Nicks` Cabinet of Curios

This can be found in the churchyard at Attenborough. The Chilwell Factory Explosion killed 134 munitions workers and injured a further 250*.   Because of the scale of the explosion only 32 of the dead could be positively identified, the rest were buried in a mass grave at St Marys Church, Attenborough and this blue plaque marks the spot. There is a second memorial, but that is on MOD property and is only accessible to the public on special occasions. With most young men away fighting in the war, many women worked in the factory - in fact one of the reasons for choosing the location (though not necessarily the main one) was that there was an existing local tradition of women working in factories, which was not the case elsewhere. The women were nicknamed Canary Girls as over time their skin would turn yellow/orange due to exposure to TNT.  I can`t hope to do justice to the subject in this short post, but would urge you to visit the many other sites with info...

Richard Dalby (ed) - The Virago Book of Ghost Stories - Virago - 1991 I bought this from  a charity shop near my home  recently and a key part of my decision to buy it was that it cost a mere 40 pence ! That said, it was 40 pence well spent. My own personal preference runs to rather old-fashioned ghost stories  but there again half the fun of a collection like this lies in trying stories one might never otherwise have come across. For me the best of the more modern efforts has to be Penelope Lively`s Black Dog. For the best of the older stories I would turn to Ann Bridge (The Station Road), Margaret Irwin (The Book) and Edith Nesbit (Number 17). Inevitably there were a couple I was not so keen on, but the only one I really couldn`t get on with was Elinor Mordaunts` The Landlady. There is an interesting contrast in the approaches taken by different writers. Ann Bridge in The Station Road leaves much unexplained and ambiguous whereas Ruth Rendell in her ...

Some years ago a customer emailed  me these rather fine pics from her home town of Goole. I have always liked them and I think it`s time to share them with the world.  I believe they depict the offices of the Goole Times.  Goole Times still exists, though now based in different premises, and, along with it`s sister paper the Selby Times, proudly boasts of being "the area`s only locally-owned newspapers" (both belong to the Goole-based Chronicle Publications).  I don`t know if the building still exists. If anyone can answer that, I`d be interested to hear from you.  I`ve noticed a couple of sites online that may be interesting if you want to know more about the history of Goole. One is Howdenshire History, the other is eastyorkshirehistory.blogspot.co.uk . I expect there are others if you search about a bit.  Footnote - I`m grateful to Susan Butler of the Howdenshire History web site for answering my question about this building. I`m ...

You might think that a reggae version of a John Denver song was pretty much the last thing the world of music would need.  In fact, this solo recording by Pat Kelly of The Techniques is a very fine thing indeed. Naturally it has been re-issued repeatedly.  Here are a couple of unusual and interesting issues.  Pat Kelly`s version of Sunshine was produced by Duke Reid and this Jamaican issue (above) is possibly the original. Of the various labels run by Reid, Treasure Isle and Dutchess (sic) are probably the best-known. However, there were others,  including  Sure Shot, as in this case.   I would think the name of the label refers to Duke`s past career as a Jamaican Police Officer, in which capacity he won at least one award for marksmanship.  I have also seen pictures of other Reid issues with the same label design but with the company name given as Sure Soul.  This `70s re-issue is from the UK.  Black Wax was bot...

June Thomson - Rosemary for Remembrance - Constable Crime - 1988 June Thomson is an astute observer of people, an ingenious plotter of detective stories and a more-than-capable writer. Any criticisms I have should be seen within the context that `Rosemary` is a very accomplished piece of work. One criticism I have is that the author seems to come over all breathless whenever a Policeman hoves into view. Quite early in the book we are told that officers attending a murder scene are in `official Police cars` and that the Officer in Charge of the case is `a professional Police Officer`. In the same spirit another Officer is described as "uniformed" even though it is perfectly obvious without being stated. The sole woman Officer in the book is confined to making tea. Periodically, the author is overcome by a slightly excessive desire for detail. When the Police visit the home of one character we are treated to something of a guide to interior decor, including the ca...

On a holiday in Whitby some time ago I came across this rather intriguing building. Unfortunately it was difficult to get a decent picture without stepping backwards into moving traffic, something I was not inclined to do ! As you`ll see, the building has undergone a few changes of use, as you would expect.  According to a 2016 article in the Whitby Gazette, based on information provided by Whitby Civic Society, Arthur Sawdon used the building in connection with a carpets and bedding business, whereas Geo Thompson, who named the building Wellington House, ran two business - tuning/repairing keyboards on the one hand and acting as an auctioneer and valuer on the other.  When I was last in the area it was occupied by a firm of Solicitors. If you ever feel the need to have your organ tuned by a Solicitor, this might be the place to go !

Here are a couple of pictures of Shipley Woodside Mining Memorial. I`m pretty sure I`ve taken other, better,  pictures of  this. I`ll post them as and when they show up again. For what it`s worth, The colliery in question was actually Woodside Colliery but was referred to as Shipley Woodside to distinguish it from another Colliery with the same name. The Memorial is located adjacent to Woodside Nature Reserve, Shipley Wood and the abandoned American Adventure site.  A couple of sites with useful info are  healeyhero.co.uk and Mapperleyhistory.com 

 Bennerley Viaduct has fascinated me ever since I moved into the area. Here are some pics of that esteemed structure that I took quite some time ago now. For a more up-to-date view, try the Friends of Bennerley Viaduct web site and Facebook page.