My voyage of rediscovery here in Southport has continued as I rack up the steps during my daily wanderings before returning to my sisters to cook and help out with a few chores. There’s no pattern to where I go, nor a plan. I turn corners at a whim to either prowl new streets or rediscover old ones whilst trying to remember what the hell used to be there! Here’s a few pictures from my most recent expedition.
More of a statement than just a house. It must be an nightmare to maintain, but if I had money to burn I’d rather like to own it! Yes, Southport is home to the British Lawnmower Museum! The old hospital on Park Rd, burned out and derelict after a mysterious fire which happened not long after it was bought by developers who were (so I’m told) refused permission to make major alterations to it. There’s a gang of grannies who go around Southport supplying these decorative tops. I’ve no idea why this one bares the Chinese flag tho! Chic Churchtown is home to many shops, bars and cafe’s. Thatched roofs are quite common but seeing one that’s been rethatched is unusual. It’s a dying art and expensive to renew as they need to be done roughly every 25-30 years. This Chinese chipshop was a family favorite. Know affectionately as the ‘soggy box’ because your orders were served in cardboard boxes it was a great pitstop for lunch when I was working with my elder brother. Their sweet and sour fish with rice was sublime. It’s still there, but the original owners sold it many years ago, The old tram depot in Canning Road still survives as the local bus depot. The skyline behind used to be dominated by the local gasworks and the smell dominated the area when I was a kid. Remember I talked about disappearing corner shops? This is the corner near my parents. On the corner was Finches, a newsagent/tobacconist. It still had an old cigarette vending machine outside way into the early 1980s. To the left was Marriott’s chip shop and to the right was a butchers.
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Paul Bigland 