Bradford City Hall #3

The other great civic room in City Hall is the Banqueting Hall, where large civic events are held. It was here that King Charles was introduced to young Bradfordian leaders when he visited last year (see HERE).  

The frieze above the fireplace has symbolic figures representing aspects of Bradford: the wool trade, architecture, the arts.

The names of all Bradford's Lord Mayors are displayed on the walls - you can see Titus Salt near the top of the board below. David Hockney's brother, Paul, was another of our Lord Mayors. 

There are grand stained glass windows, showing the coats of arms of many prominent people associated with the city.  

If you look closely at the pillars, you can find this carving of John Northrop killing the Bradford Boar (see my earlier post: Bradford City Hall #1). 

The rather wonderful tapestry below, titled 'The Threads that Bind Us', was made to commemorate the Queen's Diamond Jubilee in 2012. Utilising wool as a base (appropriately for Bradford), it was put together by artists Morwenna Catt and Lucas Stephens, using designs and stories from schoolchildren and motifs sewn by older citizens of the city, many of whom had worked in the textile industry. There is a wealth of detail in it, including the city's green spaces and City Park; notable places: City Hall itself, the Wool Exchange, the Alhambra theatre, National Media Museum, mill chimneys, Bingley's Five Rise Locks, Ilkley's Cow and Calf rocks, one of Saltaire's lions, a sheep and the Bradford Boar. Famous people depicted are the astronomer Sir Fred Hoyle (who came from Bingley), David Hockney and the Brontë sisters. 

Bradford City Hall #2

This is the Council Chamber in Bradford's City Hall, dating back to 1909, where council meetings and debates take place. It's the site of so much of the district's social, democratic and political history. Overlooking the chamber are Public Galleries where members of the public and press can watch the proceedings. 

Meetings are, I believe, chaired by the Lord Mayor, who sits on this rather grand throne (above). Councillors sit in allocated seats, members of the various political parties sitting in groups (at least according to the floor plan on display).  

There are clocks at both ends of the Chamber, no doubt watched despairingly sometimes! There must have been some lengthy meetings in this room. 

The room is illuminated by a stained glass panel in the ceiling, as well as the chandeliers. The corridor space around the back of the seating has various stained glass windows, all sporting the 'Labor Omnia Vincit' motto - 'Work Conquers All'. I'm sure there have been many illustrious members of Council over the years who have taken that very seriously. 

Bradford City Hall #1

Bradford City Hall is 150 years old this year and was opened for a heritage tour, so I went to visit. Although I used to work for the City Council many moons ago and often had to go to offices in the building itself, I'd never really seen the grand civic spaces before. It was interesting to explore. 

Lockwood and Mawson, the architects who also designed Saltaire, won a competition to design it and took inspiration from the Palazzo Vecchio in Florence. Opened in 1873, it was extended in 1909 to accommodate a new Council Chamber and Banqueting Hall, and the Grand Staircase (below) was added in 1914.

Light floods down the staircase from a magnificent glass dome, which has white roses, for Yorkshire, on the plasterwork frets:

The entrance area holds many treasures and commemorative items. There is a rather wonderful model of City Hall, made in 1980: 

There are boards commemorating Bradford citizens who have received military and civilian honours for acts of bravery, and a bell commemorating those who lost their lives or were injured in the Bradford City football ground fire in 1985. 

There are books signed by Queen Elizabeth II and King Charles III when they visited the city:

There are cases full of ornate civic silverware and items like the ceremonial mace, also 150 years old, that represents the authority of the council. 

The Bradford Horn (below) is associated with the legend of the Bradford Boar. It's said that in medieval times a wild boar terrorised the people of the town. The Lord of the Manor, John of Gaunt, offered a reward to anyone who could kill the boar and provide proof. A local man, John Northrop, lay in wait, killed the boar and cut out its tongue as evidence. A rival hunter came across the carcass and cut off its head, arriving at the Manor House first and claiming to have killed the boar. However, he could not explain its missing tongue and when Northrop arrived with it, he was able to confirm his claim to the reward. There are many references to the Bradford Boar in coats of arms, stained glass and carvings throughout the city. The horn was blown by John Northrop's descendants every St Martin's Day (11 November) to mark their ancestor's feat.  

 

Thorp Perrow

Adjacent to Snape village (see yesterday), Thorp Perrow Arboretum is always worth a visit. It is, of course, spectacular in spring and autumn but even at the height of summer there is a variety of colour in the foliage, especially in the younger trees. Its lakeside and pathways invite exploration. There is something very soothing about being immersed in woodland. Even though the car park was pretty full, the large gardens swallow up the visitor numbers and it still felt quite tranquil.

The 100 acre arboretum was the vision of Colonel Sir Leonard Ropner in the 1930s. It is still owned by his family, who have built it into the fine collection of plants and trees that we enjoy today. 

Snape

The village of Snape, near Bedale in North Yorkshire, has a secret hidden in plain sight. On the edge of the village lies Snape Castle, a semi-fortified manor house dating back to the early 15th century. It belonged to the Neville family and before she became Henry VIII's sixth wife in 1543, Katherine Parr lived here. (She was married to John Neville, who died early in 1543). 

Later in its history, the castle was neglected and left in the care of an agent. Parts of it are now ruined - rather a Romantic ruin, one feels -  though the main body of the castle is still a private residence and it cannot currently be visited.

Its hidden secret is its chapel, originally a private chapel for the castle, where Katherine Parr would almost certainly have worshipped (and may well have married John Neville). On an upper floor, and usually open to the public, it dates back to the 15th century though it was renovated around 1720. 

In the early 1700s the original ceiling of the chapel was removed and a plaster ceiling installed, painted by the Italian artist Antonio Verrio and depicting scenes from Revelation 12:7 - 'War and Wonder in Heaven'. By the late 18th century the chapel was used as a store for grain and rapeseed! Sadly, the ceiling has been ruined by damp and the frescos are now impossible to discern. 

The finely carved reredos behind the altar, dated 1725, had better luck, and there are some good stained glass windows too. 

The chapel is still used for worship and, though now lit by electricity, it retains its old gas lamps. 

From the road through Snape village, the castle is largely hidden by high walls but from the back looking across fields it is plainer to see. It's a fascinating piece of history. 

A sunset stroll

We're having a sudden, late heatwave, with temperatures in the high 20Cs (high 70Fs) here in Yorkshire and hotter down south. It's ironic, after July and August were so disappointing. I took a short evening stroll, when the temperature had cooled down a little. The weather forecast spoke of a Saharan dust plume crossing the UK and promised redder than usual sunsets and sunrises but here at least the sunset was softly blushing, akin to the pink of shells or rose petals.   

My photos show the usual Saltaire sights - the church, the canal, Roberts Park. The Boathouse Inn (formerly a real Victorian boathouse on the river) has had a recent revamp and now has more outdoor seating and lots of lights strung through the trees. 

PS: Despite the lack of a spectacular sunset, we evidently did get Saharan dust. After an overnight rain shower, the following morning my car was coated in fine, sandy dust - annoying since I'd only that day got it washed. 

 

Bus gate

OK, I'm easily amused...

'  - gate: A suffix added onto a word to denote a scandal involving the base word. The suffix originated from the Watergate Complex in Washington, DC where the scandal leading to the resignation of President Nixon took place. Watergate, strangely enough, was not a scandal involving water.'

Since Watergate there have been many other such scandals, including 'Partygate' in the UK, a political scandal about gatherings of government and Conservative Party staff during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021, when public health restrictions prohibited most gatherings.

I don't know, however, what 'Bus gate' means. One can only speculate... though the article HERE describes people receiving fines for driving through bus gates that they have never been told about, which perhaps in itself is a scandal that deserves the title. 

Anyway, I spotted it in Bradford city centre, beside the Broadway shopping mall. The lovely buildings in the background are the Cathedral and St Peter's House, the former Post Office building, now an Arts Centre. 

Notes from a walk

The weather in July and August was endlessly dull and depressing, with lots of rain and cooler than average temperatures (while the rest of Europe struggled with extreme heat). Ironic then that on the day that our schools started back for the autumn term, it was beautifully hot and sunny. I had a lot of paperwork to do but mid-afternoon I took a short stroll around Roberts Park and then back along the canal, just because it was too lovely not to enjoy it.  

At the back of the park, there is a set of old stocks (above), which used to stand in Shipley market place. Meant to punish people for minor crimes, miscreants would be pinned by their feet and might be spat on, taunted or have rotten fruit thrown at them. The public humiliation was intended to make them think twice about reoffending. (Some people say we should bring them back into use!) 

Returning home along the canal towpath, I noticed that some of the trees are already turning autumnal. By the bridge there was a smartly turned out and rather enormous widebeam boat. I believe the size of the locks on the Leeds-Liverpool Canal mean that boats have to be no more than 60ft long. This one must fit in somehow or it wouldn't have reached Saltaire. 

Hall Cliffe Community Garden

Hall Cliffe Community Garden, just up the road from St John's Church in Baildon, is quite a success story. The half acre space was once just tarmac, the playground of the church primary school that had been vacated. The land lay derelict until a group of community volunteers persuaded the Council to lease it to them in 2004. They financed, created and maintain this now beautiful, peaceful space.

At this time of year the planting is lush, and arranged thoughtfully so that beds and borders each have their own character - hot and fiery, pretty pink and blue, white... There are meandering paths, a small pond, lots of seating, a covered arbour and a playground for tiny tots at the back. It's not the first time I've shown it on my blog (see also HERE) but it bears another visit. It is delightful and beautifully cared for.