Shaves and trims

I have to say if it should ever come about that I can't shave myself (not that I ever do)  or trim my own beard (again only rarely) you can take me out and shoot me. I am, perhaps, not the barber's best friend. Anyhoo this cute little sign aimed at a somewhat younger (and richer) clientèle than myself is on the way home from Hull Fair on Chanterlands Avenue.

Sugar and spice and all things nice

Hull Fair has two parts; the big expensive rides and smaller stalls where you can shoot yourself a prize or hook-a-duck and so on these are all congregated off Walton Street. On Walton Street itself there is a long line of stalls selling food, burgers, Indian take-aways, fish and chips and so on are all there for the taking but there also lots of sweet stalls selling what is essentially sugar  in various disguises. For some reason Margot took a lot pictures of these so here's her view.

Margot dared me to post this. If you want to create a space around yourself in a crowd just take out a doll and photograph it; folk steer clear for some reason, can't think why.

All the fun of the Fair ...

Early October in this town can mean only one thing: Hull Fair. Yes it's that time of year again when the air is filled with the distant rumble of machinery, extremely loud music and the faint aroma of burnt cow meat and onions wafts across from Walton Street. So here's a small selection of shots from the other night. I seem to have left my colours at home so you'll have to use your imagination...

Trinity Market (again)

I mentioned a few days ago that the indoor market was having an expensive make over. Well I finally got round to having a stroll through the place to see what improvements there are since I last posted about this place... The light is certainly different no doubt due to a white instead of dingy cream ceiling and new skylights, all very good; there's a charcoal grey and white theme to the place which may not please everyone but seemed okay to me. The stalls are modern looking and a bit dull and uniform compared to the old ones but you can't have everything. What is sadly still the same is the lack of customers. This place used be a noisy, thronging and crowded place as markets should be; it's been going downhill for fifteen or twenty years. I visited on another day last week at 4.30pm and the place was shuttered and locked up despite the opening times being until 5pm, so I'm not optimistic.

The Press Room (as was)

I took this a few weeks ago and meant to find out a bit more but somehow never did. So now I find it's a fully functioning pop-up restaurant made from scaffolding and boards and a bit open to the elements. Naturally it's only temporary and it's closing on ... well, erm ... yesterday, as it happens ... Ooops!

ATM x 4

I've never heard anyone IRL, as they say, call these ATMs maybe a hole-in-the-wall or cash machine but never ATM. Anyhow all these 800kg money boxes are (like me) still running Windows XP; it's nice to know your money is safe behind the latest technology innit?

"Wenn ich Kultur höre ...

Like any town or city these days the Kulturstadt has its share of homeless and down-on-their-luck folks sheltering in doorways or under the BHS mosaic, always managing to be just out of sight under cardboard or heaps of scruffy bedding. I believe last year these people were being encouraged to volunteer for the year of fun so as not to feel excluded and "be part of the exciting stuff". Judging by my own eyes I don't think that has been too successful. 

The weekend in black and white is here.