Archive - All entries on this site

An archive of all the posts on this site

All photos on this site ©Copyright Mark Righter and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence.


For all posts in 2013, see Staffordshire Daily Photo Posts Archive 2013


All the posts on this site in 2011 and 2012

A row of gold coin Shelburne Street not far from Stoke town centre is a monument to...

Inky blue at Weston Weston Park is one of those odd English compromises in...

Bleak midwinter Foggy, misty day today.  I know that we're over halfway...

Ghost story for Xmas  The ghost story of Molly Leigh – seeing as it’s Christmas Day!...

Chitty Bang Bang for Xmas  It’s the big Christmas rush time at Alton...

Bandit scarecrow on the road Someone shaping up to shoot you on the public road is...

Haircuts - then and now Seventeenth century coiffure (the 'Burton Peak') ...

Watling Street goes on (and on) One of the great things about just...

Candy cottage  Tutbury might be a good place to be at Christmas! This...

Nemesis... now  It is very, very dark by 6pm these days, and in some...

Rambling footbridge We've had hard, frosty weather for a week now - but...

The library with its own cemetery Tamworth must be unique surely in having a library...

Cafe shaped like a Spitfire The new cafe extension at the Mitchell Memorial Theatre...

'Ruin porn' in Stoke on Trent I was reading in a newspaper about the photographers...

Grimy end to pilgrimage path This rather grimy 'St Chad's Pool' is what ...

Best known Staffordshire street (?)  A photo of 'My Street' was what was requested as this...

Tamworth mermaids brave the chill What do mermaids have to do with banking? 

The Queen makes a face The face grinning at me from within this car gave me a...

Celtic cross revival You'd think the ancient Celtic Cross motif would have...

Peacock on a roof The bright blue plumage of a peacock is a welcome sight...

Lift a bridge over a canal Sometimes called a liftbridge, but what I know as a...

Lived to be 125... Yes, according to this scrolled board inside Adbaston...

Medieval artists have a joke Medieval artists could just as subversive (and as able...

Nineteenth century punk kitchen Ah - another "Neo-Dawsonism"!  Yes, this is another...

Freaky species goes on show This freakish skeleton is in the Natural History...

Peace subdues passions in Staffordshire The War Memorial in Stafford is pretty tall, and this...

The 'temporary' tin tabernacle This little church in Draycott-in-the-Clay - Saint...

Graffiti where least expected Harston Rock is an outcrop easily reached from Froghall...

Audley's carving of death This extraordinary gravestone carving ...
A wallaby in Leek  Wallabies are of course Australian...
Dragon-worm at Sinai Park? This could be a dragon-worm/wyrm (a...
Erratic geology... This glacial boulder is a well-known...
Stone's ninety year old man  For ninety years my glass has run / And...
Foxlowe - a top community cafe 'Community cafes' have a record of...
Topiary phantasms  In the privacy of their own gardens,...
No body - no tomb Less than a month after being 'adopted'... 

Confusing the tourist - by turning signs This signpost in the town of Stone,...
Marstons beer - and the Queen... Sixty Glorious Years??? What...
Donkeys show affection This affectionate pair are kept as pets...
Stafford Knot meets deer The brilliant colours of a russet...
Albert's house Whoever Albert is, I admire him. He...
New English - hearts in pottery I was at the London Design Festival...
Rugby - a game for families The Longton Rugby Club site is not just...
Crossed love at Ilam The story of the restoration of Ilam...
Princess Royal in Dresden Princess Victoria? Yes indeed this pub...
Leek's timorous lion This lion, which stands guard outside...
Tree monster This tree-monster reminds me of all...
Stafford's Sandonia theatre The Sandonia - theatre then cinema then...
New arms for Keele University Keele University (founded in 1949 as...
Lady of the roses This entombed lady at Tong, and the chaplet ...
Wallpapers inspired by Stafford The High House Wallpaper company ...
Animals damage cars It's a shame that I couldn't take a...
Devil thwarted - by pyramid Pyramid-style mausolea aren't unusual,...
Harvest skies It's harvest time, of grass for silage...

Do You Feel It Too? I like public art, and the weirder the...
Carved and trapped in stone This carved face seems to me to be...
Yoxall is top in the east The winner of this year's Best Kept...
Wetton takes in the heat We're now in a minor heatwave...
Inspired (not) street name This road-name sign makes me laugh…
Heidi - tipped for stardom Heidi Browne is a rising star...
Margarine sculpture The Lichfield Food Festival took place...
Hidden stile The crazy amounts of rain have produced...
Fields of yellow This crop is still standing, a little...
Images of Cartier Bresson Henri Cartier Bresson took one of the...
Saxon Warrior This 'Saxon Warrior' statue was created...
Beacon over the hills This beacon, by the Mermaid Inn, near...
Jesus gets angry Christ gets upset to the point of anger...

Bored in graveyard   Forever she will sit in this graveyard...
Stafford by the sea Welcome to Stafford Beach! You may know...
Top Totty sales up The controversy over Top Totty beer is..
Happy Oatcake Day! Yes, indeed, somebody decided a few...
War isn't like this I'm afraid I get quite angry when I see...
Bolt brings it home Jamaican flags were in evidence as I...
Flowers get Brit-fever Olympic fever has translated into Brit...
Gedge's Surgical Shop Parts of Stoke-on-Trent have barely...
Crumbling mausoleum The old mausoleum at Aston by Stone housing ...
Great mosque shows hubris The City Central Mosque in Hanley is a...
Staffordshire name slips away The Staffordshire Building Society...
Skeleton in the window The skeleton, at Tong, grins fiendishly out of...
A little bit of China The 'Pagoda Fountain' at Alton Towers...
The grave of, er, Little Nell... Little Nell is a fictional figure...?
Art Deco faces bulldozer  At Oakhill, this fabulous Art-Deco ...
Kids' ceramic project at Uni I was thinking about yesterday’s post ...
Potteries Venus The Staffordshire ‘Potteries’didn’t...
Bored teenagers Are there bored teenagers all over the...
Rockin in Milwich The Milwich Village Rock Festival was -...
Menace of the birds The Alfred Hitchcock film of The Birds...

 

GAP 

Rats in the rubbish Refuse is strewn over this alleyway. I...
In the stocks at Middleton Middleton Hall, near Tamworth, is one... 

Tiny rock festivals rock The smallest rock festivals are the... 

Lichfield Festival goes stripey  Lichfield Festival is the major... 
Fruit in the sun   The sun has come out so rarely ...

Holy Grail... is in Stafford   The Shepherd’s Monument, in the grounds...
The criminal Ladies In Linen   This curious tomb at Rugeley – in the...
Estate village nurses its past Maer village in west Staffordshire was...
Remembering accident victims The Roadpeace memorial at the NMA...
Murder most foul   This grisly painting at The Leopard pub...
Go compare... away  The 'Go Compare' TV ads, which feature...
Rain rain rain   Staffordshire got flooded today; and...
Ramblers' retreat   A reasonably sunny day in Oakamoor, or one...

The widow's walk in Eccleshall  Imagine the sad putative widow -...
Secret judges survey villages  The Best Kept Village competition in...
Bottle oven chimneys  As a Staffordshire site, it was...
Hundreds turn out to churches  The Staffordshire Historic Churches Trust...
Women explain Islam The Islam Exhibition is in Shelton this...
Daughters die of fever  On this tombstone,  three children from one family died...
Sun-rain-sun growth  The torrential rain in England of the...
No respect for Bear  The Bear in Stafford looks out over the...
Rat immortalised  Modern art doesn't often depict rats,...
Killed by a tennis ball  Anyone goign to Elford who thinks tennis...
Back England team - by betting  This betting shop seems to say that the...
He made the desert smile The Alton Towers Gardens were mentioned...
I-sola-ted solar panels  In Longton, these solar panels (I think) …
Taskers play STT  The Taskers are a garage-rock band from...
Pigeons defy Bethesda 'hawk'  This hawk is a pretty poor deterrent to...
Gooey sculpture  The long, caramel-golden strings in this artwork...
Hollybush welcomes the sun  The sun's back!! It seems a bit odd to...
Nurture and non-nurture  I walked past this crop of poppies the...
Longnor's ancient man   William Billinge was 112 years old when...
Hollie Vee, rockabilly gal!  Rockabilly music seems to keep coming...
Mannequin mystery  The sign language of mannequins is a...
The Place - forgotten  The Place Discotheque in Hanley was one...
Art gets cheaper   Being an artist is not easy these days....
700 years of old smithy for sale  The chance to buy a 700-year old house...

The green of Fenton Tip  ‘Fenton Tip’ does not refer to a..
Human sacrifice on hill The Druids, so the local legend has it,...
Piano music Star  The Star Inn at Copmere is one of the... 
'Man creche'   This made me laugh right out loud in... 
Stoke City - a salute   Stoke City Football Club are hardly the...

Murder most foul  Nothing sells like murder. Aint that...
Mini Eiffel Tower   I’ve featured 'Les Oakes Place' before...
Pets... in Heaven   Your pet can have a full funeral in...
A true speciality bakery   Fradswell Community Bakehouse is not...
Robin Hood gets married   Did Robin Hood marry under this ancient...
Arts & Crafts style in Leek   The façade of the Nat West Bank in Leek...
Staffordshire yarn bombing   This strange manifestation is an...
Lamb in the rain   It’s been rain, rain, rain for the last...
Steller's naked alphabet   I have no idea what Margaret Thatcher...
Burton Town Hall Gothic   Burton Town Hall is pure late..

Shorts rule for Jubilee At last the sun shone for this four-day holiday...
Union Jack gets it wrong Which of these two flags is upside-down?...
Diamond jubilee - literally Yes, a diamond poped up in Uttoxeter...
Tranquil Dovedale Dovedale in the Staffordshire Peak...
Hovis raffles off cottage Could 'Hovis Cottage' (on the busy A34...
Fame for Bagot Goat Abbots Bromley is famous for lots of...
Jubilee tawdriness The Jubilee celebrations have been a...
K6 on the way out The iconic red telephone box – so much...
Fool has a beer A morris man, having a beer in church, dressed in red...
Italians come to market Outdoor markets on various themes...
Peak District temptation When the weather is as pleasant as it...
Tropical trees I never expected to see palm trees in Stoke...
Sheep sleep in heat It was hot today (well, hot for...
Night of The Dog postponed The ‘Night of The Dog’ rock festival...

Cow sleeping like a bird This cow, sleeping with its head tucked...

Regeneration rubble Yes, this is how 'regeneration' looks....
Stones of Stockton Brook Why do people like large standing old stones?... 
A windmill home The old windmill at Croxton no longer...

Alton tree-sign You have to admire the Staffordshire's footpath officers...
Charles Darwin at Maer This large sign commemorating Charles...
Spotting birds The bird-hide at Aqualate Mere is not...
The lady in red This lady is Mary Magdalene; yes, the...
Little road 'Little Road' is in the hamlet of Boundary...
The Cupid of Burslem This little Cupid stands high over...
Audley's butcher Bouchiers The Butchers Arms in Audley sports this...
Cat on wall Cats are not mentioned in the Bible (so...

Elephant in bishop's wood Erm... it looks like an elephant, but what's it doing here?...
George and dragon Images of Saint George (and his dragon)...
When vampires walk I’ve been reading ‘Dracula’ by Bram...
Tranny with attitude There are zillions of drag shows, all...
Sinai Park 'swimming pool' Yes – a 17th century swimming pool!...
Moorlands mermaid The Moorlands' own Blake Mere Mermaid, depicted in...
Roman Wall The village of Wall (near Lichfield) is...
Golden public path The farmer here at Little Sugnall has...
Hiding rainbow The weather has been even more...

Titanic gallery It’s Titanic Day today. Yes, it’s 100...
False Alarm under the trees False Alarm were just one of the bands...
Most tasteless author  Karl Shaw is one of north Staffordshire's...

Dove bridge   The Dove Bridge near Doveridge runs,...
Lichfield burning   The last heretic to be burned at the stake...
Llama? alpaca?   I know that alpacas and llamas have...
Beautiful Ilam   The Ilam estate is completely idyllic,...
Burslem Pantocrator  This extraordinary mural showing...
Come thee in to The Anchor   The Anchor Hotel in Teanford has this...
Good Friday flowers   I was walking past Eccleshall Church...
Dunkirk's gas   This gas base nearly Audley reminded me . 

Tribute to a brave man The Colin Grazier Hotel in Tamworth ...

Saved from the bogs  Tracks can stay very boggy, even in the...
Supporting walls  Walls that need this sort of support...
Weetmans Bridge Weetmans Bridge, which crosses the...
Pretzels or Stafford Knots? I was talking about the Stafford Knot...
Stafford Knot - railway style  The Knotty's ‘Stafford Knot’ is ...
Mad March sunshine  The Biddulph town garden was just one...
Totmonslow speed sign They say that everythign returns to Nature...
Sky TV - banned! You have to admire the Spittal Brook Inn at Stafford...
Resales markets grow  The current hard times mean that lots...
Less battery, more hen  Is it these chickens’ best-ever year?...
Telephone box - in hedge  This pair at Saverley Green look as though they..
The ghost of St Editha  Baron Robert Marmion looks frightened...
Welcome back to red cross   Joules is a famous name in brewing in...
Memorial to a slaughter  War memorials very often take the form...
Adopt a gargoyle in Lichfield!  Eh? Yes, that’s exactly...
Metal tree This metal tree at Hanley Forest Park is quite dazzling...

Greatest of Gothic Revival Augustus Welby Pugin's work at Cheadle was...
Oakamoor weir Here, on the River Churnet at Oakamoor,...

Titanic comes to Burslem Yes, this Titanic mural...
Vicious but beautiful  These razor-sharp ‘vanes’, as they’re...
Daffodils all over The daffodils are at last shooting in...
Titanic's Capt Smith - bad guy?  Captain Edward J Smith, the man in....
Wedgwood Museum's fate The fate of the Wedgwood Museum at..Chancel Primary School knot The Stafford Knot logo is pretty much...

England's oddest pub? The Yew Tree Inn is almost in the...
Picture House A while ago I posted a photo of the Stafford pub...
Staffordshire's greatest woman? On International Women’s Day - Ethelflaeda...
Potteries Museum in need Museums everywhere feel threatened, and...
Shining stone This unusual art-work – in Shenstone...
Clay in the hole I found this marl pit in a field while...
Cheadle in colour This beautiful stained-glass window ...
Crook house Penkridge looks from the main road that...
Skull & crossbones flag The pirates' flag flies proudly over...
Pylons as giants I like electricity plylons. I know that...

Meir Tower The water tower at Meir Heath rises up...
Abandoned bottle oven  The old JH Weatherby Factory, at the...
Devils' territory   he story of Devils Lane sounds like it...
Shenstone ladies  Few football teams play in pink, and I...
Triffids on the common  Rough Close Common is a pretty boggy...
Save The Coachmakers  The Coachmakers Pub is one of the...
'Womb to grow'  Shops that use puns in their title have...
In memoriam  This brass plaque, nailed into a tree, marks a road accident...
Turnover Bridge   This canal bridge, as it’s called, marks a switch...
Tixall Church web  My photograph doesn’t show this giant spider's... 
Hurst Towers   A house with a turreted view...

Bow Street Runner    A pub in Tamworth which has, er, a hammer & sickle sign!
Underground pathway   This curious passageway, which leads...
Iced windows   Winter's back! I spoke too soon a...
Railway niche   The path that now runs behind Kidsgrove...
German solders’ cemetery   The German solders’ cemetery on Cannock...
Plague stone   This ‘plague stone’ marks a sad moment in Leek's history...
Squirrel stand-off   Squirrels seem to be confused by the weather...
Moat in the landscape   Unexpected historic 'shadow' in a Hilderstone field...
Poundland   The discount store ‘Poundland’ dominates Hanley...
It's Spring! I think.   Daffodils! The first of the year for...
Bottle oven 'hatches out'    Stoke’s few remaining bottle ovens are...
Underwear as overwear  Woollen tights are now 'daywear'

Lambs out!  The lambing season has been under way...
Waterlogged field  We’ve had lots of rain, as well as the...
Wind on the water  The wind has got up to speeds of 40mph...
Blackburn House  Blackburn House tax office is a sight to send...
Pitt Monument  This great column, the Pitt Monument,...
Regeneration  ‘Regeneration’ means these tiles will be destroyed...
Bartley Gorman funeral  The great bareknuckle fighter died ten years ago..
Tribute to the movies  The ‘Picture House’ pub in Stafford is...
Alice In Wonderland  The New Vic Theatre’s Christmas-play...
Frosty tree Brrrr! It was frosty this morning - all...
Life-size train-set   The Statfold Barn Railway was...

Stafford frieze   The man in the lion-skin is...
Birthplace of the famous  The Parks Country Inn near Uttoxeter is...
Radio Mary  Radio Mary are a really excellent band...
Saint Chad portrait St Chad is the most important Staffordshire saint...
Tamworth flowers Tamworth is a prettier town than one thinks...
A most mysterious place Lud’s Church – in the ‘Dark’ Peak...
Mucky Duck Ah, the White Swan pub in Leek...
Dr Johnson broods The literary genius, Dr Samuel Johnson...
Fallen tree - whipped away!  The high winds last night and today...
Gravestone warning  The verses one can see on old, rural...
Study-areas shrinking Libraries – to me – are valuable...
Walking together ..is the name of this Abbots Bromley sculpture...

New Year's Day Bridge Jump The Mappleton New Year’s Day...
The last of - the year  So – goodbye to 2011. It won’t be...
Gothic abbey These wintry days at Croxden...
Longton Spitfire The Spitfire plane saw its 75th anniversary...
Forbidden Planet It's pretty colourful in a comic book shop... 
Beech Bridge I’m a fan of bridges, of any sort...

Kinver's rock houses The Kinver Rock Houses are just one of...
Nadolig Llawen Nadolig Llawen is ‘Merry Christmas’ in Welsh...
Garrick Theatre The Garrick Theatre in Lichfield was...
Frosty cross at Tutbury  The mild autumn has turned into a...
General Martin monument In the countryside round Hawksmoor...
Ship Inn & South Pole The polar story of The Ship Inn (at Wincle)...
Sally Army do Christmas I’m a fan of The Salvation Army...
Steady snowman The snow is fading now, but it has been...
Duties in the snow The snow came back overnight, with a...
Snow sticking The snow is sticking in certain...
First snow of the year First snow of the year… We’ve had a few...

Stafford Knot - on a mug The Stafford Knot is the symbol of the county...
Cupcake Christmas What is this current fad for cupcakes?...
Dark lake Aqualate Mere is (I'm told) the largest...
Imprisoned nativity This nativity scene at Cheadle seems oddly...
Abandoned 'ramparts' These 'raddlepits' near Mayfield rise like grim,...
Locomotive pub The Locomotive Pub's sign (at Heron Cross) ...
Skull & crossbones flag The skull-and-crossbones is one of the...
The oatcake lives on in Leek When oatcake shops disappear...
Puzzled plants The weirdly mild weather has confused...
Spooky rail conductress This rather spooky lady at Foxfield ...
Tribal images If you've got a tattoo studio - flaunt...
Egypt comes to Cheadle Cheadle had its fun-day - when the...
Quiet woman in Leek It doesn't come more male-chauvinist...
Winter smoke There has been a quarry at Cauldon Low...
Bell tolls on AIDS Day The 'Staffordshire Buddies' group works...

Christmas lights Leek's Christmas lights display seems..
Autumn tree The extraordinary autumn has produced colours... 
Elizabethan house collapsing Sinai Park House looks like it’s...

Hedgehog parking I did a double-take at this sign in Foxt...
Spratts fish food These old tin advertisement-signs are...
Blood red waters In Kidsgrove the stream runs red...
Saracenic architecture in Stoke The sheer white of the old Co-op...
Comic kissing gate You can’t help but laugh on seeing this...
Alien gates I’m not sure I like Waterside School's gates...
Auburn autumn Another autumn spectacular at Cannock...
Chorlton Mill This is the closest you’ll get to this 15th century...
The rail carriage that never moves When you eat at the Spot Gate Inn...
Blurred trees This photo was a complete accident -...
Jack Baskeyfield VC As the nights draw in, grim shadows...
Bust has a joke This bust peers out of a high barn...
Speeding train Train lines criss-cross Staffordshire,...
Hall in need of love I came across Whitehough Hall purely by...
Katyn Memorial The Katyn Massacre Memorial will no...
Spectacular autumn 'They' (whoever they are) say the...
Armistice Day Already it is the 11th November again -...
Bettie Brewer Burton Albion’s mascot didn’t have much...
Ceramic 'employees' The British Ceramic Biennial comes to...
Blacks Head Is the idea of a pub called The Blacks Head...
Steak/Stake out This did make me laugh, I'll admit it....

++++
Dudley & Dowell 'collectable'  'Dudley & Dowell Ltd /Cradley Heath /Staffs' - so proudly...
Gertie Gitana - in Stoke Talking of Gertie Gitana...  
Bottle ovens... still  Only thirty or so bottle ovens still standing in Stoke-on-Trent...
Lichfield Jazz & Blues fest  The three-day jazz festival at Lichfield takes place... 
Fulford Fete  Fulford Village Fete to be held indoors...
Rag & bone man returns  The rag & bone man was a common sight years and years ago...

Gertie Gitana bench  Edinburgh bench dedicated to the variety artist Gertie Gitana...
Tamworth Castle flies flag  Tamworth Castle flies the fleur-de-lys flag (as here)...
Refugee Week celebration  It's Refugee Week, and in Shelton (in the city of Stoke-on-Trent)...
 Jesus and cake  Poster in Hanley shows the famous painting of The Last Supper...

The Dovedale Twelve  Can you see the 'twelve apostles' in this photo?
Surreal hay bales...   They have a slightly sinister air for me...
St Modwen of Burton This sculpture sits on Andressey Island in Burton...
Saved by graphic design Graphic Design at the Degree Show ...
Staffordshire University Degree Show  The Fine Art Degree Show ...
Rootsy in Alton  Nature is amazing, huh?
Grindon Church horrors Most gargoyles are nothing out of the ordinary ...
Lapley 'castle'  The castellated Park House...
Beacon Park wedding  Lichfield's park is often used for wedding photos...
'Unseen' sights  This stone trough on a road near Biddulph Grange...
Throwley Old Hall slumbers  Throwley Old Hall is now just a ruin...
Punning chip shop  Codsall's fish & chip shop is...
Sad love sign  "I Love You FAY. RIP
Rabbit survives You think older rabbits look after young bunnies?

Camoflagued' warehouse Can you see it? It's the Argos warehouse at Catholme...
Street biking Street BMX-ers react very quickly if ...
Spring...plus lamb This little one was seen at Newborough,
Flash sunset It's no wonder you get big skies over Flash...
Grey day on the water The causeway over Blithfield Reservoir is as bleak....

Rugeley Power sunset Coal-fired power stations like Rugeley B are..

Play area - shut! No children are allowed in the Mayfield play area...

One legged pub The 'One-Legged Shunter' bar is...
Outlaws in Staffs The biker group The Outlaws had a formidably bad... 
Ugly path The land-owner here (at Cotwalton, nr Stone) has... 
Uttoxeter 'centaur' There was some controversy over the two new sculptures...
View from the roof At Heath House, you can climb to the top tower... 
Rat rescue centre!  Yes, there is a RAT rescue in Cheadle... 
Vomiting lion  This little monster is part of the reason that Blymhill Church...
Downhearted Stokies  Stoke City's first ever FA Cup Final ended in...