Churchill House

Pigeons wait patiently for workers to demolish Churchill House.

Seagulls in Bath

Bath like many inland towns is overrun with seagulls, this close-up of a young gull show a very nasty looking beak.
And makes me glad I gave up my pasty without a struggle last year when a full-grown adult dive-bombed me and mugged me in St Ives.
With the growing number of pasty shops in Bath, I hope the Bath gulls don’t get as brave as their Cornish cousins.

First Good Cow Picture

First good cow picture
by Tabitha age 4

Wicked

Spotted at Bath Sports Centre today,
yours for only £30 a day.

Three dogs

Just waiting in the sun.

Human Signpost

One of the many human signposts popping up around Bath.
It can only be a matter of time before Bath and North-East Somerset Council realises that it’s missing a revenue earning opportunity.
And starts to charge and licence them.
Though I wonder what book he’s reading, and if it fits the sign!

Whips and chains for sale!

Well I’m not into bondage and was surprised to see this £69.99 pair of handcuffs in a Bath hardware store.

What do you use them for!
I just found this axe wielding maniac in my house,
but it’s OK I handcuffed myself to him.

Southgate Bath

One more picture of a sad Southgate.

Southgate Bath

Work to demolish the Southgate Shopping Centre
is gathering pace.

Unusual Uniform

I spotted an unusual uniform worn by a police officer who certainly didn’t have a West Country accent.
On closer inspection of his badge I realised why, it turned out he’s been seconded to Avon and Somerset to broaden his experience with a different force.

Well-Travelled Loud hailer

We have had some demonstrators in Bath this weekend; this is their loud hailer.
They said they borrowed it from well-travelled friend.

Parking in Bath

Spotted in Oldfield Park today, this must be the best way to keep a parking space ever.
Far better than police no waiting cones, and probably better than two traffic wardens?
Only problem, how do you get back to the house after putting them out?

Meeting the Mayor

Wendy and I were lucky enough to be guests of the 779^th Mayor of Bath, Cllr Mrs Carol Paradise tonight.
When the Mayor held a reception for members of the local press in her Parlour.

Prior Park Gardens Bath

Lottie and Tabitha on the Palladian Ornamental Bridge at National Trust Prior Park Landscape Gardens.

Picture Copyright Sam Farr / The Bath Chronicle

Jumping Dog

I was photographing the local election candidates with Francis Maude Chairman of the Conservative Party today.
When this friendly dog decided to leave her homeless owners, and run across Kingston Parade and leap at me placing her paws on my rock-hard six-pack.
All right it’s a lie, my soft fluffy duck down stuffed pillow of a paunch.
But we made friends afterwards.

Tabita's Birthday Party

Tabitha had her fourth birthday party at Baskervilles Gym today.
It was a great success the children enjoying and hour in the gym followed by tea.
Here are a few snaps of Tabitha and friends.

More pictures HERE.

Jack Higby

Nicky with her nephew Jack, 17 months and
biting off more than he can chew!

Young Deer

One of the delights of living in the country is the unexpected sights.
We were coming home yesterday and spotted a young deer running across a field.
Turning off the road on to a farm track I took these pictures with my little Fuji Camera.

Bath City Centre Cleaning Team

In most jobs you get a canteen or rest room, but if you’re a photographer or as in this case a member of the City Centre cleaning team.

Wherever you happen to be at lunchtime is your dining room.

Steve Vee Bransgrove

It was time to say Goodbye to another old friend today, Steve Vee Bransgrove who was a friend over many years.
He was a skilled artist and sign writer and helped us with many charity events.
I’m certain he will be greatly missed by the 200 people who attended his funeral today.
His shop Steve Vee Bransgrove Collectables on Catherine Hill in Frome was a treasure trove of all those thing you wished you had kept but didn’t.

Boo

This is Boo who despite his fearsome looks is one of the nicest chaps you could meet.
I photographed him once for the paper and they used him on the front page.
At conference David the Editor said “If he comes in the front office complaining I’m not going”.
I always feel he should be Queequeg sat on the deck of the Pequod in Moby Dick, not working as a builder converting a restaurant in York Street Bath.
Boo has worked on countless fashion shoots and appeared all over the world.

Picture Copyright Sam Farr

Happy Dog

A happy friendly
duck eating dog I met today.

Alfie

Alfie keeps David’s newly planted seeds warm.
Picture David Mattock

Photographing Tabitha with her Eggs

Alright hold
them like this.

No like this.

Let me show you

That's Better.
Pictures Copyright David Mattock / Sam Farr / The Bath Chronicle

Easter Egg Hunt

Every year I’m sent by the newspaper to photograph the Easter egg hunt at the National Trust Prior Park Landscape Gardens.

Usually it’s a struggle to find suitable children in the grounds, so to sure of getting a picture, my daughter Helen and her husband David brought my grandchildren.

Yes you guessed it for the first time there were suitable children already there, but after going to all the trouble I used my own Grandchildren.

Helen stands out of picture while Lottie and Helen run across the famous Palladian Ornamental Bridge one of only four in the world.

Microlight over Bath

In 1992 I photographed the Mayor of Bath Cllr Eric Snook taking a look at Bath from the air in a Microlight piloted by Ray Wilkinson.
Picture Copyright Sam Farr / The Bath Chronicle

Hinkley Point Nuclear Power Station and Terry Pratchett

I notice that Hinkley Point Power Station in Somerset
now has permanent armed police guards.

Here are some old pictures of an
Emergency Exercise at Oldbury Power Station

When I worked for the old Central Electricity Generating Board they had regular emergency exercises to test the systems.
This one was at Oldbury Power Station simulating an emergency at Berkeley Power Station.
The whole day was taken very seriously; senior staff and press officer were flown in by helicopter, as the roads would be blocked by traffic moving out of the area.
People were given questions to phone in on the emergency lines to keep the staff busy.
Wendy my wife had to phone in as the Princess Royal's lady-in-waiting asking if the horses at Gatcombe Park were safe!
They had regular press conferences with staff playing the part of the press asking yet more questions of the panel of police, station managers and scientists.
While the press officer stalked the stage making sure the senior police officer didn't do an Ian Blair.
The press officer was Terry Pratchett, who was already starting to be well-known as an author.
He had written Colour of Magic and it had been serialised in Woman's Hour.
These rare glimpses of Pterry at work have never been published.

More unusual pictures of Terry HERE

All Pictures Copyright Sam Farr

Old Shop

Our old shop in the Abbey Church Yard, the Monkees magazine in the case seems to point to around 1967 three years before we married.
I see the comics include Valliant, and I wonder what the Corgi and Matchbox toys in the window would be worth now if we still had them in the boxes.

Bear Photographer

Wendy bought a cardboard Nikon with a multifacet lens for the photo department’s bear.

It came from a toy shop and only cost a few pounds.

If you were wondering this is how the bear sees me now.

Keynsham

Is it Global Warming
making Keynsham look this good.