The woman on the right is playing the victim, the guy on the left, her friend (and mate of the perpetrator).
The truly superstitious probably wouldn’t have booked to fly on Friday 13th, but I am not among them, and the flights didn’t seem any less busy to me. This one was taken somewhere between Moscow and Amsterdam on leg one of my journey home.
So here I am back in Moscow, and the city thus appears on the blog for the first time since 29th October 2014, 558 days ago. The weather that day was glorious, and so it was today too. It was a public holiday here, Victory Day, but only the oligarchs and Putin confidantes get to hang around Red Square watching the tanks roll past these days, so I just worked a bit and wandered out in the early afternoon to take in the rays by the Moscow River, along with several thousand of the locals.
The bridge in the background has two decks, by the way — upper for the road, lower for the Metro red line (line 1).
Being 42 