Mr Pickles garden-grab scheme has got into a.... Pickle

The hapless Community Secretary (Margaret Thatcher should weep) Eric Pickles had a wonderful scheme to kick-start the UK's moribund economy. He was going to double the limit for housing extensions without requiring planning permission. Sadly for Mr P. he hadn't counted on the rash of neighbourly disputes that this would induce. London Borough of Sutton is one of many councils that has lobbied hard against this imbecilic move. Only for Pickles to come up with even dafter amendments. Neighbours will have to be consulted and agree, and local ward councillors will arbitrate in disputes. How likely is that! just what your councillor want to do, interpose themselves between warring neighbours and their potential electors.

The main beneficiaries of these proposals would be buy-to-let landlords cramming desperate immigrant families into overcrowded properties. Back gardens are a haven for wildlife and particularly pollen-loving insects pushed out of a chemical-desert countryside. They also have enormous potential for growing food - necessary for sustainable cities. These are a set of proposals that must be trashed outright.

from http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-22160532

On Tallness, medieval St Paul's Spire and its visual impact

I recently blogged about the child posting-block nature of modern tall buildings in the City of London (Gherkin, Walkie-talkie, cheese wedge) http://londonlandscapeobservatory.blogspot.co.uk/2013/04/skyscrapers-infantile-disorder.html . which made me think. Medieval London also used height for impact, but (forgive the pun) in a much more hierarchical way. Take for instance the spire of St Paul's Cathedral

A comparison of modern St Paul's Cathedral with its medieval equivalent - and the visual impact that would have today

From http://londonist.com/2013/04/time-travel-london-draw-paint-or-photograph-the-anachronistic-city.php

Medieval St Paul's is said to have had a spire of 489ft (149m) higher than any but Lincoln Cathedral. Christopher Wren estimated it at 460ft (140m), a tad less. Anyroad-up, it was tall.

Skyscrapers, an infantile disorder?

A good friend remarked as we passed by on the 25 bus, "What has happened to the London Skyline? It looks like someone has tipped out the shapes from a a toddlers posting box and stood them on end as buildings...." . It is hard to disagree.

On further talk , my artist friend made a telling point, "Trouble with Architects they think art is about shape. To artists it is the relationships, particularly of shape to space, but also the wider relationships that count".

Anyroad-up. The result of this speculative waste of money is that London will be bequeathed a series of landmarks to navigate by as effective as rock formations "the Bridestone" "Old Mother Baking Bread" and "the Pepper Pot" in Derbyshire.

Pepper Pot

Cheese Wedge

Gherkin

Walkie Talkie

Shard (baby shard to come!)

Before Notting Hill was deindustrialised.......

When folk are celebrating - or mourning - the death of ex-Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, who famously decimated 1st the steel industry and then the coal industry. I thought it timely to remind folk that the rich suburb of Notting Hill was also formerly industrial. Like most London suburbs, 1st they stripped brickearth to make bricks. then they filled the holes with waste. At about that time piggeries were moved into the area from Marble Arch. Then when the holes were filled with household waste they were built over. Unlike earlier suburbs, where bricks had been made in clamps. Notting Hill acquired some bottle klins. One of which survives, as a reminder of the area's plebeian past. Since then the fortunes of the area have risen to heights and plumbed the depths. Original large houses that accommodated servants were split into slums after WW2, and the area was known on the one hand for seediness and the sex industry, on the other for the first wave of commonwealth immigration. Since the 1980s however, the area has become extremely privileged.... ....and large houses favoured by bankers and financiers.

http://www.vaguerants.org.uk/wp-content/pageflip/upload/TL/timelinechap2.pdf

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See also a clip of the "slums of Portland Road", http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p00v2b42

now 3 million GBP+ houses!!!!!

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"Lydd Airport Extension Approved: Crazy-paving over the Garden of England" (CPRE)

Despite Paul Kehoe - Chief Exec. of Birmingham Airport - spilling the beans that (in his opinion) Britain has twice the number of airports that it needs or that can be supported economically and that we “have a choice about whether we should go on holiday. Why should the taxpayer subsidise it?”

So I guess the knock-on effect of the Conservative(led) coalition government tearing up planning restrictions in a desperate bid for private investment will be taxpayers picking up the tab somewhere else..... That makes so much sense.

Lydd Airport is on the edge of Romney Marsh

On Thursday 10 April the Government confirmed that an extension to Lydd Airport is to go ahead.

Reactions:

Lydd Airport Extension Approved: Crazy-paving over theGarden of England - CPRE

The Government has confirmed a decision on the future of Lydd Airport. This afternoon, the Secretary of State's Decision was made public: the airport will be extended. Planning permission was also granted to build a new terminal.

This decision will irreversibly damage the wildlife habitat and beautiful landscape unique to the area - the Dungeness peninsula is one of the most sensitive wildlife habitats in the world.

Neil Sinden, Director of Policy and Campaigns for the Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE), says: ‘This is a terrible decision which threatens one of the few remaining areas of rural tranquillity in heavily pressured South East, and in a county once proudly described as the Garden of England.  And it will not just alarm environmentalists.   There were many in the aviation sector who considered this scheme to be nonsensical and a non-starter.  If there are any economic benefits, which is unlikely, they will be heavily outweighed by the environmental damage that it will cause on so many levels.  Campaigners are bound to consider all legal options to have this disturbing decision overturned.’

Lydd Airport approval is a disaster for bugs - Buglife

Buglife is extremely disappointed that the Government has approved the expansion of Lydd Airport in Kent.

The neighbouring site at Dungeness is known to be home to a number of rare and endangered invertebrates including the Sussex Emerald moth.

 

Sussex Emerald moth (Thalera fimbrialis) © Roger Key

Alice Farr, Buglife Planning Manager said "We have opposed these plans for a number of years due to the impact of the airport on Dungeness, a habitat of international importance. This decision is a clear signal from the Government that the environment is of low priority and could be an indication of future decisions on development that are still to be taken".  Alice said "Dungeness is internationally important as the largest shingle foreland in Europe. The area is of national and arguably international importance for invertebrates; including the Medicinal leech (Hirudo medicinalis), the Sussex Emerald moth (Thalera fimbrialis) and significant bumblebee populations including the UK Biodiversity Action Plan priority Brown-banded carder bee (Bombus humilis). Developing the airport so close to this site will have a detrimental affect for invertebrates

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Lydd Airport extension decision prompts legal challenge 

From http://www.rspb.org.uk/news/346770-lydd-airport-extension-decision-prompts-legal-challenge

Last modified: 29 May 2013

Image: Ben Hall

The RSPB has issued a legal challenge to the Government's decision to allow the expansion of Lydd Airport in Kent.

Dungeness is one of the most important wildlife sites in the world; it is protected at global, European and UK levels. It is home to species found hardly anywhere else in the UK. It is also a crossroads for migrating birds stopping off on their epic global journeys.

Chris Corrigan, RSPB South East Regional Director, said: “The RSPB has been protecting birds and the wildlife of Dungeness for over a century - our commitment to the area is deep and profound.

“Over recent years, our concerns about the impact of expanding nearby Lydd Airport led to the need to argue our case at a Public Inquiry.

“The inspector found in favour of the Airport's proposals - and his report was completely  endorsed in the Secretaries of State for Communities and Local Government and for Transport’s Decision. We are profoundly concerned about this decision as it seems perverse.

“After careful consideration we have now issued a legal challenge to the Secretaries of State’s decision. The stakes are too high to risk the future of one of our best and most important places for nature without testing the basis for this decision which we consider to be flawed.”

Crane Park Island walks....

A peaceful haven with an explosive past, Crane Park Island is a beautiful reserve where you could be lucky enough to spot a majestic kingfisher or the threatened water vole. 

The Big Crane Valley Walks - Part 3: Donkey Wood, Hounslow to Kneller Gardens, RichmondAndy Willmore16 June 2013See how the legacy of the river and our use of it has shaped the landscape and created the rich reso...

The Big Crane Valley Walks - Part 2: Gutteridge Woods, Hillingdon to Cranford Country Park, HillingdonAndy Willmore19 May 2013See how the legacy of the river and our use of it has shaped the landscape and created the rich reso...

The Big Crane Valley Walks - Part 1: Headstone Manor, Harrow to Ickenham Marsh, HillingdonAndy Willmore21 April 2013See how the legacy of the river and our use of it has shaped the landscape and created the rich reso..

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Zombie Walking Eating and Performance Symposium - Plymouth

Zombie economics and the debt overhang (personal as well as corporate) has led to a collapse in house construction. It has also revived the Zombie fad....

....of course, academic Zombies are something different

Zombies: Walking, Eating and Performance Symposium

Plymouth University, UK

SCHEDULE

All events take place in or around the

Roland Levinsky Building

(RLB). Rooms starting with 3xx are on the 3

rd

floor.

DAY 1: 12 APRIL 2013

Image by Laura Wady (www.laurawady.co.uk)

When Where What2.30

 –

 3.30 pm

Crosspoint (groundfloor RLB)Registration (will be open until 6 pm for late-comers. If you arrive after 6, you can formally register tomorrowmorning)

3.30

 –

 4.20 pm

RLB 304 Welcome by Roberta Mock, followed by

Opening paper

by Phil Smith (Plymouth)

 –

“Walking with Zombies”

4.30

 –

6pm

RLB 304

PANEL 1: Zombidentities

(chaired by Prarthana Purkayastha, Plymouth)



Jenny Lawson (Northumbria)

 –

“

Fantasies of the Undead: Eating Minds, Feeding on Humanity

”



Roberta Mock (Plymouth)

 –

“‘This ain’t no love

-

in, this ain’t no happenin’: har

dcore zombies of Detroit

”



Victor Ramirez Ladron de Guevara (Plymouth)

 –

“

´Once upon a time, Santos was reading about the Sahuayozombies when...´: A discussion of (post)modernity, nationalism and pe

rformativity in Mexican zombies”

6

 –

7 pm

RLB 303 BUFFET DINNEROutside RLB (behindScott Building)

“Welcome to the I Scream Van”

(John Lee, Winchester)

 –

delegates must sign up in advance due to limitedaudience capacityCrosspoint Zombie make-up and prosthetics by Smart-FX(www.smart-fx-uk.com) 

7

 –

10 pm

Jill Craigie Cinema(ground floor RLB)

Delegates must pick up tickets in advance from Peninsula Arts Box Office (ground floor RLB)ZOMBIE FILM NITE

(introduced by Kayla Parker, Plymouth):



Terror!

(UK, dir. Ben Rivers, 2006)



Otto; or, Up with Dead People

(Canada/Germany, dir. Bruce LaBruce, 2008)



KEYNOTE: Bruce LaBruce (by Skype)

2

DAY 2: 13 APRIL 2013When Where What8.30

 –

9am

Crosspoint (ground floorRLB)Registration for late-comers

9

 –

10.30am

 RLB 308

PANEL 2A: Zombie bodies

(chaired by Lee Miller, Plymouth)



Lydia Towsey (independent poet and performer) and Scott Bridgewood (independent artist)

 –

“ReadingZombies”



Joanne ‘Bob’ Whalley (Falmouth) –

“The Unborn Undead”



Irene Baena-Cuder (East Anglia)

 –

“Zombies as Othered

: Disposable Bodies in the Spanish Film

REC 

(2007)”

 RLB 304

PANEL 2B: Shocks, Cracks, Flicks

(chaired by Victor Ladrón de Guevara, Plymouth)



Maurice O'Connell (independent performance-maker)

 –

“Shell Shock: The Walking Dead”



Kayla Parker (Plymouth)

 –

“

Trancing the white darkness: cinematic resurrection and animation

”



Deepthi Sebastian (Queens University Belfast)

 –

“‘Let the cracks between things widen until they are nolonger cracks but the new places for things’: The pestilential State and the zombie antidote”

10.30

 –

 11 am

Crosspoint COFFEE (Use the voucher in your conference pack which includes the image at the top of this schedule.)Zombie make-up and prosthetics by Smart-FX(www.smart-fx-uk.com) Outside RLB (behind ScottBuilding)

“Welcome to the I Scream Van”

(John Lee, Winchester)

 –

delegates must sign up in advance due to limitedaudience capacity

11

 –

 11.45 am

Theatre 1 (ground floor RLB)

A ticket is in your conference pack.

(This event can be attended by non-delegates, aged 8+. Tickets fromPeninsula Arts. It will also be streamed live online.)

WIRELESS ZOMBIES! 

(Richard Hand, Glamorgan)A recreation of live 1940s style radio play, presented by Cardiff School of Creative & Cultural Industries,plus talk back (chaired by Roberta Mock).

11.55 am

 –

1.25 pm

 RLB 304

PANEL 3A: Zombie walk, zombie run

(chaired by Phil Smith, Plymouth)



Grace Halden (Birkbeck)

 –

“The ‘bare life’ of the human in conflict contexts: the static behaviour andgroup marching of the war zombie”



Kristofor Darby (Exeter)

 –

“Zombies Run! Being Chased by the Undead”