The General's Speech

Got bored in my first proper day back at work so was coerced this afternoon to go on a circuitous walk around Knutsford with wife Nahida to the shops to buy some spaghetti (Vongole tonight with the last of the gathered shellfish and a kind recipe suggestion supplied care of Ian Luckett, Building Contractor).

As a further happy distraction and detour, we also took in the Frank Marshall Auctioneers viewing day for their General Sales day tomorrow, but nothing spotted of any note - apart from Lot # 998 Six Reconstituted Stone Cherubs (£40-£60 estimate if interested). Took a nice photo of those with the intention of blipping with it, but the Auction Assistant's joke about me looking like something off CSI: Miami made me laugh and shake at the crucial moment. Anyway, we might just go along as we have never been to an auction before. Will have to sit on my hands though as am bad enough on Ebay.

Anyway, walking up Church Hill and sitting just in front of the auction house is the lovely but sadly neglected Old Town Hall built in the so-called Victorian Gothin Revival style around 1872. Have always loved this building but it has never served any civic purpose other than briefly as a Post Office as long as I can remember. It's a real shame, particularly as a lot of the details are now crumbling away - particularly the roof ridge terracotta work. Anyway, to cut a long story short, I took this beautiful detail of the brickwork feathers that allow the tapering-in of a wall (often chimneys and buttressing). Also took a nice long shot from across the road of the whole building, and that just happened to get a nice red car passing in front of it as I snapped. It still looked rather good with the red detail (Rob), but thought I would use aclose-up for a change, as mine are often too fuzzy, having only just realised how the focus works.

The Town Hall architect was none other than Alfred Waterhouse. Other notable buildings of his include Manchester Town Hall, the Natural History Museum in London, and Strangeways Prison - As ecclectic a back-collection as you could ever wish for!

Incidentely, the same Knutsford Town Hall was also the brief backdrop used by U.S General George S. Patton, in his speech made during the run-up to the D-Day landings. It featured again authentically in George C Scott's film Patton. U.S troups were based in Knutsford and Tatton Park in WWII.

Whilst we are on the Hollywood Trail of Knutsford, parts of Legh Road were also featured in Empire of the Sun to represent the colonial suberbs of Singapore, just prior to the Japanese invasion...but thats a blip and a Blue Badge tour for another day. Any takers.....?

Only 15 minutes to go before clocking off time.