 | 28th Jan 2010 | Shorts Brothers Seaplane Factory, Rochester 
In 1941 Shorts Brothers contacted the Ministry of Aircraft Production
seeking authority to build a new underground works in tunnels excavated under chalk cliffs behind their existing MAP extension factory in Rochester.
The project was given the go ahead and the tunnels were excavated consisting of two parallel tunnels, each one hundred metres in length, these were linked by four 75 metre long adits to the cliff face at the rear of the factory. The tunnels were for the most part cut from chalk and brick lined.
After that Blaw-Knox who manufacturer paving equipment used the tunnels untell the 1990's for storage, and left many bits of metal and materials behind. The tunnels have been unused since.
At one end of the factory it a large air raid shelter it is very long and it felt like i was walking for hours to get to the end.
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 | 23rd Jan 2010 | Return To 100 Middlesex street 
100 Middlesex street or 'Nido' stands at 105m tall over 34 floors and when finished will be student digs.
A nice way to start our night off with good views over the city.
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 | 13th Jan 2010 | Spring Quarry, Corsham, Dec 09 
We could not believe our luck when we stumbled upon access to this. It was like jumping into a time capital, The old chocolate machines on
the walls, Old generator and giant fans and butterfly anti gas doors. All the things i had wanted to see for years and i can tell you it
did not disappoint. It was just like the few MOD issued photos i had seen.
We walked for hours all the way to the east side of the quarry to the workers canteen to see some of the murals on the walls. On the way we
found old slopeshafts and lifts, Toilets and brick built air ways the size of a large sewer. We then walked south west up to the power egg
shop where we found a old generator and some old yellow ride on trucks. By this time it was the early hours and time for us to leave.
A few days later i went to go back only to find the access had been closed up. I wish i got the chance to see more but im glad i got
see what i did.
A bit of history.
Spring Quarry is a large stone quarry that was converted by the Ministry of Aircraft production in WWII,
the quarry was home to the largest underground factory in the world. The underground aircraft factory
within Spring Quarry housed the Bristol Aerospace Company and a BSA's gun barrel factory in the west of the quarry.
The vast caverns had some 2,250,000ftsq of space some smaller chambers were divided for
different companies operating underground.
The advent of aerial warfare during the First World War brought with it the increasing demand for the mass production of fighters and
bombers of standard design. By 1942,
it was decided to locate the Bristol Aeroplane Company’s development works and the manufacturing of Centaurus engines below-ground at
Spring Quarry, as well as the manufacture of undercarriages, gun barrels and turrets. The lifespan of the works was short-lived,
and production ceased in 1945. Today, evidence of the works survives particularly the lifts and escalators used to transport the workers,
and the large canteens containing striking murals by Olga Lehmann.
The factory closed in 1945 after the Second World leaving a bill of over £20,000,000 after having very little use.
Spring Quarry was then used by the Ministry of Supplies who used most of the site for Royal Navy stores until the early 90s.
The northern area of Spring Quarry was chosen as the wartime seat of power in case of nuclear war,
known as the Hawthorn Central Government War Headquarters.
Hawthorn was later known as 'Burlington' and 'Site 3'.
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 | 5th Jan 2010 | Elizabeth Shaw, Bristol
Very stripped as a factory but the building is very nice especially the attics/roof space. When we arrived we could see 2 flat bed trucks in the grounds of the factory and hear metal being cut. Luckly we did not bump into anyone.
In its heyday Elizabeth Shaw employed more than 2,500 people.
The business was started in Bristol in 1881 trading under the name of HJ Packer.
Packer had previously worked for Fry's of Bristol. He began making chocolate in a house at 46, Armoury Square, Stapleton Road under the name of Packer & Co.
By 1901 the company had grown to such an extent that a new factory was commissioned at Greenbank in the Easton area of Bristol.
The factory was built to the most modern standards of the day and included one of the very first sprinkler systems installed in a confectionery plant in Europe.
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 | 31st Dec 2009 | Lydbrook Cable Works, Gloucestershire
The Lydbrook Cable Works was built in 1912 by Harold J Smith.
In the first world war the works had lots of contracts and employed 650 people. At the end of the war business slowed down and the official receiver was brought in around 1920.
Edison Swan Electric Company bought the business in 1925.
The Cable Works closed in 1966 and the Factory was bought by Reed Paper Group, And then was taken over by Swedish Company SCA.
The Sca Factory finally closed around 2003.
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 | 24th Dec 2009 | Hams Hall Power Station
Hams Hall Power Station refers to a series of three, now demolished coal-fired power stations, situated in Warwickshire in the West Midlands of England.
It opened in 1929 with a generating capacity of 90,000 kilowatts (kW). This was increased to 240,000 kW. The station burned approximately 774,000 tonnes of coal a year. At the time it was one of the largest power stations in Europe.
Following nationalisation in 1990, the station was operated by Powergen. The C station closed in 1992. Its two chimneys and three cooling towers were demolished on 15 December 1993, under darkness.
Now only one control room remains.
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 | 4th Dec 2009 | LDV / Leyland DAF Vans Factory, Birmingham
LDV was formed in 1993 as Leyland DAF Vans Limited following a management buy-out of DAF NV's Leyland DAF van manufacturing division, following the bankruptcy of the Dutch company. Later the name was officially changed to LDV Limited.
Prior to its merger with Leyland Trucks and DAF Trucks in 1987 it was part of the British Leyland / Rover Group empire and was latterly the Freight Rover arm of the Land Rover Group division.
In December 2005, after going into administration, LDV was bought by group Sun Capital/Sun European Partners and was subject to a financial restructuring. What Van reported LDVs commitment to its existing customers, including an assurance from their marketing director that their production target of 1000 vans per month would put them well above break-even point.
The Russian GAZ Group acquired LDV on 31 July 2006, and also established a new company, GAZ International, based in the UK, to focus on the automotive industry. The BBC reported that a GAZ spokesperson said that the company had appointed former Ford of Europe executive Martin Leach and former A.T. Kearney executive Steve Young to run the business, and that it planned to expand production at LDV's Birmingham plant by adding new product lines and entering new markets in Europe and elsewhere.
Due to the severe worldwide recession, production was halted at LDV's Birmingham factory in December 2008 and on 29 April 2009 LDV Group Limited applied to go into administration.
On Tuesday, 5 May 2009, it was announced that the UK government was to make a temporary loan of £5m to the Malaysian company Weststar in aid of its bid to take over LDV.
Sadly on Tuesday, 2 June 2009, Weststar announced it was not able to raise finance for its take-over bid, placing LDV back into administration on 8 June 2009.
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 | 30th Nov 2009 | Sunbeamland, Wolverhampton
Sunbeamland was where it all began. This was the site of Richard Perry Son & Co's Jeddo Works, founded in 1790. John Marston purchased this business in 1871. It went on to become the home of Sunbeam bicycles and motorcycles until 1937.
After that it was used by a company who made automotive components.
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 | 29th Nov 2009 | Courtaulds Little Heath works, Coventry
At its height in the 1950s and 1960s, Little Heath works employed 5,000 staff, many of whom were recruited from the surrounding area.
However, the factory’s fortunes waned in the 1980s and, by 1992, its workforce had dwindled to just 450.
At around this time, Courtaulds was split into two parts, textiles and chemicals, with the latter part of the business being merged with Akzo Nobel in 1998.
Production at the site continued and became the responsibility of APL, the manufacturing side of which was sold to Celanese Acetate in January 2007.
In May that year, Celanese announced plans to cease production there with the loss of 120 jobs.
The factory, which dates back to the 1920s, has been disused since 2007, and parts of it have been out of use for more than 20 years.
Coventry was the company’s home base, and Little Heath works was an important manufacturing site, focusing on the production of acetate yarns and filter tow.
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 | 24th Nov 2009 | Sub Depot 3 Monkton Farleigh, Nr Bath, Various Visits
Sub Depot 3 Monkton Farleigh was the largest of the three Central Ammunition Depots at a total of 80 acres.
It was built in an old quarry during WW2 and it was decommissioned in 1965
Monkton Farleigh consisted of eight storage districts numbered 12 - 20 missing out number 13 because it was considered unlucky.
The Depot was connected by five miles of tunnels and had six entrances including Farleigh Down Sidings.
My photos are from Districts 19 and 20 and the South East entrance area.
They were taken over the last few years.
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 | 15th Nov 2009 | Browns Folly Quarry, Monkton Farleigh, Nr Bath
Browns Folly also known as Farleigh Down Quarry and Monkton Farleigh Mine started Quarrying in 1881.
It was one of the largest OOlite Limestone Quarry's in the area.
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 | 14th Nov 2009 | Clapham North, Deep Level Shelter
Clapham North deep level shelter along with another seven shelters were built under London Underground stations during World War II.
Each consists of a pair of parallel tunnels 16 feet 6 inches (5.03 m) in diameter and 1,200 feet (370 m) long.
Each tunnel is subdivided into two decks, and each shelter was designed to hold up to 8,000 people.
It was planned that after the war the shelters would be used as part of new express tube lines paralleling parts of the existing Northern and Central Lines.
Each tunnel is of a diameter much larger than that usually used for running tunnels, but smaller than that used for the platform tunnels, hence they were constructed at the stations that would have been bypassed on the high-speed lines.
However, 16 ft running tunnels were used for the Northern City Line opened in 1904, since it had been intended to run main-line trains here (a plan not realised until 1976).
Ten shelters were planned, but only eight were completed. These are at Belsize Park, Camden Town, Goodge Street, Chancery Lane, Stockwell, Clapham North, Clapham Common, Clapham South.
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 | 8th Nov 2009 | Intier Automotive Interiors Limited, Bitton
This place was very stripped but thought i would put it up just for the record.
The factory was used to make plastic mouldings for car interiors.
Intier Bitton had lots of customers including Toyota, Saab, Jaguar and Rover.
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 | 20th Oct 2009 | Townlands Hospital, Henley
A empty wing at a small live hospital. Some interesting stuff lying about.
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 | 31st Aug 2009 | Sevalco Chemical Plant, Avonmouth, Bristol
Sevalco, owned by Columbian Chemicals use to makes carbon black, an engineered material that improves the strength and durability of a range of products like tyres and other mechanical rubber goods, as well as inks, paints and plastics.
The 20-acre factory site had been in operation since 1951 and closed late 2008.
Sevalco has hit the headlines in recent years for pollution.
It was ordered to pay more than £300,000 in fines and costs in 2004 for dumping up to 17 times the legal limit of cyanide into the Severn estuary.
In October 2008 the company was ordered to pay more than £13,000 after letting oil leak into a tributary of the River Severn following a prosecution brought by the Environment Agency.
In 1997, a thief was jailed for six years after spreading 20 tonnes of fine carbon dust stolen from Sevalco along a 15-mile stretch of the A38 in South Gloucestershire.
It led to a clean-up bill estimated at £500,000 and sparked health fears for families and animals.
Two years later, Friends of the Earth named Sevalco as one of four Avonmouth firms on a list of the region's seven worst polluters using Government Environment Agency figures for emissions of cancer-causing chemicals.
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 | 14th Aug 2009 | Belmont Hospital, Tiverton
I have been meaning to get in here for a few months after a quick peek when i found a mortuary trolley in a outbuilding.
Sadly there was not too much to see.
Belmont Hospital was the town's workhouse, built in the 1830s on the site of an earlier workhouse.
It originally opened in 1837 as a workhouse and became a hospital caring for the elderly after World War II.
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 | 13th Aug 2009 | St Joseph's Missionary Society, Mill Hill
The St Joseph's Foreign Missionary Society (Mill Hill Missionaries) was founded at Mill Hill in 1866 by Father Herbert Vaughan. It was the first catholic missionary society to be founded in England, and was done so in the form of a training college.
The college organised successful missions across much of the world, but eventually numbers began declining in the 1980s.
We spent a few hours looking around the place most of it was stripped but it was still a nice little explore.
It was a bit of a maze inside with some of the doors ziptied it made navigating a bit more interesting.
We seen security a few times doing there rounds and sat in the sheads out the back. We also found a room that looked like security had been using as look out point.
It was used for the BBC comedy series Psychoville as a hospital and in June it was used by Illumintions media for Hamlet.
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 | 12th Aug 2009 | St. Cuthbert's College, Ushaw,
Ushaw College (or St. Cuthbert's College, Ushaw) is situated about four and a half miles North West of Durham city and, since its foundation in 1808, has been primarily concerned with educating students for the Catholic priesthood.
It is a direct descendant of the English College at Douai in France which was founded in 1568 by William (later Cardinal) Allen
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 | 11th Aug 2009 | Richards Broadford Works, Aberdeen
Founded more than 200 years ago, Richards operated what was to become the oldest iron-frame mill in Scotland and the last remaining textile mill in the 'Granite City'. It was also one of the principal employers with more than 3,000 people working in the mill at its height in the early 20th century.
Richards of Aberdeen became a public limited company in 1898. With the decline in traditional flax spinning activities, in the mid-1960s the company embarked upon a programme of development of synthetic yarn ranges which it maintained with few changes until the dawn of the 21st century
The company was purchased by millionaire Ian Suttie, chief executive of First Oil, in 2002 after facing receivership. In 2003 the company moved its headquarters to the outskirts of Aberdeen, with assistance from Aberdeen City Council.
The mill and its famous hose tower, one year after closureFifty-two job losses were announced at the start of November 2004, despite the employment of 80 new staff in May of that year. Soon the entire remaining workforce of 196 was made redundant. Many had been at the mill for their entire working lives. Workers were angered not only by news of the closure itself but by the way they discovered what had happened: payments simply stopped arriving in their bank accounts. Another indicator came when supplies ceased to arrive at the site. Aside from global economic conditions, one of the main factors causing the closure was the company pension scheme which by November 2004 faced a shortfall of £5m.
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 | 7th Aug 2009 | Rednaught, Bristol
This Red brick culvert would have been on the original Malago stream watercourse before Dreadnaught was built.
There is still a bit of water but not as much as there would have been before.
The culvert was not very long with lots of mud built up along the sides.
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 | 7th Aug 2009 | Dreadnaught / The Malago Stormwater Interceptor, Bristol
The Malago storm water interceptor was built between 1971 and 1974 to prevent areas of Bristol from flooding after intense storms.
It must have been the nicest weather we have had in ages.
Most people are chillin in the sun making the most of it,
But not us we are trying to get into a cold wet storm drain.
The most interesting parts of the drain was the infalls and the outfall other than that in between was just a long tunnel.
It's about a hour walk from end to end and not too slippy apart from the outfall where both of us ended up on our arses.
Running along side the storm drain is a sewer.
There is a few overflow chambers so that if they fill up for some reason it would overflow into the storm drain and then into the river.
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 | 17th Jul 2009 | Paton’s Mill, Johnstone
The historic Paton’s Mill is an A-listed building. The six-storey mill, with its white facade, is currently empty, but there have been suggestions on it being converted into a industrial museum or 79 flats. The Old Mill section of the huge factory dates back to 1782 and is thought to be the first machine factory in the world. The mill in High Street was opened originally as a cotton-spinning factory but was later used for lace manufacture.
Built by the Corse and Burns Company, it predates by four years the New Lanark cotton-mill which was founded by David Dale, the Stewarton-born industrialist who was apprenticed to a weaver in Paisley. Paton's took over the mill in 1896 when their first factory in Clark Street was destroyed by fire.
News paper artical - Historic mill is falling to pieces.
http://www.paisleydailyexpress.co.uk/renfrewshire-news/local-news-in-renfrewshire/2009/04/30/historic-mill-is-falling-to-pieces-87085-23504689/
It is very sad to see how much this place has gone down hill since the beginning of the year.
Looking at other peoples reports you can clearly see it deteriorating and i don't think it will be long before the place gets burnt down by neds.
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 | 15th Jul 2009 | . Bournville Lane Baths Birmingham
Bournville Lane Baths is a grade II listed building, which was opened in 1911 by King's Norton and Northfield district council.
Visited with Speed and Rooks seems we were in the area.
Lots of pigeons and the building itself missing roof in places and generally in a bad way.
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 | 14th Jul 2009 | Inverkip power station,
Inverkip power station is an oil-fired power station in Inverclyde, on the west coast of Scotland. Its 778 foot (236m) chimney dominates the local area and is the third tallest in the UK and Scotland's tallest free-standing structure.
Construction began for the then South of Scotland Electricity Board (SSEB) in 1970 of what was to be Scotland's first oil-fired power station. However, the soaring price of oil as a result of the 1973 oil crisis meant that by the time construction was completed generation was uneconomical. It was therefore never utilised to anything near capacity with 1200MW being mothballed and the remaining capacity being used to satisfy peak demand. A notable exception was during the miners' strike of 1984/5 when low coal supplies prompted operation at capacity. Generation ceased in January 1988.
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 | 8th Jul 2009 | Millennium Mills, London
Built in 1932 by the Royal Victoria Dock in East London, Spiller's Millennium Mill was the largest flour mill in Britain.
This area of the docklands was once the centre of London's flour milling industry, and both the Co-operative Welfare Society and Rank Hovis used to have similar mills to this one in the locality.
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 | 23rd Jun 2009 | Rodwell House, 100 Middlesex Street, London
This place has just about topped out at 33 floors and gave us some nice views of the city.
At one point i looked up to one of the cranes and it looked like there was someone sat in it. Luckly there was not even tho there was a waggon of rebar waiting to be off loaded.
The day time photo was taken from Hackney children's hospital.
You can see Rodwell House on the left of the Gurkin.
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 | 23rd Jun 2009 | Morrilew China, Stoke
This little gem is hidden away behind a housing estate next to a river.
Lots of moulds and glaze patterns the office even had loads of paperwork in.
I just wish i took more photos.
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 | 23rd Jun 2009 | Tams pottery, Stoke On Trent
This was to be our second pottery of the day.
An interesting little explore of whats left of the factory and offices.
The building in the 3rd phot with the bottle kilns was sealed up tight.
John Tams was born in Stafford Street, Longton in 1837, the son of John Tams and Ann nee Procter. The family had been established in Shelton by about 1620.
John Tams was apprenticed to a working potter. About 1865 he entered into partnership with Lowe, manufacturing in St. Gregory's Pottery, High Street, Longton. The partnership was dissolved about 1873 and in 1874 John Tams bought the Crown pottery, on the corner of Commerce Street and High Street. At first he specialised in the manufacture of imperial measured ware, mugs, jugs, etc., for hotels and public houses. The increasing use of glass and further government regulations forced him to develop new lines of production, including ornamental and general earthenware.
The Tams Group Limited was formed in April 2000. It was a management buy in of part of the former John Tams Group PLC, which went into receivership in February 2000.
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 | 23rd Jun 2009 | J H Weatherby, Falcon works, Stoke on Trent
J.H.Weatherby was founded in Tunstall in 1891 and moved to Hanley the following year.
It first made domestic ware such as basins and ewers, later moving into tableware and giftware.
The firm also entered the market for hotelware – leading ultimately to its downfall.
After the closure of J.H.Weatherby in 2000 Jonathan Weatherby took over producing for JONROTH, working with a very limited staff at the Falcon Pottery. ..... operating as a decorator under the name of Jonathan Weatherby At Falcon Pottery.
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 | 22nd Jun 2009 | Stanton Foundry, Ilkeston
This was a bit of a race against time to explore as much as we could and get out of the site before the demolition team started work at 8am. We just about made it
The explore was very dirty with everything covered in black dust.
It is hard to show you just how big this place is.
I just wish we had a few more hours and did not have to rush.
The foundry closed on the 24th of May 2007 resulting in 185 production workers losing their jobs.
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 | 22nd Jun 2009 | TG Green Pottery, Church Gresley
The T G Green pottery, best known as makers of Cornishware, was founded by Thomas Goodwin Green in 1864, when he bought a small pottery at Church Gresley from a Henry Wileman. Originally makers of earthenware kitchenwares, the more decorative Cornish Kitchenware was borne out of the economic hardships and recession of the early 1920s. Cornish Ware was to prove successful and long-lived, and is still produced to this day, albeit under different ownership.
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 | 12th Jun 2009 | St. John's Hospital, Lincolnshire
St John's Hospital was founded in 1848 and opened in August 1852.
The architect was John R Hamilton of Gloucester and he was assisted by Thomas Percy, Surveyor to the County of Kesteven.
The lay out of the hospital was Corridor plan.
The hospital closed in December 1989.
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 | 12th Jun 2009 | Harold Wood Hospital, London
Harold Wood Hospital closed on 13th of December 2006 with patients and functions relocated to Queen's Hospital and to King George Hospital.
The site vacated by the hospital has been earmarked for a 470-home housing development.
The original plan to keep certain NHS facilities has been superseded and the entire plot has been approved for residential development. Local residents are opposing the proposal of over 800 dwellings, including a 9 storey block.
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 | 11th Jun 2009 | St. Mary's Hospital, Stannington
St. Mary's Hospital was founded in 1910 and opened in 1914.
The architects were George Thomas Hine FRIBA, Consultant architect to the Commissioners in Lunacy, with H.Carter-Pegg and the layout was compact arrow plan.
The hospital closed in 1995.
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 | 11th Jun 2009 | British Extracting Co. Ltd, Hull,
British Extracting was built in the early 20th century to store oilseeds.
The oilseeds were then crushed and the oils extracted.
The left overs were then used as cattle feed. British extractingg has been derelict since the 1970's.
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 | 11th Jun 2009 | Thorpe Marsh Power Station, Doncaster
Thorpe Marsh Power Station was a 1 Gigawatt (1000 MW) coal-fired power station.
It opened in 1963. It contained 2 generating sets powered by coal, and had a gas turbine set using an industrial static version of a Rolls-Royce Avon aero engine with a capacity of 14.9 MW
The power station closed in 1994.
Most of the power station has been demolished and now only its six cooling towers which stand at 340 ft high and are 260 ft in diameter at the bases.
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 | 10th Jun 2009 | Spode pottery, Stoke-on-Trent
Spode pottery was founded by Josiah Spode he opened a factory in Stoke-on-Trent in 1767 and in 1776 developed the current Spode factory.
Josiah Spode earned renown in the ceramic business for perfecting the blue underglaze printing process in 1784 and for co-developing the formula for fine bone china.
His business in creamware and in pearlware was very successful and the business was carried on through his sons at Stoke until April 1833.
The pottery was then taken over by Copeland and Garrett untell 1847 when W.T. Copeland and sons took over.
In 2006, the business merged with Royal Worcester. Two years later the merged company entered administration on 6 November 2008.
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 | 10th Jun 2009 | Rolls Royce East works, Filton, Bristol
Well i have been watching this for a while now and finaly got round to exploring it the other night with OT.
Access was a bit tricky with the live site next door and air field over the road.
The East Works has been replaced by a £75m factory across the road, which was opened by Princess Anne last October.
The move, which took place over four months, involved transferring more than 750 staff and 800 pieces of equipment from East Works to the new site.
The East Works has made engines for a range of aircraft including Concorde, the Harrier jump jet and the Brabazon.
The newly built Patchway site is the Defence Aerospace base for Rolls and houses assembly lines for a range of aircraft engines, including the EJ200 for the Typhoon, the Adour for the Hawk and the RTM322 for the NH90 and EH101 helicopters.
The former factory site will be flattened in the next six months by demolition contractor Buckingham and then be offered for sale next year.
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 | 8th Jun 2009 | Robins Cinema, Camberley, Surrey
Robins cinema opened on 27th August 1932 as the Regal Cinema. It had seating in stalls and circle.
In 1937 County Cinemas were taken over by Oscar Deutsch's Odeon Theatres Ltd so in 1946, it was re-named Odeon.
In October 1967 Odeon Camberley was sold off too the Classic Cinemas chain, and the name was changed to Classic.
The Cinema was tripled in 1973, with the former circle converted into screen 1 with 358 seats and two screens located in the former rear stalls seating 155 and 131.
The Classic Cinemas chain was sold to the Cannon Group in May 1982 and was re-named Cannon. The Cannon closed on 17th February 1994 and re-opened the following day as part of the independent Robins Cinemas chain, re-named Robins Cinema.
The Robins Cinema was closed on 15th May 2003,
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 | 23rd May 2009 | Dunchurch house, Birmingham
This is a one of several abandoned tower blocks on a estate close to the center of Birmingham. The first 2 sets of stairs had been removed to try to stop people getting up there. A little bit of creativity got us up there in the end.
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 | 22nd May 2009 | Return to Longbridge
Well it had been about five months since our last visit, So me and Bubblehead decided to pop back. Not a lot had changed in the areas we visited apart from some of the car bodys had been moved about and the finished cars have gone or been moved. We had a few close calls on the old production line and at one point we had someone on the gantrys above us. And we also had to hide on the paint line for a bit.
A good evening.
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 | 21st May 2009 | Thames Water Emergency Bunker, Blunsdon
This bunker was built in the 1980s by Thames Water. It is beside a reservoir in a fenced compound. The bunker was buily as a personnel shelter staff who worked at the Latton water control center a few miles up the road.
The bunker was built to protect the people inside against blasts and radiation, and had it's own water supply and generator. It also had toilets a shower a kitchen and could house 12 people for 30 days in the event of war.
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 | 20th May 2009 | The Royal Pier Hotel, Weston-Super-Mare
This place has been closed for a few years now. It's a shame because it is a cool building that is built into the cliff. It has been squated by the looks of things and most of the doors have gone walkys. I was not going to bother trying to get in but i am glad i did now.
Situated next to Birbeck Pier on the edge of the Bristol Channel, This hotel boasts beautiful views spanning across South Wales, Devon, Exmoor and Weston-Super-Mare bay. Enjoy breakfast and dinner in the restaurant, relax in the cocktail bar or enjoy the more lively Prince Consort Bar, before retiring to your comfortable en suite room.
The Royal Hotel still remains one of Westons Premier Hotels. Its quaint Victorian style and panoramic views of the bay give a tranquil and peaceful atmosphere. The hotel boasts a large seated restaurant, upbeat bar area that has recently undergone a refurbishment and a relaxing lounge area.
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 | 10th May 2009 | Church Climb, Alesia, Paris
Well after a night down the Catacombs i left via a manhole around 4am, And went to have a look at a church that Dsankt had told me had scaffold on.
So up i went still in my waiders.
It was a good view up there,
I think the hoist went up about 19 floors.
I took some night shots then made a bed out of some netting and got my sleeping out.
I watched the sun rise then had a few hours sleep in the sun before getting some day shots and leaving.
Thanks to Dsankt for the tip off about this one.
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 | 8th May 2009 | Puiselet Sand Quarry, Nr Paris
This place was unreal the galleries are massive and when you touch the walls which looks like rock it crumbles into sand.
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 | 6th May 2009 | SaintDenis Powerstation, Paris
The power station is very stripped but it was still a nice little explore.
The views from the top were also good.
The first phase (150 megawatts) was built between 1931 and
1933. The fifth and final phase was completed twenty years later in 1953. When the fifth phase was finished the power station could generate 400 megawatt.
The power station was coal powered and was used for the metro lines.
It was decommissioned in 1986
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 | 4th May 2009 | The Paris Catacombs
Well i have made it to Paris and it's rush hour, The smell of sweat on the metro even makes the Catacombs smell good.
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 | 1st May 2009 | Random Quarry, Les Andelys, France
I was at a big party/festival in France when i noticed there was a quarry next to it so it was just beggin to be explored. There was only one problem and that was the police patrolling in a 4x4. When i first saw the 4x4 i just thought it was security, It was not untell later that night when i went back with some mates that i found out it was the police. I got busted and just pretended to be drunk and lost.
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 | 26th Apr 2009 | Rank Hovis / Clarence Mills Hull
Well it would have been rude not to take a look at the Hovis mill whilst in Hull.
Visited with a fuck off hangover and met Speed Ot and Squirrell inside.
This place is amazing all the wood is just unreal and as for the lift health and safety would have a field day.
Really enjoyed this it was definitely as good as it looked in the reports i had see.
The mill you see today is not actually the original mill. The original mill was bombed in WW2 and a replacement was built.
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 | 25th Apr 2009 | Odeon Aylesbury
One of the original Oscar Deutsch built Odeon theatres, the Odeon Aylesbury opened on 21st June 1937 with Shirley Temple in "Dimples".
The exterior has four vertical fins over the entrance, which have three narrow glazed windows between them. Inside the auditorium there were troughs across the ceiling which contained concealed lighting. Seating was provided for 954 in the stalls and 497 in the circle.
The Odeon was tripled from 26th August 1973 when it re-opened with "The Sword in the Stone" in the former circle screen which seated 497, "Lady Caroline Lamb" and "That'll be the Day" in the two mini screens in the former rear stalls which seated 99 and 108. The Odeon was re-furbished in 1984.
In late 1999, with ABC Cinemas about to open a new 6-screen multiplex in the town (now operated by Odeon), the Odeon was closed on 30th October 1999. The building was purchased by the Sainsbury supermarket chain, to enable a new store and car park to be built on the site. Planning permission has been given, but to date (May 2008) the closed-down former Odeon sits awaiting its fate.
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 | 11th Apr 2009 | Stonehouse Asylum, Dartford
Designed by James Bunstone Bunning.
Opened in 1866 altho later additions were made.
From 1892, private patients were admitted.
From 1924 known as the City of London Mental Hospital.
In 1948 the hospital was transferred to the Minister of Health under the National Health Service Act 1946.
Among its most famous patients was the poet and composer Ivor Gurney, who resided there from 1922 until his death in 1937.
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 | 11th Apr 2009 | North Woolwich railway tunnel
The tunnel was built to run under the Royal Docks to stop the bottleneck of rail traffic at Connaught swing bridge.
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 | 15th Feb 2009 | Dunkin' Doe Nuts, Ebbw vale
Dunkin' Doe Nuts is a culvert on the River Ebbw Fawr that runs for about a mile. The culvert was built in 1937 when the steel works expanded.
Last year a man died in the culvert after he touched a live cable that had been cut by metal thefts.
I found the culvert interesting with lots of feature and the culvert changing shape and construction.
The river was flowing very fast and when i tryed to stand in the middle it nearly took my legs out.
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 | 9th Feb 2009 | St Edward's Home for Boys, Coleshill,
George Vincent Hudson founded Father Hudson's Society.
He is remembered for his vision and humanity and as a man who gave his life to the care of many thousands of children in desperate need.
With the growth of the factory system, increasing urban development and the exploitation of child labour, Father Hudson feared for the children who found themselves destitute through no fault of their own - helpless, friendless and powerless. From his earliest days in the small parish at Coleshill he formulated ideas to reach out and help innocent victims of circumstance.
So in 1905 St Edward's was built.
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 | 7th Jan 2009 | Bridge Valley Road Air Raid Shelter, Bristol
Visited last summer with Rooks.
I believe the shelter has been sealed again now.
The Shelter was originally a railway tunnel just up the road from the tunnel that the old Bristol City Council Bombproof Stores was in.
More recently the Shelter has been used as a range rifle/gun club.
The electric was still on and we managed to get some lights on.
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 | 2nd Jan 2009 | National Gas Turbine Establishment, Pyestock
Pyestock also known as The National Gas Turbine Establishment was used by the MOD as a aviation research center.
Visited Pyestock again today and it was still as impressive as ever even though it is a lot more smashed up than on my last visits. Lots of windows broken and doors kicked down and ''Cock smoker'' graffiti in the computer building, mostly pointless vandelisum and a bit of theft too.
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 | 28th Dec 2008 | Longbridge Tunnels, Birmingham
Visited the tunnels under Longbridge with Bubblehead on Friday we also took a boat to have a look what was the other side of the flooded tunnel. There was not much to be honest only 2 sets of steps that went up but were blocked up and the tunnel its self was blocked up. I had seen photos of the tunnels but had no idear how big and long they were. There was lots of cool bits and bobs scattered about too which was a bonus.
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 | 28th Dec 2008 | MG Rover, Longbridge
We did not plan to do this it just sort of happened. we decided to give it a go. Knowing the security were very active in cars and on foot made us on edge. It was not long and we were on the old production line The more we followed it the more live it seemed to get. We spent about a hour and a half in there before the risk got too high and we had to leave. I knew that the more we followed the line the better it would get, But we had to leave because getting caught just was not an option.
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 | 28th Dec 2008 | Annesley Colliery
Visited with bubblehead on our way too Clipstone colliery. We did not stay too long just climbed the headstock and had a little look around the bath house.
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 | 28th Dec 2008 | Crystal Phallus, Birmingham
I am no stranger to underground exploring but this was my first drain.
Apart from the fact it is about 3am and i need sleep and trying not to fall on my arse i enjoyed it.
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 | 27th Dec 2008 | clipstone colliery, Mansfield, Nottinghamshire
Clipstone was closed by British Coal in 1993 but was reopened under the control of RJB Mining in 1994 the colliery cease production in June 2003.
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 | 24th Dec 2008 | St Regis Paper Company Ltd, Sudbrook
Every time i use to go over the Severn bridge i would look down and think to myself WTF is that down there? It was allways lit up and there was never was any activity going on there. So i looked into it and found out it was a closed down Papermill.
I went to have a look a few times but for various reasons it was a no go. Went back today with Rooks and with a bit of climbing, camera/salvage worker/security dodging we were in.
By the time the salvage workers fucked off we did not have much time left so i think we only got to see about half the site.
The Sudbrook Mill was established in the 1960s close to Chepstow in South Wales. It produced semi-chemical fluting, which forms the corrugated layer in cardboard packaging. The Sudbrook process uses a combination of virgin fibre from hardwood with recycled cardboard. It produced a grade of paper which occupies a niche position in the market for packaging materials used in applications involving exposure to moisture e.g. fruit and vegetables.
The plant had lacked investment and when energy prices went up dramatically with the plant bein dependence on gas it was decided that the plant would be closed in march 2006.
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 | 21st Dec 2008 | Fair Mile Hospital, Moulsford,
Fair Mile also known as Berkshire County Asylum and Moulsford asylum was founded in 1868 and opened in September 1870. The Layout is Corridor plan with Female blocks to the south. Fair Mile closed in April 2003.
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 | 14th Dec 2008 | St. Joseph's Seminary, Wigan
St Joseph’s opened as a Catholic priest training college in 1883 and became one of the largest of its kind in Europe. When the college closed it was handed over to the Northern Institute and was used as a retreat and conference centre for the Archdiocese under the leadership of Msgr John Devine.
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 | 14th Dec 2008 | Harpurhey Bath, Manchester
Harpurhey Baths were designed by Henry Price and built in 1909-10.
They were closed down during a routine inspection in 2001 because of health and safety fears. There are plans for the baths to be partially demolished and developed for use by the college next door.
A really beautiful building but hard to believe it was only closed in 2001.
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 | 10th Dec 2008 | Westwood Quarry, April 08
Westwood Quarry is situated 6 miles South East of Bath, it is a fairly large quarry which originally started as two quarry, one known as The Tump. After quarrying stopped a large part of the quarry was cleared out by the Agaric Mushroom Company who used the quarry as an underground mushroom farm cleared large part of the quarry for the purpose of growing mushrooms.
During the Second World War roughly half of the mushroom farm area was used by Royal Enfield. It was turned in to an underground factory making anti-air craft predictors. After the War, Royal Enfield remained at the site and used as a workshop for their bikes up until 1970. The workshop was then taken over by two ex-Enfield employees who ran a servicing and repair workshop from the quarry for another 20 years.
In a totally separate and isolated area of the quarry, accessible via only one entrance from the main drift, an area of the quarry was put aside for one very important reason. Following the London Blitz, the contents of all the London Museums and Galleries were moved to safe hideaways deep underground or in remote rural areas. The 20,000 sq feet area of Westwood Quarry was converted into an immensly secure underground vault for the treasures of the British Museum, the Victoria & Albert Museum and priceless artefacts from many private collections including the crown jewels, in fact Queen Mary came to visit the quarry in 1943.
The repository was heavily protected against the damp, air conditioning made sure that the area in the stores were always at a consistent temperature and humidity. The quarry was also fitted with one of the first ever smoke detectors which at the time, was very technically advanced. The repository was secured with two large safe doors requisitioned from a London bank.
The repository is still in use today but now under Wansdyke Security, a security store company who use the site for long term archive storage. Other parts of the quarry have been put back to their original use, in the mid 1970s when Hanson once again began stone extraction from the quarry.
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 | 26th Oct 2008 | Clares Merchandise Handling Equipment Factory, Wells
Clares Merchandise Handling Equipment was originally founded in 1966. From modest beginnings, the site grew to 250,000 square feet, giving it the capacity to produce high-quality products in large numbers. It use to employ around 250 people and had a £22 million turnover.
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 | 7th Sep 2008 | St Lawrence's Hospital, Bodmin, Cornwall
Cornwall County Asylum was founded in 1815 and opened in 1820 with accommodation for 102 patients.
By 1844 it had accommodation for 153 patients.
Cornwall County Asylum later became known as St Lawrence's Hospital under the National Health Service.
I think it closed in 2002.
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 | 31st Aug 2008 | Graylingwell Asylum
West Sussex County Asylum/Graylingwell Hospital
Also know as Chichester asylum and Summersdale hospital.
founded in 1894 opened in 1897 and it closed in 2003.
It is a compact arrow plan layout and the architect was Sir Arthur Blomfield.
Developers have unveiled their formal plans to knock down most of the site and turn it into 750 new 'eco-homes' and a school and shops.
Historic buildings such as the water tower, the home of Black Beauty author Anna Sewell, the church and the farm buildings will be refurbished and reused.
But they want to knock the main hall down and build a new mixed-use community hall. Hopefully if they do end up with permission to develop the site they will keep the hall. It would be very sad to see it knocked down.
Good luck to the theatre and arts groups that are continuing to fight to save the hall.
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 | 31st Aug 2008 | Shoreham Cement Works |
 | 31st Aug 2008 | Royal Alexandra Children's Hospital, Brighton
The Royal Alexandra Hospital was built in 1881 but this was the not the first children's hospital. The first children's hospital was in Western Road in 1868, just a private house that had two or three beds in it. They then bought a old schoolhouse. The schoolhouse became too small so they knocked it down and in 1881 actually built the childrens hospital on Dyke Rd. The doctor who was behind a lot of the development was Dr Taaffe. Dr Taaffe wrote to their Royal Highnesses, the Prince and Princess of Wales, to come and officially open the Royal Alexandra Hospital, which they did on 21st July, 1881. The hospital finally closed in 2007.
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 | 11th Jul 2008 | Elysium Cinema, Swansea
The Elysium Cinema opened on 11th April 1914. It was a single screen cinema and had 900 seats. It closed as a cinema in 1960.
It was then used as a bingo hall that closed around 1994.
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 | 16th May 2008 | The Catacombs of Paris 14/15 May 2008
This was my second visit to the Paris Catacombs. After my last visit it had left me wanting to see more of the around 200 miles of underground tunnel complex.
Riddled with history from way back in its quarry days where the stone was used to build Paris's cathedrals.
To the bones in the Ossuary when the grave yards became full in Paris they relocated the bones to the catacombs between 1786 and 1860 it is said that 5 to 6 million skeletons were moved to the catacombs.
Of course this is only a tiny bit of the appeal of the Catacombs it also offers world war history with bunkers and a fall out shelter.
Industrial with a underground brewery.
Culture of the Cataphiles who spend lots of time in the Catacombs and make and decorating rooms.
I think this is why the Catacombs appeals to me so much it is a whole world down there under the busy streets of Paris.
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 | 27th Apr 2008 | West Park, Epsom, Surrey 27/04/08
West Park Hospital was opened in 1923. The complete hospital was anticipated to hold approximately 2,000 patients of mixed class.
I think the main hospital closed around 2005. There is still some buildings being used on the site.
This was my fourth visit and i seen lots things i had missed on my previous visits.
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 | 26th Apr 2008 | Mid Wales Hospital, Talgarth, Breconshire 26/04/08
Well I thought it was about time i checked out Mid Wales and as i was in the area i went and had a look for a few hrs.
I was impressed it was a bit bigger than it looked when i first got there.
Mid Wales Hospital opened on the 18th of February 1903 and closed on the 7th of April 2000.
The layout is Compact arrow plan and the Architects were John Giles, Albert Edward Gough and Trollope, of London.
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 | 13th Apr 2008 | Cwm Coke, South Wales
Cwm coke works opened in 1958 and
closed in 2002. There was also a Colliery called Cwm Colliery which closed in 1986.
Since the works closed it has fell victim to arson and scrap metal theft. And as a result security are very active.
It was such a nice afternoon and the blue sky made it perfect for the outside shots.
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 | 6th Apr 2008 | RNAS Portland
RNAS Portland was an air station of the Royal Navy from 1917.
The site was first built in 1917 as HMS Serepta, within the confines of Portland Harbour as a seaplane base; the aircraft operating from the base's slipways. In 1919, No. 241 Squadron RAF (formed from RNAS flights operating there in 1918) was disbanded and aviation operations ceased.
In 1946, Hoverfly R-4Bs moved in and the base's playing fields were taken over as a landing ground and became the site of the modern heliport. 815 Naval Air Squadron flew its 12 Whirlwinds in from RNAS Eglinton on 14 April 1959 and the station was formally commissioned as HMS Osprey on 24 April 1959.
The base was gradually improved over the years, with the addition of a (short) main runway and landing spots. It has been the home of the small ships' flight Wasp, Wessex and Lynx fleet and at one point, the slipway was used by hovercraft.
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 | 23rd Mar 2008 | Kingston Mill, Bradford on Avon
Went to have a look at Kingston Mill with Root and Rooks. The place was very striped but glad we got to see it as it looks like they have started pulling parts of it down.
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 | 22nd Mar 2008 | Box Central, Wiltshire
Visited Box again today this time concentrating on going to see some of the MOD links to Spring quarry. First stop was Cathedrel for a quick photo then i cut across to to B12 and went and said hello to the robots. After a few photos i went down A Passage down to Windy Tunnel. When i got to the end i turned around and went up Old Kent Road on to B Passage and made my way down to the Red Door. I then made my way over to the Shafts and up to Cliftworks Passage up to the water tank and then out of the back door.
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 | 21st Mar 2008 | London Road tunnel shelter Portsmouth
Visited with Rooks.
London Road tunnel shelter was one of two shelters built in Portsmouth. I went to visit the London Road shelter.
It could officially hold 2,535 people, but Could be increased to double that in times of need.
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 | 16th Mar 2008 | Fletchers Paper Mill, Oldham,
Visited with Speed and Rooks.
This was our last site of our road trip and in my opinion the best site.
Even though it closed in 2001 there are still lights on some of the machinery is on and would start on the press of a button. We picked up a phone in the offices and it was still live The way that stuff has just been left is crazy. No attempt to salvage things like perfectly good looking forklift trucks.
I think thats why i liked it so much. That and the location right on the edge of the Peak Districts
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 | 15th Mar 2008 | Denbigh Asylum
Visited with Speed and Rooks.
It was starting to rain and i was getting tired after only getting about 1hrs sleep the night before. For a long time i have seen photos and said to myself i must get up there. We had a walk around for about a hour and then it was starting to get dark. The place is very trashed and has been raped for led the last few years. I did not enjoy this explore but i think there is a lot more to see and i will return on a nice summers day.
Info
North Wales Hospital
Denbigh Asylum
Date opened: 1848
Date closed: 1995
Layout:Tudorbethain
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 | 15th Mar 2008 | Cheshire County Asylum
Visited with BenWRX Speed and Rooks.
I had seen a few reports but this place was better and bigger than i had imagined. Some of the front building have started to be demolished so i am not sure how long this place has left. Our visit was cut a bit short but we still had a good look around.
Info
Cheshire County Asylum
West Cheshire Hospital
Date opened: 25th August 1829
Date closed: 2005
Architects: William Cole Jr., of Chester
George Enoch Grayson & Edward Augustus Lyle Ould, of Liverpool
Henry Beswick, Surveyor to the County of Cheshire
Layout: Early Linear Corridor plan with Pavilion and Compact Arrow plan additions
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 | 15th Mar 2008 | Lancaster Moor Hospital
Visited with Speed and Rooks.
This was our first site of the day. When we got there i was well impressed when i seen the building its gorgeous. I was going to get some photos from out side on the way out. But sadly we were in a bit of a rush. The bits we seen were mostly very stripped but the corridor and arches and other bits about the building made up for this.
Info
Lancaster Moor Hospital.
Date opened: 28th July 1816
Date closed: December 1999
Architects: Thomas Standen (1816)
AV Kershaw (1882)
Layout: Early Corridor plan
Alternative Names: Lancaster Asylum, Moor Hospital, Ridge Lea Hospital
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 | 14th Mar 2008 | Liverpool Royal Insurance Building
The Royal Insurance Building, Dale Street, Liverpool, England was built between 1897-1903. The architect was J. Francis Doyle. It is a Grade II* listed building. The building's steel frame structure may have been the first such steel frame in the UK. It is finished with an Edwardian Baroque façade of granite and Portland stone, and an elaborate allegorical frieze by the sculptor C.J. Allen.
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 | 23rd Feb 2008 | Battersea Power Station, London
The first part of Battersea Power Station was built in 1939. Then in 1953 work started on a second, mirror-image station (B) which is built alongside the original A station. In 1975 Station A shut down and B later in 1983. In 1986 Planning approval was given for the for the Alton Towers owner to build a indoor theme park. By 1989 the plans had been axed and there have been lots of other failed plans for the site up to this day.
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 | 17th Feb 2008 | West Park, Surrey
A very cold early and hung over start saw us dodging CCTV looking for access. Once inside one of the corridors we started to explore. When we got to the laundry area we stopped for a rest when we started to hear voices and a lot of banging. After about fifteen minutes holding on where we were hoping they would pass we decided to bale. I will have to get back at some point. Thanks guys for a good day. And thanks again Ridds for letting us crash as yours.
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 | 16th Feb 2008 | Littlebrook B Powerstation
Visited with Fieldy, Rooks, Winchester, Speed, Sinnerman and Mushcan.
On the walk down to the power station something did not seem right i am sure the same empty bus went past us about 3 times . Any way we got in ok and spent a few hours there. It reminded me a bit of Pyestock just in better condition.
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 | 5th Feb 2008 | Box Freestone Quarry, Wiltshire
Visited Box today after work for a few hours. Decided to head north up to the Clift works area. Its funny how you lose track of time underground. I went in through the back door and made my way up to the water tank. Then turned right up Cliftworks passage past the iron door. Just after the rubbish shaft i turned right to have a look at some cranes then down to the Memorial Plaque.
Then it was time to head back.
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 | 27th Jan 2008 | Altitude 25, Croydon
This is my first bit of London high stuff. I was in Croydon and remembered seeing a few reports of this place so decided to give it a go. Thanks to Flat4 for looking up the location for me i get so lost in London. Visited with Willis.
Altitude 25 is a new residential building next to Croydon east station and stands at 269ft (26 floors) It was a bit windy up there but still well worth it.
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 | 27th Jan 2008 | Longcross Barracks, Surrey
My first stop of the day Longcross barracks. Its a bit bare but its good to see the overall condition of the place is good. A bit of a brown pants moment when a Chinook came over very low just as i was between buildings. I was so sure the it was goin to land i have never ran so fast in my life!
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 | 27th Jan 2008 | Cane Hill Asylum , 27/1/08
Cane Hill opened its doors in 1882 and at its peak held a maximum of 2000 patents. Closed its doors in 1991.
Well this was my second visit to Cane hill and the main reason for coming to London this weekend. After my first visit with Willis and Bubblehead i have been gagging to get back hear. I find Cane hill so photogenic i have to stop myself from taking a photo of every little thing. This time my aim was to try to see some of the areas we did not see last time. I did not stay too long but was pleased i got to see some of admin. When i was in this area i could hear footsteps so i snook off then quick marched away from that area.
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 | 12th Jan 2008 | Bristol City Council Bombproof Record Stores
Not to be confused with Clifton Rocks Railway!
Down below the Clifton Suspension Bridge in the Avon Gorge lies a old disused railway tunnel. Around 1940 Bristol City Council had it converted into a bombproof store for the city records.
Access was tricky and stupidly i forgot my wellies so i got very wet. Once i was inside there was a corridor running down the left with rooms off to the right. Each room had a upstairs that you could access by a metal ladder. At the end of the corridor was a safe door built in to the wall.
It looks like its been left well alone since they moved out but the water damage has taken its toll on the wood.
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 | 6th Jan 2008 | RNAD Dean Hill, Wiltshire
I had a little look at the underground magazins at Dean Hill Royal Naval Armament Depot today. I was a bit pissed off i could not get up to number 1 magazine which would have ocasionly temporarily housed nuclear materials.
Never mind.
Dean hill opened in 1941 for the storage, inspection and maintenance of naval armaments. The primary task of the depot was storage of munitions in a series of 24 underground magazines excavated in the chalk hillside.
Dean hill closed in 2004 and is now privately owned by a company offering workshops, offices and temperature and humidity controlled vaults cut into a chalk hillside. As a result of that most of the magazins that i looked at are now locked and have cctv.
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 | 28th Dec 2007 | Stafford County Asylum, Stafford
isited with Bubblehead and one his work mates.
Stafford county asylum was founded in 1818 and later given the name St George's Hospital. It closed in 1995. On the same site there is a newer hospital also named St George's.
Not sure how much of the site we got to see. Some of the floors were in a very bad state. It looked like some of it was in the process of bein redeveloped with a new roof and windows.
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 | 27th Dec 2007 | Central TV Studios, Birmingham
Visited last night with Bubblehead. An amazing explore with lots of bits left around and the neon lights are still on in the cinema room which looks ace. The building is massive. I could not believe the size of one of the studios it was about the size of a sports hall. Lots of editing rooms with old kit that was left after the auctions . We spent hours in there and before we knew it was time to leave. Thanks for showing me around Bubblehead.
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 | 25th Dec 2007 | Cellophane Chimney ,Bridgwater
Had a bit of unfinished business at Cellophane. Since my first visit the chimney had been crying out to be climbed. This was my second attempt. The first time i did not have the kit i needed to get up where the first 2 ladders had been removed. It was a bit harder than i thought it was going to be on the way down so im glad i did not attempt it without the right kit.
It was a bit more windy than i expected forgetting how close it was to the sea. I also did not have much room up there so found it hard to get some angles.
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 | 24th Dec 2007 | Barrow Mental Hospital, Bristol
Barrow mental hospital was completed in 1937 although it was requisitioned as a naval hospital in the Second World War, it reverted to its planned function in 1947.
It closed in the summer of 06. In December 2005 Barrow was branded the hospital dirtiest in the country when inspectors examined medical equipment, beds, sinks, bedpans and toilets in 98 hospitals.
Inspectors arrived at Barrow Hospital unannounced to find floors marked with cigarette burns, coffee cup stains on a table, walls with extensive graffiti, urine stains around a toilet, mildew and stains from bodily fluids on the bottom of a hoist chair.
Two of the hospital's three wards were closed and the services temporarily transferred to Southmead Hospital.
This is some photos of the Southside block.
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 | 23rd Dec 2007 | Scotch Derrick crane, NTTS, Cheddar
I dont think i have seen a crane like this before so i went to have a look. It was a shame it was misty because on a clear day you would have a nice view of the Somerset levels.
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 | 21st Dec 2007 | Ridge Quarry, Corsham, Wiltshire
I visited Ridge this afternoon as part of my plan to make the most of my time off work. I have been wanting to explore Ridge for ages. It was a nice little explore just how i imangend it. Lots and lots of old graffiti and not too much recent stuff apart from the odd '' MOD patrolled '' in red spray paint I found the guest book but could not sign it because the pens did not work.
Ridge was quarried up until 1914 when at the start of the First World War, Ridge was requisitioned by the War Department. They cleared out the waste stone and stacked it up in older parts of the workings and strengthened the roof so that ammunition could be stored in the mine.
During the build up to WW2 the War Department decided that there was a need for a large underground ammunitions store. It was decided that the required space could be obtained by converting four quarries, these four formed what was collectively known as the Central Ammunitions Depot Corsham. Ridge Quarry was acquired and put to use as one of these sub-depots. The three other sub-depots were Tunnel Quarry at Corsham, Eastlays Quarry at Gastard and Monkton Farleigh Mine.
Ridge Quarry was never converted to the same extent as the rest of the Central Ammunitions Depot Corsham so it became surplus soon after the war had finished. There is however evidence of Monkton-style corseting and strengthening work in the quarry but at an incomplete stage as the budget was never approved.
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 | 16th Dec 2007 | Glastonbury Festival Site, Pilton, Somerset
Something a bit different today. A bit of Glastonbury festival history.
The first Festival was held on the day after Jimi Hendrix died, over a two day period and before long “word had got around”. It was the Blues festival at the Bath & West Showground that had inspired Michael Eavis to begin a festival of his own although on a smaller scale.
Acts included: Marc Bolan, Keith Christmas, Stackridge, Al Stewart. Attendance: 1,500. Price: £1 including free milk from the farm.
Over the years the festival has become a huge success.
This year there was 137,500 tickets on sale. They were snapped up in just 1hour and 45 minutes
I thought people who had been to the festival and seen it on tv would like too see it 6 months on.
I was going to use some of my photos from this years festival to show the difference but sadly i cant find them.
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 | 9th Dec 2007 | Cane Hill Asylum, London
Opened in 1882 and at its peak held a maximum of 2000 patents. Closed its doors in 1991.
I visited Cane Hill with Bubblehead and Willis. It was the first time at Cane Hill for all of us and my first Asylum explore. What an amazing place so much to explore and the buildings are amazing especially the chappell. I found myself trying to picture the place when it was open like its own little town realy. Any way here is a few of my pics.
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 | 1st Dec 2007 | British Cellophane, Bridgewater
The Bridgwater Cellophane plant was opened by British Cellophane in 1937 and acquired by UCB Films (now Innovia Films) in 1996. Part of the site is still in use but most is abandoned. Some of it looks like it has been abandoned for donkeys years. From what i have seen and read i would say some of the plant closed in 2002 but then most of it in 2005 with 250 people losing there jobs. The site is huge and there is some real Gems around the place. I did not get to see all of the site because i only had a few hrs time window.
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 | 3rd Sep 2007 | 5102 Building Bristol
Once used to house the administrative functions of the now defunct County of Avon this large concrete block, constructed over the A38 Stokes Croft, quickly became derelict following the abolition of Avon. After a period of lying empty the building was converted into flats by Redrow homes.
When i got back from London last night it was 1.50 the first bus home was not untell 8 so i decided to go up. I seen this when i was on my way to meet Lilla last sunday and we did talk about it. This building is nice and easy scaffold starts in a out of view area. then u are exposed for about 1 ladder then you are behind nets. The scaffold is lit in places so i had to take care at the top not to cast my shadow too much. My cheap ass tripod snaped on me so i had to mend it with tape which did not work too well.
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 | 1st Sep 2007 to 2nd Sep 2007 | The Paris Catacombs
Met up with all the guys apart from OT at Waterloo . Got the eurostar to Paris and met OT. We got some food and a few bits from a shop then went down under about 12.30. Entry was easy but well hidden. Once we were all in a short walk through a bit of water to our first stop.
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 | 3rd Aug 2007 | Farleigh Down Sidings
Farleigh Down tunnel is about 1 mile long and use to join Monkton Farleigh central ammunition depot to the railway.
Ammunition trains would unload onto gauge trucks and then go down the slope shaft into the loading area.
The ammunition would then be unloadid on the the conveyor and go up the tunnel to the Main West Corridor.
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 | 2nd Aug 2007 | HMS Royal Arthur, Corsham, Wiltshire
HMS Royal Arther use to be used as a Royal navy leadership school. It is very trashed but i love the way nature is taking over.
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 | 28th Jul 2007 | The Old Bristol And West Building
2nd site of the night the old Bristol and West building Lilla had done this one a few times so access was easy. Once up the about 17 floors we took a few pics off the roof then it was over the gap and on to the crane. I sware the gap from the building to the crane was bigger on the way back. Very good views from up here.
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 | 26th Jul 2007 | Greenham Common
A bit of info.
GAMA (GLCM Alert and Maintenance Area) was a maximum security QRA (Quick Reaction Alert) area with 6 large above ground shelters in which fully operational cruisemissiles were stored.
These shelters were specially designed and constructed to protect the GLCM’s and crews against nuclear and conventional strikes. They were appx. 10m high, with a reinforced 2m thick concrete ceiling. Below was a massive titanium plate, appx. 3m of sand and a reinforced concrete plate. The whole thing was completely covered with tons of clay. Each shelter was equipped with 3 hydraulic nuclear blast proof doors at both ends to assure a quick entry or exit.
They could withstand the blast of any nuclear air explosion above the base or any full hit from a 2500lb conventional bomb.
Each shelter contained 2 LCC Launch Control Centers and 4 TEL Transporter Erector Launchers. Each unit was very mobile and supposed to leave the base in convoys to their secret preset dispersal sites. This would happen within minutes after the alert and the movement was via the local roads through the surrounding villages.
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 | 15th Jul 2007 | Portland Batterys + other building
The last two weekends i have had to go to Weymouth so both times i popped over to Portland to have a look around. Last Saturday I visited High Angle Battery The rifle ranges. And this Saturday i visited East Wear Battery. There just seems to be more and more stuff too explore each time.
The High Angle Battery is a derelict fort built in 1892 on the Isle of Portland in Dorset, England. The battery was built as part of Britain's Coastal Defences in 1892 and is located in a disused Portland Stone quarry at the northern end of the island.
East Wear Battery is a gun battery to the east of the Verne. The battery was built in the 1860s as a result of the Royal Commission to guard the new Portland harbour and Royal Navy institutions on the island. Five open batteries were built housing 20 9" and 10" RMLs. In 1900 they were replaced by 3 6" guns, and again by 2 9.2" by World War II.
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 | 13th Jul 2007 | Pyestock, Fleet, Hampshire
Pyestock also known as The National Gas Turbine Establishment was used by the MOD as a aviation research center.
I went for my first time today i spent about 8 hrs in there. The place is amazing! So big so much to see and i dont think i even seen half of it!
I only had time to see
cell 3
cell 3 west
cell 4 and annex
No. 10 exhauster
Plant hosue and annex
New fitting shop
cell 1 & 2
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