Skywatch Friday & Weekend Reflections: #PeoplesAssembly #ConvoytoCalais #RefugeesWelcomeHere

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Taking part in Skywatch Friday and Weekend Reflections

#SummerIntheCity #Manchester #CityDailyPhoto Back pack bite back...

A back pack with attitude commuting along the Corridor Manchester Innovation District the other evening.

To the source of the Bridgewater... #Worsley #CityDailyPhoto #Salford #Manchester

A scene that hasn't changed too much since the 1760s when the Bridgewater canal was built, emerging into daylight here at Worsley after 46 miles of tunnels into the coal mines of Lancashire. 

The amazing Packet House was built around 1760s but the black and white timber was added in the 1840s. It's an early Victorian  style which can still be seen today in parts of the north west, especially Nantwich and Northwich in Cheshire (that I know of, there are others).

It was looking so serene and idyllic when I took the photo, while showing a friend Worsley's industrial heritage and 21st century gentility the other week.

At HOME with #KenLoach

It was a case of the deckchairs at HOME being in use from dawn to darkness yesterday. I had a brief but happy sojourn on these orange beauties (tangerine is this summer’s in colour so I hear), before we went to hear the inspirational Ken Loach in conversation and then a documentary on his career. It’s frightening how the right wing media have skated and banned him through the years for merely trying to make social dramas of real lives.

As a result he had a barren spell where he was, to his now admitted great shame, driven to make a living from directing adverts and ended up promoting dodgy products such as Nestle’s Caramac chocolate bars and the positively evil McDonalds. (Could you ever work for two more dreadful companies?- the “third world” baby powder milk scandal and the deforestation, obesity, poorly paid workers, animal abuse etc. of McDonald’s).

Anyway, that aside, Kes (A kestrel for a knave) by Barry Hines was the first film by him that I saw, as a youngster, and I will never forget it- the written off school kids whose potential didn’t fit into the rigid educational framework and a kestrel that could fly free was so powerful even to my naïve eyes and ears. The reciting of the shipping forecast when the register was read out was an early radio memory for me too.

The Angel’s Share, a 2012 film set around youth, redemption and Scottish whiskey, was witty and powerful too and Jimmy’s Hut was another of his tales of how the Irish were oppressed by the British. But I need to see more.

The Cannes award-winning film “I, Daniel Blake” is released in November- the Tories retaining power last year brought him out of retirement to make it. Last night the documentary Versus: The Life and Films of Ken Loach was a great overview and I recommend seeing it. I also want to research the mid 1960s Czech films that inspired Ken and were shown in the documentary- they looked visually exciting with intense close up camera angles on nature and people.

Monday Mural: tree of hope? #streetart #citiesofHope #Manchester

This week's Monday Mural contribution appeared during the Cities of Hope festival the other week. The artist was having a break and a group of people on a guided street art tour were admiring this. The ladder and paints on the street adds to the  painting's 3D effect.

Urban camping on the city's river banks

I'm all for grabbing every moment of late spring and summer sunshine and heading outdoors, so I can understand the campers here. Sadly many tent dwellers are also homeless. But not these on the banks of the Irwell this week.

Barton bridge bliss

It's been an age since I featured a canal shot on the blog, so here we go. One taken of the Barton swing aqueduct canal bridge over the Manchester Ship Canal and by the equally marvelously engineered Barton road swing bridge on the Bridgewater Canal last Monday.

Skywatch Friday: west and wistful

Some lovely sunsets this week as dry summer days and the skies have made me feel in holiday mood- the Balearic CDs I've been playing late at night add to the chilled out hot evenings' vibe. See more of nature's beauty around the world as captured by other global bloggers at Skywatch Friday.


 

One L of a gig @LeraLynn

After a fascinating debate last night on whether the left should vote to remain or leave the EU (#Lexit), I wandered along to Band On The Wall. Lera Lynn and her band were playing their first Manchester gig.

I first heard Lera on Prairie Home Companion a couple of years back and immediately bought the first album. A second has just been released and tracks from both plus some great covers, e.g Ring of Fire, made up an engaging set. The band’s Nashville roots are recognisable but they veer off in a wonderful space rock textured guitars direction. Angst and wistful lyrics add to the vibe- 

Surf noir is how the band describe their sound, and Americana is another good label fr them.

I’ve seen about 40 bands so far this year and this was one of the best (Wolf Alice, The Tapestry, Horsebeach and Yes make up my top 5 so far). It was fun chatting with them and getting my albums signed afterwards- if you don’t know the band, go and take a listen...

City Daily Photo theme day: Shadow and highlight

City Daily Photo’s theme day for June is shadow and highlight. This is the Whiskey Jar on Tariff Street one evening last week (we went there twice, after Street Art events). 

A really cosy place, especially midweek when there is enough of a good vibe but it’s not over busy as it is at weekends. 250 whiskies (although only one of them is organic), a few craft beers and cocktails. 

The light shades are vintage decanters with their bottoms sawn off, there’s a DJ deck in the far corner, a battered piano and pianola in others, and a good play list too from what I can remember- including Air, an acoustic version of Bowie’s Sound and Vision I’d not heard before and some other mellow music and good sounds from many eras. Go there yourself but please don’t take my space on one of the many comfortable sofas...