BRIAN REID PHOTOGRAPHER
Colour on the Ground but not in the Sky :-(
My home is fine for terrestrial colour but generally unsuitable for celestial colour so I generally do not bother to search the heavens when the northern lights are predicted. I am on the southern edge of the largest town in Cambridgeshire, surrounded by street lights so light pollution is the default condition. As a result I missed the chance to possibly see the Aurora Borealis which appears to...
The Joy of Old Warden
One of the benefits from living in this corner of Cambridgeshire is proximity to Old Warden Aerodrome which houses the Shuttleworth Collection and the Swiss Garden. It means a short drive gives me access to two things I enjoy, landscaped gardens and historic aeroplanes. Where can you wander through a garden and pop in to see the oldest original flying machine on the planet, a Bleriot XI from 1909...
Lyveden New Bield, enhanced
It has been a while since I visited Lyveden New Bield, a National Trust site near Corby. It is in a wonderfully isolated location, no traffic noise, just bird song and the whoosh of the odd glider overhead. “Begun by Sir Thomas Tresham to symbolise his Catholic faith, Lyveden remains incomplete and virtually unaltered since work stopped on his death in 1605.” His son was a gunpowder plotter and he...
May Bank Holiday Around Home
May has arrived and the early May Bank Holiday is here. It is an interesting time of the year as we are in full transition from spring to summer. We, in the UK, are lucky to still enjoy a four seasons climate although, here in the East of England, winter is a shadow of its former self. I generally don’t go far on a bank holiday weekend so visited a couple of my local favourites, RSPB Lodge Reserve...
Moggerhanger Music Session May 2024
The monthly Wednesday music session at Moggerhanger Village Hall was another great evening. Although It is great when we have a full house it was a little more manageable on Wednesday with a comfortable crowd with and without instruments. Our unusual instrument this week was an Indian Harmonium used by Stuart. It created a very pleasant drone.
Here is a link to our Flickr album with some snaps...
Priory Country Park for a Quick Walk
I had a little shopping to do at IKEA in Milton Keynes so dropped into the Priory Country Park in Bedford for a little exercise on the way. It was a lovely early afternoon although still with a brisk breeze. Here are a few snaps giving a sense of place. It is a popular spot for dog walkers and lunch breakers.
Olly's 425th Birthday
I was not aware that the 425th was a major birthday but in Huntingdon it is. The Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell was born there in 1599. He was unable to attend the celebration in person. The town time machine was used to bring a few people and horses from the time of Cromwell and the council put out some nice imagery which made for an interesting Sunday afternoon. It was cold and damp so the numbers...
Back Home
It has been a slow return after my dash home from Toulouse but all is going in the right direction so I took a quick walk at Old Warden yesterday. It was nice to be back in the Swiss Garden with its ever changing flora. It was also a pilot training day providing distant glimpses of the DH-88 racer and Avro 504k. I’ll finish with one of the dedicated engineering team working on th DH-60.
France 2024 Day 16 Go North Young Man (Part 2)
I have just been watching hardy kite surfers from the hotel window, see headline picture, which confirms I have reached the channel ready for tomorrow morning’s crossing back to Portsmouth. It has been a pretty easy day but Sunday seems popular with Tesla drivers as the chargers in Le Mans and Ouistreham had applied restrictions due to the high rate of usage. A maximum recharge to 80% unless you...
France 2024 Day 15 Go North Young Man (Part 1)
As noted, my trip came of the rails, yesterday, when the tummy bug did not settle down after a day resting in the hotel in Toulouse. It was clear that I had three options. First wait out another day in Toulouse, second head off in hope to the Atlantic Coast or third cut my losses and, assuming I felt up to it head north back to the channel. By late afternoon it was clear that the least worst option...