The Leopard

Posted on January 8, 2025January 8, 2025 Posted in Fine Art, Memories, UncategorizedTagged Burslem, Gone, Memory, Murals, Public house, Sadness, Staffordshire, Stoke-on trent, The Leopard HotelLeave a comment

My friend sent me this photo (I don’t have an attribution for it). This was a few year’s ago when it was open and the Leopard Hotel was running ghost tours and serving lovely food.

Then one of the owners died and it was taken over by a family member. I don’t know what happened but I think Covid didn’t help. In the end it closed and the owner moved elsewhere. Although the frontage looked OK it needed a tremendous amount of money spending on it as it was partly derelict in the back upper floors.

The hotel stood empty for months, it was bought by an entrepreneur who may have been going to turn it into flats. Unfortunately someone got in and apparently set up a cannabis farm in it (what I heard). Then it simply burnt down. Some of the frontage may remain but the place is boarded up.

I was involved for a while because I painted the murals in the back room, the Arnold Bennett Suite. I never got decent photos in there. I do hope it can be restored.

Penkhull village calendar

Posted on October 19, 2024 Posted in UncategorizedTagged 3 photos, bench at thistley hough, calendar competition, Hanging baskets, penkhull village, photo competition, Staffordshire, Stoke-on trent, The Greyhound1 Comment

Very proud to say three of my photos I entered for Penkhull village calendar competition were chosen to be included in the 2025 calendar. They were on display and I looked and thought they looked a bit like mine, but someone else must have taken similar views? I actually didn’t believe it until they told me. How bizarre! These are photos of the photos so they are a bit cropped to get straight lines!

Too many mugs

Posted on August 4, 2024 Posted in Memories, UncategorizedTagged Cups, Life, Mugs, Patterns, Photos, Potteries, Staffordshire, Stoke-on trent, turn over clubLeave a comment

A memory of my cups and mugs a few years ago. Look at the bottom of them and you can often find out where they were manufactured. The image on the bottom is called the back stamp. There’s a lot of people in Stoke on Trent (also known as the Potteries), that check this out. They are called the turn over club? Sometimes you sneak a peak when your mug is full! A dangerous manoeuvre!

Trentham

Posted on June 27, 2024 Posted in Memories, UncategorizedTagged Hubby, Memory, Sleep, Staffordshire, Stoke-on trent, Tired, Trentham GardensLeave a comment

A year ago I went to Trentham Gardens in Stoke-on-Trent with hubby and a photo of us popped up on my Facebook memories yesterday. So I decided to go with a friend today. I felt so sad and very tired to begin with, but as I walked with my friend I started to feel better. But I am so tired now. I can’t walk as far as I used to. I’m shattered. But I’m so glad I went. Took lots of pictures to make new memories. But I need to try and get some sleep now.

There’s a small chance?

Posted on June 10, 2024 Posted in Memories, UncategorizedTagged England, Harpers Titchy Theatre, penkhull mystery plays, Potteries, short plays, Staffordshire, Stoke-on trent, TheatreLeave a comment

You might not live in the UK but anyway I thought I’d share this. You never know who’s reading this!

Roll up roll up! Would you like to send in a script? Three minute plays needed (2 sheets of A4) for up to four voices. In aid of the Penkhull Mystery Plays. We are holding the Harpers Titchy Theatre on 6th July 2024, at Penkhull Village Hall,Penkhull,Stoke-on-Trent. X

Japanese food.

Posted on May 10, 2024 Posted in Memories, UncategorizedTagged Food, Miso, Miso japanese restaurant, Staffordshire, Stoke, Stoke-on trent, TastyLeave a comment

What a treat! Starter with wasabi mayonnaise at Miso Japanese restaurant in Stoke, Stoke on Trent.

Then I had a bento box, your choice of main dish plus vegetable goyoza, sticky rice with sesame seeds, salad, cucumber sushi rolls and thinly sliced pickled ginger. There are vegan, vegetarian and meat or fish options.

Then we had sake and also plum wine. I’m not used to drinking much anymore but a relative was over visiting me so we decided to go mad.

I don’t go out very often anymore, but I remember years ago we used to visit the restaurant regularly. I’m glad I went, it’s really friendly and the food is always good.

Molly painting

Posted on May 10, 2024 Posted in Fine Art, Memories, UncategorizedTagged Acrylic on canvas, based on a mural I painted, Burslem, Leopard Hotel, molly leigh, Staffordshire, Stoke-on trent, WitchLeave a comment

Calling this finished, I could keep fighting her but I’m struggling. The face is loosley based on a portrait of a French peasant woman by Theodore Gericault. Now I can have a rest, that was hard work.

My Molly Leigh mural

Posted on May 3, 2024 Posted in Fine Art, Memories, UncategorizedTagged Arnold Bennett suite, Art, Burslem, Cottage, Fine Art, Leopard Hotel, medicinal plants, molly leigh, Mural, Staffordshire, Stoke-on trent, Witch4 Comments

I painted this mural several years ago on the wall in the Arnold Bennett suite in the Leopard Hotel in Burslem, Stoke-on-Trent. The building sadly burnt down on 22nd January 2023 and remains a burned out husk of the former historical hotel.

It represents the Burslem witch Molly Leigh.

Margaret ‘Molly’ Leigh was an English property owner in the Staffordshire town of Burslem who, in her will, left substantial sums to charity. She was also accused of witchcraft, and, after her death, her grave was disturbed following claims she was haunting the town. Wikipedia

Born 1685, died 1746.

Her grave is in a Burslem church yard and is set at 90° to the other graves to indicate witchcraft.

My painting shows her old cottage and medicinal plants such as foxgloves. It’s a moonlit night and I painted a ring of icy cloud around the moon to make it more spooky. The ancient woman depicted is actually based on a French peasant woman by Theodore Gericault.

Grey lady

Posted on April 27, 2024 Posted in Fine Art, Memories, UncategorizedTagged Art, Fine Art, Ghostly, Little Moreton Hall, Painting, self portrait, Staffordshire, Stained glass, WindowLeave a comment

Self portrait reflected in a stained glass window at Little Moreton Hall in Staffordshire. The idea was to create a ghostly image in keeping with the age of the property. I could have gone all out and added an Elizabethan headdress but I didn’t want to over complicate the idea. The painting is set at sunset when things get a bit more spooky. I do like creating narrative images.

April fools day

Posted on April 1, 2024 Posted in Memories, UncategorizedTagged Fun, Funny, Humbolt Penguins, Leek, Memories, Peak Wildlife Park, Penguins, programmes, Staffordshire, TV, Winkhill3 Comments

The Peak Wildlife Park posted a prank on Facebook today. It reported that some of their Humbolt Penguins had taken flight today and if anyone saw one or found them in their garden they should report it to the park (to check their migratory habits?).

Of course Penguins don’t fly, (and they don’t migrate either as far as I know, but I added that bit), so it was obviously an April Fools joke, but it’s nice and gentle, not rude or unkind. I remember an old one on TV when they reported that the spaghetti trees were being harvested and another one on a children’s TV programme about dehydrated water!

I haven’t seen many jokes today but I liked one about flat pack Easter eggs from IKEA, (chocolate bars), may your April Fools day be fun!

Peak Wildlife Park is at Winkhill, Leek ST13 7QR, UK. Details can be found on Google.

Mallaband-Brown

Tag: Staffordshire