Fog!

A recent combination of cold nights and mild, damp mornings in this corner of Britain led to one of my favourite weather conditions manifesting itself over the weekend and served as a welcome reminder of why autumn is the season I enjoy most - fog!  From Friday through to Sunday there were varying degrees of pea-soupiness as the days progressed, with a particularly fine and atmospheric curtain of thick fog occurring first thing in the morning and materialising again in the evening, with wisps of mist lasting well into the day (and sometimes still in evidence even now).

source - imgur

I do love me a bit of fog (in case you hadn't guessed) and got terribly excited when glancing out of the window on Saturday night to see - well, not much really beyond a wall of dim white haze but the realisation that this was the first proper ground cloud of autumn practically made my day.  It's all I can do to stop myself from going out into it for a walk and sometimes I do give in to the temptation to venture forth and embrace the murkiness.  There's just something about fog and mist that really gets in amongst me - the way in envelops everything and gives it an eerie, otherworldly appearance that no other weather can replicate; the manner in which it is inextricably linked to this time of year, when the ground is covered with fallen leaves and the trees become gaunt, shadowy figures thrusting their branches out from the brume.  People and cars appear and disappear almost out of nowhere (in the case of cars sometimes unnecessarily so if the driver hasn't deigned to put on any lights - one of my few frustrations related to foggy conditions) and places one knows and recognises in clear conditions become strange and unfamiliar, all thanks to the interaction of cold and warm, moist air/ ground.

Women wear "smog masks" in London on the 17th
November 1953
source - The Guardian

Of course fog has not always had a harmless, inoffensive air (ahem!) about it, especially when it mixes with air pollution brought about by car fumes and the like to create the dreaded smog, much of which plagued many parts of Britain right up to the 1960s (as the above footage shows) - the most famous being the Great Smog of London during 1952 and 1953 which resulted in over 4,000 deaths and 100,000 people suffering from respiratory illnesses as a direct result.  Thankfully things have moved on in the subsequent 68 years and we are now able to go out in the fog without having to worry about catching a respiratory disease - at least not from that source!  In other respects however we are seeing a repeat of events from nearly seventy years ago, with masks once again being very much a necessity in all weathers.

A smoggy Ludgate Hill, London, captured in November 1922
source - The Guardian

But we're not here to dwell on the past horrors of smog but rather the joyful ghostliness of natural fog and what better way to celebrate it and the coming of autumn than with a selection of songs from my favourite era, the 1920s and '30s, all of which reference that most vaporous form of weather.  

We start in 1927 with a recording composed by the famous American cornetist and piano player Bix Beiderbecke who is on fine form in this 9th September 1927 New York performance where we find ourselves In A Mist.

Skiping forward to 1929 and the great Duke Ellington & his Cotton Club Orchestra perform a tune that is particularly evocative of a hazy dawn breaking over the rural farm on a brisk autumnal day - Misty Mornin', recorded here on the 3rd May 1929.  Ellington first cut this haunting melody on the 22nd November 1928 and would go on to make several different versions over the years so I am sure this will not be the last time it appears on this blog in one form or another.

The most famous fog-based song from the Thirties is of course George and Ira Gerswhin's A Foggy Day, which will forever be linked with the incomparable Fred Astaire and his consummate performance of it in the 1937 film A Damsel In Distress.  Having featured that recording back when I last did a fog-derived post in 2010(!) I thought I would feature another version of it this time by the British dance band leader Geraldo (real name Gerald Bright) and his Orchestra, with vocalist Cyril Grantham doing a good job with the lyrics in this recording made some time in 1938.  

We finish with this 1934 recording of Lost In A Fog, another standard of the day that was recorded by various different artists including Cassino Simpson, Coleman Hawkins and The Dorsey Brothers.  On this occasion however we hear it sung by well-known American singer and band leader Rudy Vallée, in a version that reached Number 4 in the U.S. charts in that year.

A beautiful shot of a fog-covered Richmond Bridge, London
source - Pinterest

Well that's it for this mist-enshrouded post - I hope you've enjoyed reading my thoughts on this most mesmerising of meteorological conditions, or at the very least had your toes tapping along to the accompanying musical miasma.  Is it foggy where you are?  Let me know what the weather's doing where you are and what your favourite type is in the comments below!

Scotland beat England in unique Penny Farthing bicycle polo match

Scotland beat England in unique Penny Farthing bicycle polo match

Back in 2010 I posted about The Great Race, a Penny Farthing bicycle race that takes place once every ten years in the Manchester suburb of Knutsford - and which therefore as it happens was due for a re-staging this year (this very month, in fact), but which has instead had to be put back to 2021 as a result of the ongoing Covid situation.  Something to look forward to next year, then, but in the meantime an equally quaint Victorian velocipedist sport recently took place in Richmond, London - Penny Farthing polo!

source - The Penny Farthing Club

An annual event, this, played this year at the Ham Polo Club's grounds in Richmond and known as the Penny Farthing Calcutta Cup it sees the traditional rivalry of Scotland versus England taken on to the polo field with a wonderfully eccentric twist.

Following much the same rules as equine-based polo, the two four-a-side teams play five chukkas of seven minutes' duration and the result of this particular match was an 8-7 victory for the Scots.  England are still in a strong position, though, leading the series 3-2, previous matches having been played this year in front of reduced crowds (usually in the thousands but currently restricted to 100 - suitably socially-distanced, of course) at Cowdray Park in West Sussex, Herne Hill in London and at the Guards Polo Club in Windsor.

It certainly looks like a lot of fun (the footage below is one chukka from last year's event), although I fancy one would have to be a particularly skilful Penny Farthing rider and polo player as indeed both teams' captains (and their teammates) are by the sound of things.  Even so it was perhaps inevitable that there would be a few tumbles and unseatings in the course of the matches!

source - Wikimedia Commons

It's splendid to see these charming Victorian machines continuing to be used and enjoyed today, especially in unusual circumstances such as these, thanks to the sterling efforts of enthusiasts like Neil Laughton (polo) and Glynn Stockdale (Great Race).  An instantly recognisable machine, the design of which is so closely associated with the 19th century, it is brilliant that they are still being produced today in various forms from traditional replicas to more modern interpretations for use by people from all ends of the cycling spectrum - be that vintagistas keen to master a more traditional cycle in keeping with their period of interest, up to competitive sportspeople such as the road racers and polo players mentioned here.  Long may that continue, and needless to say I will be rooting for England to wrap up the series and win the Penny Farthing Calcutta Cup for 2020 (with apologies to my Scottish readers!).

Museum hopes to rebuild UK's first robot

Museum hopes to rebuild UK's first robot

In today's fantastic age of automation and advanced robotics, with creations like Honda's ASIMO, human-looking androids and unmanned drones posing the question of where this technological development may ultimately lead us, it is easy to forget that the beginnings of modern robotics date back almost a century.  Indeed the very term "robot" was only coined in 1921, when it appeared in the Czech play R.U.R (Rossum's Universal Robots) - an early piece of science-fiction that like so many since depicted a future mechanical uprising by intelligent machines.

source
A scene from the 1921 Czech play R.U.R., written by brothers
Josef & Karel Čapek

Within a decade (perhaps, as some social commentators have suggested, as a response to the remarkable level of mechanization seen in the First World War) robots had evolved in all-metal humanoids, the most famous in fiction being the Maschinenmensch "Maria" in Fritz Lang's 1927 sci-fi epic Metropolis.

source

A year later, in 1928, came one of the first real-life robots (as we would know them today) to be built in Britain (and maybe even the world), the rather unthreateningly-named Eric.  Constructed primarily from aluminium (yet still weighing in at a hefty 45kg), Eric was able to stand, move his arms, legs and head, "blink" his eyes and - supposedly - speak (although this last was really a bit of trickery involving someone off-stage) thanks to two 12-volt electric motors, eleven electro-magnets and about 3 miles of wiring hidden beneath his armour-like exterior.  Amazingly all of this was put together at very short notice for the 1928 London Exhibition of the Society of Model Engineers, by Captain Willian H. Richards (the society's secretary) and his friend Alan Reffell, after the Duke of York (later King George VI) pulled out of giving the opening speech.  Thus Eric the Robot made his inaugural appearance, drafted in to give the Duke's speech - surely one of the first instances of a robot being brought in to do a man's job!

It's fascinating to read of the response of the crowd to this unexpected guest speaker, as described by Popular Science Monthly, and how in so many ways it still chimes with our own hopes and fears about the future of technology nearly 100 years later:

"The Thing's enormous size and the stark immobility of his face gave him a really terrifying quality... [the crowd] returned his lifeless gaze.  They felt subconsciously that here was some strange symbol of relentless Fate itself."

Personally I like the idea of a machine that would "Rid the World of Drudgery" and, despite the rather frosty initial reception, it seems that audiences of the time agreed as Eric went on tour to technology fairs around the world throughout the rest of the 1920s and early 1930s.

However Eric's ultimate fate remains a complete mystery; no trace of him exists after about 1932.  Whether he was dismantled, destroyed or is still sitting in someone's shed somewhere waiting to be rediscovered we may never know, but now comes the exciting news that the London Science Museum intends to build a full-size replica of the original Eric to become one of the main attractions of its 2017 Robots Exhibition.

It sounds an intriguing project, all told, and I feel sure that the Science Museum will be able to raise the funds to build the new Eric.  I look forward to reading more about his reconstruction and seeing this important early milestone in the history of robotics in London in 2017 - just as long as he doesn't go mad and try to overthrow humanity!

**The Science Museum's Kickstarter campaign "Rebuild Eric: The UK's First Robot" can be found here**

Benny Goodman 1938 concert revived

Benny Goodman 1938 concert revived

I stumbled across this item at the weekend and it instantly put me in a Big Band mood, as well as delighting me with the news that one of the seminal live concerts of the 1930s (and in the history of jazz in general) is going to be reproduced at Cadogan Hall in London this year.  I was less pleased to note that it's being put on in less than a week's time - the 26th January (although to be fair that does mark as near as dammit the 76th anniversary of the original performance).  Thanks for that advanced bit of reporting, Daily Telegraph(!).

However, this looks to be not the only Big Band concert playing at Cadogan Hall in 2014; thanks to this article I've discovered there's also a 100 Years of Big Band Jazz concert on 15 June as well as another Carnegie Hall revival on the 14th November, this time celebrating the 1939 performances of Benny Goodman's and Glenn Miller's Orchestras (plus selections from Louis Armstrong's and Count Basie's appearances).

Well done to Pete Long and his colleagues for helping to keep these wonderful bands' songs alive.  It's splendid to see this music of the 1930s & '40s still performed for audiences of today with such enthusiasm - and this is only at one venue!  Who knows what other events are on elsewhere in the country?  (Seriously, do tell if you know of any!).

source - BBC Four

Could 2014 in fact be a renaissance year for early 20th century jazz, I wonder?  Viewers in the U.K. have already been treated to the excellent B.B.C. Four programme Len Goodman's Dance Band Days, broadcast over Christmas (and already expertly covered by Mim over at Crinoline Robot; eagle-eyed readers will also have spotted Matt from Southern Retro in the above clip), and I note that off the back of it Mr Goodman will be appearing with Michael Law's Piccadilly Dance Orchestra at Littlecote House, Buckinghamshire, on the 25th July. 

Clare Teal's Sunday night Radio 2 show has also evolved nicely even if she still doesn't play the early British dance bands that her predecessor Malcolm Laycock did and there are more and more DAB and Internet radio stations appearing that are devoted to early dance and big bands (such as Angel Radio and Radio Dismuke - again, if you know of any others do give them a mention).

All these events and broadcasts popping up gives me great hope for a jumping and jiving year ahead.  Now I'm off to listen to more Benny Goodman.  Let's Dance!

'Unsung' London war bus brought back to life

'Unsung' London war bus brought back to life

With the centenary of the beginning of World War One now only a matter of months away, there will doubtless be many fascinating and worthy projects on the go in addition to those already announced by the Government.  Here's one now, in fact, involving the restoration of a 1914 London omnibus.

source

A very special and, today, rare model the London General Omnibus Company (LGOC) B-type was in many ways the Routemaster of its day.  Arguably the first mass-produced 'bus it was an advanced machine for its time, able to travel faster even than the speed limit of the time (12mph - the B-type could top 16mph, although apparently 30-35mph was not unheard of!) thanks to its light weight and modern running gear.  Able to seat up to 34 people, including 18 on the top deck's weatherproof canvas-covered seats, over 3,000 B-types were produced; that and the model's reliability allowed for an expansion of routes and the introduction of the night bus with the B-type getting electric lighting inside and out from 1912/13.

source
A B-type converted into a pigeon loft for use in
Northern France and Belgium during the Great War, c.1916.

Almost as soon as war broke out in August 1914 up to one-third of the entire B-type fleet was requisitioned for military purposes and shipped over to France (and from there also to other far-flung theatres like Palestine and Greece) - quite a logistical feat if you think about it!  Over the ensuing four years they were pushed far beyond the design's limits - trading smooth London streets for rutted & waterlogged mud tracks, coming under enemy fire, being converted into anti-aircraft gun platforms or carrier pigeon lofts, not to mention providing transport for two-dozen fully-equipped soldiers (the hastily-erected window boards were in fact installed to stop the glass getting broken by the soldiers' guns and packs)!

source
Troops in Arras go back for a rest having
taken part in the Battle of Arras, May 1917.

Now only four B-types are known to exist.  B43 "Ole Bill", a 1911 model, served in France until 1919 when like so many it helped to transport soldiers back across the Channel and was bought back by LCOG, shortly afterwards being retired and used as a commemorative vehicle (on the 14th February 1920 it became the first bus to boarded by a monarch, King George V inspecting it as part of the peace celebrations).  It was donated to the Imperial War Museum as long ago as 1970, where it remains to this day.

source

B340 resides at the London Transport Museum and it is here that it will soon be joined by the one undergoing recommissioning at the moment.  This latest restoration looks to be the quite the project, having come about through a remarkable series of events.  It will also differ from its companion by being rebuilt to military specification, to honour the memory of the men its type helped transport to and from the front lines. 

An excellent undertaking, then, particularly for the Great War anniversary but also for 2014's Year of the Bus.  I'm glad to see the London Transport Museum taking such effort to bring back to life another of these forgotten buses and in order to commemorate those who took part in such an important date in our history.  It bodes well for the centenary events next year and I look forward more than ever to seeing them (and the B-type bus!).

Vintage Adventurer aims to set new world record in U.S. ocean to ocean challenge

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Vintage Adventurer aims to set new world record in U.S. ocean to ocean challenge

Just over one year ago I featured the story of Australian "vintage adventurer" Ron Wade and his intention to drive his 1930 Ford Model A from Beijing to Paris in the Peking-Paris Rally, then across the continental U.S.A. and finally from London to Cape Town - and trying to break world records into the bargain!

Now Mr Wade and his car have made the news again and I'm delighted to see that they are on the verge of embarking on the second stage of their around-the-world adventure - the "Ocean 2 Ocean America Challenge" - having successfully completed the gruelling Peking-Paris Motor Challenge in a remarkable 33 days earlier this year!  I never doubted that they would do it and the old Model A has proven to be a sturdy motor car I knew it would be.  (Incidentally if you ever get the chance to read the account of the original 1907 Peking-Paris race by Luigi Barzini Jr. - son of the journalist who travelled with the winning car - I can highly recommend it.)

The next challenge for Ron Wade and his Model A begins, fittingly enough, on Columbus Day (the 14th of October) when they begin the Ocean 2 Ocean challenge - to drive across the U.S.A. from the Atlantic coast to the Pacific (and, in a nice touch, Mr Wade will carry a bottle of water taken from the Atlantic Ocean and empty it into the Pacific upon his arrival!).  Here they hope to break their first record - to undertake the journey in less than 60 hours!  Will they do it?  Well, you can follow their progress on the Vintage Adventurer website; I for one am sure they'll manage it.

I'm equally certain they'll beat the London-Cape Town record too, although that attempt has yet to be confirmed.  No doubt we will hear of Ron Wade and his Model A again when it is; in the meantime, good luck to him in the Ocean 2 Ocean and "good on yer, cobber!" for being such a gentlemanly good sport all in the name of charity and "vintage" adventure.

Plans for Crystal Palace replica

The Crystal Palace, newly re-sited on Sydenham Hill, 1854

Plans for Crystal Palace replica

This article from a couple of weeks ago, which I had originally intended to post at the time(!), details the tantalising prospect of a once-major London landmark making a reappearance in its old location.  That landmark?  The Crystal Palace!

The original façade; The Great Exhibition 1851

Built in Hyde Park in 1851 to house the Great Exhibition (a sort of Victorian World's Fair), The Crystal Palace was a symbolically massive 1,851ft long and 128ft high and made out of the then new cast plate glass.  Although originally intended to be a temporary structure, the architect Joseph Paxton's use of innovative materials and modular design - not to mention the vast size of the building - meant that at the end of the 6 month Exhibition it was decided that The Crystal Palace would be dismantled and rebuilt on Penge Common at Sydenham Hill in Bromley, south-east London (eventually lending its name to the park and the surrounding area).  In the event it was not only rebuilt but also substantially extended and redesigned, to become the building we remember today. 

Over the next 82 years The Crystal Palace would play host to many hundreds of expositions, shows, concerts, exhibitions, festivals and meetings; it moonlighted as a Royal Navy training base during the First World War and played host to the original Imperial War Museum from 1920 to 1924.



Having been saved from potential destruction in 1913 when the original owners declared bankruptcy and restored to its 19th century glory in the 1920s, disaster struck on the night of the 30th November 1936 when an explosion in a ladies' cloakroom caused an initially small fire in one of the offices.  A combination of high winds, wooden flooring that ran throughout the building and the many flammable objects - including fireworks - stored within meant that very quickly the whole place was ablaze and despite the best efforts of 400 fireman and 89 fire engines the entire structure burned to the ground in a matter of hours.  Contemporary reports show that the glow from the flames could be seen in eight counties; 100,000 people - including Winston Churchill (who later said "This is the end of an age") - turned up to watch the battling firemen trying to save it.  Unfortunately the building's insurance cover was not enough to meet the proposed cost of rebuilding, which was put at £2,000,000 (£111,000,000 in today's money).  Only the north water tower escaped destruction (the south tower also survived the fire but was dismantled shortly thereafter when it was discovered fire damage had made it structurally unsafe) - at least until 1941 when it was demolished for reasons unknown, although it was thought to possibly offer a handy landmark to German bombers.  The grounds were also used to house radar manufacturing facilities.



Now, in 2013, there seems to be a chance (albeit slight) that an exact copy of The Crystal Palace may rise Phoënix-like, as it were, on the original site thanks to a Chinese developer.  Quite what their angle is in all this (beyond the money) I'm not sure - I'm usually slightly dubious about Far East-backed concepts like this (hence the reason, apart from the somewhat questionable taste of it, that I haven't featured the proposed "Titanic II" replica stories that have been doing the rounds on the Internet in recent months).  Still it would seem that Crystal Palace Park is in need of redevelopment and the glass-and-iron wonder that gave it its name, glinting in the sunlight atop Sydenham Hill once again (I can just imagine it!) might be just the ticket (although it's early days yet, still something to keep an eye on)!

Abandoned Victorian toilets turned into London café

Source: Uploaded by user via Peter on Pinterest

Abandoned Victorian Toilets Turned Into London Café

Top marks to the chaps in this latest article, who are behind the conversion of these disused Victorian toilets in London's West End.   Now instead of remaining an unused and unseen relic of the past, this classic example of a 19th century public convenience has found a new lease of life as a coffee shop and sandwich bar!

In well-executed style the derelict underground gents looks to have been successfully transformed (and thoroughly cleaned up!) into an eatery with a twist.  It is splendid to see, too, that the new owners fully appreciated the existing high-quality fittings & decor that were still in place (I've written before about the Victorians' propensity for embellishing even the most humdrum of structures, and here's another prime example) and have ingeniously incorporated it into the café's layout.  (I'll leave you to make up your own jokes about drinking at a urinal!).

Source: Uploaded by user via Peter on Pinterest

Pictures of the renovation are most interesting and the new owners are to be congratulated on what looks like a job well done.  I'm sure The Attendant, as the place is now known, will prove to be once again to be a valuable asset to the Fitzrovia area - albeit in a completely different form.  I wish them every success and will be sure to stop in should I find myself in the W1 postal district.

World's first colour film unveiled

World's first colour film unveiled 

In recent years early examples of colour film have, I think it's fair to say, become more established in the public consciousness thanks to their discovery, preservation and most importantly their showing on national television and in theatres.  I'm thinking of examples like Claude Friese-Greene's work in the 1920s (which was featured in the Dan Cruickshank series The Lost World of Friese-Greene on the B.B.C. back in 2006 having been expertly restored and preserved by that magnificient institution, the BFI) and the perennial film favourite that is the 1939 Wizard of Oz.



Colour cinematography was aspired to almost immediately after the moving picture camera was first invented but the technology needed to achieve it simply did not exist.  Many turn-of-the-century "colour" films consisted of each individual frame being hand-painted in order to provide the necessary effect.  The technique used by pioneering British cinematographer Edward Turner is generally agreed to be the first true colour film - and it was shot in 1902, fourteen years before the invention of Technicolor!  Alas Turner's method was a dead-end, he died suddenly a year later aged only 29 and his place in film history was forgotten.  Colourisation continued to progress, albeit slowly, and went on to provide some incredibly impressive and more advanced films (below, for example) but Turner was undoubtedly there first.



World's first colour film footage viewed for first time

Now thanks to the tireless efforts of the National Media Museum Turner's colour footage can be seen again for the first time in over 100 years just as he intended it to look.  Having been aware of the films' existence in their archives for some time and after working "behind the scenes", as it were(!), with the oddly-formatted reels the museum's curators were finally able to restore the stock and transfer it to the screen minus the imperfections that curtailed its development.  The result, as you can see in the first clip, is beautiful.

The team at the NMM are to be congratulated for persevering with the preservation of this historically important first step in colour cinematography, which will hopefully restore Edward Turner to his rightful place in the annals of moving picture history.  Colourisation of moving pictures made at a time when most film stock was black-and-white always imbues the subject with a remarkable sense of immediacy but to see colour footage from over a century ago is truly extraordinary and I am so very pleased to see it saved for future generations (not to mention proving to be a talking point in today's media).

Vintage adventurer hopes to break record

Ford Model A, similar to Mr Ward's 1930 example.  Australian Model As were built
in Geelong, Victoria

Vintage adventurer hopes to break record

Last year I did a post about a chap in Michigan who ran a Model A Ford as his main car every day for a whole year (and who still drives it frequently today).  Now a "vintage adventurer" (what a great term!) from Australia's Gold Coast is planning to beat the current record - set in 1936 - for the fastest journey time from London to Cape Town by a Model A in his own car, according to this article that popped into my inbox this morning.

Mr Wade sounds like the archetypal adventuresome Aussie (and seems to be proof that an active lifestyle can be good for the health) and all-round good egg, much like his compatriot I reported on at the beginning of the year, who similarly drove his Model T Ford across Australia and then from Durban, South Africa, to Moscow. 

Not only is Mr Wade aiming for the London-Cape Town record but he intends to take part in the Peking-Paris race beforehand and then ship the Model A to America and drive it from New York to Chicago to Los Angeles - in short here is another vintage car and driver who will have travelled around the world by the end of next year!

Whether successful or not vintage man and machine will have followed in the wheeltracks of many an historical endurance racer in famous long-distance journeys such as the Peking-Paris race, the London-Cape Town route and the myriad others who continue to this day to prove what the motor car was and is capable of.  It will be a testament to the car's longevity and strength that it should be able to undertake this trip, although Mr Ward has taken care to refurbish all the mechanical components which is fair enough.  It should be remembered, though, that cars of this vintage were engineered for rough use simply because the road networks that were in existence at the time were limited at best.  A round-the-world trip should therefore be quite possible even in a 1930 Model A.  I fully expect to read about Mr Wade's adventures and arrivals in Paris, Cape Town, Los Angeles and finally his home town of Wongawalla in 2013 and I'm sure the documentary he will be making en route will be a fascinating record of the endeavour.  The best of luck to him and his car.

Man seeks to stage around-the-world airship race

Man seeks to stage around-the-world airship race

I promised you a corker of a story for the next featured article to appear on this blog and I do believe this delivers.  On my birthday (near enough) too; what a bloggy present!  This could easily enter my personal top ten, if not the Stats' most popular.  Why, because it features airships!  A particularly vintage mode of transport that regular readers will know I am quite enthusiastic about and which is long overdue for a resurgence.  If that isn't enough it also marries these fantastic machines to an undertaking of historic and thrilling proportions - an around-the-world race!

I'm struggling to find the words to convey my enthusiasm for this idea - I mean, airships... flying around the world... visiting UNESCO World Heritage sites!  It sounds incredible - a never-before-tried, once-in-a-lifetime event.  Although even I started off thinking the accompanying video was a trifle hyperbolic in its language the more I think about it the more excited I become.  Is it too much to ask, though?  The World Sky Race, as it is known, has already had a long gestation period with launch dates having come and gone.  It would be a monumental task in both monetary and logistical terms and is the brainchild of just one man.  But some big names in aviation seem genuinely interested and more importantly members of UNESCO appear quite sympathetic to the idea, so there may be a good chance for it.  I certainly hope so!



It wouldn't be the first circumnavigation of the globe by a lighter-than-air ship, of course, as the German airship LZ-127 Graf Zeppelin undertook its own around-the-world flight in 1929.  That journey captured the public's imagination and cemented its place in aviation history.  Many dozens of books have been written, articles published and documentaries recorded - including the recent 2009 Dutch drama-documentary Farewell (shown on B.B.C. Four as Around The World By Zeppelin, as you may recall).  Why should it not be the same for the World Sky Race?

Those involved in the enterprise speak of its potential attraction to the public of today and I for one agree with them.  I'd even accept the airships having to be plastered in advertising if that's what it takes to realise this idea.  In this age of the Internet and instant communication, where distances are forgotten and travel is sanitised, a global airship race could serve as a reminder of the thrill and excitement of travel, the great expanses that make up our planet and the human endeavour it can still take to cross them.



Such was the kind of reaction to the famous long-distance aeroplane races of the 1930s, when friendly competition and national pride combined with cutting-edge technology to create spectacles that enthralled thousands - if not millions - of people as they followed these pioneering aviators as they raced across land and ocean in their attempts to be the fastest.  Like the 1929 Graf Zeppelin circumnavigation these journeys were the great adventures of their day.  As the human race becomes ever more sedentary with its computers and automated machines, events like the World Sky Race take on an even greater rôle - a challenge that requires strength, endurance and skill; proof that long-distance, circumnavigational racing by air still has its place in the 21st century.



Eleven years ago the 2001 London-Sydney Air Race gave me some idea of what it must have been like to follow the pilots of the 1930s in their similar England-Australia flights and proves that there is still an appetite for this kind of event.  Indeed record-breaking and endurance flights are still happening on a regular basis, but the suggestion of using airships is a novel yet worthwhile variation.  Worthwhile thanks in no small part to the involvement of UNESCO and the desire of the man behind the World Sky Race for these majestic "sky ships" to visit heritage sites throughout the world on their journey inspiring children everywhere to discover more about these important locations in a fun new way and showing these remarkable natural and man-made landmarks in a new and stimulating way to people all over the world.  For this noble reason alone the World Sky Race deserves to succeed.

The United States Army are known to be testing a new airship design and while the military aspect may not sit well with the peaceful, educational nature of the World Sky Race both it and the worldwide race would do wonders for the public perception of airships and go a long way to ushering in a new age of lighter-than-air travel.  If the World Sky Race stays on course then come 2014 I shall definitely be at Greenwich to cheer the participants on as they start their momentous journey and perhaps begin the renaissance of the airship.

I went to London to see... the Jubilee (and the Queen - I wish!)

"What did you get up to over the Jubilee Weekend?" is the question on everyone's blog at the moment and it's a question I'm happy to answer as I had been thoroughly looking forward to the occasion and the chance to celebrate Her Majesty's remarkable achievement.

Congratulations, ma'am!

Being firmly in the Royalist camp, albeit in an understated fashion (no Union Jack waistcoats, giant flags and whatnot here), the bunting had been hung by Tuesday of the previous week and plans were tentatively being made.  As it happens they weren't really followed, but a fun time was had nonetheless.

On Saturday I went to the local Jubilee party in the nearby park, although it was advertised as simply an "Afternoon Fun Day" to cater for everyone no doubt.  I say "advertised", but a badly-handwritten fabric sheet draped over some railings (such that the top part was folded back over itself rendering the first line invisible) was the only real advertising the thing got (as far as I know) so it was a pleasant surprise to see it garner quite a crowd.

Considering the poor level of advance notice and the fact that the organisers were the same people whose "Victorian Christmas Fayre" consisted of two opposing Cats' Protection League and RSPCA raffle stands and a dilapidated cup-and-saucer ride all manned by people in jeans and fleeces I wasn't expecting much.  It turned out to be a bigger event (not difficult after the winter's "fayre") but still mainly featured lucky dip stalls with silly prizes such as giant inflatable hammers; also present were a couple of bouncy castles, the CPL offering free neutering(!) and some dance troupes jumping around to modern bass-heavy music.  All right for the children, no doubt, but little to keep me there so I took a turn around the rest of the park instead.

source

I had a half-formed plan in mind to head to London on the Sunday to try and catch a glimpse of the royal barge but a wall of grey accompanied by heavy rain as early as 11 o'clock dissuaded me.  I have nothing but admiration for those who braved the weather line the banks of the Thames and feel a bit silly for wimping out, but I resolved to go to Town on the Monday instead and contented myself with watching the proceedings on the television.  It was certainly a drier experience, although I began to believe that I would have seen more of interest had I actually gone to the City.  I'm glad to see that I wasn't alone in deploring the B.B.C's coverage.  I know they're having to cut costs, but honestly it was a bit of a shambles I thought.  What say you, who saw the broadcast?

So to the Tuesday, and I hopped on a train to the metropolis at 11:30.  I'd decided again to miss the crowds at St Paul's and instead take a leisurely stroll around all my old City haunts and just take in the Jubilee spirit.  My "stroll" ended up taking me from Fenchurch Street all the way to Waterloo Bridge, via Leadenhall Market and the Thames Path and with the odd stop to snap the near-complete Shard and the Tate Modern.

The Jubilee spirit was still very much in evidence, with lots of tourists, Union flags and families around the South Bank, obviously seeing some sights before waiting for the procession/heading to the Mall.  The giant picture of the Royal Family on the balcony of Buckingham Palace during the Silver Jubilee was still in place on the front of Sea Containers House and mightily impressive it was too.  It was lovely to see all the Union flags hanging from buildings and lamp posts.

I was pleased to be able to again peruse the second-hand book stalls beneath Waterloo Bridge that formed so integral a part of my lunchtimes at my old job and although I was tempted a few times nothing really called out to me so I headed back towards Fenchurch Street, this time via the Millennium Bridge and Cleary Gardens - one of the City's green spaces, the site of a Roman bath and vineyard, later a bomb-damaged area and now once again a vineyard-inspired terrace.

But for the sound of passing trains, you'd hardly think this was central London

"Fred Cleary 1905-1984, Tireless in his work to increase open space in the City"

The City itself was all but deserted, as it usually is on Sundays and bank holidays, but I did see some church service attendees around St Paul's (the bells of which were still pealing at 2 o'clock) wearing naval uniform, morning dress and tailcoat & frilled shirt, with their partners in their smart dresses and formal hats.

Speaking of smart dress - a little tip, chaps within striking distance of London.  Around the Cannon Street-Bow Lane-Cheapside triangle there were/are a large number of off-the-peg tailors - independents and chains such as T.M. Lewin - who were having closing down or summer sales with as much as 50% off.  Sadly they were closed, but surely there is a bargain or two to be had.  I may well go back and see, but for now that was the end of my Jubilee weekend.  I'm glad to see so many fellow British vintage bloggers celebrating in style, and look forward to reading yet more descriptions of Jubilee fun.

Museum marks end of the trolleybus era

What Goes Around from David Doré on Vimeo.

Museum marks end of the trolleybus era

Fifty years ago this month the last trolleybus ran its final scheduled service in the capital before the type was withdrawn in favour of more modern buses such as the Routemaster.  Sixty years ago the last few trams disappeared from the City's streets.  To celebrate this double anniversary - and also to remember the trolleybuses that ran in the nearby towns of Ipswich and Southend - the East Anglia Transport Museum held a special two-day gala event to remember these forgotten forms of public transport.

 

Eight London Transport trolleybuses were on show at the museum - the most all together in one place since they went out of service - and it is fascinating to see how quiet and efficient they still are today.  Eventually undone by [then-cheap] diesel-powered buses that were not constrained by route-defining overhead wires or the risk of those same wires coming adrift, trolleybuses had faded into obscurity - in this country at least - by 1962 and had completely vanished from the country ten years later.  But at their height they were seen as the future of public transport - clean, fast, modern and the natural successor to the open trams that plied the same routes.

Those same trams were evolving too, and new enclosed models allowed them to stay in the capital for only ten years less than the trolleybuses.  In fact, trams could be said to have held on better than trolleybuses, for as well as the world-famous examples in Brighton new tram networks have been reintroduced in Croydon, Manchester, Sheffield, Nottingham, the West Midlands and (eventually) Edinburgh.

However while trolleybuses, like trams, have remained popular in Europe it is only now - in light of so much environmental concern - that they are being brought back to Britain.  A new 21st Century trolleybus is being planned for Leeds.  If it is successful other cities may follow suit.  As the title of the accompanying video so presciently states: what goes around... comes around.  Something we all know well, eh?

Sadly I was not able to attend the East Anglia Transport Museum for this particular celebration but I have been in the past, when I took these pictures.  The great thing about museum exhibits and vintage vehicles like these is - they don't date!  It was a thoroughly enjoyable visit at the time and has stayed in my memory ever since.  I am long due a return visit and I would thoroughly recommend it as a day out if you are ever in the area.  It's simply smashing to see so many people turn out to celebrate the classic tram and trolleybus, and to know there are still enthusiasts around to ensure these wonderful machines keep running.  Long may they continue, and perhaps we shall see these vehicles' spiritual successors in cities up and down the country in the future.

Save Savile Row From Abercrombie & Fitch!

Save Savile Row From Abercrombie & Fitch

I don't normally use this blog as a platform for campaigns but this is a worthy exception that deserves to be spread far and wide and which is of interest to me and, I hope, at least some of my readers.

Some of you may already know about, or have read, the ongoing controversy surrounding the Burlington Arcade in Mayfair (scene of a dozen period film and TV shoots - chances are you've seen it on screen at one time or another, even if you haven't walked through it) which was recently bought by a conglomerate of American and European investment/hedge fund companies.  Some long-standing shops in the arcade have allegedly been forced out, with the very real threat of brands unsuited to the historic and refined nature of the arcade moving in, along with a proposed "redesign" which may or may not be appropriate.

Burlington Arcade

What has happened since November I can't say (I can only hope a suitable compromise has been reached, at best) but now a new threat has appeared on the horizon for another long-standing, traditional area of Westminster - Savile Row.

One of the last shopping streets anywhere in the country to contain purely tailors and justly famous the world over as the home of bespoke gentlemen's clothing, Savile Row's 200-year sartorial history is one of the [many] jewels in London's crown.  Names like Gieves & Hawkes, Huntsman and Henry Poole are synonymous with the Row and with top-quality men's tailoring.  Famous and historic gentlemen from Britain and abroad including Fred Astaire, Winston Churchill, Noël Coward and His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales have all bought their clothes there.

The threat takes the form of American clothiers Abercrombie & Fitch, who already have their flagship store around the corner in Burlington Gardens.  They have put forward an application to open an Abercrombie Kids - yes, that's right, a children's clothes shop - in No. 3 Savile Row.

3 Savile Row

There is no place for Abercrombie & Fitch, or any of its offshoots but particularly a youth branch, in Savile Row.  It simply does not suit the area.  Savile Row is legendary for being the provider of top-notch bespoke menswear, refined over two centuries and admired throughout the world.  It's more than just a street full of tailors, it is - like the Burlington Arcade - an historic artery of the City.  It attracts tourists, it attracts well-heeled patrons whose families may have used the same tailor for generations and it is a source of aspiration for chaps like me.  All that could be lost if this application is approved.

From what little I know of Abercrombie & Fitch (having never been in one of their shops and, quite frankly, never likely to) I can think of fewer clothes stores less suited to the hallowed Row.  The thought of hoodies, t-shirts and jeans being sold alongside the best tweed, wool and cotton suits in the country turns my stomach even more than A&F's penchant for pumping their sickly cologne and overly loud pop music into their stores and so out into the street.

Established Savile Row tailors are naturally concerned about the effect this will have on the Row - and they should know!  One has even gone so far as to fear for the safety aspect of the street should an Abercrombie Kids set up shop at Number 3.  They have rightly made a formal complaint to Westminster Council and I urge you to do the same through the medium of this petition, set up by Mr Gustav Temple of The Chap magazine.

It has always been a source of pleasure and pride to see Savile Row spoken of with such admiration by so many of the vintage and sartorial blogs of which I am a follower and I hope you will join me now in opposing this application.

The award-winning Artist

Silence is golden as The Artist scoops 7 BAFTAs

This is just to acknowledge and congratulate The Artist on its winning seven BAFTA awards in London last night, including Best Film and Best Actor for Jean Dujardin.  They are all thoroughly well-deserved, every one, and all those involved should be justly proud.  The Oscars™ await, I feel sure.

Silent movie The Artist dominates 65th Baftas

If you haven't seen The Artist yet - what's the matter with you?!  Hurry up; it won't be in cinemas for much longer!  The BAFTA buzz and the Oscar™ hype might keep it out there for a little longer, but already showings are starting to lessen.  If you're still unsure, or have been living under a rock for the past two months and don't know what it's all about - here's my review of it from last month.  It deserves, nay needs, to be seen on the big screen so please do so if you can.


The success of The Artsist in the face of such strong opposition this year should be celebrated by the vintage community and shows that the silent film is by no means a dead genre.  In this modern age it is wonderful to see such an old-fashioned film taken to heart so well.  Perhaps it is the lean times we find ourselves in, perhaps it is the beginnings of a rebellion against sensory-assaulting CGI and 3D but whatever it is I am happy to see it celebrated by its peers, and more than glad to be able to say I saw it on the big screen.

"New Routemaster" Bus for London driven

Image courtesy of Autocar

"New Routemaster" Bus for London driven

One of the ten most popular posts ever on Eclectic Ephemera was when I blogged back in November 2010 about the new "Routemaster" double-decker bus.  Obviously it must have been a popular search item, and rightly so!

Now I'm pleased to say that my favourite motoring periodical, Autocar, has tested one for its special bumber Christmas issue, giving you some idea of what the thing is like to drive.  With the New Bus for London, or NBfL (come on chaps & ladies, we can think of a better name than that, surely?!) due to start passenger service on the 20th February 2012 this is the first full test of the vehicle by an independent party (albeit with tongue slightly in cheek) and it seems Autocar like it.  That makes two of us!

Image courtesy of Autocar

And it just gets better on the inside.  As the 21st Century successor to the iconic Routemaster the poor old NBfL has a lot to live up to and while the outside is quite reminiscent of the old AECs, especially from the rear, the interior was always going be a challenge.  But the designers have come up trumps in my opinion with the wonderfully russet London Transport red setting off the cork resin on the stairs splendidly.  Plus, as the article says, real thought and aestheticism has been put in to the cabin lights, the windows and the roof-lining.  After all, this isn't any old double-decker, y'know - this is a London bus!  (For now, although makers Wrightbus may be able to sell the design elsewhere both at home and abroad - wouldn't that be something?).  OK, perhaps the seat fabric is a little bit kaleidoscopic but overall it's delightful to see such care and appreciation going into a public service vehicle for a change.  Perhaps it bodes well for the future of public transport design.

Image courtesy of Autocar

So come the New Year those bendy whatsits will be on the way out, to be replaced by this topping new omnibus for a new generation (albeit with some lovely old-fashioned touches).  Yet another example of modern technologies working in harmony with traditional design.  All aboard, tickets please!

Photographs of Tower Bridge being constructed are found in a skip

Images courtesy of Wikipædia

Photographs of Tower Bridge being constructed are found in a skip

A fantastic find here as previously unseen pictures of the iconic Tower Bridge in the very early stages of its construction are revealed, after laying undiscovered in a London flat for years - including at one point being consigned to a skip!

Some of these photos must date from close to the beginning of the bridge's creation in 1886, as quite apart from the basic amount of progress visible in some of them, according to the accompanying report the "most recent" ones date from 1892 - two years before completion!

It always amazes me how such historically important documents can be lost and even disposed of without a second thought, let alone dismissed - particularly by those who should know better.  More fool that Tower Bridge Museum worker who indifferently claimed "we've got enough of those photographs already"!  How many of us have come into possession of - have saved - really old items that people were going to throw out as rubbish?  I know I have!  Well done to this caretaker, whoever he is, and to City of Westminster tour guide Peter Berthoud, for saving a record of the construction of a beautiful landmark structure and a piece of British history.

Tower Bridge, with its 19th Century Gothic stonework and unique design, has long been one of my favourite London landmarks.  Crossing it is always a thrilling experience and to see it or approach it both up close and from a distance is one of the greatest delights of working in the City.  I'm overjoyed to see these new photos detailing its creation, which was in itself an engineering marvel, and I'm sure they will now take pride of place in a London museum.

Restored locomotive unveiled at station for 2012

Image courtesy of the B.B.C.

Restored locomotive unveiled at station for 2012

Back in July 2010 I did a blog post about Robert the little steam engine, who was discovered in a sorry state by the contractors who were rebuilding Stratford station outside London for the 2012 Olympics, and who thankfully rather than being sent to the scrapheap was instead sent to my local heritage railway museum for restoration.

Now the work has been completed and Robert has been moved back to Stratford station where he will form part of a wonderful display for all those who will come to the Olympics by train, not to mention the commuters and general visitors who pass through the station on a daily basis.

I said it before but I am delighted that the Olympic Committee saw it fit to not only to keep Robert at Stratford but to restore him to his former glory and make him a centrepiece of the new station.  It shows a rare appreciation of the heritage of not just this country's transportation system but the local area's too and creates a splendid contrast to the modernity of the new station and surrounding Olympic Park.  I look forward to seeing him in the metal whenever I'm next in Stratford (which may well be for the Olympics!).

Victorian railway hotel restored in King's Cross

Victorian railway hotel restored in King's Cross

Just as I bemoan the lack of vintage-y things to blog about, along comes a glut of stories and suddenly I have some more ideas for posts.

To start with is this splendid news about the reopening of the former Midland Grand Hotel that forms part of the new St Pancras International railway station, which itself underwent a massive restoration a few years ago and is a wonderful British success story, managing to retain its Victorian grandeur and history while at the same time serving the modern traveller and adding the futuristic HS1 Eurostar trains to its stable.

The Midland Grand, now renamed the St Pancras Renaissance Hotel, has only just finished being renovated and - as this report indicates - is ready for opening (which will officially take place in April).  A great deal of time and money has gone into returning the place to its former glory and its certainly been worth it!  The interior is simply stunning and, like the rest of the redevelopment, successfully mixes old and new styles to provide the last word in comfort for the weary (and well-heeled) traveller.

It's a shock to realise just how far Dr Beeching was prepared to take his cuts and what a deplorable attitude there was towards Victorian architecture in the 1960s, amid the vogue for Brutalism and Modernism.  To even have considered demolishing such a beautiful building seems like anathema to us today as we have, I think, come to appreciate our architectural history.  Many 19th Century buildings were lost during the height of Sixties Mondernism, but thankfully the Midland Grand was spared destruction and will now enjoy a new lease of life as it sits adjacent to St Pancras International, for us all to enjoy looking at.

Vintage Rolls-Royces honour Spirit of Ecstasy

Vintage Rolls-Royces honour Spirit of Ecstasy by itnnews

Another car manufacturer, another anniversary. This time it is the renowned luxury car maker Rolls-Royce who are celebrating 100 years of their famous Spirit of Ecstasy, or Flying Lady, bonnet mascot.

Although Royces have been built since 1904 it was from 1911 that the Spirit of Ecstasy began to appear on that imposing Grecian grille. Like many great designs it was modelled after a beautiful woman, in this case the mistress of a Tory politician(!). It is rather fitting that the MP in question was Lord Montagu of Beaulieu (an avid motorist who is said to have introduced King Edward VII to the joys of motoring and who became the first person to drive a car to the Houses of Parliament), whose home later became the site of the National Motor Museum.

In pictures: Spirit of Ecstasy Centenary Drive

Since 1911 the Flying Lady has become one of the most well-known symbols in motoring throughout the world and synonymous with one of the most opulent brands available. It is impossible to think of Rolls-Royce without thinking of the Spirit of Ecstasy and what started out as a one-off commission for a single customer has since become a cornerstone of the whole company. A Royce just wouldn't look the same gliding to a halt outside the Savoy without the Flying Lady adorning its nose (although that is now technically possible as all modern Royces have the ability to retract the mascot into the grille to stop it from being stolen!). I think it's safe to say that for as long as there will be a Rolls-Royce there will be a Spirit of Ecstasy atop its prow. Here's to the next 100 years!

I have to admit that I've always been more of a Bentley man myself (ha! to listen to me you'd think I'd been swapping between Bentleys and Royces all my life - I wish!). However there have been a few Royces down the years that I really like, so to help celebrate here are a some of my favourite examples of cars sporting this famous Lady:

(All images courtesy of Supercars.net)

The 1914 Silver Ghost Labourdette Skiff I have already blogged about in my post about wooden-bodied cars, but it deserves another mention here.

In my opinion some of the best Royces of the 20s and 30s were from Rolls-Royce of America Inc. with coachwork by Brewster of Springfield, Massachusetts. The epitome of Art Deco, roaring Twenties glamour!

How about a 27-litre V12 Rolls-Royce Merlin aero engine, later used in the Spitfire fighter, underneath that Spirit of Ecstasy? Then she really would be a Flying Lady! Amazingly in the 1970s a 1931 Phantom II was re-engineered to accept a Merlin engine and later restored in 2007. One can scarcely imagine what it must be like to drive a car that has 1,100 horsepower and was able to out-accelerate a 1958 Vanwall F1 racer! And what must it sound like?! Glorious, in every sense of the word.

Royces quickly became popular with the super-rich Maharajahs of India, who decorated their cars in their own inimitable fashion. Words can't do justice to this Silver Ghost, so I won't even try. I love the whole thing, but the snakes on the wings are a great touch(!).

This 1935 Phantom I Jonckheere Coupe is simply gorgeous. Its streamlined shape just screams 30s Art Deco decadence. Check out the circular door!

The body for this 1947 Phantom III Labourdette Vutotal Cabriolet cost $44,000 alone, which equates to about $325,000 in today's money! Those inserts are actually brass, not gold, in case you're wondering. My taste's not that vulgar(!).