Richmond roofline 8 - # 09/88

Looking across Richmond Green.

Richmond roofline 6 (straight lines and curves) - # 09/86

The geometric perfection of 1724 brick and stone contrasts with the perfectly cut bush with its gentle curve. (Maids of Honour Row, Richmond Green; built 1724).

Drama - # 08/191

The heavy cloud and rain throughout July and August have been rather wearisome, but now and then the sun has broken through to give stark contrast and magnificent "battleship grey" cloud backgrounds.

In this case the copper domes, brick and sandstone of Richmond theatre are bathed in late afternoon sun set against a background of dramatic grey cloud. A really "dramatic" spectacle.

Gone a bit wonky - # 08/162

.....well, things have gone a bit wonky over 300 years, but it still looks good. (Houses around the south side of Richmond Green).

Richmond Green - a post card - # 08/81

Looking across the Green form the Cricketers pub.

Morris dancers - # 126

This is another sight, rare in Richmond, that I was lucky to catch a couple of weeks ago: Morris Dancers outside a pub on Richmond Green.

Don't laugh! This is very English, ancient, going back to pagan times, celebrating many ritual formalities from a time when man was in closer touch with the earth. Therefore it's important to keep it alive.

Two troupes were gathered. The Green and White are more usual; the "Black Faces and Red Coats" are less usual and look more sinister but very impressive, and had a different dancing style, though of course typical. No doubt they represented a different "force of nature".
Here you can see a typically decorated hat, snapped through the pub window.

The pictures are not very "artistic" or technically well executed - I was running low on battery and it was more important to capture an event that is now rarely seen around London and the suburbs.

Click on the photos to enlarge - it's worth it.

Doors and windows 2 - # 103

City Daily Photo encourages us to look harder at what's around us. Please look closer at the doorways and window style on these houses, built in the early 1700s. Each door has a unique glasswork fanlight. Throughout the whole town not one door fanlight is the same. Notice also the two little white badges on the wall in the very centre. Those are 18th Century "Fire Insurance Certificates". Lloyds of London was a new money market brokerage phenomenon enabling people to insure. The newly created insurance companies gave you a plate showing their badge - a Sun, an Elephant etc - to make it clear to the fire brigade that the house was protected by that company and that the firemen would be paid for their efforts to put out the fire.

Changing life styles - # 47

Yesterday I touched on the effect of climate change, and how it is bringing a new, stylish and very welcome cafe life-style to our streets.

Today I show you a converted church! A number of magnificent Victorian Gothic church buildings, erected in the 1880s/90s, have been converted to extremely stylish apartment blocks with high, well lit and spacious interiors that make full use of the enormous stone arches and pillars.

Here is one, on Richmond Green. It has been well crafted, but the treatment of the street-side main entrance using a rather cheap looking "prison-like" grey metal security door system puzzles me. Surely they could have chosen something better to sit inside the grandeur of the main entrance archway.

Relaxing with friends after a great match - # 44

So, England beat France in a superb, heart-stopping match at Twickenham on 11th March. The Six Nations cup is now finely balanced. The French are outstandingly good rugby players, but this new England team beat the "Frogs" and gained a very clear win. Two fine teams gave us all a lot of sporting pleasure.