Birmingham meet up

[Horacewimp]

Earlier in the week I had the pleasure to meet up in Birmingham with Grroosss and her mom. They were in the U.K. to see the band Sparks.

We spent the afternoon doing the Horace Wimp walking tour of the sights, then I drove to Shard End to see Jeff’s house he grew up in. On the evening we had a Balti curry near my home and then a drink in Birmingham centre.

I didn’t take any pictures but Grroosss took a few and will hopefully share them with us.

[orioles70]

I see that the Sparks world tour is coming through my area at the end of June: New York, Philly, DC.
I am tempted. I enjoyed watching the documentary about them that came out during Covid.

[unomusette]

We went to see them in Oxford recently, they were fab and I would heartily recommend anyone to go and see them too

[Helmut83]

Awesome! So Grroosss joins the club of the privileged who have experienced the unique Important Guy from the Industrial Revolution Tour! The schedule of your day out sounds quite similar to mine, I'm sure you guys had a lot of fun with a lot of ELO-related anecdotes and conversation.

[Grroosss]

Late replying here, sorry! Took a while to recover from the jet lag and get back into the swing of things back home (still grumbling about the lack of public transportation here...)

But yes, it was a lovely day out, and the famed Horace Wimp tour did not disappoint!  First stop was Broad Street, unfortunately we weren't able to find Bev's or Roy's stars as the street was redone recently and most of them are missing! But at least one of the most important ones is still there.

Horace was quick to point out the drummer who's missing from the Black Sabbath bench, and also what would've been a great alternate filming location for the Calling America video.

Of course, the tour wouldn't have been complete without some important people from the Industrial Revolution!

And as Horace mentioned, we paid a visit to Shard End.

Unsurprisingly I encountered a few people during my travels who were incredulous that I was visiting Birmingham, but as with the other forumheads who've visited, I didn't think it was a bad city at all!  I really loved the canals.  I even managed to score a copy of Traveling Wilburys Vol. 3 at a little shop I chanced upon in the outskirts (they had an original copy of the first ELO Part II album too, but I didn't get it since I already bought the reissue last year).

[Grroosss]

orioles70 - if you're able to get yourself to a Sparks show, I cannot recommend it enough. They're on top of the world right now, I'm off to the Glastonbury thread and then to post a review of the shows I saw.

(I have 2 spare tickets to see them in Colorado, too, that I'm trying to sell, if anyone is interested.)

[BSJ]

Because I love history, I had to check out those important three fellows. Very short bios here are from Britannica site.

Matthew Boulton: (born Sept. 3, 1728, Birmingham, Warwickshire, Eng.—died Aug. 17, 1809, Birmingham), English manufacturer and engineer who financed and introduced James Watt's steam engine. In 1762 Boulton built the Soho manufactory near Birmingham. Assisted by the engineer and inventor William Murdock, they established the steam-engine industry by initially erecting pumping engines to drain the Cornish tin mines. Boulton foresaw great industrial demand for steam power and urged Watt to design the double-acting rotative engine, patented in 1782, and the Watt engine (1788) for driving the lapping machines at his factory.

James Watt: (born January 19, 1736, Greenock, Renfrewshire, Scotland—died August 25, 1819, Heathfield Hall, near Birmingham, Warwick, England) The Watt engine was a defining development of the Industrial Revolution because of its rapid incorporation into many industries. While repairing a model Newcomen steam engine in 1764, Watt was impressed by its waste of steam. In May 1765, after wrestling with the problem of improving it, he suddenly came upon a solution—the separate condenser, his first and greatest invention. Watt in 1766 became a land surveyor; for the next eight years he was continuously busy marking out routes for canals in Scotland, work that prevented his making further progress with the steam engine.

William Murdoch (21 August 1754 – 15 November 1839) was a Scottish chemist, inventor, and mechanical engineer.
Murdoch was employed by the firm of Boulton & Watt and worked for them in Cornwall, as a steam engine erector for ten years, spending most of the rest of his life in Birmingham, England. He invented the steam gun and the pneumatic tube message system, and worked on one of the first British paddle steamers to cross the English Channel.

[Timeblue]

All 3 were around at the same time and would have met and worked with each other, an incredible time in British history....

[Horacewimp]

BSJ do you want a job as a guide on The Horace Wimp Birmingham Tour ^tm

[BSJ]

I would love it! I will handle the scholarly lowdown of the Industrial Revolution in your beloved Birmingham. And you can tend to the music, pub side.
It will be a sell out!
I've already ordered the bus. Since it's used, it needs a few changes. Like what will our brand name be?
          Horace Wimps Birmingham

Industrial Revolution & Music History Tour tm, sounds a bit stuffy. Any ideas out there? What else should be on our bus? Will need a driver, too.

[Timeblue]

W-Wimp
I-Industrial and
M-Music
P-Pilgrimage
Tours Ltd

[Horacewimp]

We will certainly need a good supply of umbrellas for the upper deck, it rains regularly here. I’ll give the driving a go I mean how difficult can it be.

H-orace
O-pen top
R-evolution
A-nd
C-urry
E-xperience

[BSJ]

Love 'em both! Like the "Industrial and Music Pilgrimage" and "Curry Experience"

Rats. Forgot about your rainfall.

I was thinking if we can keep him away from the cakes, Time might be a fit driver?

[unomusette]

I can only applaud this enterprise, which is sure to be an astounding success

I would like to volunteer to be the "Jolly Hostess, selling crisps and tea" from the Divine Comedy song National Express. Providing drinks for a sky high fee is right up my street, and can't deny having a behind that's the size of a small countryyyyy! (see second verse below)

www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-d&q=national+express+lyrics

[Timeblue]

Jun 28, 2023 16:41:02 GMT BSJ said:

Love 'em both! Like the "Industrial and Music Pilgrimage" and "Curry Experience"

Rats. Forgot about your rainfall.

I was thinking if we can keep him away from the cakes, Time might be a fit driver?

Depends who's cakes they are...