- Joseph Smith & Sons -
Tuesday 3rd April 2018 and my first stop is the Jewellery Quarter to put my new Sony camera through its paces. I'm intrigued to see that the Jewellers Arms on Hockley Street is now a Black Country Ales pub (a revisit is most definitely in order) but my focus is on capturing remnants of the Quarter's manufacturing heritage. Vittoria Street proves productive as I spot the Municipal School for Jewellers and Silversmiths, swiftly followed by Joseph Smith & Sons, while Caroline Street has the former offices of William West & Sons Ltd.
- Cambrian Wharf -
After an admiring look at St Paul's Square, I make my way to Fleet Street where the atmospheric Newman Brothers premises have been preserved as the Coffin Works Museum. The Birmingham & Fazeley Canal beckons for a wander up Farmers Bridge Locks, pausing at Cambrian Wharf to survey the moorings with the Flapper pub close at hand (albeit I hear this well-known music venue could sadly cease trading in June). Farmers Bridge also boasts a little toll lodge and the Cambrian House canal offices, all in the shadow of the Barclaycard Arena - I remember when the 'Gladiators' TV series was filmed there, proper 1990s Saturday evening nostalgia!
- Twin Towers, Ladywood -
From the arena its but a short hop, skip and a jump (or a dash through the Gladiators gauntlet) to enter Ladywood where I'm on the trail of a closed precinct pub Mr D9 has often told me about. The Twin Towers is duly located on one end of the King Edward shopping parade and still has some intact Ansells signage even though part of the space is now occupied by a pharmacy. My photos are all the medication I need with the nearby Spring Hill Library ready to administer its terracotta dosage.
- Shakespeare Garden, Lightwoods Park -
To Bearwood I now go, clambering aboard the number 82 bus for a ride past City Hospital and the old Cape Hill Brewery site. Bearwood Bus Station means I'm handily placed for a Lightwoods Park visit, catching up with restoration project progress. Lightwoods House is now open again having been renovated for use as a community cafe and meeting space while the adjacent Shakespeare Garden is a lovely oasis of tranquility laid out in Elizabethan walled style using plants mentioned in the Bard's works.
- Moorpool Shops -
One area of Birmingham I'm particularly keen to commit to camera is Moorpool, an attractive estate near Harborne which was established between 1907 and 1911 as a Garden Suburb. Arts and Crafts-style architecture is to the fore and the estate was designated a conservation area back in 1970. My only previous visit here came when passing through on the 647 bus over ten years ago, so effectively I'm seeing everything afresh. A selection of amenities are clustered around The Circle (including Moorpool Hall, the Estate Office, a couple of local shops and some tennis courts) whereas Moor Pool natural lake is a popular beauty spot off Ravenhurst Road.
- The Court Oak -
Carless Avenue connects me with Lordswood Road for a glance at the Old House at Home (Greene King establishment on the corner with Gillhurst Road) before Croftdown Road conveys me to the Court Oak junction. The landmark pub here is part of the Sizzling chain and is quietly watched over by St Faith and St Laurence Church, mainly dating from the 1930s when the current building replaced two previous mission churches. Queens Park meanwhile was established in 1898 as a public open space in celebration of Queen Victoria's Diamond jubilee; the children's play area is certainly a busy spot during the Easter holidays.
- Weoley Castle Ruins -
April is notorious as a month of sudden showers and one such downpour strikes on Tennal Road, making for a soggy stroll setting as I squelch past Harborne Golf Club. I drip my way along Northfield Road and have almost dried out by the time I reach the ruins of Weoley Castle, a moated medieval manor house built by the Lords of Dudley circa 1270. I glimpse some of the stonework as the sun briefly comes back out, but the onset of another deluge has me scurrying for the shelter offered by the 48 bus. With more rain forecast I call it quits, riding through to Smethwick via the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Harborne and Warley Woods. Despite the damp finale the outing was still very successful, exploration just the way I like it - cheers!
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