February | 2015 | Dubman and Streylock

West Norwood Catacombs

Posted on February 15, 2015 by dubmanandstreylock

This post The Grounds Of West Norwood Cemetery is connected to this and worth a look after you have seen this.

This was a top of the list tour we had been looking forward to for some time. Yes it’s dark, eerie and spooky as hell but it also has a calmness, serenity to it. Seeing all the lead lined coffins which have been down there since the eighteen hundreds really takes your breathe away. In a group you feel ok but every so often you wander off to get a photo and realise wtf am I doing down here. Images of a zombie standing behind you or a skeleton hand grasping out to get you flashes by in your mind. The adrenalin and buzz soon takes over though and you wander of again all brave. If the lights went off mind, sure would of screamed and probably had an accident!

Tour put on by the Friends Of West Norwood Cemetery and Subbrit together. With a fascinating tour guide, who’s name I can’t remember, but was a huge mountain of knowledge. He had a story for everything and we could of listened to him for days. Will do a separate post for the Cemetery grounds but here is some of the photos we took. I also found a video on YouTube at the bottom of the page which is worth a look.

West Norwood Cemetery is a 40-acre (16 ha) cemetery in West Norwood in London, England. It was also known as the South Metropolitan Cemetery. One of the first private landscaped cemeteries in London, it is one of the Magnificent Seven cemeteries of London, and is a site of major historical, architectural and ecological interest.

Its grounds are a mixture of historic monumental cemetery and modern lawn cemetery, but it also has catacombs, cremation plots and a columbarium for cinery ashes. The cemetery’s crematorium still operates, and cremation plots are still available, but all the conventional burial plots have been allocated and hence it is closed to new burials pending further agreement under current burial legislation.

The catacombs, opened in 1837, were built below chapels and included a group of 95 vaults with private and shared loculi with a capacity of 3500 coffins.

Here’s a short film made down in the catacombs with a guided talk. Different guy but great to watch. Made by Soundminds Films a charity giving art activities and creativity through support to people with mental ill health. Mad place to take them!

Further links

Subbrit West Norwood Cemetery

Friends Of West Norwood Cemetery Website

Wikipedia

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Dubman and Streylock

Fort Henry – Churchill’s Bunker Studland

Posted on February 15, 2015 by dubmanandstreylock

A great walk around this beautiful part of the country down in Studland Bay in Dorset. Pretty much on our doorstep with a short trip across on the Sandbanks chain link ferry. Hidden away is an incredible piece of history where Winston Churchill, Dwight D. Eisenhower and George VI once stood watching the preparations for the D-Day Landings being performed down in the bay. Must of been an awe-inspiring sight from the bunker. Haunting and scary to what was to come. You can feel a certain presence standing in the bunker looking out.

Definitely worth a visit as it’s a lovely walk and there’s a wonderful pub for a pit-stop on route called The Bankes Arms.

Check the National Trust for the Studland Beach Second World War walk where you will see the Dragon’s Teeth, Pill Box and the Bunker. Very recommended.

Wiki Link

Fort Henry is a Grade II listed[1] World War Two observation bunker overlooking Studland Bay, in Dorset. It was built to defend the bay in 1943 from possible German invasion along with other beach defenses such as gun emplacements, Type 25 pill boxes and concrete Dragon’s Teeth anti-tank obstacles (which have also been listed for protection).

Located at the top of Redend Point, on a small sandstone promontory, the bunker is 90 feet (27 m) long with walls, floor and ceiling all 3 feet (0.91 m) thick. There is an 80 feet (24 m) wide recessed observation slit. Its name derives from the home base in Ontario of the Canadian Royal Engineers who built it.

Today, it is owned by the National Trust it forms part of the Studland Beach Second World War walk.

An English Heritage spokesman commented following the bunker’s listing on 20 November, 2012

“Fort Henry provides an impression of the scale and significance of the preparations for D-Day and is associated with the most prominent figures of the Allied forces.
Studland Bay is known for its beaches and wildlife but it is great that its role in the Second World War has now been recognised.”

Inside the Bankes Arms. Well chilled out of the sun for a much needed pint. A pint of “Jazz” Ale called Missy Sippy from the Milestone Brewery. Beautiful pub.

The Diving Museum Gosport

Posted on February 14, 2015 by dubmanandstreylock

Wonderful friendly quaint little museum on the coast of Gosport. Lovely informative knowledgeable staff. Chocked full of all manner of diving gear and accessories.
The museum is housed in Stokes Bay No.2 Battery a Victorian fortification which was later converted into a nuclear bunker (Civil Defence Command Post) in the early 1980’s. We visited that part too and I will link the photos soon.

The Diving Museum in Gosport exhibits the best range of military, commercial and recreational diving equipment anywhere in Europe (perhaps the world)!

It is not yet popularly known, but Gosport is the home of the global diving industry. The co-inventor of the diving helmet, John Deane, lived in Gosport from 1835 to 1845 during which time he discovered the Mary Rose. The first diving helmet ever sold by the inventors was to a Gosport mariner, Henry Abbinett. Gosport represents a natural home for the country’s premier historical diving museum.

From ancient times man has reaped the natural treasures of the oceans – pearls and coral have been collected since at least 5000 BC. The 18th century saw an explosion of interest in recovering treasures from sunken vessels. Experimentation with diving bells was followed by the invention of the diving helmet in the 19th century – commercial diving was born. After the Second World War, sport diving became popular. Today, divers can work at depths as great as 300 m doing everything from military operations, oilfield support, salvage and construction to fish farming, archaeology, research – and even just for fun! From ancient to modern, it’s all at The Diving Museum.

Here are some of the photos from the day.

One of the very informative guides. The guy with the black cap use to go down in that suit behind him back in his youth. Amazing stories.