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The Spiers home furnishing store in Dudley High Street in April 1970 - "Plans to demolish the Spiers home furnishing store in Dudley High Street were met with opposition in April 1970, with campaigners voicing fears the town would become subject to rectangular uniformity and called for the building to be preserved."

Photo Past Old Architecture Voice Care Memory

I was asked about what I was doing [asked them what they think is beautiful] Old lamp posts giving the town some character

Text Rainy Beauty Connection Care Community Conversation Friendliness Interacting Old Favourite Things Identity Aesthetic Past People Curiosity

"Dudley High Street in the early 1900s."

Photo Past Aesthetic Architecture Beauty Change Consumption Difference Familiar Identity Life Lingering Memory Missing People Old Shelter Stillness Survival Transport Unfamiliar Words

Geological story of the Black Country Video by Ellie Ramsey Narrated by Graham Worton https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PaxRX8-c2fU

Video Big Things Change Connection Contrast Creatures Difference Growing Industry Life Memory Nature Old Past Plantlife Sounds Tiny Things Survival Stories Unfamiliar Views Water Moving

100 kg very old romae has romd nom rals

Text Cloudy Rainy Old

"Dudley High Street, viewed from the recently-pedestrianised market place, as it looked in May 1985."

Photo Past Old Memory People

Provision.docx

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Provision I invite you to stand in my shoes In the space between dark and light To imagine a room laid bare Where you sleep in the bath In the clothes you wear every day Because you don’t have a bed or Even a mattress on the floor To rest your tired frame. You are in crisis Slipped through the cracks It doesn’t matter how or why Just that you are here Needing help Needing compassion Practical support To get back on your feet To feel cared for Provided for Prayers answered. I sit here listening to Blur On the CD player I have just bought from Provision House A beacon-topped Aladdin’s cave of treasures That occupies a space right opposite It’s higher calling Old Co-op Old shoe shop New lease of life For this art-deco giant Three floors of stepping back in time Down history rich stairs Through formica inlaid doors Its belly stuffed with Furniture and bedding Tables and lamps Wardrobes and kitchenware The things that we take for granted Destined for those that have nothing Absolutely nothing A lifeline. In the shop I can still buy a pair of shoes Anything an old department store may well have stocked Ironic I feel. They save the sleeping bags To hand to homeless folk Health-packs and new socks Whatever helps. The Food Club caters for those That need to feed themselves Their families On budgets stretched to breaking They mind the gap that governments should fill By remembering that everybody counts Black Country rules. Kim chats to a woman Buying sticker-books for her granddaughter Laughter slips through this conversation Two books for a pound and you know The girl will have a fun filled afternoon. I ask about the future Plans for expansion Rooms to hire Office space Training programmes on their way Perhaps a life for the room upstairs and I see progress New from old Right from wrong. So, step through this door and lend a hand To those that need it more than You and I will ever understand.

Poem Connection Conversation Gift Light Imagination Invitations Shelter Care Sounds Old New Architecture Big Things Past Memory Consumption Kindness Food Funny Future Change

What smells I didn't I get - rubbish, old fashioned food shops, dog shit / damp dogs, pub smells

Text Cloudy Old Smell Waste Connection Stories Curiosity

Great sculpture

Drawing Text Cloudy Rainy Old Curiosity Unfamiliar Surprise

Peeling layers of paint grey, blue, red, green layers of the past revealing themselves...

Text Overcast Cool Decay Colour Memory Old Material Past

"Owner Alan Caswell outside the Arcade Toy Shop in the Fountain Arcade in July 2011."

Photo Past Old Memory People

Cast iron railings good survival

Text Drawing Cloudy Identity Architecture Old Care Boundaries Material Survival

Roller shutters

Text Cloudy Identity Old Boundaries Invitations

Here's some stuff in a locked yard (that just happened to be open) down Wolverhampton Street. There are what look like two chapels in there.

Photo Access Architecture Boundaries Broken Care Chance Craft Curiosity Decay Exposed Hiding Material Old Overlooked Opportunity Ownership Past Shelter Unfamiliar Weathered

"The Co-operative store at the top of Dudley High Street in 1969"

Photo Past Old Consumption Commerce Memory Care Decay

Some good 18 + 19C facades but in poor condition

Text Drawing Cloudy Identity Architecture Aesthetic Beauty Broken Care Control Old Past Tiredness Decay

"Dudley High Street, pictured in the mid 1980s when Cooks department store was a major focus of the town."

Photo Past Old Vehicle Architecture People Consumption Commerce Memory

"The Woolworths store in Dudley High Street in 2004."

Photo Past Old Consumption Commerce Memory

"Dudley's Edwardian Market Place pictured around 1905."

Photo Past Aesthetic Architecture Beauty Change Consumption Difference Familiar Identity Life Lingering Memory Missing People Old Shelter Stillness Survival Transport Unfamiliar Words

Subway.docx

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Subway Here, it’s all about the brand. Green and yellow Flashes of black As staff move quickly to Make subs 6 inch Foot long In the lunchtime rush It’s all go, go, go. Here, it’s all about the image. New York subways Map the walls Alongside Legends Heroes Iconics Classics Not names I would associate With sandwiches But to be fair I am not the target here Too old by a country mile. Here, it’s all about immediacy Driven by technology Attractive to young minds Thumbs scroll over phones To place orders To make payments To text their mate, who’s Sat right next to them Phones, phones, phones As the Deliveroo driver Double parks across the street To pick up a meal deal As ovens ping and Cookies slide off trays and A student picks and goes No desire to sit in or Wait a while. Here, it’s all about speed and It is busy. A boy in a boiler suit Made for a man Jokes with his mate He can’t decide what to order There’s too much choice He doesn’t know what he wants He needs inspiration and The counter guy offers him help Bread style Filling Extra cheese Drink and a cookie. His mate ribs him For getting double Jalapenos But he doesn’t care. Here, it’s all about the future Contactless A space in which a new generation move Transactional The model of a brave new world Phone app ordering Because this is what some people want Safe Easy Quick Convenient Just because it’s not for me Doesn’t make it wrong and Judging by the queue at the door They’re obviously doing something right. I leave as another delivery Heads out the door. Boilersuit boy is making his way down the High Street Back to college. I’m sure he’ll be back tomorrow Grateful for the help with his order.

Poem Connection Conversation Gift Colour Moving Speeds Consumption Food Old Technology Vehicle Lingering Interacting Future New

"Dudley Market Place, pictured here in the early 1980s, with the Trueform shoe shop being rebuilt."

Photo Past Old Memory People

Rubble + stone

Text Drawing Overcast Waste Broken Decay Material Old Weathered

"Winter sale in Dudley High street during a cold January in 1958."

Photo Past Old Consumption Commerce Memory

Graveyard - decaying bodies, amongst ivy, holly, ragwort. Faded flowers, pile of broken stones

Text Overcast Cool Decay Memory Old Nature Plantlife Care Growing Material Past

Surprising survival Little Barrel Pub

Text Drawing Cloudy Identity Care Old Past Survival Surprise

Peeling paint on beautiful old windows

Text Overcast Cool Decay Material Care Control Beauty Aesthetic Old Past Architecture

The top edge on the Duncan Edwards Memorial statue in the market square. What you're looking at is fossilised sea life of a good million + years ago.

Photo Aesthetic Archaeology Beauty Change Craft Creatures Exposed Hiding Layer Life Material Nature Past Pattern Surprise Texture Tiny Things Old

"Hanson's Brewery at the top of Dudley High Street, pictured here in November 1991, shortly before it closed. An Asda supermarket now stands on the site."

Photo Past Old Memory Architecture

Old shop sign

Text Pouring Rainy Decay High Old Words

"Ted North ran his Black Country Bakes traditional baked potato business in Dudley High Street for decades.This is his potato baker stall in 1982."

Photo Past Old Memory People Food

Bake 'n' Butty.docx

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Bake ‘n’ Butty Fairy lights all year round Three clocks working triple time More seating at the rear and Above the sound of something frying in a pan Laughter The scrape of cutlery on finished plates Stacked and cleared Two cappuccinos Two toasted teacakes Footsteps on the lino floor The hum of radio from somewhere The clash of a saucepan lid Tea, milk, two sugars The tapping of a spoon on a plastic bowl Fishfinger sandwich to take away Do you need a receipt? It won’t be long, alright? Chips sizzling in the deep fat Steam escaping the coffee machine There’s your knife and fork Musical buttons singing from the till No sugar, I’m sweet enough A message left on the answering machine Phone rings How can I help you? Mobile notification Chatter Printing There’s your change I’ll bring your coffee over Sausage, egg and chips Large breakfast, no beans Two lattes Milk delivery Grated cheese in a bag Butter balanced in the crock of an arm Is there enough money in the till? Bacon and egg sandwich to go Cappuccino Cheers love It was lovely, thank you All this is seen and heard as I am joined at my table To talk through Covid Cars Past lives Old homes Acceptance Cooking Gender Pubs Health and Putting the world back together My tea is done I pop my mug back on the counter All this for the prices of a cuppa I think Stepping out past the flashing fairy lights

Poem Connection Conversation Gift Light Sounds Funny Food Interacting Consumption Happiness Vehicle Past Old Homes Health Stillness

"Dudley Market Place where archaeologists found the foundations of old market buildings while preparing for the redevelopment of the area in April 2014."

Photo Past Old Memory Archaeology

"The new market in Dudley market place in 1983 had a little more aisle space between the stalls, making shopping easier for customers. The market had just reopened after three months spent in Stone Street while it was refurbished. Traditionalists had bitterly attacked the replacing of wooden stalls with metal and the removal of the old-fashioned cobbles. This was taken on May 15, 1983."

Photo Past Old Memory People Commerce Consumption

"The days were numbered for these historic buildings when this picture of Dudley High Street was taken in November 1970. A public inquiry was being held to decide whether five listed buildings in the street could be demolished to make way for the new Trident Centre shopping complex. Permission was granted, and it was discovered during demolition that parts of these buildings dated back to the Middle Ages."

Photo Past Old Memory Architecture Archaeology

Limestone walling

Text Drawing Cloudy Identity Material Old Past Familiar Architecture

"The interior of William Granage cake shop and cafe in Dudley High Street, taken in 1912."

Photo Past Old Consumption Commerce Memory Food

"Locals would pop into The Hen and Chickens Hotel for a quick pint and a chat in December 1982. The popular watering hole dominated the corner of New Street and Castle Street in Dudley Market Place."

Photo Past Old Memory Architecture

Secondary focus old cinema

Text Drawing Cloudy Identity Architecture Views High Old

Cast iron railings lost on south side

Text Drawing Cloudy Identity Architecture Old Care Boundaries Material

Old

Text Cloudy Rainy Old Architecture

Big old building

Text Cloudy Rainy Big Things Architecture Old

"Four Debenhams staff with 100-years service between them were bidding a fond farewell as the store in Dudley High Street closed for the last time in January 1981. Manager Douglas Spalding, who was with the company for 26 years, was photographed with Nancy Robinson, Kathleen Jackson and Marion Sutton."

Photo Past Old Memory People

"A tram travels along Wolverhampton Street in Dudley.."

Photo Past Aesthetic Architecture Beauty Change Difference Familiar Identity Life Memory Missing People Old Shelter Survival Transport Unfamiliar Words Vehicle Speeds

Old cinema - lack of culture - pigeon's world

Text Decay Culture Creatures Old

Slooow peeling of cladding on 1st + 2nd storeys of bldg

Text Sunny Slight breeze Speeds Material Architecture Broken Old High

Trad ground materials + patterns

Text Drawing Cloudy Identity Material Old Past Familiar Pattern

Nationwide.docx

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Nationwide Millions of members strong Building society Nationwide Staffordshire Portman Nationwide Since ’67 in Dudley town Nearly sixty years serving a community People love a building society don’t they Not quite a bank More like a club They come clutching blue passports A steady trickle Popping in to do their financials There’s bunting over the office door Radio through the speakers Comfy chairs to rest awhile Friendly Homely Familiar Certificates recognise commitment From one to thirty years Ashleigh, Sarah, Isla Lisa, Samantha Displayed on shelves alongside photographs Pride of place The buzzer brings a rush for the door Scurrying footsteps on laminate floor Jangle of keys on a lanyard Always a thank you and a kind welcome As chat starts up About Covid Hearing aids Lost keys Shopping up the town Holidays Pulled back muscles Schools going back Family The drive to Cornwall The cash machine whirs in the background Dispensing spendies for the Full Moon next door As an old couple In matching purple fleeces Shuffle up to the counter together I look at the Community Board Wonder if my wife is up for knitting Bonnets and booties For Russells Hall Or if I know a charity that Might benefit from the community fund Or if I have some spare tins For the food bank There’s a lot going on A lot to support I see stability Even though the future of the High Street Is hard to call Not sure where it’s going Without investment in the shops Which they watch come and go Having looked out the window for six decades Seen it all In all its glory This place is about people Conversation Continuity Permanence In a world that’s shifting fast Leaving some behind Who come here To remember what helpful feels like Connection Belonging Inclusion The couple are at the door now Saying their goodbyes See you next week Take care of yourselves Tarabit As they link arms and Waltz out into the sunshine

Poem Connection Conversation Gift Big Things Consumption Colour Sounds Friendliness Familiar Invitations Kindness Missing Health Old Moving Community People Change

Old and abandoned

Text Cloudy Rainy Old Unused

"Dudley Market Place looking west in 1955."

Photo Past Old Memory Architecture People Vehicle

View story

In this picture from 1914 in Dudley, you can just make out my grandfather. He's the small boy with the cap running across Wolverhampton Street in the days when the trams were still running. Years later we worked out that this day was probably a defining moment in his life, the day he chose never to have a second thought or to be bullied by others. You can see him running. This is because he had stolen the ham you can see him carrying under his arm. This one action started a chain of events for my grandfather that would go on to dominate his formative years. Petty larceny, theft, criminal activity that would shape him, turn him into one of the most notorious villains in the Black Country. When he died in 1972, this photograph turned up amongst his possessions, in a locked drawer of his bureau. We agreed amongst us that no one in the family had ever seen this photo before, curious as to its importance to him. On the back of the photo he had written the date and time, together with a brief note - "Me stealing ham from W.Smiths, butcher". He would have been 10 years old and this was perhaps his first, or at least one of his first criminal acts. We have no idea who took the photograph or how he had come to have the original print in his possession, but it appears that it held some significance for him as he kept it all of his life locked away in his bureau drawer.

Imagining Text Story Creative writing Actions Chance Connection Creativity Familiar Food Identity Imagination Interacting Justice Life Memory Moving Old Past People Speeds Stories Surprise Unfamiliar Words

"Dudley High Street looking towards Lower High Street and Bottom Church in September 1983."

Photo Past Old Consumption Commerce Vehicle People Memory