The Gaydon Land Rover Show at the British Motor Museum

The Gaydon Land Rover Show was held in the grounds of the British Motor Museum in Gaydon, Warwickshire over the Early May Bank Holiday Weekend, Saturday the 4th and Sunday the 5th May 2024. Various Range Rover's, Land Rover Series, Land Rover Defender's and Land Rover Discovery's on display by their owners. Also classic music sung by My Favourite Things.

It was the Early May Bank Holiday Weekend of 2024, on Saturday 4th May 2024 and Sunday May 2024, that the Gaydon Land Rover Show was held in a car park outside of the British Motor Museum. This visit was on the Sunday.

After showing our e-tickets (bought in advance for general admission and the show itself), the first cars nearby was a collection of Range Rover's.

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There was also a club of Land Rover Series I.

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A variety of special Land Rover's.

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Land Rover 101 Forward Control

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Range Rover Ambulance

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Then you had a variety of modern Range Rovers, followed by Land Rover Series or Land Rover Defender's.

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More Land Rover Series and Land Rover Defender's from various decades.

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Some armoured military Land Rover Defender's.

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The Solihull Land Rover Trust with flags, such as the Black Country flag, Union Jack, Lest We Forget and an emoji.

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A purple Range Rover sandwiched between Land Rover Series cars.

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One Ton Land Rover Register

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Entertainment from My Favourite Things. The ladies are the UK No. 1 Vintage act. The all singing, all dancing trio. Singing classic hits from the 1920's to the 1950's.

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Views of the show from the Jaguar Heritage Trust and Collection Centre.

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Not Land Rover's here but a pair of Willys MB.

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Photography by Elliott Brown

Victorian Radicals in the Gas Hall

There hasn't been a major exhibition in the Gas Hall at Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery in about 5 years (since the Black Sabbath one I think in 2019). Then BM & AG was closed on and off since 2020 (pandemic, later re-wiring and restoration works etc). The Gas Hall only reopened in February for the Victorian Radicals from February to October 2024. A late April 2024 visit.

Three generations of British artists, designers and makers revolutionised the visual arts in the second half of the nineteenth century. The Pre-Raphaelites, William Morris and his circle and the men and women of the Arts and Crafts movement transformed art and design.

Selected from the city of Birmingham's outstanding collection, Victorian Radicals presents vibrant paintings and exquisite drawings alongside jewellery, glass, textiles and metalwork to explore their radical vision for art and society. Fresh from an award-winning tour of the US, Victorian Radicals is the first comprehensive showing of the city’s Pre-Raphaelite and Arts and Crafts collections in Birmingham for over five years. Discover the story of the Pre-Raphaelites themselves and their influence on artists and makers well into the twentieth century – especially in Birmingham itself. Paintings made by artists including Kate Bunce, Joseph Southall and Arthur Gaskin combined the poetry and intensity of the Pre-Raphaelites’ work with a distinctive identity all their own. Open Wednesday - Sunday, 10am - 5pm. In the Gas Hall at Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery. Pre-book to guarantee entry. Alternatively you can buy tickets on arrival (subject to availability). This exhibition is organised by Birmingham Museums Trust and the American Federation of Arts. Supported by the Friends of Birmingham Museums.

 

Book your Victorian Radicals ticket(s) at the link and go. Adults from £11 (can be more with gift aid etc). Note that if you buy anything from the shop in the Gas Hall, it's card payments only (no cash). February to October 2024.

 

This visit on the 27th April 2024.

 

The Victorian Radicals signs outside of Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery, as you pass through Chamberlain Square, and onto the part that was Edmund Street. Entrance at the Gas Hall. The rest of BM & AG remains closed for now.

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Some general views of the Victorian Radicals inside of the Gas Hall.

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Looking to the Future: New approaches to Victorian Art and Design at Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery.

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The First Industrial Nation. Mid-Victorian Art and Design

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Various landscape paintings.

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Gather the Rose of Love While Yet 'Tis Time, 1848. William Etty (1787-1849). Oil on canvas.

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Work, 1859-63 Ford Madox Brown (1821-1893) Oil on canvas.

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The Long Engagement, c. 1854-59. Arthur Hughes (1832-1915). Oil on canvas.

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Two Gentlemen of Verona (Valentine Rescuing Sylvia from Proteus), 1851. William Holman Hunt (1827-1910) Oil on canvas. Based on a play by William Shakespeare.

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Portrait of Dante Gabriel Rossetti, 1882-83. William Holman Hunt (1827-1910). Oil on mahogany.

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Portrait of John Everett Millais, 1853. Alexander Munro (1827-1910). Marble set in carved slate frame.

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The Finding of the Saviour in the Temple, 1854-60. William Holman Hunt (1827-1910). Oil on canvas.

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The Last of England, 1852-55. Ford Madox Brown (1821-1893). Oil on wood panel.

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Medea, 1866-68. Frederick Sandys (1829-1904). Oil on composite wood panel with gold leaf.

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La Donna della Finestra, 1881. Dante Gabriel Rossetti (1828-1882) Oil on canvas with underdrawing in chalk and graphite. Depicts Jane Morris as 'the lady at the window', unfinished, due to the artists death a year after it was started.

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Morgan le Fay, 1864. Frederick Sandys (1829-1904). Oil on wood panel.

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Beata Beatrix, begun 1877 (completed by Ford Madox Brown). Dante Gabriel Rossetti (1828-1882). Oil on canvas.

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May Morning on Magdalen Tower, 1888-91. William Holman Hunt (1827-1910), artist and designer Guild of Handicraft (London), frame maker Oil on canvas in original copper frame.

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Musica, c. 1895-97. Kate Elizabeth Bunce (1856-1927). Oil on canvas.

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Beauty and the Beast, 1904. John Dickson Batten (1860-1932). Tempera on canvas.

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Stained glass window: Dante and Beatrice II: The Wedding Feast, 1910 Florence Jane Camm (1874-1960), designer T. W. Camm & Co. (Smethwick, Birmingham), manufacturer.

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Tracery light from the east window of Holy Trinity Church, Grazeley, 1849-50. Augustus Welby Northmore Pugin (1812-1852) and John Hardman Powell (1827-1895), designers John Hardman & Co. (Birmingham), manufacturer Stained, painted, and leaded glass.

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Stained glass panel: Saint George Slaying the Dragon, 1872 (designed c. 1862). Dante Gabriel Rossetti (1828-1882), designer Morris, Marshall, Faulkner & Co. (London), manufacturer. Stained, painted and leaded glass.

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Stained glass panel: Winter, c.1865 William Morris (1834-1896), designer Morris, Marshall, Faulkner & Co. (London), manufacturer. Stained, painted and leaded glass.

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Stained Glass Panel: Saint Mark, 1883 (designed 1874) Edward Burne-Jones (1833-1898), designer Thomas G. Bowman (1836-1917), glass painter Morris & Co. (Merton Abbey, London), manufacturer Stained, painted and leaded glass.

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Pair of Stained Glass Panels: Sleepe after Toile, before 1905. Mary Jane Newill (1860-1947), designer and maker Stained, painted and leaded glass.

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Day dress, с. 1865. Maker not recorded Silk, with black ribbon, braid and cord trim.

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Another dress and a tunic.

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Paolo and Francesca by Alexander Munro (1825–1871). Marble statue.

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Chest: The Garden of the Hesperides, 1887-88. Edward Burne-Jones (1833-1898), designer Charles Lumley (active 1887-89), cabinetmaker Osmund Weeks (active 1879-95), gesso moulder and gilder.

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Bedcover, c. 1908. Mary Jane Newill (1860-1947). Linen embroidered with wool.

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Carpet: 'Old Master', c. 1851. John Crossley & Sons (Halifax, West Yorkshire), manufacturer. Woven wool.

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Wallpaper design: Jasmine. William Morris (1834-1896), designer, 1874. Graphite, red chalk, and watercolour on paper.

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Floor tile, 1851. Minton & Co. (Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire), manufacturer Earthenware, inlaid with coloured slips. Made for the Great Exhibition of 1851.

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The Works of Geoffrey Chaucer, now newly imprinted (the 'Kelmscott Chaucer'), 1896. William Morris (1834-1896), Edward Burne-Jones (1833-1898) and co-workers at Kelmscott Press, designers and makers Kelmscott Press (London), printer Joseph Batchelor and Son (Little Chart, Kent), paper manufacturer Bound book with 87 woodcut illustrations on handmade paper.

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Photography by Elliott Brown. Some captions from Birmingham Museums.

Handsworth Park Arts Trail

Here is some of the main works of public art that you can find on the Handsworth Park Arts Trail, and some details on each piece. In no particular order. We recommend catching the no 16 bus from Birmingham City Centre to do the trail, find the pieces. Here and Now by Tim Tolkien installed in 2023. The Benjamin Zephaniah mural by I Create Not Destroy (Bunny Bread) unveiled in 2024.

Handsworth Arts Trail

SS Journey

It was sculpted in 2017 by Luke Perry as part of the Handsworth Arts Trail. Near the large lake.

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Here and Now bench

Commissioned for the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games. Resembles a fairground waltzer car. Installed August 2023, artist was Tim Tolkien.

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Here and Now figures

Commissioned for the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games. Installed August 2023, artist was Tim Tolkien. Part of the same work as the Here and Now bench. Near a path opposite Handsworth Cricket Club.

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Hands and Minds Speak

Located on an island within the small lake at Handsworth Park. It was sculpted in Lawson Oyekan and made in 2010.

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The Pyramid Tower by Veranda Stories

Located half way between the Sons of Rest building and small lake / pond at Handsworth Park. It was by the visual artists Pauline Bailey & Ola Brown, of Veranda Stories. It had many mandala patterns, which was then laser cut. It was designed with the Women's Sewing Group and Saathi House. Made in 2017.

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The Anchor

Located within the Handsworth Park Community Garden, near Holly Road. The artist was Katie Sturridge.  A symbol of the Birmingham Assay Office. Made in 2015.

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The Sons of Rest Mosaic

Located next to the Handsworth Park Community Gardens. The artist wasClaire Cotterill. Based on stained glass windows found in the Sons of Rest building in Handsworth Park. The mosaic was made in honour of the centenary of the end of WW1 in 2018.

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Handsworth Revolution: Steel Pulse

The large mural at the entrance to Handsworth Leisure Centre was commissioned as part of Punch Records’ BASS Festival’s celebration of 50 years of Reggae and coincided with National Album Day and Black History Month.

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Benjamin Zephaniah mural

Located on a wall at the Sons of Rest Building in Handsworth Park. Mural in tribute to the late Benjamin Zephaniah (1958 - 2023), a Birmingham born poet. By I Create Not Destroy, aka Bunny Bread. It was unveiled on the 14th April 2024. Commissioned by the Black Heritage Walks Network (BHWN).

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The Big Sleuth Birmingham 2017

At least two of the painted bears can be still found in Handsworth Park, years after the trail had ended.

Sun Guardian Bear

It was created by Goosensi (Mat Barber) working with Friends of Handsworth Park and the Handsworth Community. In the Handsworth Park Community Garden.

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Well Active Bear

It was created by Mark Copplestone and Jennie Saunders working with Birmingham Wellbeing Service. Seen outside of the Handsworth Wellbeing Centre. Also called Handsworth Leisure Centre.

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Photography by Elliott Brown

Open Day at the Galton Valley Pumping Station in Smethwick

I went along to the first open day of the year at the Galton Valley Pumping Station in Smethwick, on the second Saturday of each month between April and October, each year. Run by Sandwell Museums & The Friends of Galton Valley Pumping Station. Very friendly volunteers, as I had a look around getting photos. Well worth a visit when it's open. Train down to Smethwick Galton Bridge.

I scanned in this leaflet I was handed with the 2024 open day dates at the Galton Valley Pumping Station in Smethwick. Held on the second Saturday of each month from April to October, 11am to 3pm (last admission at 2:30pm). Free entry.

I went on Saturday 13th April 2024. The next dates are as follows: 11th May, 8th June, 13th July, 10th August, 14th September and 12th October 2024. Thank you to The Friends of Galton Valley Pumping Station and Sandwell Museums.

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Here's some of the usual outdoor views of the Galton Valley Pumping Station, that I retook, while I was in Smethwick again on Saturday 13th April 2024, similar to views I've taken before in the past. I approached from Smethwick Galton Bridge Station via the Birmingham Canal Navigations New Mainline, you have to go up the steps to the BCN Old Mainline to go in the entrance, and see the volunteers.

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The views on leaving the pumping station, from Brasshouse Lane over the old and new BCN canals, then over the footbridge that crosses Tollhouse Way.

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A look around the inside of the Galton Valley Pumping Station in Smethwick. There was a Tangyes Birmingham engine on the upper floor.

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Arthur Ross and several old signs on the floor here.

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Into the next room then would be going downstairs.

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A Fellows, Morton & Clayton narrowboat, registers at Birmingham, you could have a look inside, but not sure if there was room to climb on board.

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Working life on the canals.

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Down the bottom with large boiler engines.

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On this wall A C Munford Engineer Colchester.

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The back up more steps, one last look at the Tangyes Birmingham engine, before heading out.

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Photography by Elliott Brown 

Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz on Kent Street at Sidewalk in Southside

The Dorothy street art popped up unexpectedly after Easter 2024, on Kent Street, with a ruby red slipper on the line above. On some doors of the Sidewalk gay bar. But by chance The Wizard of Oz will be playing at the Birmingham Hippodrome in June 2024. Is it Joe, as it's not Banksy? Photos from Birmingham We Are's Jack Babington and Elliott Brown. Who run our Instagram page.

The Wizard of Oz at the Birmingham Hippodrome from 11th to 16th June 2024, starring Craig Revel Horwood as The Wicked Witch of the West.

 

The owners of Sidewalk did not expect to find Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz on their building, on a pair of doors. It quickly got into the media, is it a Banksy? No. Who is it by? It is by Joe Lycett? We are not sure yet. Probably not by Disney B32. Perspex has been put over the artwork to protect it. There is also a pair of ruby red slippers on the phone line wire above Kent Street in the Gay Village (Southside BID).

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Photography by Jack Babington | Pro Photography Pictures

 

You will find Dorothy is you make your way to Hurst Street in Southside, when you find Sidewalk, then turn onto Kent Street. She is on the doors. This visit during Storm Kathleen so it was trying to rain, and was a bit windy, like Dorothy flying away in the house from Kansas to the Land of Oz!

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Photography by Elliott Brown | Ell R Brown 82

 

Go here for our post on Facebook: Dorothy FB. And on Instagram: Dorothy Insta.