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photo of the month
september 2005'Ballroom Memories' by Alan Brown
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This photograph evokes so many memories for me. When it was rumoured that the once magnificent ballroom at Trentham Gardens was about to be demolished in the Spring of 2004 I decided to include some shots of it as part of a project I was working on at the time on some of the contrasting scenes of clearance work and redevelopment going on in Stoke-on-Trent.
I visited on several occasions to chronicle the demolition in its various stages and on this particular visit I found that a large sectional fence had been erected around the site because of the risk from falling masonry. However, I had managed to spot a gap in the fence and had taken several shots of the ballroom interior before being shouted at in a loud voice by a passing security guard who proceeded to give me a very stern lecture punctuated by a few ‘F’ words to make sure I understood, on the dangers of wandering around in a building which was in imminent danger of falling down without any help from the bulldozers. As I walked back meekly to my car I hoped I had shot enough frames before being discovered. This one is of pieces of the plaster frieze which formed part of the ornate balcony above the ballroom floor and had fallen.
My earliest memories of Trentham Gardens, which originally was the home of the Duke of Sutherland, were riding on the miniature railway which ran the length of the mile-long lake to the open-air swimming pool where I spent many happy, sunny summer days with my pals. Then later in my youth going to the ballroom where the rocking music of The Beatles and The Rolling Stones together with the screaming of hundreds of teenage girls seemed to vibrate the whole building. A few years later dancing to the more sedate sounds of the well known bands of the day such as The Ted Heath Big Band, the Joe Loss Orchestra and Mantovani to name a few. There were also extravagant New Year parties staged in the ballroom which were so popular tickets had to be booked months in advance.
It saddened me on that day to see the ballroom in its beautiful surroundings and which had given so much pleasure to thousands of people in such a sorry state. Still, I’m sure the memories will stay with me for ever. Happy days.
Ricoh GR1 ( my ‘shirt pocket’ camera ) , Ilford HP5 dev’ed in Perceptol