There and Back

The story of  AARON MCCLURE came to my attention when a newspaper article mentioning the mural that had been created in his memory. It was commissioned by the school in Ipswich, which he attended, and is on the wall in the front of the school.  A brief history, as part of his funeral, is below the picture. On the wall of the school where Aaron attended - Westbourne Academy in Ipswich `Private Aaron McClure, who died on 23 August 2007 in a so-called “friendly fire” incident that also killed two other UK soldiers, was serving in Afghanistan with 1st Battalion The Royal Anglian Regiment. Despite his young age – he was 19 at the time of his death - Private McClure was a veteran of more than forty conflict operations. The two other soldiers who died were Private John Thrumble and Private Robert Foster Colleagues described Private McClure as a highly capable, motivated soldier with great ambition and potential, but his talent was hidden by a modest, unassuming personality and a quiet confide

Storm Babet which hit Britain on 19th October, caused huge amounts of damage in Scotland and other parts of the UK including where I live in the Suffolk area. Most of it was water damage, as it dumped huge rainfalls in several places. Met Office figures show between Thursday and Saturday morning, 79mm fell in Charsfield, Suffolk. That's a little over three inches in two days. The rain was even heavier further north. In Angus and Aberdeenshire, in Scotland, some areas had 200mm of rain. The name Babet was selected by the Dutch weather agency KMNI - and was named after a woman who visited an open day at its headquarters and put her own name forward, with the additional reason "because I was born during a storm". When the weather abated a little, I recorded some pictures in our area. The view from the front of our bungalow showing how water encroached on our side of the river for the first time since we have been here - some 23 years. Luckily, the land slopes away from us as

"Surprise arrival of rare ‘cartoon birds’ on random Suffolk street causes a stir" so read the headline in a local newspaper this January!  "But these rare waxwings are causing something of a stir after flying all the way from Scandinavia and randomly picking an Ipswich street to nest for winter. The 20 or so of the brightly coloured birds are currently camped out on telegraph poles, television aerials and in trees in Defoe Road - picking Suffolk, perhaps surprisingly, for its warmer winter climate. They have brought with them a flock of their own - in the form of nature lovers with binoculars and cameras, who have travelled from far and wide to capture a glimpse of the rare birds famous for their plump shape and prominent crest. In scenes watchers have described as something out of a cartoon, the creatures fly down from their perches to eat berries from trees, comically tossing the fruit up in the air before taking a bite." Waxwings are starlin

Rodin's The Kiss is on display at Christchurch Mansion in Ipswich, alongside work by John Constable and Suffolk sculptor Ellen Mary Rope. Museum curator Emma Roodhouse said it was "a dream come true" to have such an iconic sculpture on show. The 1882 sculpture, on loan from the Tate, depicts the adulterous lovers Paolo and Francesca, who were mentioned in Dante's Inferno. What an opportunity to see this great work of art - and all for free! The Kiss (c.1884)  Christchurch Mansion where The Kiss is currently displayed.  François Auguste René Rodin (12 November 1840 – 17 November 1917), known as Auguste Rodin, was a French sculptor. Although Rodin is generally considered the progenitor of modern sculpture, he did not set out to rebel against the past. He was schooled traditionally, took a craftsman-like approach to his work, and desired academic recognition, although he was never accepted into Paris's foremost school of art.  Rodin possessed

The local news announced the appearance of Piggies in Ipswich like this:  A herd of pig sculptures is to go on display in Ipswich as the town becomes the latest place to host an art trail for charity. Forty models will be dotted around the streets and waterfront as part of the "Pigs Gone Wild" art trail in summer 2016, in aid of St Elizabeth Hospice. The animals, chosen to "celebrate Suffolk's rich agricultural heritage", will be decorated by local artists. The first thing, as grandparents, that crossed our mind was `What a great idea for some fun with Izobelle.` Sure enough the idea appealed and over the course of the summer we explored Ipswich with Izobelle and to be honest great fun was had by all, including grandparents! So, here goes with images of some of the pigs. Not all of them, but a large selection. Let's mark off - Pinata Piggy. Ed Sheer-Ham - say no more. A nod to our local pop idol. Hamlet of Ipswich Lit

In Woolpit, near Bury St Edmunds, is a village called Woolpit. Each year Woolpit hosts a steam Day which consists of many examples of the power of steam which preceded the modern internal combustion engine. This year, I took a trip and here are a few of the images from that afternoon - not that I can tell you much about the engines! Ransomes, Sims and Jefferies Limited was a major British agricultural machinery maker also producing a wide range of general engineering products in Ipswich, Suffolk including traction engines.  So, a local connection here! The enterprise was started by Robert Ransome (1753-1830), a brass and iron-founder in Norwich before moving to Ipswich in 1789 where he started casting ploughshares in a disused malting at St Margaret's Ditches in Ipswich, with capital of £200 and one employee. As a result of a mishap in his foundry, a broken mould caused molten metal to come into contact with cold metal, making the metal surface extremely hard – chille

This was the year when the Olympics came to London. Probably the only time I shall ever see all the excitement that surrounds this global event - was when the flame came to Ipswich! It was due into town in the evening and great excitement was in the air. I was there! As the crowds gathered, the anticipation heightened until this familiar vehicle appeared, heralding the approach of - something at least! Police escorts, always a feature of these events, paved the way. The entourage continues. The crowd gathering. Who were the two lads I wondered? Everyman and his dog was there. The dog had put his best wheels on (Poor thing) And then THE Flame appeared!!. Do you know - I haven't a clue who the torch bearer was! That was it for the evening. All over. But tomorrow I shall return to see the flame leave Christchurch Mansion. Home

Ipswich has several sculptures and works of art, so I learned. So I planned a few hours finding as many as I could and photographing them. The sculptures represent Ipswich`s maritime, industrial and sporting heritage both through the artwork and the landscape that is walked through. Although I didn't follow the pre planned routes suggested on the Artethom Map, I had a great time just wandering from one of the sculptures to the other and in fact, managed quite a few today.  The Trawlerman 1992 Sainsburys, Hadleigh Road John Ravera Bronze This sculpture is tucked away out of the town centre at Sainsburys which is close to the river, just before it becomes tidal. John Ravera was born in Surrey in 1941. He trained at Camberwell School of Art and works mainly in clay for bronze. He is a Past President of the Royal Society of British Sculptors and has public monuments scattered over London and the home counties including the much admired "Family Group&quo