Visibility: moderate to poor

The weather was pretty atrocious over the weekend. We went out for breakfast on Sunday and afterwards made our way to the Castle. There's always an exhibition on and the annual pass is a great excuse/incentive to get out of the house when the weather is far from clement.

My friend Graham has a couple of his photographs currently on display so it was great to see them up close. Not that you could see much up close from high up on the Castle Rock. Normally the view could be termed commanding. Not so on Sunday. Ratcliffe-on-Soar Power Station, admittedly eight miles away as the crow flies, normally dominates the skyline to the south west. Alas, not yesterday; though I did find the somewhat misty view I was afforded kind of atmospheric. Likewise the views over towards the Trent and Meadow Lane, home to Notts County FC, were equally shrouded. Note to self - I think I'll save that particular image for March's Photo Challenge.

The last bus is long gone

It's hard to get your head around the fact that Phil Lynott left us 40 years ago. He was just 36. No age at all. But I guess when you're addicted to heroin you tear up any long term plans you may be carrying. In the relatively short time he was around he wrote and recorded some seminal songs - songs that have become part of the rock and roll firmament. Walk into any self respecting rock club on the planet and it's only a matter of time till you hear the strains of Jailbreak or The Boys Are Back in Town. Bankers both.

But I loved it when he dropped it down a gear.. Dancing in the Moonlight was sublime. And, funnily enough, was always destined to be a jazz standard! If you don't believe me, take a listen to what Loah's done with Lynott's mini masterpiece. 

Loah: Dancing in the Moonlight (2026)

★

 Phil Lynott (1949-1986)

H is for Hawk

As I drew back the curtains this morning I knew I wouldn't be going far today. And wherever I did go would be in the company of a sturdy umberalla. Jumping on a No.17 into town I made it as far as Broadway. Yep, the pictures; I decided that sitting in a quiet cinema on a rainy Friday afternoon would be the extent of any activity today. What better place to lose yourself for a couple of hours.

I looked at what was showing on the bus journey in and thought I'd take a chance on H is for Hawk. A good choice. Based on Helen Macdonald's 2014 highly praised memoir of the same name, it tells the story of how a postgrad student at Cambridge deals with the sudden loss of her father. She adopts a hawk, Mabel, and gradually trains it to hunt in the wild. All the while trying - with mixed results - at keeping a lid on her all consuming sorrow. Claire Foy plays Helen and Brendan Gleeson her father. It's an uplifting tale beautifully told and gives an insight into depression and how despite friends and families' best intentions to help loved ones overcome their grief, ultimately they have to get through it themselves.

H is for Hawk (2026) - official trailer

Everybody gets what nobody wants

Walking past a nightclub in town recently I was reminded of an episode of Auf Wiedersehen, Pet where they decide to paint the communal site hut. After Barry convinces the others to redecorate he organises a vote to choose the colour. He uses a complex point-based voting system previously used by the West Bromwich & District Sunday Methodist Table Tennis League. It contains the classic scene where, after the votes are counted, the result of the ballot is that yellow wins by one point - despite no one selecting it as their first choice. It won because it received the most second-place votes, whereas the popular choices split the first-place points. When the others complain, Barry explains: "That’s democracy, Dennis. Everybody gets what nobody wants."

Anyway, back to that nightclub. When I photographed it back in 2020 it looked like this. 

And now it looks like this.

I can't help wondering that at some point Barry may have had something to do with this.

★

The photo at the top of the page was taken in Sheffield last week. It's not a nightclub, but it is yellow. I like yellow, though it's not my favourite colour. However, it has its place.

The third coolest car park in the world

Known by the locals as either the Cheese Grater or simply the Borg (Star Trek, anyone? If you know you know), the Charles Street Carpark in Sheffield, just opposite the train station, is a pretty stylish building. So much so it was voted the third coolest carpark in the world. The photos I took of it last Friday are raw: nary a filter or an app. was used on either of them. And here's the thing - it will look different every time it's photographed; always cool, but different. If you ever find yourself in Steel City I strongly recommend you seek it out.

Where: Charles St, S1 2NA

Completed: 2008

Architect: Allies & Morrison

Main Contractor: JF Finnegan