Martin's Mag.

There was a partial solar eclipse on the 20th March. I risked my camera by taking some photos. It seems to have survived.

Or, if you don’t have a camera, you can use a collander:

A shop in Barnstaple, in Devon, has been covered in donated bras in support of a breast cancer charity, CoppaFeel.org.

Damien Hirst’s huge (some say grotesque) statue on the quay at Ilfracombe. More details on wikipedia.org.

The harbour at Ilfracombe (Verity statue on extreme right).

These gardens are located near of Barnstaple, North Devon. More information at their website broomhillart.co.uk.

This is not an exhibit!

Although we’ve lived in the Bristol area for a very long time, we still tend to think of east Bristol as just a place you go through to get to Bath. However, it may be less glamorous than the better-known Clifton, Redland, The Downs, The Floating Harbour, etc., but there are some interesting areas, particularly along the course of the River Avon. We started in Keynsham and walked for six or seven miles through Bitton and Willsbridge.

Willsbridge Mill

“Wildlife garden” making full use of discarded sanitary ware.

The worse part of Pill, an interesting mostly-Victorian small town not far from us on the south bank of the Avon, is a 1960s “precinct”, right in the centre. It’s on the cycle route into Bristol, but we’ve never stopped to admire a mural, painted on ceramic tiles on a wall behind the shops. Two helpful women stopped to describe the subject matter and origins of the picture to us.

The Thekla has been a fixture in Bristol’s Harbour for more than 30 years, during which time she has undergone a number of transformations from her original use as a cargo ship.

Artist, musician and one of England’s greatest eccentrics, the late Vivian Stanshall (former Leigh-on-Sea resident!) converted her into a theatre before she later became a nightclub and music venue.

The old girl’s been away in dry dock for a facelift, but now she’s back, looking very smart. We were concerned that the paint job has removed a nice Banksy painting of the grim reaper in a rowing boat on the waterline. However, the good news is that the painting (actually a section of the hull) has been removed and will be on display at a local museum.

The Thekla in Bristol Docks.

Brean Down is a peninsula south of Weston Super Mare in Somerset. It is the western termination of the Mendip Hills. It has a history of defence, from WWII back to the Napoleonic wars. At its far end is a fort, which you can wander around whilst contemplating the stupidity of mankind. It was sunny when we left home, but very cold and wet by the end of our walk; very pleased to get back in the car.

Fifty thousand trees, 150 acres, the National Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire, commemorates all those who have served the nation, both military and civilian.

National Memorial Arboretum.

National Memorial Arboretum.

“Shot at Dawn” memorial. Moving tribute to boys, many as young as 17, shot for “cowardice”.

National Memorial Arboretum.

Symbolic of the soccer match thought to have been played on Christmas Day, 1914, between British and German troops.

Maritime memorial.