Jodrell Bank Observatory: 20th Century Industrial Archaeology

The Jodrell Bank space telescope in Cheshire loomed large in my childhood. In the late 60s’ and early ‘70s family drives out to the area, school visits, and reports on the local news firmly embedded this huge white dish supported by towers with what looked like faces in my imagination. I remember receiving a ‘moonwalker’…

Seasonal Archaeology: Castlefield

The Castlefield canal basin on a blisteringly hot and sunny late June day is a sound-scape of noise. There’s the water gushing between the canal gates at the Dukes 92 lock, the rumble of cars across the stone sets (not cobbles, please, these are all squared), and the hubbub of voices, sometimes raised in delight,…