Coldest for years

Posted on 4 January 2010 by Pete of MIP

Don’t remember a cold spell like this for a long time. Certainly not at this time of year. Seem to recall 1981-ish being very cold in early January.  Went out this morning at 10am and it was minus 3C and ony 1C at 1pm.

Drove to Ansdell and walked along the beach to St Annes, as it’s south facing thought it would be a bit sheltered. Beautiful sunny day, no wind except for a slight northerly drift that kept some avenues white, and the first time I’ve seen ice and snow on the beach. Nice away from the traffic on a quiet day with the sun low in the sky at midday.

Walking back the tide had come in and was lapping close to the dunes with the ice giving it a paste like consistency.  Could see Snowdon quite prominent on the horizon, the gas rigs and windmills in Liverpool Bay as well.

Climbing off the beach to Fairhaven Lake there was an excellent view over the lake towards the white church tower at Ansdell reflecting the sun with a misty sort of look. Birds walking on the lake must have been a bit confused. There was a hole in one bit where they were queueing for a bath.  Didn’t see a lot of birdlife though.

The last few weeks the Fylde skies have been full of geese formations flying in all directions , but not today. Have been curious about why some geese are flying north and others flying south. Did they turn back when they saw the weather further north.

Photograph of Lytham St Annes Lifeboat with tractor –  4th January 2010

Lytham St Annes Lifeboat - January 2010

Photograph of St Annes Pier with snow – 4th January 2010

St Annes Pier with snow - January 2010

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Preston 7 Colchester 0 FA Cup

Posted on 2 January 2010 by Pete of MIP

After a week of events with the sacking of Alan Irvine and the speculation and controversy surrounding it the team answered back.

Some say Colchester are in a league lower than PNE but they are 4th and it would have been easy for it to be a difficult game.  So you can’t win with some.

The Evening Post website letters section has been red hot all week with over a 1000 inputs. Many wanting the board sacking and Derek Shaw out.  They haven’t asked for the ground to be knocked down but they might as well.

A continuing rumour is that there is something big to be announced perhaps on Monday when the stock exchange opens. Then again rumours take a life of their own as fragments are drawn into the evidence and there are many who like to feed them.

Whether this match is Rob Kelly’s interview and he did well time will tell. There is a lot going on with Bolton sacking their manager and seeming to be intent on getting Burnley’s manager despite him having recently turned down Celtic. Blackburn are having a bad run as well but big Sam hasn’t been there that long. So PNE haven’t got an open field.

Parkin got a hat-trick today and it seems PNE made Colchester look like a non-league team. Don’t like teams being thrashed but PNE need this.

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High Speed Rail to miss Preston?

Posted on 31 December 2009 by Pete of MIP

The High Speed 2 Company submitted its plans to Lord Adonis who will declare the preferred routes in March 2010.  To date the proposal has shown a line up the west coast via Preston to Glasgow but yesterdays newspapers seemed cooler on this idea.  The routes being showed seem to favour going to Leeds from Manchester and then to Newcastle with Glasgow being fed via Edinburgh. With a route via Nottingham, Sheffield to Leeds as well. One paper said the Conservatives favoured the east coast route to Scotland, missing Preston, and that Lord Adonis is trying to get all party agreement on the routes.

Politics will play as big a part as economics in the decisions. Already noises are being made about damage to the countryside and cities are vying to get a station on the route. This matches the French experience where too many stations were built as a political sop and made the service less attractive.

The timescale for the service is also much too prolonged.  To say the service will start to Birmingham in 2025 means the north won’t be linked possibly for 30 years.  By then the technology will be on the verge of obsolescence.  High speed rail has been around for 40 years now, after 70 years most transport technologies are looking old.

Making the service available in under 10 years could bring a boom. With London 1 hour from the northern cities it could transform work and leisure.

If Preston doesn’t get this line it will damage the local economy and the north west beyond Manchester will become a remote area. This space needs watching.

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PNE sack Alan Irvine

Posted on 29 December 2009 by Pete of MIP

Big surprise news today – PNE have sacked their popular manager Alan Irvine. It was thought he’d have more time.  Not long ago everyone was sweating on whether he’d go to WBA and even if he’d manage Scotland.  There was gratitude he stayed and it seemed a loyal decision.

When writing this it has to be considered that someone we like has been hurt today. Although going into sport makes winning and losing,  apparent justice and injustice seem part of all the jobs, and there is good compensation in many cases.

What can have brought the board to this decision now? Could it be any combination of the following:

Going down? A string of poor results pointing PNE more towards the bottom than the top.

Not scoring?  That the team are looking poor at the front and maybe that stretches into other areas of creativity.

Lack of money?  The possibility that there is no-one to sell without damaging the team and no-one to bring in cheaply who might become valuable.

Timing?  That the board believe that to bring in a new manager after the transfer window would not set him off in the best position.

Negotiating?  That changing managers later when in desperation isn’t a good position to be in.

Opportunities?  That the board have someone else in mind who is available now.

Looking at the list of potential managers in the Evening Post isn’t encouraging. I’d put Alan Irvine above many of those.

Rob Kelly is stepping in as temporary manager. Is there a possibility he has matured to be the man? Sometimes people in their mid-forties get a blast of realisation and it all comes together to make the real thing.  I know a few who did that, but it didn’t happen in my case.

On the boards decision and Derek Shaw. Stepping above the fray and making wise, if harsh, decisions is what a board has to do. Perhaps they could have waited till the new man was known, Man City announced their new manager immediately, PNE haven’t.  Perhaps they could have waited a few more games.

Interesting to see what will happen in the next few weeks and decide then if it was the right decision. Football isn’t like that though, it’s about venting immediate emotion more than logic most of the time and it wouldn’t be the same if it wasn’t.

Alan Irvine did a great job last year and at the beginning of this year.  Everyone on the terraces has great regard for him.  Best wishes to Alan. Let’s hope the team plays better though and it has undiverted support.

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St Ledger returned to PNE by Middlesbrough

Posted on 25 December 2009 by Pete of MIP

Middlesbrough announced that they are returning all 4 of their loan players and that means Sean St Ledger back at Deepdale. He played 15 games and scored once for Boro. Since he left both teams have had poor results and as said before this might be coincidence.  PNE received £1.5m up front and a transfer fee of £4.5m was to be completed in January.  As Boro sank in the division it seemed less likely it would go through and Gordon Strachan, their new manager, must have other ideas.

It is said Sean didn’t want to leave North End and most fans will welcome him back.  Where that leaves the cash situation will need to be addressed but the way the team were going it might have been a lesser worry.

If the strikers have got new shooting boots for Christmas maybe things will look up.

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Verge of a crisis or just a phase at Deepdale

Posted on 20 December 2009 by Pete of MIP

Notts Forest 3 PNE 0.  With died in the wool North Ender Paul McKenna scoring the opener for Forest.  Forest are on a roll at the moment under Billy Davies. Can he get 3 clubs into the play-offs?  So from that point of view maybe there wasn’t going to be much today for PNE whatever.

Since Sean St Ledger left for Middlesbrough both teams have moved down the table, with PNE now 15th and Middlesbrough just above. Is this coincidence?   Will Sean be returning when the payment is due or the payment be less? North End’s main problem seems to be an inability to score goals. I’ve long thought Neil Mellor was going to be the man but it seems I was wrong.  He’s been available most of the season and hasn’t scored much and from what I’ve read isn’t looking like he will.

In reality the results havn’t been that bad but have been going from inconsistent to poor. Losing at home to Reading who were almost bottom, then winning away. More recently drawing at home and away or losing by the odd goal without replying which is becoming ominous.

Naturally Alan Irvine will come under pressure if it continues over the next 3 games. PNE have reached a point in the table where they can still easily get into the play-offs or slip into the relegation zone.   Alan’s name has been mentioned for higher places and all the supporters were glad he stayed. Now he’s got a test and we hope he get’s through it.

Next three league games against Yorkshire teams and at least 6 points are expected although 4 might be more realistic.

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Avenham, Miller Parks and Lancashire Museum get lottery funding

Posted on 17 December 2009 by Pete of MIP

The Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) and Big Lottery Fund (BIG) agreed a grant of £1.75m to Avenham and Miller Parks. This tops up the £2.7m granted in 2005. Also the Lancashire Museum in Stanley Street has been allocated £0.9m from the lottery and £0.8m from Lancashire County Council.

In the parks, the original design by landscape designer Edward Milner will be restored including newer additions such as the Japanese Gardens. The 2005 grant built the modern pavilion in Avenham and restored it’s buildings.  Both of these parks are in fine settings sloping steeply down to the River Ribble and overlooked by period buildings. With only the 1960’s boxlike addition blotting the landscape over Miller Park.  Will this building ever become fashionable?

This work coupled with the Georgian buildings of Winckley Square and the planned refurbishment of the square itself,  the old but attractive terrace housing,  including the listed buildings near the park, Avenham Walk promenade and the Harris Institute will make the area from the river to the main shopping street, Fishergate, a characterful and attractive area to walk. Although if I was to comment the cars and vans parked and skips that always seem to be in Winckley Street spoil its appearance. Although it’s a short street it could be a smart entrance to the square and parks.

The lottery is funding parks all over England in it’s Parks for People programme which has allocated £150m and is continuing at £20m a year. As a condition of the funding the parks have to achieve Green Flag status every year which means they are to be maintained to a high standard.  Preston must have got it’s share of lottery funding as Burnley and Wigan are on a list of places that havn’t had their fair share.

In the Lancashire Museum the funding will renovate the building and create new interactive galleries and the ability to display items previously stored as well as a cafe and shop. The museum will therefore be closed all 2010 which is a shame.  I’ve often thought more could be made of this museum as it has some interesting displays but appears a bit ignored and isolated. It has good car-parking but the entrance fee doesn’t help.  With it’s location next to the prison it would be appropriate to have a prison history display. How about that?

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Manchester – Preston – Blackpool Electrification

Posted on 14 December 2009 by Pete of MIP

Lord Adonis, today, put more substance behind the pre-budget statement that seemed to cover electrification of only Manchester – Preston. It now includes Blackpool, which makes more sense.  His statement reads:

”The first line is between Huyton – on the line running from Liverpool to Manchester – and Wigan, on the already electrified West Coast Main Line. This will allow electric trains to operate between Liverpool and Wigan via St Helens. The second line is between Manchester and Euxton Junction – just south of Preston on the West Coast Main Line. This will allow electric trains to operate between Manchester and Preston, via Bolton. The third line is between Blackpool North and Preston. This will allow electric trains to operate between Blackpool North and both Liverpool and Manchester.

Our plans envisage that, once electrified, these three lines will be served by thoroughly refurbished electric commuter trains transferred from the Thameslink line. This will increase rail capacity and reliability between key cities and towns in the North West. It will allow 30 year old ‘Pacer’ diesel trains to be retired, and modern diesel trains to be transferred to other routes requiring extra capacity. It will also help to reduce the long-term cost of operating the railway, and reduce carbon emissions.’

Gordon Brown has said he thought the north didn’t get it’s share of infrastructure projects and that this will help against the recession.  I’d agree with that.  Although the line will still have some non-electrified gaps such as the trains to Buxton and to Manchester Airport.  There are also a number of trains that go on the route via Lytham although in general they go to Blackburn. It is a complicated business and a start is needed somewhere.

There is also a timescale to be attached. The closest is that Lord Adonis said a percentage of trains would be electrified by 2017. This doesn’t put a timescale on the Manchester – Preston or Preston – Blackpool work. If cost – benefit is involved it might not happen as the link to Wigan will allow both Manchester and Liverpool to connect to the northbound main line which will reduce the advantages of the work on the route through Bolton to Preston.

If this all happens in a good timescale it is good news. There is part of me saying it has a strong probability of falling to the cuts that are surely going to come who-ever gets into power after the election. Presumably the more you spend more you need to cut, in my world anyway.

Posted in Rail | 5 Comments

Harris Institute, Avenham, bought

Posted on 13 December 2009 by Pete of MIP

It is reported that the Harris Institute  at Avenham has been bought by Yousuf Bhailok, a local businessman, for just under £300,000.  Mr Bhailok also bought Harris Park in Fulwood and has been involved in the campaign to keep the football museum in Preston.

The price seems surprisingly low for such a large building although it’s size and that it’s grade II listed make it less adaptable.  Mr Bhailok is offering to rent the building to the council or an educational organisation although you might wonder why they wouldn’t have bought it themselves as I recently read that local authorities have better access to grants than private businesses. That is why Blackpool Council is taking over the Tower and Winter Gardens.

That area of Avenham including the promenade across the road and along to Winckley Square is one of special architectural interest to Preston.  In the LEP Mr Bhailok says he’s interested in old buildings, isn’t looking to make a profit and it will be a labour of love. I haven’t heard of any complaints about the Harris Park so lets hope this works and preserves the building.  I have some personal interest as I knew several people who went to school there many years ago and my father studied there some 80yrs ago, I still have the certificates.

Posted in History | 1 Comment

Peace at Christmas

Posted on 11 December 2009 by Pete of MIP

President Obama made a great speech with many messages in Oslo when receiving his Nobel Peace Prize. The part below stood out as a lesson to everyone if viewed in the context of your personal life.

‘I know that engagement with repressive regimes lacks the satisfying purity of indignation. 

I also know that sanctions without outreach –  condemnation without discussion – can carry forward only a crippling status quo….’

 

I can think of a lot situations where it sounds a bit naive but it can feel good to take the moral high ground. We’ll see.

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Preston to Manchester Rail Electrification in pre-budget statement.

Posted on 10 December 2009 by Pete of MIP

Yesterday, 9th Dec, the Chancellor stood up in Parliament and said in his pre-budget announcement;

‘I can tell the House today that I have also given the go-ahead to further plans for rail electrification between Liverpool, Manchester and Preston. The SoS for Transport will announce further details shortly.’

This has been widely interpreted in the Preston region as meaning the line between Preston, Bolton and Manchester will be electrified.

Some are saying it will happen within 4 years. Others are saying it might mean the line between Manchester and Liverpool with the link into the West Coast Main Line.  Even more extreme, others are saying plans have the go-ahead not the actual work. 

Then there are the pre-election conspiracy theorists who see the line going through key Labour seats but in reality it being a pointless piece of electrification that won’t happen.

It does appear most trains on this line go on to non-electrified lines that weren’t mentioned, such as Preston – Blackpool, Oxenholme – Windermere, Manchester  –  Buxton. So unless a re-jig of the services is afoot it isn’t clear that this will be any more than a diversion line and only benefitting  Manchester – Scotland trains.  That would only need the extra line just south of Wigan electrifying not the Preston to Bolton section.

The full pre-budget statement appeared to contain more proposed spending than you would expect in an almost bankrupt economy so the conspiracy theorists have some credibility.

A full statement is promised next week, so we look forward to that with a mixture of optimism and scepticism.

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Lostock Hall Engine Sheds Regeneration

Posted on 6 December 2009 by Pete of MIP

Householders in Lostock Hall have been sent a questionnaire asking what use they would like to be made of the designated open space on the old railway engine shed and sidings. It is quite a large area on both sides of Watkin Lane between the two railway lines and bridges.

Suggestions in the questionnaire include parkland, wildlife area, allotments, BMX park, sports area and how often will you use the site.  All those things will be good although allotments can become an eyesore, a source of noise from the unsilenced powered tools, and their current popularity might be a passing phase.

This once proud area should have a statue of a locomotive with it’s crew and a maintenance man standing next to it. Perhaps an old shunter can be obtained and given anti-corrosion treatment.

The area has been derelict for possibly 20 years. The two bridges in Lostock Hall are quite a feature in their own right and, without studying it, crossing the road between the two park areas might be an issue.

Sounds a good idea, time to get on with it.

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Digital Switchover Day – 2nd Dec 2009

Posted on 2 December 2009 by Pete of MIP

What a shock only a black and white fuzz on  TV.  After watching it for a while decided to tell my old aunt that the signal had gone off. It wasn’t the signal that bothered her though,  it was the new remote. So complicated with buttons very close together.  I knew it was to be a long morning.

The digital switch-over man had been 2 months ago but my aunt said she’d use it on the day so thought I’d better make sure I was there. I’m so clever with the technology so taking the new remote I clicked and found it didn’t work. What am I going to do, there’ll be a fuss.   But then I noticed the new box light started blinking and thought it must be getting new channels automatically.  No such luck so I diverted my aunt while I fiddled with the remote. After about 10 minutes a blue picture came on.  Flicking through a few menu’s decided ‘new’ set up would be just the job and amazingly it appeared to be scanning for channels although the man set it up 2 months ago.  Relief when BBC came on.

That was only the beginning with my aunt looking at this remote and saying she wanted her old one. So I took out the battery, I knew she’d use the old one and mess up the TV. She did. It must have had one final button push of power without the battery.  Anyway with my beautiful diagram listing only the 5 buttons needed on the new remote there was some  channel switching and volume up and down.  A bit of TV off, then after saying don’t turn off the digital box, off it went.  The button is next to the TV off button. It got a bit complicated and my aunt threw the remote down and said put on the radio.

The next thing was the ITV button. I’m thinking what ITV button.  Oh, the TV button for on and off.  She says why doesn’t it say on and off, why does it say TV (or even ITV according to my aunt).  The other button is for the digital box. Digital box!   Oh my gosh. On leaving she was using the remote but will the TV work tomorrow.  Will it go off tonight?

Digital switchover, try telling an octogenarian who has a lifetime achievement for technophobia.

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Winckley Square facelift

Posted on 2 December 2009 by Pete of MIP

After reading letters in the Evening Post about the selected design for Winckley Square I was expecting something gross, and being someone who doesn’t want heritage areas defaced feared the worst. 

Yet the design seems fairly minimal and doesn’t appear to change the square or its character by a great deal. It opens it out and uses modern materials and features to give a more interesting  and welcoming look. 

One of the objectives is to make the area more welcoming after dark and lighting features are used. I would be a bit dubious about that aspect and it makes the square high maintenance, especially the fountains, although water is a nice feature and many other places use it, including Blackpools new square.  You can’t fault the council for ambition on that. Maybe after visiting one of the restaurants nearby a stroll on a nice evening would be good, although I think I’d walk round it rather than in it and I haven’t been in Preston centre at night for 30 years.

Will the design still look good in 10 years?  Is the design too similar to many others?  Should the design reflect an earlier time?  It isn’t clear whether something really great should have been done for Prestons finest green square or if it should just be returned to an as was state. On the other hand creating something great can be a very expensive route.   A novel design can be controversial and playing it safe with a return to an earlier date can be unimaginative.  Maybe this is a good compromise as it isn’t too extensive or modern, is interesting with small features and doesn’t detract from the overall character of the square.

When I was last in Preston we went into a cafe in Winckley Street and there was a postcard showing a photo of the square with a space for objecting to the redesign on the back. Unfortunately it didn’t say what was being proposed as an alternative but there was a photo of a rather tired looking path through heavy trees that didn’t look too good. Over the years I’ve read that many of the parks in Preston have later additions that are now treated as ‘original’, for example the Japanese Garden in Avenham,  yet there seems to be a demand to preserve Winckley Square as it was without anyone being told what it was. For that reason I didn’t fill in the form, although I’m open to changing my mind.

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Borders closing

Posted on 1 December 2009 by Pete of MIP

Disappointing that Borders will be closing in Deepdale Shopping Centre. Paid a visit yesterday and the place was busy, the 20% off signs an attraction.  It’s good to have had 2 good bookstores in Preston. Borders was a bit different with its Starbucks, Game, Calendar Club and Paperchase and having easy parking.  A loss.

What happens to the other places does it all close?  Bad time for the staff just before Christmas. Probably the other bookstores don’t like a big stock of 20% off books being available just before Christmas. So it’s bad news all round except for other coffee and game stores.

On the other hand the Deepdale centre seems to be doing well. Can’t say I’ve been a lot but the car parks always seem pretty full, if that means anything. It looks smart, probably one of the best centres of its type in the area. Borders is quite prominent so hope something worthy comes in.

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Blackpool v Preston North End

Posted on 29 November 2009 by Pete of MIP

November 30th an evening kick-off for Sky.  Blackpool need 3 points to get them back into the top 6 and PNE need them to make up lost ground.  This is an international break month so not many games have been played. North End have a habit of a bad home score and then making it up in the next away game. The forwards havent’ been scoring much lately and the defence has been a bit squeaky so time they made up.  Blackpool have moved off their peak in the last few weeks.

Forecast: Blackpool 1 PNE 2.

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International Space Station over Preston

Posted on 25 November 2009 by Pete of MIP

The International Space Station with Space Shuttle Atlantis was visible from Preston yesterday morning (24th Nov) at 4.46 and it was very bright (if no clouds), I was in bed and it was probably raining.

Atlantis undocked from the International Space Station (ISS)  last night just before midnight, GMT.   Their separation sets the stage for  double flybys of many towns and cities, but not Preston, today, Nov. 25th, when Atlantis and the ISS will soar through the night sky side by side–a fantastic sight.

Atlantis scheduled to land Friday morning, Nov. 27th, so the double apparitions will continue on Thursday, Nov. 26th, Thanksgiving in the United States.

No sightings of bright satellites are forecast for the next 10 days from Preston although the ISS is visible from London, low in the sky, early Friday morning.

Reported by www.SpaceWeather.com, Simple Satellite Tracker.  Tuesday 24th Nov 2009 from Preston:   Time of rising: 04:46:33 pm,   Direction to look:  W,     Time of transition:  04:48:46,      Max elevation:  37°,    Magnitude: -2.7 (very bright).

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Tottenham 1 Wigan 9, Preston v Newcastle

Posted on 23 November 2009 by Pete of MIP

Amazing away win for Wigan. I’m not a Wigan fan but I don’t like to see teams being thrashed. I thought the defence was very poor and made the opposition attackers look much better than they are. Today people are saying their attackers are obvious choices for England where I don’t see that at all. Against a normal defence at that level they don’t get much of a look in and are near miss experts, so lets get real.

Tonight PNE take on Newcastle at Deepdale. After having a bit of a lean spell PNE should be out to show they’re still in there. On paper Newcastle have a Premier League side but you can’t guarantee they’ll play.  No doubt there’ll be a good following from their long suffering fans, but then again you could say PNE fans are long suffering but don’t have the same expectation, except tonight.  Then onto Blackpool next week, their ground is looking better now and they’ve maybe gone over a peak which PNE might catch at the right time.

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Digital Switchover and further to HD

Posted on 21 November 2009 by Pete of MIP

Wednesday 2nd December the freeview digital changeover will be complete in the Granada region. Also the power at the transmitter becomes 10 times stronger. Wow does that make our aerial glow? Probably not, I’ll add just in case someone thinks it does.

On that day all you’ll get is a crackly screen if you switch on without a digital tuner. All channels will only be watchable in digital format.

As if that wasn’t enough it was announced this week that Winter Hill transmitter will go to HD standard for Manchester in December 2009 and in March 2010 the rest of the Granada region will go HD.  In addition to the non-HD that is.

Does that mean that if you bought a new set top box for the changeover you’ll need another? Also does that mean you will need an HD TV?  You’ll need to check your box but it will need an HD compatible box and TV if you want to watch HD. Although you can buy TV’s with freeview or satellite tuners inside that don’t need a box.

What about my video recorder? Yes, it will only video at the standard it’s able to be tuned to. Digital standard or HD 920P etc.

I’ve never been sure exactly what HD TV is. You read 920P and 1080P TV’s are HD. I also read that Sky HD and FreeSat HD have better HD which is 1920P, that’s over twice as good definition as 920.  Then there is framerate or the number of times the picture is refreshed. Also MPEG4 and DVD-T2.  MPEG4 is a video format like MP3 is a sound format,  and DVD-T2 is a new transmission format for HD.

The flat screen TV’s have plasma, lcd or led screens. LED are the latest. They have light emitting diodes, led, behind the lcd screen that give a smoother light coverage and can be switched off in sections to give total black. Apparently total black is difficult on TV’s. Just to make life a bit more complicated each manufacturer does it a bit differently.

3D is on its way. Will that need red and green spectacles? I don’t know although it’s hard to imagine how it can be done without some kind of eye vision adjuster.

If you look too deep it’s hellish.  We have a cathode ray tube TV which seems pretty good to me and is too heavy to move.

I could go on about radio as well. The government wants us to throw away our FM radios and go DAB by 2015 even though DAB is an inferior sound quality.

Posted in Technology | Comments Off on Digital Switchover and further to HD

Football Museum moving to Manchester, loss or opportunity?

Posted on 20 November 2009 by Pete of MIP

The National Football Museum trustees announced on their website that the museum will move to the Urbis in central Manchester opening in 2011 with some items remaining in Preston if funding can be found. Newspaper reports say Manchester is paying an £8m transfer fee plus £2m a year subsidy for the museum.  Cheap by Cristiano Ronaldo standards but quite a lot if you’re looking for a job in what was said to be Britains poorest area when the casino was located there (from Blackpool).

If longer term funding can be found a display will remain at Preston. Although my own opinion is that it won’t be viable. Some other use of the facility will need to be found. It is easily accessible by road with plenty of free parking and is a modern building.

Disappointing news for Preston, once more fuelling the opinion that Manchester gets priority in the North West from both the government and regional bodies.  Although it can be seen as a difficult call as I’d rather the museum and any other facility was in Manchester than in London or Birmingham in our centralised state.  Even so, it isn’t clear that this museum has any natural home as football is built on loyalty, to the supporters at least. Yet it seems difficult to factor the pride and loyalty into the displays.

Also the choice of the Urbis isn’t an obvious one. I’m a keen art gallery and museum attender and havn’t been as there are too many better things in the area and I doubt the NFM will change that. The appeal of the NFM is to those interested in football so it isn’t a particularly female or family outing.  The Urbis is close to Victoria Station, recently named the worst station in Britain, car parking in central Manchester costs a fortune and in general people who go there are more interested in the shops.  The Science Museum and the revamped Peoples History Museums aren’t too far away. The Science Museum being one of the best museums of its type in the country and of educational value. The other well known museums and galleries being quite a distance away.  On the other hand it is another item to the list of Manchester attractions that as a minimum add to its appeal as a destination worth more than a day and a good option if you’re looking to fill an hour in the centre. 

It isn’t known if the funding offered by Lancashire and Preston councils will still be there for a reduced football museum or for a different type of museum. I’d guess not as times are hard and nationally we’ve yet to start repaying. How much councils should fund a museum for a sport with such riches is questionable.

If an alternative in Preston was to be founded I’d prefer a museum and a futurama. Perhaps with a broader theme using football as focus to take advantage of the location. The Football Museum’s view over the Deepdale pitch making it come alive.  Maybe it could be an office and  / or cafe as it would be an attractive working environment.

Overall it’s a loss to Preston as the museum has a national and international awareness and advertising like that can’t be replaced.

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