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After so many windy days a calm night came. Many rocks at Patras port. Image taken with canon eos 5d mark ii and ef 8-15mm fisheye straightened and cropped.
Thanks for looking !
A macro shot of the model i have recently finished.
Lit by 430ex to background (white card), snooted so no light hit the model (black straw snoot) and covered with a blue gel (cut up a4 coloured acetate).
Triggered by ST-E2.
Composite of two flashed exposures.
Type 22 Pillbox, described as being in good condition, in the Defence of Britain catalogue, this pillbox can be found at the junctin of California and Rottenstone Lanes at California, Nr Scatby, Norfolk, England.
This pillbox is at 52°41'15.42"N 1°42'34.63"E
Do any of the pillbox hunters have any knowledge of history on it?
On the 7th of January 2022 I paid a visit to RAF Benson where it was planned for Eurocopter Puma's, Boeing Chinook's, Grob G 115... Sadly no Chinook's flew this time round but RAF Benson were visited from an AugustaWestland AW109 which is GZ100 also known as a Royal Aircraft. I also got to see some Defence Fire & Rescue Service vehicles and the Thames Valley Air Ambulance were launched on a mission during our visit.
Shortly after a very high tide near Leasowe, Wirral, UK.
Camera- Olympus E-510
Exposure- 60 seconds
Aperture- f/19.0
Focal Length- 18 mm
ISO Speed- 200
ND 10 stop filter
A large pillbox on the boundary of the village of Broadbridge Heath, West Sussex that appears to have been missed by the Defence of Britain. The Defence of Britain project was an archeological survey of defences hurriedly constructed in expectation of Britain's imminent invasion by the Nazis in the early years of World War II.
This large pillbox stands in a private garden at Lat 51° 3'39.25"N Lond 0°22'4.04"W and cannot be accessed without permission, though clearly visible on Google Earth.
It is positioned on the banks of the River Arun near Horsham, West Sussex to provide cover against troops about the cross the river and to reinforce tank coffin (Defence of Britain 'Coffin S0002223') that remains part demolished and the nearby Wickhurst Lane bridge.
The Defence of Britain geospatial dataset can be downloaded as a Google Earth KMZ dataset at archaeologydataservice.ac.uk/archives/view/dob/download.cfm
Old sea defences on the beach between Walcott and Happisburgh in Norfolk. Taken as the sun was setting behind me, with some pink showing in the clouds and reflected in the water on the sand.
A ladybug is chased away by ants protecting their aphids. Shot with a sigma 105mm macro lens and a Godox twin flash Kit MF-12
Join the Terran Defence Corps. See the glories of the Solar System! Visit the pleasure resorts of the Asteroid Belt.*
* Terms & Conditions Apply. Visits to asteroids may not include actual shore leave.
Red Sands Army Fort [U6] was a Maunsell army fort built near the Thames estuary for anti-aircraft defence. It is made up of several once interconnected towers.
Derelict, the remains of the Fort Towers are still standing.
CANNON SHELLS OR PROJECTILES THAT MAKE A BIG BANG THAT ARE POINTED AT ONE END AND FLAT AT THE OTHER END AND HURT IF DROPPED ON FOOT. ENOUGH OM ME SHOWING MY VAST KNOWLEDGE. AT COALHOUSE FORT VICTORIAN MILITARY DEFENCE STRUCTURE ON THE EAST COAST NEAR RIVER THAMES AND LONDON ENGLAND DSC00857
General Petrus Johannes Mathias "Peter" van Uhm (born June 15, 1955 in Nijmegen), is a retired 4-star general in the Royal Netherlands Army and ex Chief of Defence (CHOD). He was promoted to this position from Commander of the Royal Netherlands Army (C-LAS) and succeeded Dick Berlijn on April 17, 2008.
Van Uhm's promotion to CHOD was accompanied by personal tragedy as, on April 18, 2008, his son First Lieutenant Dennis van Uhm was killed in a roadside bombing in Uruzgan, the southern province of Afghanistan. A spokesman for the Taliban claimed that militants had known about his movements and had targeted him. The Dutch government rejected this claim. Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende said in The Hague: "Our information is that there is no indication of any link between this cowardly deed and the fact that it was the son of the defense chief."
Proposals for a university in Queensland began in the 1870s. A Royal Commission in 1874, chaired by Sir Charles Lilley, recommended the immediate establishment of a university. Those against a university argued that technical rather than academic education was more important in an economy dominated by primary industry. Those in favour of the university, in the face of this opposition, distanced themselves from Oxford and Cambridge and proposed instead a model derived from the mid-western states of the USA. A second Royal Commission in 1891 recommended the inclusion of five faculties in a new university; Arts, Law, Medicine, Science and Applied Science. Education generally was given a low priority in Queensland's budgets, and in a colony with a literacy rate of 57% in 1861, primary education was the first concern well ahead of secondary and technical education. The government, despite the findings of the Royal Commissions, was unwilling to commit funds to the establishment of a university.
In 1893 the Queensland University Extension Movement was begun by a group of private individuals who organised public lecture courses in adult education, hoping to excite wider community support for a university in Queensland. In 1894, 245 students were enrolled in the extension classes and the lectures were described as practical and useful. In 1906 the University Extension Movement staged the University Congress, a forum for interested delegates to promote the idea of a university. Opinion was mobilised, a fund was started, and a draft Bill for a Queensland University was prepared. Stress was laid on the practical aspects of university education and its importance for the commerce of Queensland. The proceedings of the Congress were forwarded to Premier Kidston. In October 1906, sixty acres in Victoria Park were gazetted for university purposes.
The University of Queensland was established by an Act of State Parliament on the 10th of December 1909 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Queensland's separation from the colony of New South Wales. The Act allowed for the university to be governed by a senate of 20 men and Sir William MacGregor, the incoming Governor, was appointed the first chancellor with RH Roe as the vice chancellor. Old Government House in George Street was set aside for the University following the departure of the Governor to the Bardon residence, Fernberg, sparking the first debates about the best location for the university.
In 1910 the first teaching faculties were created. These included Engineering, Classics, Mathematics, and Chemistry. In December of the same year, the Senate appointed the first four professors; BD Steele in chemistry, JL Michie in classics, H. Priestly in mathematics and A Gibson in engineering. In 1911 the first students enrolled.
Practically from the start there was controversy about a permanent site for the University. Old Government House was too small and was seen by many as evidence merely of government parsimony. There was not much room for expansion and there were conflicts with the neighbouring Brisbane Central Technical College. Victoria Park had been chosen in 1906 for a permanent site and in 1922 a further 170 acres were vested in the University. The high cost of preparing the steeply sloping land at Victoria Park for building made it a less than ideal site despite its central location and proximity to the Royal Brisbane Hospital. Yeronga Park and Saint Lucia were considered as options. But in 1926 the whole issue was transformed when Doctor James O'Neil Mayne and Miss Mary Emilia Mayne made £50,000 available to the Brisbane City Council to resume land at Saint Lucia and present it to the University. Opinion was divided with Professor Steele and many members of the medical profession against Saint Lucia because of its isolation and lack of public transport. A meeting of the Senate, on the 10th of December, voted for the Saint Lucia site on the condition that the city council provided access. Those voting for Saint Lucia included Archbishop Duhig, EJD Stanley, ACV Melbourne, and Professor Richards. Doctor Lockhart Gibson, Chancellor AJ Thynne and Archbishop Sharp were amongst those who voted for Victoria Park. In 1930 the Senate handed over Victoria Park, less eleven acres reserved for a medical school, to the Brisbane City Council in exchange for the Saint Lucia site.
During the years of the Depression that followed the university suffered progressive reduction of government funding. Cuts were made to both staff salaries and numbers, while student numbers trebled between 1923 and 1933. There was no prospect of building the new university until 1935 when the Premier, W. Forgan Smith, announced that the Queensland Government would undertake construction at Saint Lucia. This was one of the three major development projects initiated in the mid 1930s by the Queensland government to create employment, the others being the Stanley River Dam and the Story Bridge. The University Senate called for and received schemes from various enthusiasts, including Professor Hawken, Dr FW Robinson, AB Leven, and Dr JJC Bradfield. Taking ideas from these suggestions the Senate committee produced its own preliminary design. The principle building, containing Arts, Law and administration, was E-shaped and enclosed one side of an arcaded quadrangle. Related outer buildings contained Engineering, Biology, Medicine, Physics, Chemistry, Geology, a museum and a teachers' training college. The Queensland government, despite hopes for a competition, appointed the Sydney firm of Hennessy, Hennessy & Co as architects for the project; and Jack Francis Hennessy (1887 - 1955) produced the coherent and logical plan that still lies at the heart of the University.
The foundation stone was laid in 1937 by Forgan Smith but it was another year before building commenced. Construction began in March 1938 with the main building, now known as the Forgan Smith Building, and was followed shortly afterward with the lower floors of the library and the Chemistry Building. It was to proceed, due to financial constraints, in stages clockwise around the court.
Work was disrupted by the Second World War (WWII). The main building served its first use, from 1942 - 1944, as the headquarters of General Sir Thomas Blamey (head of the Australian Defence Forces). The army evacuated the building and work re-commenced by 1948. The Forgan Smith Building was officially opened in May 1949 by Premier Hanlon. The Duhig Library (two-stories only and named for Archbishop Sir James Duhig) was also ready by this time, as was the Steele Building (named for the first professor of chemistry, Professor Bertram Steele).
In 1951 the Richards Building (named for the first professor of geology, Henry Casselli Richards) was completed. In 1955 the Parnell Building (named for the inaugural professor of physics, Thomas Parnell) and an addition to the west wing of the Forgan Smith Building were completed. In 1962, jointly funded by State and Commonwealth Governments, the Goddard Building (named for the second professor of biology, Ernest Jones Goddard) was completed. In 1965 three extra floors were added to the Duhig Library to the design of James Birrell.
The final building at the western end of the Forgan Smith was to have been a Great Hall. JD Story, the vice chancellor from 1938 until 1960, proposed in 1959 that this be replaced by a western Arts building and in 1972 construction began on the Michie Building (named for first the professor of classics, J.L. Michie). The state government announced in 1974 that it would provide the funding to clad the building in sandstone. The Michie Building was completed in 1978.
In March 1979 the colonnade between the Michie Building and the Goddard Building was completed enclosing the Great Court Complex.
A number of changes have been made over the years to the Great Court Complex. Some of buildings have been augmented or altered: there are various structures on top of the Goddard Building, and a new, discreet addition to the Law Library at the western end of the Forgan Smith Building which was designed by Robert Riddell. Perhaps the most significant change is that the planting within the Court is less formal than originally intended, and takes little account of Hennessy's plans for strong visual axes to tie the whole Court together. Notable also in this respect are Professor Gareth Robert's master plan for the university which involved the closing of the circular drive and the placement of the Main Library and the Great Hall in front of the Forgan Smith Building.
The Sculptors:
As part of Hennessy, Hennessy & Co's original concept, it was intended that the Great Court would include extensive sculptural work portraying historical panels, statues, coats of arms and panels of Australian plant and animal life. Many of the designs were done by Leo Drinan, who was the principle architect with Hennessy, Hennessy & Co. Work on the sculptures began in 1939, with German born John Theodore Muller and Frederick James McGowan as the principle stonemasons. Work was halted by the war in 1942 and McGowan died before it resumed three years later. Muller continued to carve until his death at more than 80 years of age, in 1953. At the time of his death, all of the friezes, most of the statues, and half of the grotesques, coats of arms, arches and roundels were completed.
Carving virtually stopped at the University after Muller's death and resumed only after the Michie Building was under construction. A competition amongst several Queensland sculptors in 1976 led to the commissioning of Mrs Rhyl Hinwood. Mrs Hinwood has since continued to carve numerous grotesques and coats of arms for the Court, as well as the two monumental figures at the main entrance to the Goddard Building.
Source: Queensland Heritage Register.
Castle Hill at Almondbury has been the site of a settlement since around 2100 BC. Defences were built during the Iron Age starting with a single rampart but significant upgrades were made in the decades that followed. A fire gutted the site around 400 BC and it was then abandoned until the Normans built a motte-and-bailey in the eleventh century.
History
Castle Hill, Almondbury stands over 300 metres above sea level and dominates the Holme Valley just south of its confluence with the River Colne. The latter was a key artery of trade and communication since prehistoric times and connected the site to the Peak District, Lancashire and beyond. For this reason it has been occupied for thousands of years with the earliest settlers using the site during the Neolithic (4000 BC to 2500 BC) period. Use continued during the Bronze (2500 BC to 800 BC) then Iron (800 BC to AD 43) Ages and around the seventh century BC the site was first fortified with the construction of a single rampart enclosing an area of around 5 acres. This univallate hillfort was upgraded in the sixth century BC into a multivallate (multiple rampart) configuration when a ditch was dug external to the existing defences and the spoil used to create a new rampart. Further upgrades were made in the late sixth century BC with the addition of another ditch and the defences were also extended to the north-east effectively doubling the size of the original enclosure.
By the Fifth Century BC the hillfort was occupied by the Brigantes tribe and undoubtedly was an important site as substantial upgrades were made to the hillfort's defences. The main rampart was revetted in stone which was held in place with timber frames. An outwork, one of the earliest examples of its kind, replaced a simple in-turned entrance. The outer ditch was also enhanced and converted into a deep V-shaped trench. The site was once thought to have been Camulodunum, a tribal centre of the Brigantes tribe during the Roman-era that was mentioned in Ptolemy's Geography. However archaeological investigation has now confirmed the settlement was destroyed by fire circa-400 BC and was thereafter abandoned long before the Romans arrived. It remained unoccupied for the next 1,500 years.
Following the Norman Conquest, an earth and timber motte-and-bailey fortification was built by Ilbert de Lacy. He had been granted extensive lands in Lincolnshire, Nottinghamshire and Yorkshire with the latter including the Honour of Pontefract. Almondbury formed part of his estate and he constructed the castle as part of his efforts to secure control of the region. The proximity of the River Colne was probably the key factor here although building such a fortification within a former hill fort was unusual as, although such sites were naturally strong, they lacked the political impact of being built overlooking an existing settlement. The castle re-used the existing Iron Age earthworks but further ditches were excavated to create three separate enclosures for the motte and two baileys. The Outer Bailey was used for an associated settlement which grew up to serve the castle. King Stephen granted Henry de Lacy a licence to crenellate in the early-twelfth century and this probably reflected the partial rebuilding of the structure in stone.
The castle was abandoned in the late thirteenth century, probably due to its exposed and impractical location, and was reported as ruinous by 1320. Nevertheless the attached settlement continued and was still occupied in the fifteenth century. After the settlement was abandoned, Castle Hill remained unoccupied although the site's dominant position meant beacons were periodically placed here (including one to warn of the Spanish Armada). A public house was built on the hill in the nineteenth century and in 1897 a large folly, Victoria Tower, was built to celebrate Queen Victoria's Silver Jubilee. During WWII an anti-aircraft battery was installed on the site.
Pictured is the first RAF F-35B (Lightning II) aircraft to arrive on British soil.
With the British aircraft are 2 USAF F-35B’s and two RAF Typhoons.
This 5th Generation STOVL Multi-Role supersonic stealth aircraft will provide the UK with a hugely capable and flexible weapons and sensor platform for decades to come.
Designed to operate from established land bases, austere strips and the new Queen Elizabeth Class aircraft carriers, the Lightning will join the Typhoon FGR4 in providing the Combat Air component of UK defence from 2018.
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© Crown Copyright 2014
Photographer: Sgt Peter George
Image 45162897.jpg from www.defenceimages.mod.uk
This image is available for high resolution download at www.defenceimagery.mod.uk subject to the terms and conditions of the Open Government License at www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/. Search for image number 45162897.jpg
For latest news visit www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-defence
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I revisited this magnificent nature reserve today 10th August 2018, many visitors to our city miss its glorious offerings, thinking all we have to offer is the beach front at the main boulevard , its a pity as this reserve is a short drive from the main tourist area and has its own charm, attraction and wealth of nature on offer, I love it .
Donmouth Local Nature Reserve is a beach site in the historic Old Aberdeen part of the City where the River Don meets the sea.
A great place to see seals and a range of interesting birds. The beach area has changed over time as the river has changed its course. There are lots of interesting plants in the dunes and beach area. Bird hide is an excellent shelter from which to watch the wildlife. The paths run across King Street to the Brig 'o Balgownie., the original bridge in to the City from the North, then down the other side of the river to the sea.
The site was designated a Local Nature Reserve in 1992
Paths are good although wheelchair access to the beach would be difficult as the boardwalk can get covered with sand.
There is plenty of free car parking on the Beach Esplanade and at the car park in Donmouth Road. There are cycle racks on Beach Esplanade
Bridge Of Don has five spans of dressed granite, and rounded cutwaters that carry up to road level to form pedestrian refuges. The spans are 75 feet (23 m), with a rise of 25 feet (7.6 m).
It was widened in 1958-59, from 24 feet (7.3 m), to 66 feet (20 m) by the construction of a new concrete bridge adjacent to the old one.
It now carries four lanes of the A956 road, and is the last bridge on the River Don before it meets the sea. The bridge is just downstream from a substantial island in the river. Around the area of the bridge is the Donmouth Local Nature Reserve, designated as a LNR in 1992.
Near to the bridge are a number of World War II era coastal defences, including a pill box.
Mudflats
Mudflats are formed when fine particles carried downstream by the river are deposited as it slows down before entering the sea, and to a lesser extent by fine particles washed in by the tide. The sand spit at the mouth of the Don provides shelter from the wind and waves allowing this material to build up. The mud flats are a very rich and fertile environment. Despite their rather barren appearance they support a surprisingly diverse invertebrate fauna which includes; worms, molluscs and crustacea. These invertebrates are vitally important to wildfowl and wading birds within the estuary.
Salt marsh
Along the upper shore of the south bank saltmarsh has developed. This habitat would once have been much more extensive prior to the tipping of domestic and other refuse in the area and the formation in 1727 of an artificial embankment to prevent flooding of the river into the Links. This habitat is now reduced to a narrow strip of vegetation along the river margins upstream from the Powis Burn.
The species composition of the salt marsh varies according to the salinity of the water i.e. the proximity to the sea. Close to the Powis Burn this habitat is dominated by reed sweet-grass (Glyceria maxima) with reed canary-grass (Phalaris arundinacea), sea club-rush (Scirpus maritimus), spike-rush (Eleocharis palustris), hemlock water-dropwort (Oenanthe crocata) and common scurvygrass (Chochlearia officinalis).
Further inland reed sweet-grass continues to dominate but hemlock water-dropwort is more abundant with meadowsweet (Filipendula ulmaria) and valarian (Valariana officinalis),
Sand dunes
Sand dunes are found in the more exposed parts of the estuary at the river mouth. Again, this habitat was once much more extensive in this locality with dune grasslands stretching from Aberdeen Beach inland as far as King Street, southwards from the estuary of the Dee, northwards to the Sands of Forvie and beyond. Many of the dunes formed part of Seaton Tip, and following tipping the area was grassed over. Other areas have been formally landscaped to form golf courses or planted with native trees in 2010 to create a new woodland area.
Some remnants of the natural dune flora can be seen in the 'roughs' on the Kings Links golf course and near the mouth of the river.
Above the high water mark, fore dunes with thick clumps of the pioneer grass species including sea lyme grass (Elymus arenarius) and marram grass (Ammophila arenaria) occur. Few other species are able to cope with the shifting sand. The largest area of these young dunes is to the north and west of the headland. Further inland where the dunes are sheltered from the actions of the wind and waves, and soils are more developed, more stable dunes are present supporting a more diverse grassland habitat.
Strand line plants which are able to tolerate occasional coverage by sea water include sea rocket (Cakile maritima), frosted orache (Atriplex laciniata), sea sandwort (Honkenya peploides) and knotgrass (Polygonum aviculare). Bur-reed (Sparganium sp.) has been recorded; presumably washed down by the river.
Marram grass (Ammophila arenaria) and sea lyme grass (Elymus arenarius) dominate the fore dunes. The latter species is not native to this area but appeared in 1802. It is thought to have been unintentionally introduced into the area by fishing boats. For a number of years it remained uncommon but from 1870 onwards it spread rapidly along the coastline (Marren, 1982).
In the more stable dunes red fescue (Festuca rubra), sand sedge (Carex arenaria), yellow rattle (Rhinanthus minor), wild pansy (Viola tricolour), harebell (Campanula rotundifolia), bird's-foot-trefoil (Lotus corniculatus) and lesser meadow-rue (Thalictrum minus) are abundant. Small amounts of kidney vetch (Anthyllis vulneraria), valerian (Valeriana officinalis) and spring vetch (Vicia lathyroides) are present.
Scattered willows (Salix sp.) and sycamore (Acer pseudoplantanus) have seeded into this area. Gorse (Ulex europaeus) scrub has colonised the dunes in some areas and appears to be spreading.
Scrub
This habitat is almost entirely artificial with only the gorse scrub on the inner dunes being a semi-natural habitat. Alder and willow were planted along the south bank of the river in about 1970 and these shrubs are now generally well established. Further shrub planting on the south bank was carried out in 1990.
Willow (Salix sp.) and alder (Alnus glutinosa) were planted in the 1970's along the south bank of the River Don eastwards of the Bridge of Don. The trees to the west of this strip are doing considerably better than those to the east. More recent planting was carried out in 1990 with hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna), blackthorn (Prunus spinosa) elder (Sambucus nigra), goat willow (Salix caprea) and alder.
Underneath the scrub neutral grassland is present with cocksfoot (Dactylis glomerata), false oat-grass (Arrhenatherum elatius), cow parsley (Anthriscus sylvestris), sweet cicely (Myrrhis odorata), hedge woundwort (Stachys sylvatica) and hedge bindweed (Calystegia sepium).
Grassland
Much of the grassland within the reserve is formed on imported soil and is intensively managed. This includes grassland on the north and south sides of the Esplanade. Daffodils are present in the grassland on the north side of the road. On the north bank to the east of the Bridge of Don is rank grassland on a steep south-facing slope. This is unmanaged and contains some patches of scrub.
Rough grassland is present on the headland. This area has been modified by tipping, with rubble to the east and with grass cuttings to the west. The grassland contains a mixture of neutral grassland, dune grassland, ruderal, and introduced garden species. This area attracts flocks of seed eating birds in late summer and autumn.
Improved grassland is present on the headland and along the south bank of the estuary downstream from the bridge of Don. Much of this vegetation has developed on imported soil and contains a high proportion of ruderal species and garden escapes. On the headland, broadleaved dock (Rumex obtusifolius), nettle (Urtica dioica), coltsfoot (Tussilago farfara), spear thistle (Cirsium vulgare), cow parsley (Anthriscus sylvestris), hemlock (Conium maculatum) and hogweed (Heracleum sphondylium) are abundant. Sweet cicely (Chaerophyllum bulbosum) is widespread and in late summer fills the air with the scent of aniseed.
To the south of the Esplanade the grassland is managed with an annual cut.. The grassland does flood to form pools. Early in the year cuckoo flower (Cardamine pratensis) is common, meadow foxtail (Alopecuris pratensis)is known to occur around the margins of these pools.
Woodland
Semi-mature woodland is present on the steep sided south bank of the river upstream from the Bridge of Don. Most of this woodland has been planted in the mid 1930's though some older oak and elm trees are present. These may be relicts of former woodland cover. The woodland in the reserve is part of a strip of woodland along the River Don corridor which continues upstream from the Brig 'o' Balgownie.
Woodland is present on the south bank upstream from the Bridge of Don.
Much of the woodland consists of even aged stands with willow (Salix sp.), sycamore (Acer pseudoplatanus), ash (Fraxinus excelsior), beech (Fagus sylvatica) and alder (AInus glutinosa). At the top of the slope mature oak (Quercus sp.) and elm (Ulmus glabra) are present. The ground flora contains tufted hair-grass (Deschampsia caespitosa), red campion (Silene dioica), ramsons (Allium ursinum) and lady fern (Athyrium felix-femina) .In a few areas dense shading is caused by the trees and in these areas the ground flora is poor.
On the north bank scattered trees are present, mainly willow and sycamore with some scrub.
A Hoth defence turret and P-Tower laser cannon to boost your defence of Echo Base!
The P-Tower is a re-work of the official Lego design from 75259 20th Anniversary Snowspeeder, with added laser firing effect. The defence turret is my own build, based of course on what is seen on screen in TESB.
Free instructions on Rebrickable: reb.li/m/218119
The sea defence at Blackpool's South Shore, including the giant mirror ball (officially named "They Shoot Horses Don't They?")
Blackpool, Fylde Coast, Lancashire, UK
SWJuk (2025)
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