Category: History
In Pictures: The 2012 Dukinfield Whit Walks
East of the M60 World Exclusive: images of this year’s Whit Walks in Dukinfield
Dukinfield’s churchgoers were treated to excellent weather for this year’s Procession of Witness. The blistering heat made for conditions more suitable for barbecues instead of brass bands and church banners. For some, this was a nice change from previous walks where wind or rain made the going less easy, more for brollies instead of barbecues. In spite of the sunny conditions, there were few onlookers, most of which concentrated around the Town Hall.
It was also an emotional Whit Walks for St. Luke’s Church’s parishioners. Owing to structural problems affecting the church, a recent quote to arrest the subsidence was deemed beyond the reach of their finances. Therefore, the church will be dissolved by the start of 2013, with this year their last appearance on Whitsuntide.
The Procession of Witness, popularly known as the Whit Walks is a religious occasion celebrating Pentecost, where all churches assemble at a central part of the town centre. Some people may choose to walk with their church, or choose to watch the churches walking and assembling. Each church is led by a brass band. Sometimes, they may opt for a reed band like Dukinfield’s very own Adamson’s Band, or (as seen on the Manchester Whit Walks) bugle bands, which some critics say run counter to tradition.
Video: St. Luke’s C of E Church:
Images of the 2012 Dukinfield Whit Walks:
Dukinfield Methodist Church
St. Mark’s Parish Church
Old Chapel Unitarian Church and Tyldesley Band
St. John’s Castle Band leading out Dukinfield Baptist Church.
S.V., 27 May 2012 (Whit Sunday)
Down Our Street #5: Park Road, Dukinfield
A wander along a historical road of industrial importance
Park Road, Tame Valley, Dukinfield:
- Distance: 0.85 miles;
- Start: Crescent Road/Riverside, Dukinfield;
- Finish: Tame Street, Stalybridge;
- Bus: 346 (alight at Crescent Road).
Though with its semi rural origins, Park Road became an important connection with two major town centres at either end. It links the Tame Valley part of Dukinfield with Ashton-under-Lyne at its most westerly point, and Stalybridge in the east. In miniature, it documents the story of Tameside during the industrial revolution, its rise and its fall. Continue reading
The 1995 UK Cola Wars: Past Feast of the M60
When US style Cola Wars reached the United Kingdom
The 1990s was an oddball decade which began with Thatcher and ended with Blair. The first part ushered in the Cones Hotline, Sonic the Hedgehog and the C64GS flop games console, whereas the latter part brought us mass mobile phone ownership, the Teletubbies and fancy dan coffee shops. Televisually, it was a creative decade at one end which saw Father Ted and Absolutely Fabulous on our screens, with at the other end, the end of ITV as a genuine regional broadcaster.
In between this hubris, Wet Wet Wet’s version of Love Is All Around seemed destined to occupy the number one spot forever. Interrupting this was Britpop: Blur and Oasis. Contrary to popular belief, there was another Britpop movement taking place. Continue reading
Reality Estates That the Heroes Got #2: Pearly Bank Flats, Sholver, Oldham
Another flawed yet well meaning housing estate in Oldham
By the end of the 1960s, Oldham was pretty much a guinea pig for futuristic housing estates using factory built parts. At that time, it assumed a space age air about itself, the epitome of a mill town rising from its Victorian past as concrete supplanted red brick. Its housing schemes in Fitton Hill and Limeside were well received, so much so that recent slum clearance and the introduction of proprietary building systems resulted in continued expansion. Continue reading
Forgotten ITV Comedies #1: End of Part One
East of the M60 recalls a television comedy long forgotten by most viewers
In the eyes of some critics, ‘ITV’ and ‘comedy’ seldom appear in the same sentence. For every The New Statesman and Man About the House, we also have The Brighton Belles and Fresh Fields. For many a critic, the phrase ITV Sitcom is often met with disdain. Amid this background, there are a few long forgotten gems. One of which parodied the programmes and advertisements of the day. Continue reading
Zen and the Art of Making Great TV Mocks
Ways to make effective television mocks, in static or animated forms.
My attempt at creating a mock. This is based on a 1984 programme rundown for Granada Television, albeit with a 2012 schedule.
According to one YouTube video, the internet is supposedly made of cats. If like myself you tend to have a penchant for old television programmes and graphics, you will find that old TV idents or programmes tend to feature highly in cyberspace. As well as being a portal for forgotten sitcoms and continuity, this has inspired many users to create mocks. Often they are reconstructions of old TV station mocks, if for example, ATV continued to be the West Midlands’ ITV franchise (rather than as the reconstituted ATV a.k.a Central Independent Television). Sometimes they may be for fictitious channels. Continue reading
A Tale of Two Platform Games: Hyde’s and Rochdale’s Place in ZX Spectrum History
Two derivative platform games, two towns east of the M60 motorway, and their role in the history of Sinclair ZX Spectrum gaming
In reference to 8 bit computer gaming, Greater Manchester is often associated with Ocean Software. At one time, the Manchester software house was the last name in 8 bit and 16 bit computer gaming with film tie-ins and arcade game conversions their forte. In 1982, they had modest beginnings with a bolt hole on Stanley Street, on the banks of the River Irwell. Within five years, they would absorb Imagine Software, the Liverpudlian software house who imploded following its ‘Mega Games’ concept and rock ‘n’ roll lifestyle. By 1987, they were among the big boys, alongside Birmingham’s US Gold, Microprose in Tetbury and Thalamus, a small up and coming software house bankrolled by Newsfield Publications, creators of Crash and Zzap! 64 magazines. Continue reading
Lost Roller Coasters of the North West: The Not So Perfect Ten
A toast to absent gravity rides hitherto based in North West England
If you have children, no term time holiday is complete without the odd trip to a theme park or fairground. Sometimes we are likely to drive to Alton Towers or board a coach trip to Blackpool Pleasure Beach. Sometimes, a travelling fairground may be erected closer to home for a week, with one example over the Easter Holidays being the Good Friday fair at Daisy Nook, between Ashton and Failsworth (buses: 168, 169 and 231 from Ashton-under-Lyne to Newmarket Road then a short walk down Stannybrook Road). Continue reading
Infra_MANC
I came across this MEN article online, it’s one of those things not many people (my age!) would know about. It consists of several things actually, they were infrastructure plans for Manchester in the post-1950′s post-war era.
1. The Mancunian Way
2. The Picc-Vic Tunnel
3. The Guardian Underground Telephone Exchange
4. City heliport on top of Victoria Station
Only two of them were realised, the Mancunian ring road and the underground exchange!
Down Our Street #3: Melbourne Street, Stalybridge
How one of Stalybridge’s shopping streets got its name.
No visit to Stalybridge is complete without calling in The Tripe and Sandwich Shop. Marginally bigger than a disabled superloo, its butties are cheap, cheerful and fresh. Ditto the above with the tripe, available in honeycomb and cord varieties.
There are three main streets in the centre of Stalybridge. Prior to the last two decades, Market Street was its main one, with Grosvenor Street and Melbourne Street almost equal in status. Recent pedestrianisation saw most of the retail trade move to Melbourne Street and Grosvenor Street. Owing to the present day paucity of shops, the former has become the main one. Continue reading
