The true origins of the legends surrounding the 6th century King Arthur and his knights are lost in the distant mists of time. Scattered references to this warrior king can be found in early Welsh literature, hagiographies and historical chronicles but it is in the 12th century that the characters and features of Arthurian legend familiar to us today, such as Merlin the magician, Queen Guinevere, the Round Table and the sword Excalibur, coalesce into a single narrative about the rise and fall of a king of the Britons who defended his people against the Saxon invaders. Arthurโs connections with Brittany are littered throughout these early works and I propose to highlight some of the most significant links both in literature and local legend.
#AceHistoryReport – Apr.05: The bridge is nothing short of a Victorian-era masterpiece. Crafted out of cast iron, it was officially opened in 1887:
Ace says this is a $270 million battle to save an iconic London bridge from falling into the River Thames & in the meantime Transport for London said Uber Boat ferries would run a temporary ferry service from the end of the UKโs summer, carrying up to 800 passengers between both banks during peak times for a cost of $2.80 per fareโ
But many of the 35 bridges that span the Thames were originally built to carry horse and cart, and the strain of modern-day traffic is taking its toll as the magnificent Hammersmith Bridge is a case in point: It could have crumbled into the Thames below if it had not been urgently shut in April 2019.
updated Yesterday at 10:44pm
Hammersmith Bridge in London links Hammersmith on the north side of the Thames to Barnes on the south side.(ABC News: Andrew Greaves)
For more than 130 years it has withstood all that has been thrown at it, but breaking point came after a particularly warm summer saw large cracks worsen.
That, coupled with the weight of 22,000 motor vehicles and 16,000 pedestrians crossing it every day, was too much.
It closed, first to traffic and then to pedestrians, cutting off thousands of residents who rely on it to go about their everyday lives.
Hammersmith Bridge has been closed to vehicles since April 2019, and pedestrians and cyclists since August last year.(ABC News: Andrew Greaves)
Toby Gordon-Smith, who uses a wheelchair, is one of them.
He lives a stoneโs throw from the bridge in the suburb on Barnes, and can see his office in Hammersmith on the other side of the Thames from his ground floor flat.
When Hammersmith Bridge was open, it took him 10 minutes to get to the office. Now it can take up to an hour and a half.
โI think I could probably get to my office from 80 per cent of London quicker than I could get to it from here and itโs visible from here. Itโs ridiculous,โ he told the ABC.
Toby Gordon-Smithโs commute to work on the other side of the bridge took 10 minutes. Now it takes up to an hour and a half.(ABC News: Andrew Greaves)
He said the bridge had been poorly maintained since the local Hammersmith and Fulham council was given control of the structure during the Thatcher era.
โWe could see this coming,โ Mr Gordon-Smith said.
No quick fix
There are no quick fixes for the Hammersmith Bridge โ the repair cost is estimated at around $270 million, which amounts to the entire annual budget of the local council, and it could take up to six years to reopen.
And the matter isย politically sensitive.
It is not the residents of Hammersmith who are so deeply inconvenienced, but rather those in Barnes and beyond, in the borough of Richmond-upon-Thames.
โThis is a major piece of infrastructure in a major international city, it is humiliating for the UK that you canโt even cross a river in the middle of their capital city,โ Michelle Coulter, another infuriated resident, told the ABC.
The 10-minute jaunt across the bridge with her children to the classroom is a much more arduous bike ride now.
โThere was a survey done recently and 80 per cent of people who responded said the closure of the bridge had had a negative impact on their mental health,โ Ms Coulter said.
โI know of at least one chemotherapy patient who has given up chemo because just doing the journey [to the hospital] is too difficult.โ
It is not inconceivable that other bridges could suffer the same fate.
Vauxhall Bridge was closed for months last year when it underwent urgent repairs. London Bridge was also temporarily shut while undergoing work.
And Tower Bridge caused traffic chaos in August 2020 when its 1,200 bascules โ the sections which allow the drawbridge to open โ became stuck.
Londonโs iconic Tower Bridge got stuck last August, causing traffic chaos on both sides of the Thames.(ABC News: Andrew Greaves)
โA lot of our structures that we have in this part of the world are approaching or have already exceeded what is known as their original life span,โ Luke Prendergast, an Assistant Professor of Civil Engineering at the University of Nottingham explained, pointing to the unrealistic expectation that bridges are built to last forever.
โI donโt think we would expect to still have Westminster Bridge in place in 1,000 yearsโ time, it probably will have been changed by then and so when youโre talking about time scales you need to be a little careful and realistic about what to expect.โ
Londonโs bridges are facing a perfect storm, according to Dr Prendergast with an increase in traffic and climate change putting great strain on the ageing structures.
โWe are kind of at a critical juncture,โ he said.
โItโs not really a surprise to me that these structures are under distress โฆ you would expect to have to repair damage to our houses after a storm event, for example.โ
Repair or replace?
The Hammersmith Bridge needs a great deal of tender loving care. Even rowboats cannot pass beneath it for fear it will collapse.
The bridge closure has dramatically increased the travel time for locals but there is no agreement on who will fund the upgrade.(ABC News: ANdrew Greaves)
But repairing it is not the only option. Many residents think it simply needs replacing.
โI think itโs a great opportunity to build a contemporary, modern structure, that nods towards the heritage of the original design,โ Mr Gordon-Smith said, noting that cast iron is not used for construction anymore.
Michelle Coulter said while a lot of locals would like to see the bridge replaced with a structure fit for purpose that would also come with added complications.
โIt is protected and there is a lot of vested interest in keeping that bridge there and repairing it,โ she said.
โBut we need to get started with these repairs and we canโt start the repairs until the funding has been agreed.
โAt the moment we are just sitting, waiting and nothing is happening.โ
The current Hammersmith Bridge was completed in 1887 after three years of construction.(ABC News: Andrew Greaves)
One plan is for the local council to charge a $5.50 toll to recuperate costs and speed up the restoration process, a hefty bill for a just-over-200-metre stretch of road.
But Mr Gordon-Smith said the Thames tidal flows would be problematic.
โIt goes up and down around three metres every day,โ Mr Gordon-Smith said, pointing out the ferry capacity would also never be great enough to move the mass of people needing to cross.
Ms Coulter does not believe it is a solution either.
โWe need a bridge to cross that river,โ she said.
St Georgeโs Church was built in the village in 1352 but had largely been abandoned by the living since 1968 when the roof collapsed during a funeral.
Many people were convinced the place was haunted and opted to leave it to the elements instead of going inside.
In 2012, local resident and volunteer caretaker Petr Koukl wanted to raise the funds to repair it but wasnโt sure how to do it.
He enlisted the help of student Jakub Hadrava who created the installation as his thesis for art college.
He created plaster models of real people then covered them with sheets before placing them in the church.
Torment of grandmother in crisis care home, 89 year old given just weeks to live pleads ‘I’m starving’ as she begs for food on camera.
Edna Slann was a resident at crisis-hit care home Grantley Court in Sutton. The 89-year-old has been given weeks to life after contracting an infection. Grantley Court was evacuated last year amid fears over care standards.
In harrowing footage, Mrs Slann is filmed begging for food before leaving The video has been shared by her family as police investigate the home.
The Mail reported yesterday that a ten-week stay at Grantley Court left her bruised, malnourished and with an infection that doctors say will kill her in weeks.
Unfortunately this is the only information I could find on the care home in Sutton and Iโm so glad itโs now been closed due to staff not taking care of the residents!
I hope the woman is still alive and well looked after.
Explore
An easy explore, easy access, I have now heard the building no longer has access due to more vandalism! Beautiful care home although squatters have been inside and set up a weed farm in multiple rooms on the second floor, luckily they were no longer there when we explored the care home. Walking through the building taking plenty of pictures, we came across private documents, personal information such as bank details, addressโ and national insurance numbers etc were all left for explorers to see. The building was large with multiple bedrooms and multiple living areas, it was dark and gloomy in areas which I can imagine makes the explore at night time very eerie, never seeing a weed farm before I didnโt know what all the cable ties on the walls were for until someone explained on my Facebook live which amazed me. Fingers crossed I can go back and the access will be easy for another explore!
