Northwest Blood Bikes Manchester

Blood Bikes fund-raising on Hyde Market.

Northwest Blood Bikes Manchester is a registered charity, which offers an out of hours and free of charge urgent medical courier service to the NHS. They volunteer to play their part in saving peoples lives and save the NHS money that would otherwise be wasted on taxis or expensive couriers, but more than anything else they do it because they love it. More information on the Northwest Blood Bikes website.

For Ruby Tuesday and
Our World Tuesday.

Shadow Shot Sunday: I Love Hyde

Following last week's official opening the Hyde Civic Square the sun was out yesterday.

The baked potato stall and Madge's ice-cream van were already there as a team from I Love Hyde were setting up stalls for a community event here and on the nearby Croft Millennium Green.

An hour later and the place was packed as you can see in the photographs on Hyde DP Xtra.

A contribution to Shadow Shot Sunday.

Friday Fences/Green Days: Gee Cross Play Area

This is part of the newly opened Gee Cross Play Area. It has come about as result of a campaign by the "Friends of Sam Redfern Green" who were formed in 2009.

Two more photograph can be found on Hyde DP Xtra.

A contribution to Friday Fences and Green Days on Raindrops & Daisies.

The Christie Charity Stall

The charity stall on the market last Saturday was in aid of The Christie. The charity raises money to fund projects at The Christie which are outside the scope of the NHS. Last year they raised over £13 million.

Visit their website.

Note: I'll be away in St Annes all this week and probably without internet access so will not be tweeting.

I've scheduled a post each day to go live at midnight BST and Julie Storry of Sydney Eye will be posting a notice to the CDPB Facebook page which is also where CDPB members can go to vote for September's theme day.

H & V signs

These two signs, white letters on a blue diamond, are on the side of the building at the corner of Norfolk Street and Reynold Street.

The only other instance of a similar sign I've come across is a V sign on the former Gee Cross Post Office.

I can only think that they refer to "hydrant" and "valve" for the benefit of the fire service, but I can find no information anywhere about signs with this particular design.

The old shop is now an extension of the Tameside Animal Shelter charity shop which can be seen on Hyde DP Xtra.

A contribution to signs, signs.

The Cup Cake Queen of Hyde

The indoor market at Clarendon Mall organised a celebration for the Queen's Diamond Jubilee on Saturday. All the stalls were decorated with union flags; there were tombolas; face-painting and more.

At the top of the upstairs ramp by the "Devon Eggs" stall cup cakes, scones and other delights were for sale, all in aid of Willow Wood Hospice.

How else would you celebrate 60 years on the throne?

A contribution to Mellow Yellow Monday.

ABC Wednesday: J is for Just Help

I photographed this shop on Market Street a few months ago but didn't know what it was.

It seems that the Just Help Foundation is a charity designed to help fight poverty and help the under-privileged children of the developing countries to become self-sufficient.

The Tameside-based charity has launched a supplementary school which plans to offer lessons in English and maths to local youngsters. It is expected that the school (which will operate on Saturday and Sunday mornings) will help to ensure more young people from across Tameside continue on to further and higher education.

A plague by the door celebrates the opening in September 2011 by local MP Jonathan Reynolds.

For more "J's visit ABC Wednesday.

Animal Shelter Shop

The fundraising shop for Tameside Animal Shelter on Reynold Street recently expanded taking over the shop on the corner of Norfolk Street as a furniture store.

Weekend Reflections: Sally Army Buskers

Many Saturdays you will find two members of the Salvation Army playing outside in the Market Place. The market stalls are reflected in the shop front behind them.

See how they looked in November 2006.

For more reflections visit Weekend Reflections.

Looking down on the Queens

Looking down over Clarendon Place from the empty level one of the multi-storey car park.

The Queens is an old coaching inn as the road was one of the main routes from North Derbyshire and South Yorkshire into Cheshire and Manchester. The entrance on the right (next to the Willow Wood Hospice shop) would originally have led to stabling. The six Queens on the inn sign represent the wives of Henry VIII.

More information about the pub and its connection with the Moors Murders and an old photograph can be found on the Hyde Cheshire blog.

Microwave left behind

The Beacon charity which used to be in Quadrant House have now moved out. As I passed by recently I noticed an abandoned mircrowave by the door.

Weekend Reflection in the window of B's

I took this photo with my phone (which is rarely used for phoning and never for texting) last Saturday morning.

We are looking into B's café which has been open since February 2010. Reflected in its window is The Queens and the Willow Wood Hospice charity shop.

There is also my wife backing her wheelchair out of the Ring 'n' Ride bus.

You can get a clearer view perhaps from the mirror-image greyscale version of this on Hyde DP Xtra.

For more reflections visit Weekend Reflections.

ABC Wednesday: Q is for Queen Adelaide's Tapestry

"The Highland Shepherdess" is one of nine pieces of needlework worked by Queen Adelaide herself and donated to a bazaar held in 1835 to raise funds for a school in Hyde. It was purchased by a member of the Tinker family and passed down through the family into the possession of Margaret (Peggy) Tinker. She has generously passed this artefact into the custody of St George's Church.

The church hope to have it restored in due course.

Queen Adelaide was born in 1792. She married William, Duke of Clarence in 1818. He reigned as King William IV from 1830 until 1837. Queen Adelaide died in 1849.

A photograph of the tapestry in its frame can be found on Old Hyde.

Details from the frame can be found on Hyde DP Xtra.

For more "Q" posts this week visit ABC Wednesday.

Hay Will Animal Rescue

Hay Will Animal Rescue is run by Lynn Haydon-Williams who is an Equine Lecturer and Panel Judge.

We met her when she was manning the charity stall on Hyde Market a few Saturday's ago. She is presently looking after several dogs, cats and hamsters at her home in Hyde as well as caring for some horses in Simmondley.