Author Archives: Barbara

Newsham Park is the oldest of a group of three of Liverpool’s major public parks, intended by the early Victorian city fathers as a ribbon of open space, then on the outskirts of the city, to enhance the health of … Continue reading →

It was a bright and sunny day, and got quite hot in the afternoon. The seaside crowds were out, walking around the Marine Lake path, hiring paddle boards and queueing at ice cream stalls. We avoided them by walking along … Continue reading →

The annual Knowsley Flower Show is held in Court Hey Park, which was once a landed estate developed since 1836 by Robertson Gladstone, local businessman, property developer, politician, and brother of Prime Minister-to-be William Ewart Gladstone. Robertson Gladstone was also … Continue reading →

On a very hot and sunny day we visited Rimrose Valley Country Park, where the main attraction was to be “Liverpool’s Most Wuthering Heights Day … Ever!”  More on that below. But first we had wander around the wildflower meadows … Continue reading →

Today we went to the Wildlife Recording day run by the Friends of Victoria Park and Merseyside Biobank. They armed us with clipboards, recording sheets and pens, and offered a variety of ID guides. We thought we were OK with … Continue reading →

Victoria Park opened in 1900 for Queen Victoria’s Diamond Jubilee. It’s a large park, with everything from the “municipal park” checklist : a lake, a bandstand with a live brass band playing, a war memorial with manicured flower beds, a … Continue reading →

Off for a day at the seaside at New Brighton. The early rain cleared up and the sun shone. The tide was close to the top, so shipping was on the move, and we watched the Isle of Man catamaran … Continue reading →

Toxteth Park Cemetery was opened in 1856, and although it is now in the built-up area a couple of miles south of the city centre, it was then just outside the boundary. It is full of ornate Victorian Gothic memorials … Continue reading →

Today started misty, overcast and damp, but the sun came out about 11 am. Waterloo seafront gardens sit between the large houses that used to be right on the beach, and the Marine Lake. It is a conservation area, not … Continue reading →

Leading southward from the Speke Road roundabout (by Dobbies garden centre) is Speke Hall Avenue, a busy dual carriageway with a wide central reservation. For the last few years the local authority has allowed this to grow into a wildflower … Continue reading →