A wander around Abingdon, Oxfordshire (looking for signs old and new)

A different destination for today's wander. Looking to go somewhere different from home, but not travelling too far, we decided to stop off at Abingdon in Oxfordshire for a few hours. Our wander started with a short and muddy walk along the Thames path, which was pleasant enough, but soon we ended up in the town, with scenery more fitting for my blog.

Starting off with what I originally thought was a bit over over-officious policing of the waterway, but then realised it had a more humourous tone to it.

Sign at Abingdon lock, River Thames, Oxfordshire

Sign at Abingdon lock, River Thames, Oxfordshire

In to the town now and pleasing to find not only an old sign / ghost sign on the Oxfam shop, but also two doorway mosaics there too. The sign reads

LANGFORD & SONS CORN & COAL MERCHANTS

Old sign for Langford & Sons Corn & Coal Merchants, Abingdon, Oxfordshire

Doorway mosaic, Abingdon, Oxfordshire

Doorway mosaic, Abingdon, Oxfordshire

Following the doorway mosaic at the Corn and Coal merchants, I found another just a little further down the road. This shop threshold also had some ornate tile work.

Doorway mosaic, Abingdon, Oxfordshire

Ornate tile work, Abingdon, Oxfordshire

Good to see the sign for the FREE LIBRRAY is still in situ, even if the library itself is long gone.

Old sign for former Free Library, Abingdon, Oxfordshire

Old sign for former Free Library, Abingdon, Oxfordshire

A short visit to the town, which we rounded off with a quick visit to the museum. These two pictures are from the roof terrace which is open upon request for a small fee.

View from the rooftop of the Abingdon Museum, Oxfordshire

Zooming in a little and the horizon is pretty much filled with what remains of Didcot Power Station.

Didcot Power Station from the rooftop of the Abingdon Museum, Oxfordshire

That's all for today. Thanks as always for reading. Comments welcome.

An Urban Wander from Deptford Bridge to Greenwich, London

Having stayed up in London one or two nights per week on-and-off for the past few years, since changing jobs it's quite a rarity I get to London these days, and staying over is even more unusual. However, there was a very special reason we were visiting the capital ... to see The Orb at the Royal Festival Hall, for an ambient evening with them and some of their friends, one of who was Youth who I'd last seen at the Stroud Leisure Centre in 1982 as part of Killing Joke (but that's another story). Whilst the majority of this post will be about the Urban Wandering we did the following day, I couldn't resist sharing just a couple of pictures from the evening.

The Orb, playing live at the Royal Festival Hall, April 21st 2017

The Orb, playing Little Fluffy Clouds live at the Royal Festival Hall, April 21st 2017

Anyway, enough of the ambient-dub diversion, and on to the urban wandering. I've been to Greenwich plenty of times before but never really to the nearby Deptford Bridge, nor to the parts of Greenwich we ended up wandering around. My only real association with Deptford was through the 1970's record label Deptford Fun City, which was the label who released the very first single by Squeeze, Packet of Three, and also a vast array of records by Alternative TV who I have only recently discovered.

Our wander started from just outside the hotel where we stayed for the gig and soon we were into areas of London I'd never seen before but started firing up my psychogeographical yearnings once more.

First up we have the former Mumford's Greenwich Flour Mills. I had seen this before but only ever from the Docklands Light Railway. Whilst this has now been converted into some fairly luxurious apartments, it's good to see that the exterior architecture and signage remains in place.

Mumford's Greenwich Flour Mills, Deptford Bridge, London

Deptford Bridge is an area of contrasts. It's undergoing a fairly major redevelopment with flats being built everywhere, so I guess it's only a matter of time before this property is updated. If you ever wondered why your internet connection was a bit slow, then this may be the reason why.

Derelict building, Deptford Bridge, London

Trying to find a way to walk along the side of Deptford Creek we cam across more abandonment, this time in the shape of a former pub, The Thames.

Abandoned pub, Deptford Bridge, London

Abandoned pub, Deptford Bridge, London

After wandering through some more of Deptford Bridge, we headed back into Greenwich. I have deliberately not included any pictures from the more usual parts of Greenwich, although I did try and take a shot of the entrance to the foot tunnel but there were so many tourists posing there to have their picture taken I gave it up as a bad job. Instead we continued on along the bank of the Thames, past the Cutty Sark towards Greenwich Power Station, which I was very surprised to find is still in use today. Those of you who have read my previous blog posts will know that at one stage I was slightly obsessed with power stations and gas works, driven mainly by the fantastic book, London's Lost Power Stations and Gasworks by Ben Pedroche. The power station is quite magnificent and can be seen from a good distance away.

Looking towards Greenwich Power Station from the west

Sitting beneath the shadow of the power station, but predating it by centuries is the Trinity Hospital and Alms Houses, originally built in 1613, rebuilt in 1812 and still in use today providing sheltered accommodation.

Greenwich Power Station and the Trinity Hospital, Greenwich, London

Trinity Hospital, Greenwich, London

The next set of pictures are all of the former coal jetty attached to the power station. Despite trying a variety of angles I couldn't quite get the picture I was hoping for.

Coal jetty, Greenwich Power Station, London

Coal jetty, Greenwich Power Station, London

Coal jetty, Greenwich Power Station, London

Coal jetty, Greenwich Power Station, London

Greenwich Power Station, London

Coal jetty, Greenwich Power Station, London

A little further along the Thames from the power station is the former Harbour Master's Office, still displaying the signage.

Former Harbour Master's Office, Greenwich, London

Not as if anyone needed it, but there are reminders of Greenwich's maritime heritage everywhere. Here we see a quaint little row of houses in Union Wharf.

Union Wharf, Greenwich, London

Union Wharf, Greenwich, London

You may have noticed the sky becoming increasingly duller in each photo, and sure enough it started to rain so we headed back for the warmth of Greenwich itself. Having completed a circuit around the

power station, this is the view from the back. And as a bit of a bonus there was a sundial on the back of one of the Trinity Hospital buildings. Alas however the sun was not shining.

Greenwich Power Station, Greenwich, London

Sundial on the back of Trinity Hospital, Greenwich, London

As we headed back into Greenwich the heavens really started to open so pictures are few and far between, but I was determined to take this one despite the rain running down my neck into my shirt.

Canary Wharf through the Royal Naval College, Greenwich, London

As way of reward after battling our way through the rain, we treated ourselves to spot of lunch at the really rather wonderful Champagne et Fromage in Greenwich. I have to confess that initially we only went in there to get a hot drink, get out of the rain, and plan the next part of our day, but having seen the food we simply couldn't resist.

Lunch at Champagne et Fromage, Greenwich, London

An Urban Wander from Battersea to Chelsea

Following on from my Urban Wander from Vauxhall to Battersea this post focuses on the second part of the drift which took me from Battersea to Chelsea. As mentioned in the previous post, the weather made a significant improvement in the afternoon giving a much greater opportunity to take some decent pictures. 

The first picture was taken in Battersea Park, on the southern side of the Thames. I think I have been to Battersea Park just once before, and many, many years ago, so it was like a brand new adventure for me.

Street lamp in Battersea Park, London

We crossed back over the River Thames across one of my favourite bridges, the Albert Bridge, where I seem to have become slightly obsessed with street lamps.

Street lamp with Albert Bridge in background, Battersea, London

This next photo is the view looking west from the Albert Bridge. The two chimneys in the background are on the Lots Road Power Station which I covered in a recent Urban Wander around Imperial Wharf and have also become a recent, mild obsession, inspired by a book I picked up recently called London's Lost Power Stations and Gas Works. If you enjoy industrial architecture then I cannot recommend this book highly enough.

Crossing the Albert Bridge, looking towards Lots Power Station

Once over the Thames it was street lamps once more that caught my eye, although the Battersea Power Station is starting to make an appearance in the background.

Street lamp, with Battersea Power Station in background

Street lamp on the Chelsea embankment, London

As we walked along the embankment, Battersea Power Station came into view in all its glory, and this picture is a double whammy with the gas holder in view as well, although the flappy bit of the phone cover struck again with a light darkening towards the top of the picture.

Battersea Power Station

Looking across the road instead of the river briefly we have the magnificent pumping station on the Chelsea Embankment.

Chelsea Embankment Pumping Station, London

Focusing back across the river, Battersea Power Station is once again in full dominance, this time with the Chelsea Bridge.

Battersea Power Station, London 

Battersea Power Station, London 

Battersea Power Station, London 

Another small diversion off on to a side street, Paradise Walk, revealed some fascinating mews-like streets and houses.

Paradise Walk, London SW3 

Paradise Walk, London SW3

And this was further demonstrated by finding an actual mews, Clover Mews.

Clover Mews, London SW3 

Clover Mews, London SW3

Overall this was a great day out and I really felt like I'd made the most of the weekend. I feel there's still a lot more exploring to do around Vauxhall, Stockwell and Battersea, but that will have to wait for another day.

    

An Urban Wander from Vauxhall to Battersea

My latest Urban Wander is split into two. The first chronicles my drift from Vauxhall to Battersea, the second part will cover Battersea to Chelsea. I've separated them for several reasons, firstly the weather experienced on the two different sections of the wander make them look like two separate explorations, secondly there are about 25 pictures in all and probably too much for a single post, and finally I'm running out of material to share as I've not been able to get out anywhere this week so far, although I'm hoping that will change tomorrow when it looks like we are finally due a break in the miserable weather we've been having.

So, after spending an hour or so in the Tate Britain, we headed across the Thames and into Vauxhall, one of the boroughs in London that I've not really explored much before. It was a really cold and windy day and we wandered around looking for somewhere to grab some warming food, when we came across Harleyford Road Community Garden, just off the main road and sheltered from the wind. A nice enough garden in itself, but was was more interesting was that there was an open doorway leading through the ground floor of what seemed like the ground floor of residential flats or houses, which lead through into Bonnington Square. It had a bit of a Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe feeling about it. Coming out into Bonnington Square was not quite Narnia, but impressive nevertheless.

Bonnington Square also had its own gardens with some interesting sculptures.

Bonnington Square Gardens, Vauxhall, London

My favourite was this hand, balanced on a pergola.

Sculpture in Bonnington Square Gardens, Vauxhall, London

After a brief walk around the gardens, we headed out along the Vauxhall Grove towards Battersea and eventually found somewhere to eat, a small vegetarian café called the Bonnington Café. They were closing in 10 minutes so we were lucky to get in, but I have to say the food was excellent. Just a shame we only had time to try the excellent soup. We will be back.

Old House in Vauxhall Grove, London 

From where I was sat in the café I could see what looked like a very feint ghost sign on the former Bonnington Square Bakery, but as sometimes happens, when I load a picture up from the phone onto the computer, the picture contrast seems to adjust itself and reveals the lettering better than it appeared in situ.

BAYS

FOR QUALITY

???

DAREN

BREAD

WEDDING & BIRTHDAY

???

Ghost sign in Vauxhall Grove, London

Leaving the quiet back streets of Vauxhall we headed on towards Battersea. Naturally I couldn't resist taking pictures of the power station, but the gasometer and gas tower were also both quite impressive, although a shame about the dreary sky (there's a much better sky in the second installment of this post).

Gasometer and gas tower, Battersea, London

 Gasometer and gas tower, Battersea, London

Gasometer and gas tower, Battersea, London 

Battersea Power Station, London 

Battersea Power Station, London 

 Battersea Power Station, London