Daily Photo: 03/02/2012 – Woolwich celebrates royal honour

A large crowd gathered in General Gordon Square, Woolwich, this evening to enjoy music and fireworks to mark the borough’s new royal status.

There was also a short speech from the Leader of the Council, Chris Roberts, who earlier in the day collected the Royal Charter from Westminster.

Henry VIII, usually found at Hampton Court Palace, also turned up to say a few words and there were other performers in character entertaining the crowd and posing for photos.

Daily Photo: 01/02/2012 – New Royal Greenwich street signs

Thanks to local estate agents Conran Estates for sharing this photo showing the brand new street sign for Greenwich High Road withthe new coat of arms on it. The council has started putting new signs out around the borough as it readies itself for Royal borough status on Friday.

Here’s another one, thanks to Alex Brooks:

 

Don’t forget there will be activities in Woolwich on Friday, in Eltham on Saturday and in Greenwich on Sunday to mark the occasion.

Daily Photo: 27/01/2011 – St Alfege’s restored cherubs

St Alfege church, which is marking the 1000th anniversary of the martyrdom of Alfege this year, has taken off the covers to reveal the latest stage of its restoration. The restoration of the tower was completed last year and the next phase, according to St Alfege’s website, was to include “the restoration of the ‘cherubs’ on the drums at ground level, the railings and the repaving of the north east corner.”

But with the work revealed, local historian Horatio Blood has offered a withering assessment of what’s been done. He says:

The once beautifully weathered cherubs on the drums have been subjected to the most hideously brutal and insensitive cleaning imaginable. Previously, the beauty of these much-eroded sculptures lay entirely in the fact that the dirt gave a definition to the carving, and the resulting chiaroscuro possessed them with a mysterious romantic and spiritual aspect that can never be replaced.

All of the qualities bestowed by the passage of time and the onslaught of the elements have been entirely eradicated and consequently these sculptures have lost not just their weathered patina but also their historic integrity and aesthetic value.

Today, they rather sadly resemble ornaments from a garden centre. One friend remarked that they now seem to be sculpted from lard. What makes a bad situation worse, is that the rest of the portico has not been cleaned so the drums and cherubs now resemble newly fitted gleaming false teeth grinning from a battered old face.

What do you think of the newly restored cherubs?

Daily Photo: 25/01/2012 – Christina O

Super yacht Christina O made her way up the Thames this today and moored at West India Dock. The former frigate turned luxury yacht was once owned by Aristotle Onassis. Read more about her colourful history here.

Thanks to Dazza for the photo above.

Daily Photo: 20/01/2011 – 4 Stockwell Street

Previously on this spot stood John Humphries House, now demolished as part of the University of Greenwich’s development of the site.

With the 1960s office building gone, you can now see the back of properties in Nelson Road and the top of the Canary Wharf skyscape from the corner of Burney Street.

Daily Photo: 19/01/2011 – CAFC

Thanks very much to Lara Ruffle for sending me this photo she took at The Valley last August.

Don’t forget you can follow Charlton’s progress this season with Kevin Nolan’s match reports.

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