Enjoy the view

There's a rather splendid view from near the top of the track I was following in yesterday's post, as it arrives in Baildon village centre. The picture above is a composite of two photos merged together. I tried a panorama with my phone but it didn't really work. The estate of white houses is in lower Baildon and in the distance is Wrose and Idle, with the telecommunications masts visible on top of Idle Hill. To the right in the far distance is the city of Bradford. You can actually see Lister's Mill from this viewpoint but it's too small to discern on the photo. Saltaire is away round to the right, well out of shot. There's a handily placed bench at this spot, a lovely place to rest after the steep climb and enjoy the view.

Cool pool

Bradford City Park was looking rather splendid in the winter sunshine when I passed through the other day. It's rare to see it empty. There are usually a few children or youths splashing around in the shallow water but it was really too cold for paddling! It meant that for once you could see the reflection of our beautiful City Hall, just a little blurred by the faint breeze across the surface. Although the sun was bright, it was too cold to hang around for long, so I took a quick snap on my phone and I headed off to Waterstone's book shop in the Wool Exchange, where at least it was warm and cosy. I omitted to take any pictures in there, but you can see the magnificent building on my blog HERE.

Bradford City AFC

Even further down Manningham Lane towards Bradford city centre, I came to Valley Parade, the home ground of Bradford City football club. They are currently in League Two with a slim chance of 'going up' in the world again this season. I used to have a season ticket in the late 1990s, in the heady days when they were in the Premier League for two seasons. It was good fun but times change, the people I used to go with moved away and my interest eventually waned...

In 1985, the stadium was tragically the scene of one of the worst disasters in football history, when 56 people died and nearly 300 were badly injured in a fire that ravaged through the old wooden main stand in a little over nine minutes. The stadium has had many alterations since, and the current Kop end, main stand, hospitality suites and function rooms were extended and improved in the late 1990s/early 2000s. The ground's capacity is around 25,000, though the highest attendance this season has been about 14,000.

Student days

After I'd walked round Lister Park, I suddenly took it into my head to walk down Manningham Lane towards Bradford city centre. It was, in many ways, a nostalgia trip, as I passed two places I once used to live, as a student and then when I returned to Bradford in my late twenties. Even in those days (1970s) it was a bit of a run-down area, full of student bedsits. These days it is even more sad, with many empty properties, a lot of litter and decay. The once-grand Victorian villas, former homes of wealthy Victorian industrialists like Titus Salt, now need a good deal of work to bring them up to a decent standard again, though it could be a lovely area if it had enough money spent on it.

One street with particular potential is Apsley Crescent (above). (I believe it was the birthplace of an old school friend of mine, who reads this blog. She may be interested!) It is supposedly a conservation area, having some large and at one time beautiful properties, built in the 1850s in the Classical and Italianate styles that were popular in Victorian Bradford.

Most of them are now either empty, used as commercial premises or broken up into flats and bedsits. The Manningham area is one of the most culturally diverse in Bradford, with many residents of Pakistani and Bangladeshi origin, Afro-Caribbeans, Eastern Europeans, and still some students living there (though many now live in rather stylish modern blocks in the city centre, of a luxurious standard that would have been unthinkable in my student days!)

Press photography exhibition

The exhibition I went to see at Cartwright Hall was Assignments 2019: British Press Photographers' Association. It didn't disappoint, having some wonderful examples of sport and documentary work taken all over the world on assignments by British press photographers. I particularly enjoyed a shot of the footballer Harry Kane, caught in a balletic pose during a match (third pic). The exhibition is on until mid-April, so there is still time for local folk to see it.

The area in which the exhibition was displayed also holds two sculptures. One is by Anish Kapoor: 'Turning the world inside out', a massive stainless steel piece, purchased in 1997, that reflects its surroundings in a beguiling manner. The other is a Francis Derwent Wood marble (1921), called 'Humanity overcoming War'. (Oh, that we could!) Derwent Wood also created the statue of Sir Titus Salt that stands in Saltaire's Roberts Park.

Photography in Cartwright Hall is not, I think, encouraged but I did manage these quick snaps on my phone. I hate it when they forbid photography, as I think seeing pictures encourages other people to visit. The lighting (as so often) created a lot of reflections on the glass of the pictures. I don't know why they don't use non-reflective glass. It's daft when you can't properly see the pictures you've come to view!

Blue sky day

There was an amazingly uplifting blue sky when I visited Bradford's main art gallery at Cartwright Hall recently. The view of the hall from the water gardens is rather attractive, I think. The Edwardian Baroque building opened in 1904 as a purpose-built gallery, a gift to the city from Samuel Lister, a wealthy local mill-owner. It sits centrally in Lister Park, a pleasant oasis in the city.

For many years it has lacked a tearoom, apart from the kiosk by the boating lake that is only open in summer. Now it has a smart new café in the basement, serving coffee, a good selection of cakes and light meals, though I think people haven't yet realised its existence as it was virtually empty when I visited.

The Brontës' birthplace

After we'd visited the Christmas Tree Festival, we went in search of the house on Market Street in Thornton where most of the Brontës (Charlotte, Branwell, Emily and Anne) were born. It was the parsonage in their day, since their father Patrick was the minister at the Bell Chapel. It later became a butcher's shop and had the curious projecting frontage added. There was a short-lived attempt to turn it into a museum, before it became a private residence again.  Last time I visited in 2012 you couldn't go in but for the past few years it has been Emily's café/bistro. We were able to have a coffee there, right beside the dining room fireplace in front of which the Brontë children are said to have been born. I wonder if they had stockings hanging up at Christmas when they lived there?

Some of the tables in the café had been ingeniously fashioned from old-style school desks.

It had a nice ambience, full of books and memorabilia  - and very good coffee and cake (though I managed to resist the cake!)

St James and the Bell Chapel, Thornton

St James Church Thornton, where the Christmas Tree Festival was (see yesterday), is an imposing church with a huge spire, on the road leading to the village of Thornton, a suburb of Bradford. The existing church dates from 1870. With all the Christmas trees inside, I couldn't really see the interior properly but it has some fine William Morris & Co stained glass.

Across the road is the Bell Chapel, which has Brontë connections. Charlotte Brontë and her sisters were born in Thornton and baptised in the Bell Chapel, where their father Patrick was minister for five years from 1815-1820, before they moved to Haworth. The chapel is now ruined. I thought you could explore it, but it was roped off so I assume it is considered dangerous. The octagonal bell tower, covered in ivy, looks like a romantic folly and the surviving east wall, with the tracery of a window and a date stone showing 1612 is also being overgrown by ivy. The late medieval chapel was rebuilt in 1612 and again in 1818 when Patrick Brontë was in charge. It's a pity it is now in a poor state again, as I know that a few years ago a group of volunteers did a lot of work to restore it and make it safe for visitors.

Christmas is coming

Christmas is coming! Everywhere is starting to sparkle, with lights in our towns, lots of festivals and markets. I must admit I can get a bit 'Bah, humbug' about it on occasion, when I focus on how consumerist it has become. I do, however, try to get into the spirit of it, so when friends suggested we visited a Christmas Tree Festival, I decided to go with them. It was held in the church of St James, Thornton. There were 49 trees, each one decorated by a local group, organisation or charity. Each had a donation bucket for the relevant cause, so it is a way of raising money for good - a worthy aim at this season.

It proved to be quite tricky to photograph but I did my best, so here is a selection of shots to give a flavour of some of the innovative themes.

I couldn't decide whether I liked the football club gingerbread men best or the rather cute little cricketers, representing Thornton Cricket Club.

Papped!

Out for a walk recently, my route took me alongside the playing fields around a local public (ie: private!) school. Tucked away right round the back, on quite a secluded pitch, I noticed a football practice session underway - and then I realised it was our local league team, Bradford City, in action. I surreptitiously took a couple of photos, not wanting to get shouted at, though with hindsight I wish I'd been a little bolder and made more effort. They were a long way away so I would probably have been able to get a little closer. As it is, this was with my lens on its longest setting and the photo is heavily cropped so it's a bit fuzzy. I'll never make it as a paparazzo!

I don't think Bradford City will make it either this season. They've slid down to League Two and so far (as I write this) have won five out of eleven matches this season. So they look as though they need the practice, though it all looked a bit desultory.

Blue sky in the park

Sunny days and blue sky make for cheerful photos, if not technically good ones. One such day at the end of May, I took a stroll round Lister Park. I always think the back view of Cartwright Hall, Bradford's civic art gallery, is rather more attractive than its front. Lawns at the rear, sloping down to the lake, were covered in daisies. Though they're a common flower, it's not often you see them forming a complete white carpet like this.

The boating lake was an unlikely shade of bright turquoise. I've never observed it looking quite like that before. There were no boats in evidence though. Perhaps the boating season hadn't started, despite the bright weather.

Three Bradford murals

In the Little Germany area of Bradford, there are several interesting murals. The first, above, is on the side of the Bradford Playhouse. It was painted in 1993 and commemorates the 100th anniversary of the founding, in Bradford, of the Independent Labour Party, which was effectively the forerunner of our modern Labour Party. It came about as the result of a crippling strike over pay and conditions by mill-workers in 1890, when people realised that the strikers had lacked key political support and a political movement began, focused on improving working and living conditions for ordinary workers. (See HERE). 

The second is (just about) recognisably a picture of the artist David Hockney, who appears to be taking a photo of his own image (see HERE) on the opposite wall. 

The third is in a blocked-up doorway in one of the Victorian textile warehouse buildings. If you look carefully, the name of the band Led Zeppelin confirms that this is the Stairway to Heaven - unfortunately it's closed!

Bradford Playhouse

Bradford has a fine and historic theatre, The Alhambra, that hosts the big touring shows: musicals, plays, ballets and a much-loved pantomime at Christmas. Tucked away in the Little Germany district, however, is a much smaller theatre, the Bradford Playhouse. It was founded by an amateur group in 1929 and within a few years the playwright J B Priestley became its President. He helped rebuild it after a fire in the 1930s (with a very Thirties-looking facade, see above). Another fire in 1996 caused the closure of the main auditorium, which was again rebuilt. Since then, it has changed ownership, name and been threatened with closure many times and many efforts have been made to revitalise it as an important community resource. It seems to struggle on heroically. 

Eastbrook Hall

Despite some of Bradford's city centre being a bit run-down, it has some very fine buildings. One of them is Eastbrook Hall, now Grade II listed. It was originally a Methodist Chapel, opened in 1904, replacing an earlier one on the same site, and was known as 'the Methodist cathedral of the north'. It had a fine, galleried hall which saw huge and fervent gatherings. I have seen reports of it also being a theatre but I can't be sure of that. It was disused from the 1980s and then suffered a major fire in 1996, which left it derelict and roofless.

In 2008, an £11m renovation project, supported by the Prince's Regeneration Trust (founded by the Prince of Wales), saw it converted into apartments, though as with many of the conversions in Little Germany, the potential has never been fully realised due to the effects of the recession on the housing market and the ongoing struggle Bradford has to revive the city centre.

Aerial view over Bradford

I showed a photo HERE of the ferris wheel which was offering rides in front of Bradford City Hall. It was a lovely day when I was in town for the St George's Hall Open Day and I had time, so I took a ride on it. It wasn't the best one I've ever been on. The pods all had a lot of steel bars and lots of reflections, and its position close to City Hall restricted the view somewhat. Still, it was fun and it's always interesting to see a place from such an altered perspective.

Above, looking west, across the mirror pool of City Park, which starts off empty each morning and gradually fills up. You can see the two halves of water not yet meeting in the middle. In the background to the left is the National Science and Media Museum with the Ice Rink at the base of the tower block behind it. Looking tiny in the centre is the white and grey domed Alhambra Theatre. To the right of that, the red brick edifice with two domes is the old Odeon cinema. Its future has been the subject of many wrangles but I believe it is now being renovated. The buildings behind that belong to Bradford College and the University.

Looking northeast, you can see the odd mix of solid but elegant Victorian buildings and some more recent structures that make up the city centre. The brutalist concrete 1970s block, rear left, is Kirkgate Centre (shopping mall) and the more recent Broadway Centre shopping mall is just visible at the end of the street on the right. You can perhaps also see the tower with the clock, which is the historic Wool Exchange, now a wonderfully atmospheric branch of Waterstone's books (see HERE).

Looking south-east, the three Victorian buildings are (from the front) Britannia House, which is Council offices, St George's Hall (see yesterday) and the Great Victoria Hotel. The concrete block is the Bradford Hotel and in the foreground is the roof of City Hall.

Inside St George's Hall

On the Open Day, it was rather fun to be allowed onto the stage in St George's Hall to view the auditorium from that angle. It has three levels of seating: Stalls, Dress Circle and the Grand Tier, fondly known as 'the gods'. I remember watching Emerson, Lake and Palmer from way up in 'the gods', and marvelling at the lighting and pyrotechnics.

The stage can, I think, be dismantled to reveal the original pipe organ behind it (see below) and to make space for a full orchestra. The hall's acoustics are renowned for being marvellous. One of my fondest memories is of a large Christian gathering here some years ago. A packed hall, all singing that wonderful hymn 'Crown Him with many crowns' was a spine-tingling experience.

The original details have been preserved as much as possible: the decorated ceiling and plasterwork in the auditorium and the mosaic floor in the downstairs lobby, now a smart café/bar. Hopefully, the money they've spent will enable the Hall to continue as 'The People's Palace' for many generations to come.

St George's Hall

St George's Hall is the main concert venue in Bradford. One of the first of the major Victorian public buildings to open in the city, it is one of the oldest concert halls in Europe still in use. It was designed by Saltaire's architects, Lockwood and Mawson, and first opened in 1853. It has been extensively remodelled inside, after WWII and again after a major fire in the 1980s. Recently it has been closed for three years for an £8.5 million restoration of the exterior, roof and interior, financed by Bradford Council and the Heritage Lottery Fund.  It has just reopened, so I went along to an Open Day.

It has 'scrubbed up well' as they say round here! I have several happy memories of attending concerts here, particularly when I was a student at the Uni in the early 1970s. It has hosted many big names from the rock, pop and folk world, including Queen and David Bowie, though I didn't see either of them. I remember seeing (amongst others) Steeleye Span, Elkie Brooks and a wonderful American singer-songwriter called Harry Chapin (who was sadly killed in an horrific accident in New York in 1981) and, perhaps most memorably, Emerson, Lake and Palmer.

The hall is a regular venue for the Hallé Orchestra and has seen many big political and literary gatherings too. The author Charles Dickens; the suffragette Emmeline Pankhurst; Labour Party founder Keir Hardie; former PM of Pakistan, Benazir Bhutto (who was later assassinated) and the main instigator of the 1870 Education Act, W E Forster MP, all spoke here. Such an illustrious history...