Walking. Gossip. Travel.

Category: UK

  • Hull – Ibis City Centre

    Hull – Ibis City Centre

    Just a short walk from Hull’s central railway station, I arrived at the Ibis hotel at 23:59, which is marvellous as I’d already told them I’d arrive at around midnight and asked by e-mail if that was OK. The hotel responded quickly saying that was all fine, although I was slightly nervous that my train might get delayed and so my arrival would be much later.

    The staff member was jolly and helpful, and he was also present behind the desk for a good chunk of the five days that I was there. He clearly works hard, especially given he seemed to be doing the night-time hours.

    The room, which was clean and well presented. It’s very Ibis brand standard, so there are rarely any surprises here.

    And the view from the room….. For anyone interested, which is likely no-one, I took this photo the day after as otherwise it was dark and the photo would have been pointless.

    This is my free gift, and to be honest, I’m entirely happy with that. It was a choice of a Mars Bar or a Snickers Bar, and given that this was an Ibis hotel, and one of their cheapest in the brand, I didn’t expect a bottle of champagne. I wouldn’t have turned down a selection of baked goods from Greggs, but this was fine and a handy midnight treat.

    This is the free drink I got with my voucher, a pint of Boddington’s. OK, it’s slumming it a bit compared with my normal high quality (or what I call high quality anyway) craft beer intake, but it was still entirely acceptable. I treated myself to some crisps as well, as I felt the beer needed it. I’d add that I saved this for later on during my trip, I didn’t march back down to reception at just gone midnight to drink it.

    The breakfast area. Being easily excitable, I like to get to breakfast early in hotels and I admit I didn’t really need to be there at 06:15…. But all of the food and drink was ready and I was able to fight my way through the hordes of other guests.

    The hot breakfast selection. There were muffins, cereals and some very cold fruit salad, none of which were exceptional, but they all sufficed.

    My first plate of food, along with orange juice, tea (proper flavoured fruit tea, I’m not much of a drinker of breakfast tea and the like) and coffee. The quality of the breakfast ingredients was high, tasty herby sausages, flavoursome tomatoes and hot baked beans. The bacon was excellent, although I spent some time carefully cutting off the fat (I think that irritates Liam, but he wasn’t here, so it doesn’t matter) and had a little pile of that heaped up. The bacon was also rather salty, but I like that, so this was acceptable to me, although I probably gave myself a salt overdose.

    I took a photo of this as there were a middle-aged couple in the lift and they asked me why there was a photo of mushy peas and bacon on this poster for breakfast (which reminds me of an old joke about Peter Mandelson). I helpfully posited the idea that it might actually be avocado and bacon on sourdough toast (because that’s what it is), which seemed to confuse them. The reply I got back was “they have avocado for breakfast here?”. I mentioned it was more aspirational than factual, but the lift reached the ground floor and this conversation didn’t go any further.

    Anyway, this was another very good stay and my fanboy view of Accor Hotels is unchanged. The rooms were clean, everything was restocked daily, there were no noise issues and the staff were friendly. Given the price point, which was under £40 per night including breakfast, this seemed more than reasonable to me. All rather lovely.

  • Hull – Ferens Art Gallery (The Batsman by William Day Keyworth)

    Hull – Ferens Art Gallery (The Batsman by William Day Keyworth)

    This cricketing sculpture was designed by William Day Keyworth the Younger, an artist who lived from 1843 until 1902, when he rather sadly committed suicide due to financial issues. Keyworth was born in Hull and he also worked in the city, becoming a well known sculptor in the late nineteenth century.

    The gallery notes on the information panel that they were pleased to be able to get this artwork in 1993, as there was some competition with a number of sports fans who also fancied having it. It’s also called the Young Cricketer and it was made as a pair (there’s not reference to where the other one is, so perhaps no-one knows….) for the Peckover family of Wisbech, the bankers who owned what is now the National Trust property of Peckover House.

  • Hull – Atom Brewing at the Corn Exchange

    Hull – Atom Brewing at the Corn Exchange

    This charming and on-trend pub has gone through a few incarnations recently, but it’s looking good now, even though it’s apparently an Enterprise Inns pub.

    The staff member was engaging and more than happy to guide me through the dark beer options, of which there were several interesting ones. I did notice a customer a few minutes later went up to the bar and looked entirely confused, before admitting to the staff member he didn’t know what to get. The response was professional, the staff member suggested a couple of options, gave samples of the beer and then the customer picked his favourite. All very reassuringly competent. There are also cans and bottles available for those customers who want an even wider choice than those chalked up on the blackboards above the bar.

    There are a few different rooms within the pub, so there’s a choice of different seating types including high tables and these low sofas. It was all comfortable, clean and well presented. They weren’t serving food when I visited as there was some issue that I didn’t particularly listen to as I hadn’t intended to eat there. However, looking at the reviews, the food looks good and, like the whole operation, on-trend. There were though quite a lot of dogs (of the animal kind) around the pub, which are encouraged and welcomed, but which did have quite an impact visually and in the olfactorily sense, so it might not suit everyone.

    The Lucky 6 Honey Porter from Northern Monk, a nicely sweet, but rich, porter which had a real depth to it. The prices here weren’t the cheapest, but quality doesn’t necessarily come cheap and this was a decent enough beer to justify the cost.

    I liked it here, it was a relaxing and laid-back environment and the bar staff seemed in control of the whole pub. I was also delighted that three other customers after me asked for dark beers (although I was there for about an hour, there’s no point rushing these things), which just goes to show that we won’t always be stuck drinking bloody IPAs. The pub also produces its own beers, which I didn’t try, but again there looked like some tempting options.

    All told, another very lovely pub in Hull, with a welcoming feel to it.

  • Hull – King William III Statue (King Billy’s Statue)

    Hull – King William III Statue (King Billy’s Statue)

    This is what can only really be described as an early bit of bling, the gilded statue of King William III. The statue was designed by Peter Scheemaker in 1734, although it wasn’t gilded until 1768. And perhaps they overdid a bit by doing that…. The statue was paid for by public subscription and they raised an impressive £785, which is nearly £100,000 in today’s money.

    It’s also not located in a marvellous part of Hull, as it’s a bit of a traffic hub now. Once it was the city’s marketplace and its location near to the Minster was quite salubrious, but not really any longer. The one positive that there was, which was the William III pub next door to the statue, has also now closed down.

  • Hull – Nelson Street Toilets

    Hull – Nelson Street Toilets

    I don’t normally feel the need to take photos of toilets and then upload them on-line, but I’ve made an exception here. These toilets were constructed in 1926 and they are now listed, such is their heritage. There used to be a charge to use them, but they’re now free and the attendant’s window has been closed off.

    Very decorative. The toilets got some international acclaim when Lonely Planet decided to list them as one of the most important things to see in the UK. I’m not quite sure that I would have gone that far, but it’s impressive when public facilities survive undamaged.

    A sink. Or as the listed building record notes with rather more details:

    “Edward Johns and Co Limited, scalloped white and cobalt blue stoneware hand sink that is attached to the dividing W wall”.

    How lovely.

  • Hull – Will You Walk a Little Faster?

    Hull – Will You Walk a Little Faster?

    I think this in my mind a lot of times during the day about someone walking in front of me…..

  • Hull – Three Ships Mural

    Hull – Three Ships Mural

    It looks like the end for the Three Ships mural in Hull, which the city council has said can be demolished. It’s a clever design, spelling out the word Hull and also focusing on the city’s maritime heritage. There are a quite staggering one million pieces of glass in the mural, which was designed by Alan Boyson in 1963 for what was then the Co-op building.

    It’s the largest such mural in the country and there is currently a petition to save it, with a separate letter being signed by Sir Tom Courtenay, Al Murray, Kate Fox, Bob Stanley and Kevin McCloud. The Co-op were later replaced by BHS, but their demise has seen the building left empty and the site is now earmarked to be used for the £130 million Albion Square redevelopment.

    The council is claiming that the mural can’t be saved because there is asbestos in the building and they said that HSE wouldn’t let them separate the mural from the wall. I’m not sure why the HSE wouldn’t let this happen if appropriate safety procedures were followed, but it doesn’t look very positive for this wonderful mural.

  • Hull – Ferens Art Gallery (In the Cinema by Malcolm Drummond)

    Hull – Ferens Art Gallery (In the Cinema by Malcolm Drummond)

    This artwork was painted in 1913 and so it is a relatively early depiction of a visit to the cinema, not a subject that I’ve seen portrayed like this before. A dark cinema doesn’t seem to be the most obvious thing to show, but it’s quite evocative, a bit Lowry in terms of the working person being anonymously portrayed.

    The Ferens Art Gallery purchased the artwork in 1969 and the Guinness Movie Facts book claims that this is the first painting known in existence of an audience watching a film inside a cinema.

  • Hull – Ferens Art Gallery (Fun Bag by Victoria Sin)

    Hull – Ferens Art Gallery (Fun Bag by Victoria Sin)

    Not being the sharpest knife in the drawer at times, I don’t always get what modern art, or indeed other mediums such as performance art, is trying to tell me. So, it’s helpful to have the gallery provide some context and meaning to an artwork.

    And, I quote:

    “Here they combine everyday objects to create a work that questions the representation of women in the media”.

    OK, I’m not quite getting that message, but it’s an important one and I like it. But, this artwork had somewhat perkier balloons at one stage, so I’m guessing that the artist is trying to suggest that the slow withering away of the balloons is equivalent to the challenges which females have when they age.

    But it probably means something else, and judging from what others have written about it, I’m confident that it does and it’s something wider about sexuality. However, since it made me think, that’s a win for the artwork….. And there’s one nice element about art, everyone can have their own interpretations of works, even though mine are usually wrong.

  • Hull – Chilli Devil’s Real Ale and Chilli Bar

    Hull – Chilli Devil’s Real Ale and Chilli Bar

    I’m really not sure that I’ve ever visited a pub, or indeed restaurant, that specialises in craft beer and chillis. But I think that this is a great idea, and I strongly approve. This pub is in the Good Beer Guide and, as the advertising on their window suggests, it’s also the smallest pub in Hull, so I wanted to get there early when I knew that I could get a seat.

    I didn’t have any problems getting a seat and I was the only customer for the entirety of my visit. Still, friendly staff member and there’s a nice vibe to the place, although I’m sure it’s all a bit more charming in terms of the atmosphere later on in the day.

    They weren’t selling any chilli dishes when I was there, although I knew that before I went in as they chalk up the options on a board outside (and they actually chalk up the options above the bar, and I’ve just noticed they do have one up here, which I missed at the time). If there was definitely a chilli available, I might well have been tempted though. Although, the pub doesn’t accept credit or debit cards, which is a marginally surprising decision as I’ve seen very few pubs stick rigidly to this. To be fair, they make this clear outside and inside, so no-one would be surprised. And it made no difference to me, since I was always intending to pay with cash.

    Now, this was very lovely indeed, the Tonkoko Milk Stout. Very rich, creamy, coconuty and the strong flavours which I like. I was very tempted to get another half pint of it, but I had more pubs to visit in the city, but it’s one of the best beers I’ve had in a while.

    All in all, a really charming little pub, and another deserved entrant into the Good Beer Guide. The local CAMRA group really haven’t let me down this week.