On Thursday i visited Loughborough. I have been before but mostly for the Great Central Railway, on this visit i wanted to explore more of the canal and also see the parish church (which is indeed one of the largest in the country). You can see my canal photos here and other photos from Loughborough here.
All Saints in Gravelly Hill (close to the Spaghetti Junction!) was built in 1900-01 as a chapel of ease for St Barnabas in Erdington. The church was built as a simple rectangular building out of brick. Originally it was planned to have a much larger church though only the nave was built.
It was enlarged slightly adding a West porch and a vestry, however plans for a chancel were scuppered by the First World War and, despite various efforts in the two succeeding decades, the plans to extend the church came to nothing. The church became a parish church in it's own right in 1928.
Llantony Secunda Priory was an Augustinian canon house located in Gloucester. It was founded by the Earl of Hereford, Miles de Gloucester in 1136 as a refuge for the monks of Llanthony Priory in the Vale of Ewyas, after that priory came under attack from the local Welsh population.
The priory became known for it's cheese making including gifts of cheese to the royal family. The priory was seized by the crown during the Dissolution of the Monastries and the lands granted to the MP Arthur Porter.
The priory is well preserved with some buildings intact.
Yesterday i walked the Birmingham & Fazeley Canal from Aston Junction into the heart of Birmingham. Nearly as far as Brindley Place and the end of the canal though i left near Farmer's Bridge junction as i wanted to walk through the Jewellery Quarter too and some of my old work haunts. This stretch of canal is fascinating, including part where a modern building was built over it! You can see my photos here.
