shipshape free
a guide to bristol in summer
arts / events / history / city map / dining / people SS.13-Cover_2je.indd 1
24/05/2013 10:26
p2.indd 1
24/05/2013 11:13
summer 46 35 Shipshape #14 summer 2013 Published by thegroupofseven.co.uk Enquiries: info@shipshapebristol.co.uk Past issues & galleries: shipshapebristol.co.uk Advertising: steve@shipshapebristol.co.uk Disclaimer The information contained in this publication is provided as a general guide only. While every care is taken to ensure that the details are as accurate as possible, we make no warranty or representation, express or implied, about the accuracy or completeness of the information contained in this publication. The views or opinions expressed in this publication are strictly those of the authors. The publishers and/or any of its associated companies or business partners accept no responsibility for damage or loss, howsoever caused, arising directly or indirectly from reliance upon any information obtained from this publication. © The Group of Seven Ltd 2013 Archive images This issue of Shipshape features photographs from Bristol Record Office, which is based at B Bond Warehouse on the Floating Harbour. The record office holds archives documenting over 800 years of Bristol’s history and continues to collect and preserve material on all aspects of life in the city. For more information, visit www.bristol.gov.uk/recordoffice
28
In 1914 an international exhibition – part trade show, part theme park – opened on a patch of land called Rownham Meadows in South Bristol. It was a huge event, the biggest of its kind Bristol had ever seen. By July of that year, it had gone bankrupt. But that’s not quite the end of the story. In our summer issue, we delve into the fascinating and all-but-forgotten world of White City (p28). Elsewhere, we speak to the manager of the fabulous Barley Mow in The Dings (p35) and boatbuilder extraordinaire Win Cnoops (p27), ask Bristol Beer Factory’s Head Brewer to recommend his favourite beers (p46) and suggest some great ways to spend time with your tots (p14). 04 Shot! Snooping around cruise ship Discovery
28 The land that time forgot The fascinating history of White City
06 Tickets Music, comedy, art and events
32 Fresh and wild Traffic-free walks, rides and runs
10 Details People, performers and points of view
35 Emily Nutbourne The Barley Mow’s manager
24 City map Ways to navigate the Habourside and beyond
36 Sketch artist Bristol-born illustrator Samuel Loxton
27 Win Cnoops Award-winning founder of Star Yachts and passionate boatbuilder
40 Eating & drinking Restaurants, cafes, bars and pubs 46 My favourite things Chris Kay’s top tipples
03 shipshape
SS.14_Contents_2je.indd 1
24/05/2013 10:59
! t o sh tol’s s to Bris look d a e h e p Shipsha docks to take a ritime th Ma u Avonmo overy, Cruise & nger sse Disc around es’ new 700-pa ail from g s Voya ich sets h w ip h cruise s e port in 2014 th
Discovery embarks on a range of cruises around the British Isles, Spain, Norway and beyond in February 2014
04 shipshape magazine
ss14_pp04-05_Shot_3je.indd 2
24/05/2013 12:08
1. Passengers can enjoy themed nights in the ship’s Discovery Lounge on the Riviera Deck. In a previous life, Discovery was used in the 1977 American sitcom The Love Boat, when the ship was part of P&O’s Princess fleet.
2. The Discovery Theatre on the Riviera Deck. The cruise ship travels 75,313 miles every year taking passengers from Bristol Avonmouth to the Norwegian fjords, Scottish Highlands, Iceland, Spain and beyond.
3. One of the 12 junior suites available to book on Discovery. The cabins are an average of 305 square feet in size and boast an integral sitting area, fridge, flatscreen TV, wardrobe and personal safe. Cruises range from a one-night short trip to an 18-night break.
4. The reception area on the Bali Deck. Discovery was built in Emden, Germany in 1972. She weighs over 20,000 tonnes and can cruise at an average of 18 knots.
1
2
3
4
5
6
5. The Waves Bar & Lido is located on the Riviera Deck. While on board, passengers can listen to guest speakers, join a craft session, work out in the gym and relax in one of two open-air Jacuzzis. 6. The Carousel Lounge plays host to a variety of performers and shows.
05 shipshape
ss14_pp04-05_Shot_3je.indd 3
24/05/2013 12:08
tickets Arts, culture and family trips around the city
Architecture Centre
arnolfini
At-bristol
Bristol: Ambitious City to 28.07.13 Free exhibition presenting emerging ideas for the city’s future. During school holidays, related display of designs by children from St Barnabas Primary School, Bristol.
Unbuilt Bristol: The Bristol That Might Have Been and Might Still Be 26.06.13 Drawing from his new book ‘Unbuilt Bristol’ (Redcliffe Press), author and Shipshape contributor Eugene Byrne discusses some of the projects that might have changed Bristol but never made it off the drawing board.
Kitchen Chemistry to 15.07.13 Put your favourite foods under the microscope, investigate the chemistry behind flavours and textures, and see if you can trick your tastebuds! Dropin sessions throughout the day.
Contemporary arts centre
Science discovery centre
Centre for architecture and design
Urban Wanderings 19.06.13, 27.06.13, 17.07.13 A series of guided walks exploring Bristol’s historic and future ambitions. Booking essential. £6/£4. My Street, My Neighbourhood, My City 22.06.13 Free drawing activities for all the family to celebrate BIG Green Week and Love Architecture 2013. 12-4pm Architects’ Journal Small Projects Award 07.08.13-22.09.13 Free exhibition celebrating shortlisted projects in the prestigious AJ competition, with models, photos and family activities.
Seeds of Change Garden: Boat Tours 15.06.13 & 16.06.13 Take a boat tour to see Arnolfini’s floating ballast seed garden in Castle Park. Tours depart from Amphitheatre Ferry stop, £5/£3 concs, under 12s free. Alice Roberts: Survivors of the Ice Age 22.06.13 BBC presenter Roberts (above) discusses the lives and extinctions of the megafauna that roamed ice age America and Eurasia. 12.30pm, £7.50
Summer Night Sky Planetarium Show from 18.06.13 Take a tour of the night sky, from black holes to colourful stars. Visit the Milky Way, learn how to spot the Summer Triangle and discover the myths behind Aquila the Eagle and Cygnus the Swan. Regular daily shows. Explore Your Universe Family show Family show bringing to life the latest discoveries in science – from atoms to astrophysics. Explore what links particle accelerators with 80s hair and find out what space telescopes have in common with police chases.
34 Bristols 05.07.13-07.07.13 Unique performance event showcasing 34 UK artists across a variety of venues.
Animate It! Try your hand at making your very own Gromits in this workshop led by Aardman model makers. Afterwards, bring your creations to life in the animation suite.
Narrow Quay, BS1 4QA 0117 922 1540
16 Narrow Quay, BS1 4QA 0117 917 2300
Anchor Road, bs1 5db 0845 345 1235
architecturecentre.co.uk
arnolfini.org.uk
at-bristol.org.uk
Bristol Opening Doors Discover Bristol’s buildings with a free app, trail and website: bristolopeningdoors.org
06 shipshape
ss14_06-09_tickets(NEW) (Jason).indd 2
24/05/2013 11:25
tickets
bristol aquarium Marine life in all its splendour
Bristol Aquarium takes visitors on a spectacular underwater journey of discovery around the world, from UK waters to tropical rainforests and coral reefs. Themed areas include the Shipwreck Cove, Bay of Rays, Amazon and Coral Seas. Book online to save up to £2 per person. Summer Fishtival 20.07.13-01.09.13 Dive in to a summer of fun events and themed activities, including: The Great British Sea Adventure 20.07.13-02.08.13 Two weeks of special talks, feeds and themed activities to celebrate the very best of British fish. UK waters are teeming with a wealth of extraordinary marine life: from rock pools to reefs, there are oceans to explore. Science Under the Sea 17.08.13-01.09.13 Exhibition exploring how our marine worlds operate – and how vital their continued health and wellbeing are to us all. Includes workshops, interactive experiments and talks on marine conservation and sustainable fishing.
bristol ferry boats
Scheduled ferry services and special interest trips
Children’s Puppet show 15.06.13 & 22.06.13, 11am – 12pm, £4. Coffee, Croissants and Classical Music 16.06.13 & 23.06.13, £6. City Docks Tour 19.06.13 3.30-4.30pm, £4. Boat quiz 20.06.13 Bar on board. 8-10pm, £4. Grand Tour 06.07.13 & 05.08.13 Afternoon/evening cruise down the Gorge to Sea Mills. Sunday Riverside Roast 28.07.13 & 25.08.13 Cruise to Beese’s Tea Gardens. £21/£15 concs (includes roast dinner), 11am-4pm. Waterside Wildlife 30.07.13 & 14.08.13 With wildlife expert Ed Drewitt. Classic Gorge 15.08.13 Informative commentary throughout. 11.30am-2pm, £12/£10 concs. Plus private hire, parties, booze cruises and more.
Brunel’s ss Great britain
Historic, Bristol-built steamship
The Victorian Pissoir Step back in time to hear Victorian dockworkers spend a penny. The Pissoir, a 130-year-old castiron latrine in use well into the 20th century, is accompanied by a soundscape of whistled and hummed Victorian tunes. ‘Sea Hear’ Story Telling 04.06.13, 02.07.13 & 03.09.13 Maritime tales for pre-school children by storyteller Sarah Mooney. A mix of original tales and new twists on classic legends, featuring whales and angel fish, pirate treasure and stormy seas. 11am, in the Brunel Institute. A Day in the life of a 19th-Century Sailor Check website for dates. Find out what it was like to crew aboard the ss Great Britain. Crew talks: Sats & Weds 12pm. Archive in Five Tue/Wed/Thur/Sat, 12.30-1.30pm Get closer to precious documents and rare objects in the Brunel Institute’s world-famous archive.
Anchor Rd, BS1 5TT 0117 929 8929
Harbourside 0117 927 3416
Great Western Dockyard, BS1 6TY 0117 926 0680
bristolaquarium.co.uk
www.bristolferry.com
ssgreatbritain.org
07 shipshape
ss14_06-09_tickets(NEW) (Jason).indd 3
24/05/2013 11:26
tickets
City Sightseeing Bristol
colston hall
M Shed
City Sightseeing Bristol run a variety of entertaining, informative opentop bus tours around our historic city. Tours run daily throughout the summer, at 30-, 45- or 90-minute intervals. Harbourside stops include Broad Quay, Anchor Road, Hotwell Road, Cumberland Road, Brunel’s ss Great Britain and Prince Street.
John Cooper Clarke 07.06.13 The undisputed poet laureate of punk performs his trademark satirical verse and sharp observations. Guests include actor Keith Allen and comic Simon Day.
Chocolate Finale! 23.06.13 Chat to former Cadbury Factory workers and find out what it was like to work in a chocolate factory. Event to mark the final day of M Shed’s fascinating exhibition ‘Chocolate!’.
Sandi Thom 13.06.13 Scottish singer-songwriter and multiinstrumentalist performs tracks from her new album ‘Flesh and Blood’.
Bristol Harbour Train Rides 15.06.13-16.06.13, 29.06.13-30.06.13, 13.07.13-14.07.13, 27.07.13-28.07.13, 24.08.13-26.08.13 On the Henbury Steam Locomotive. 11am-5pm.
Premier live performance venue
Local history and art exhibitions
Pic: © Neil Philips
Informative open-top bus tours
Hop On, Hop Off Hop On, Hop Off tickets allow you to fully explore the 21 stops, and also feature discounts for various attractions and eateries around town. Bus/Boat Combo If you fancy taking to the water, this combo ticket is a popular choice. 1 Day Ticket £12 adult, £11 NUS & OAP, £2 children, £26 family (up to three children) 24 Hour Ticket £15 adult, £13 NUS & OAP, £2 children, £32 family (up to three children)
Al Murray 23.06.13 Britain’s most irrepressible innkeeper serves up his premier brew of aleinspired acumen and bar-room buffoonery. The New Mendicants 09.07.13 (pictured) Norman Blake (Teenage Fanclub) and Joe Pernice (Pernice Brothers) combine their considerable talents for this new two-man show.
Cranes! 22.06.13-23.06.13, 20.07.1321.07.13 & 10.08.13-11.08.13 Take a trip in the historical industrial cranes. 12-5pm. Trips aboard the Pyronaut 27.07.1328.07.13 & 17.08.13-18.08.13 Take a ride on this historic fire boat – and see her in full water-spraying action. 12-5pm.
Johnny Flynn 30.07.13 Solo outing from the talented actor, poet, wit and “poster boy of the nufolk scene”.
Ride the Mayflower 06.07.1307.07.13 & 03.08.13-04.08.13 Experience stunning views of Bristol’s Harbourside on the world’s oldest steam tug. 12-5pm.
07425 788 123
Colston St, BS1 5AR 0117 922 3686
Princes Wharf, Wapping Rd, BS1 4RN 0117 352 6600
citysightseeingbristol.co.uk
colstonhall.org
mshed.org
See p23 for more on the new ‘Rebellious Bristol: Street Art and Riots’ tour and ‘Story Bus’.
08 shipshape
ss14_06-09_tickets(NEW) (Jason).indd 4
24/05/2013 11:26
tickets
spike island
tobacco factory theatre
watershed
The Dug Out to 15.06.13 Bristol’s Splice Theatre present this new drama inspired by the legendary nightclub that helped spawn the ‘Bristol Sound’. The story flips back and forth between World War Two and an IRA bomb explosion on Park Street in 1974, and will transform the theatre into the Dug Out in all its pomp, with a DJ spinning 70s ska, reggae and funk spliced together with 40s black American jive.
Hello Lamp Post! Launches this summer. The winner of Bristol’s first ever Playable City Award, this interactive game-cum-story invites audiences to tune in to the secret conversations of the city and communicate through lamp posts, bus stops, postboxes and other street furniture via the medium of text messages.
Nationally renowned fringe theatre
World-renowned arts and new media centre
Pic: © Neil Philips
Contemporary art and design exhibitions and events
UWE Fine Arts Degree Show 2013 08.06.13-13.06.13 Work by over 70 graduating students, spanning installations, video art, drawing, performance, painting, photography and sculpture. James Richards 06.07.13-01.09.13 Group show curated by this artist whose work often incorporates films by other artists and footage taken from digital and analogue media sources. This group exhibition reflects on themes of memory, language and representation. Melissa Gordon: Material Evidence 06.07.13-01.09.13 (pictured) First UK solo exhibition by this US-born, UK-based painter and printmaker, whose work examines the relationships between surface and reproduction, representation and abstraction, seeing and reading. Gordon’s interested in the by-products of history and of creation, including the grid structure of Modernist painting and the dot matrix of silk-screen printing.
My Robot Heart 11.07.13-13.07.13 Writer/storyteller Molly Naylor presents this warm, beguiling and poignant storytelling show with music from folky duo The Middle Ones. Takes place at The Brewery, North Street. Squally Showers 21.07.13 Little Bulb Theatre (above) return with this compelling exploration of growing up in the 1980s – the all-ornothing decade in which a magical storm is gathering pace. A balletic farce mixing exciting choreography, live music and bizarre characters.
Much Ado About Nothing 14.06.13-27.06.13 Shakespeare’s classic comedy is given a contemporary spin in this breezy adaptation by Joss Whedon (‘Buffy The Vampire Slayer’). The story of sparring lovers Beatrice (Amy Acker) and Benedick (Alexis Denisof) offers a dark, sexy and occasionally absurd view of the intricate game of love. Shakespeare Screen Adpatations Sundays throughout June. Film adaptations of the Bard’s works to tie in with Bristol Shakespeare Festival (see p20). Films include ‘Throne of Blood’, Akira Kurosawa’s magnificent take on ‘Macbeth’.
133 Cumberland Rd, BS1 6UX 0117 929 2266
Raleigh Rd, BS3 1TF 0117 902 0344
1 Canons Rd, bs1 5TX 0117 927 5100
spikeisland.org.uk
tobaccofactorytheatre.com
watershed.co.uk
09 shipshape
ss14_06-09_tickets(NEW) (Jason).indd 5
24/05/2013 11:26
details News and views from across the city
ask Esther O’Callaghan OBE Creative Common Bristol is the creative and enterprise zone that opened last year. Its centrepiece is The Big Top, a circus-style marquee. We talk to Creative Common’s director as she embarks on a programme of arts and community events
You arrived in Bristol last year from Manchester. How are you finding it?
Bristol is a great place to live, with a thriving culture of arts, music, circus and theatre. I am constantly amazed by the sheer amount of festivals, events and activities going on here – there simply aren’t enough days in the week to do and see everything that is on offer.
31 Manchester artists including Elbow and Noel Gallagher, which raised money and awareness for CALM (Campaign Against Living Miserably) – an organisation tackling high suicide rates among UK men. That OBE after your name looks very impressive…
Thanks! I received it in 2007, aged 27, for my charity work. I set up The What do you put that down to? Factory Foundation to get young There is a huge concentration of people across Greater Manchester creative people here who work back into education, training and collaboratively to make things happen. employment using creative projects. I think a combination of Bristol’s Between 2004-08 we worked with creative culture, relative proximity to 2,500 14-16-year-olds. London and two strong universities What’s coming up? means that young people are more inclined to not only study here, but to Creative Common 2013 launches on 7 June with NoFit State Circus’s stay on here to live and work. touring show Bianco, which returns Tell us about your background. to Bristol after a 22-year hiatus. I was one of the original team who NoFit State is the UK’s leading set up the Manchester International large-scale contemporary circus Festival. More recently I devised, company, producing thrilling, co-curated and produced Thirty engaging work that mixes live music, One – a double album of music by dance and film with traditional circus
skills. To have them here is a real coup for Bristol. More events will be announced very soon. What about food and drink?
We are delighted to be working with Eat Drink Events, who will be operating the cafe/restaurant and special one-off events. Inside Out Adventures, in partnership with Bristol Beer Factory and Bath Ales, will be hosting a 150-capacity event and art exhibition space also available for private hire. What are your own hopes for Creative Common’s legacy?
To have unequivocally demonstrated that creativity is the life-blood and beating heart of what makes this city a great place to live and work. What would you like to see happen to the space after you leave?
Something more creative and interesting than a car park! more
creativecommon.co.uk
10 shipshape
ss14_pp10-21_details_4re.indd 2
24/05/2013 14:25
p11.indd 1
24/05/2013 11:13
details
ask
Live music at No.1 Harbourside This welcoming Harbourside café/bar now hosts live music on Wednesdays and Thursdays (from 9.30pm) and Fridays and Saturdays from 11pm. Forthcoming highlights include:
Freddy Bird The Lido’s Head Chef talks to us about his love of big flavours, Iberico pork and malt loaf with lots of butter… Sum up your signature style.
Very relaxed and natural. We cook almost exclusively in a wood oven and over charcoal when possible. I like big flavours – I’m not the most subtle of people! I like food to be simple and not fussed about with. I source the very best ingredients and want them to be cooked with care and precision. The three ingredients you can’t live without?
Pork, especially Iberico pork – from its nose to its tail and all the fatty, juicy crispy bits in between! Herbs – all of them, I couldn’t choose one. So much of my cooking is based on the use of fresh herbs. And my ridiculously extensive spice rack.
Your favourite meal of all time?
Almost impossible to answer but one was in Sardinia where there were no menus and the food just kept coming for about five hours. The restaurant had no name and, judging by the bill, little care for profits. Your guilty pleasure?
Malt loaf with lots of butter. I used to eat it with my granny and I still need a regular fix. Why should we visit the Lido?
To eat in the most fabulous relaxed setting where the food is sublime, cooked by passionate chefs, and the wines thoughtfully chosen. more
lidobristol.com
Erwin Bardwell Collective Sat 8 June As catchy as roots ska can sound, Swindon’s EBC reproduce the sound of a dusty Jamaican 7-inch, complete with distant harmony vocals and tootling organ. Nothing clever – just pure dance music with heart. Ziriguidum Sat 27 July A Brazilian-style carnival drum band steeped in Rio’s contemporary street sound, Ziriguidum make a big noise – and the urge to dance is irresistible. Nubiyan Twist Fri 9 Aug (pictured) This Leeds/London 10-piece give the classic Afrobeat sound some judicious hip-hop and reggae treatment. Horns, live dubs, big beats and soulful female vocals are all added to the mix. more erinbardwellcollective. bandcamp.com; ziriguidum.co.uk; nubiyantwist.co.uk
carnival After a year off in 2012, St Pauls Carnival – the South West’s biggest celebration of Caribbean culture, cuisine and creativity – returns on Saturday 6 July to the streets around City Road. The Carnival turns 45 this year and will feature, as ever, a flamboyant costumed procession with floats from local schools and groups. You’ll also find, as ever, music and performance stages, sound systems and – of course – a range of stalls selling exotic grub from across the globe. More: stpaulscarnival.co.uk 12 shipshape
ss14_pp10-21_details_4re.indd 4
24/05/2013 14:33
details
Bristol harbour festival This year’s Festival runs from
26-28 July
The Bristol Harbour Festival is now in its 43rd year The first Bristol Water Festival took place on 26-27 June
1971
It became known as the Bristol Regatta in 1978, and Bristol Harbour Festival soon after
It is estimated to attract
250,000
visits over the weekend – the widest audience engagement of any UK festival As well as all the land-based entertainment – music, dance, circus performances, market stalls – over 250 boats will fill the harbour more bristolharbourfestival.
co.uk
chuckle Bristol BrouHaHa South Bristol’s brilliant annual comedy festival takes over the Tobacco Factory and its Southville neighbour The Comedy Box for nine days in July Each night features a double bill of comics at one or both venues: visiting funny folk include Somerset-raised confessional comic Richard Herring, the eloquent and mischievous Andrew Lawrence and the loveably laconic Yorkshireman Alun Cochrane. Diary of a Madman 5-6 Jul
South Wales theatre company Living Pictures stage this dark comedy, arguably the best work to come from the pen of Russia’s great satirist Nikolai Gogol. We’re in 1830s St Petersburg, and our hero Poprishchin is a low-ranking, fortysomething civil servant, struggling to make his mark on life. One day, though, he makes an amazing discovery. A portrait of one man’s reality spiralling deeper into surreal fantasy, Diary of a Madman stars Robert Bowman, familiar to Bristol audiences for his luminous role in Bristol Old Vic’s The Odyssey.
Hot Air 25 Jul-10 Aug
From some of Bristol finest theatre makers comes this brand new slice of touching, funny and beautiful theatrecum-music that celebrates one of Bristol’s most celebrated industries – hot-air ballooning. Based on an original concept by Heather Williams, co-director of classic Bristol dockside drama Up the Feeder…, and written by Mike Akers (BOV’s Treasure Island and Peter Pan), Hot Air weaves together true stories, music and magic to tell the story of a day in the life of a balloon fiesta. “I wanted to give audiences an insight into the world behind the icon of the Bristol skies,” Heather explains. “I also knew that setting a play at a balloon fiesta and embracing the lives, not only of the ballooning community, but also the huge range of people that attend as spectators would make great epic theatre.” more
tobaccofactorytheatre.com
13 shipshape
ss14_pp10-21_details_4re.indd 5
24/05/2013 14:48
details
Kids ’n play Go on a Gromit hunt, sing a sea shanty, take in an opera, meet CBeebies presenter Cerrie, get to work on the ss Great Britain and more with these adventurous activities for all the family Words Mark Sayers 1 Chorus of approval
The last Saturday of every month (1-5pm) down at Arnolfini is a feast of family fun, with specially-devised activities, themed around current exhibitions and performances, for families to work through together. We like the look of the Sea Shanties and Folk Songs session on Saturday 31 August (1-5pm, followed by boat trip 4.45-6.15pm), at which local choir Gathering Voices will run a workshop on sea shanties and folk songs from around the world. more
3 Cerrie on
The Tobacco Factory welcomes the enchanting CBeebies presenter Cerrie Burnell, whose one-woman show ‘The Magical Playroom’ is inspired by her own childhood. Cerrie plays Libby, who dreams of becoming a ballerina like her mum before her. But when she’s told to wear a false arm for dancing lessons, Libby rebels, seeking escape in her favourite playroom. Suddenly, the toys magically come to life around her. Will Libby’s new friends be able to help her to become a famous ballerina? All will be revealed… Sat 20 July, 11am.
Make a beeline for St George’s Bristol on the evening of Monday 17 June, for a one-off performance of Benjamin Britten’s opera for children, Little Sweep. It tells the story of Sam the sweep boy, who is rescued by the children of the manor from the filthy chimney – and, eventually, from his cruel masters. With a cast of child and adult performers, audience songs and plenty of action, this looks the perfect way to introduce the little darlings (not to mention yourselves?) to the joys of opera. more
stgeorgesbristol.co.uk
arnolfini.org.uk more
tobaccofactorytheatre.com
2 Model citizens
Bristol’s favourite world-famous engineering duo Wallace and Gromit will be in attendance At-Bristol this summer, every day from 25 July. What’s more, budding engineers can follow in the duo’s footsteps and take the exploratory’s brilliant new Fly By Wire Engineering Challenge (from 16 July). Work with family and friends to put your engineering skills to the test and investigate ways of powering a flying craft – all under the guidance of Rolls Royce experts. You’ll then be able to test your aircraft along At-Bristol wire track to see if you have what it takes to master the art of flight. more
5 Sweep harmony
at-bristol.org.uk
4 Crew’s company
A new feature on board Brunel’s ss Great Britain allows visitors to find out which job on board would have suited them best. Steer the ship like a helmsman, decide what First Class passengers will get for dinner, even try your hand as a ship’s surgeon – you can find out just where on board IK Brunel’s historic vessel would have been your spiritual home. more
ssgreatbritain.org
6 The life aquatic
As part of its Summer Fishtival events series (see also Tickets on p07), Bristol Aquarium is laying on a whistle-stop tour of the world’s oceans and seas – and some of their most ingenious inhabitants. From 3-14 August, visitors will meet a selection of the world’s most specialised sea creatures – and the habitats, from rainforests and reefs to oceans and estuaries, that they call home. Learn why flatfish are flat, why electric eels are, um, electric – and why the Aquarium’s resident shoal of cave fish have decided they no longer need their eyes… more
bristolaquarium.co.uk
2
14 shipshape
ss14_pp10-21_details_4re.indd 6
24/05/2013 14:26
details
1 3 5
6
2 ss14_pp10-21_details_4re.indd 7
24/05/2013 14:26
details
ask Darrin Dart The Sunday Brunch Market starts on 23 June with the launch of Making Sundays Special, which sees the city centre streets closed to traffic, allowing community groups, artists and street performers to do their stuff. It continues every Saturday and Sunday from 10am to 4pm. We grabbed a word with Darrin Dart from Viet Vite, one of the market’s food stalls Tell us the history of your fascination with Vietnamese food.
Having travelled extensively in south-east Asia after university, I grew to love the night markets and food hawkers who cooked such wonderfully simple and tasty dishes. On a recent trip to Indonesia I was once again sampling the wonders of Asian street food – and decided to do something about it. After moving to Bristol in 2011 I met up with Navina Bartlett from [Bristol street food collective] StrEAT and the dream became a reality.
Can you sum up Vietnamese street food in a few phrases?
There is something about the cuisine of Vietnam that is both exciting and comforting – a blend of eastern and western flavours that creates a unique taste of its own. Notes of fresh citrus, smoke and fiery spice are coupled with the acid tang of pickles and the comfort of French-style bread. Name a key Vietnamese ingredient.
That would be Nuoc Cham, a fishsauce-based dip/dressing used in most dishes, or simply served at the table.
What does a typical Vietnamese breakfast look like?
I’d like to say that it looks like our Brunch Banh Mi – soft cheese, Vietnamese sausage, egg and mushroom sauce – but in reality the typical breakfast is Pho, a clear noodle soup with beef or chicken. There’s also a big café culture in Vietnam – they produce wonderfully rich coffee, which I am hoping the people of Bristol will learn to love! facebook.com/harboursidemarket, facebook.com/vietvite1
more
festivals As ever, summer is rush hour in Bristol’s busy annual festivals calendar. Highlights include the Festival of Stone (4-9 Jun, festivalofstone.com) – Bristol’s first-ever sculpture festival, featuring 50 up-and-coming UK sculptors, plus street theatre and music. July brings the return of the Foodies Fest (12-14 Jul, foodiesfestival.com), with chef sessions from Michelin-starred Martin Blunos (pictured) and others, as well as creative cookery demos and BBQ sessions. And finally, Bristol Festival of Puppetry returns (30 Aug-8 Sep, puppetplace.org/ festival), featuring brilliant adult puppet theatre troupes from around the globe, and this year’s festival kicks off with a colourful carnival through the streets of Bedminster. 16 shipshape
ss14_pp10-21_details_4re.indd 8
24/05/2013 14:27
details
ask Spyglass Hot Gromits Bristol’s brilliant barbie boat is providing its own culinary take on this summer’s Gromit Unleashed sculpture trail. From 1 July, to tie in with the ‘Unleashed’ launch, Spyglass will be serving Hot Gromits – upmarket hot dogs at £8 a throw, with £1 from each sale going to Wallace and Gromit’s Grand Appeal. Young diners can also take part in the Gromit colouring competition, where they can design their own colour scheme for the canny canine. more
spyglassbristol.co.uk
Highbrow Lowbrow Daryn Carter Director, Bristol Pride Festival, 6-13 July • ‘‘I’m really looking forward to this year’s Bristol Shakespeare Festival, with its array of open-air productions. I’m particularly looking forward to As You Like It, performed by the traditional and hugely acclaimed Lord Chamberlain’s Men on Brandon Hill on Wednesday 10 July.
The Spooky Men’s Chorale Shipshape picks the brains of this Aussie male vocal troupe, purveyors of “genial buffoonery and testosterone-drenched vocals”, who play the Colston Hall on Tuesday 30 July. Where, when and why were the Spooky Men formed?
Legend has it that, around the turn of the century, all the men of The Blue Mountains in New South Wales gathered in a great cave, where they were subjected to an exhaustive battery of tests to determine those of good breeding stock, musical ability and fastidious personal hygiene. All those who passed the tests were then told to bugger off – and what was left became The Spooky Men’s Chorale. How do you describe your performing style, and your repertoire?
Genial buffoonery and testosteronefuelled tomfoolery. We seek to comment on the absurdity and grandeur of the modern male: man’s
love affair with power-tools, the importance of being BIG and many other questions will be addressed. Few answers are actually expected. What binds you all together and keeps you performing?
Travelling halfway across the world to sleep in vans and village halls for eight weeks during a wet British ‘summer’ is surely reason enough. But if more evidence is required, it would probably have something to do with our legion of loyal fans in the UK and the strange power of brotherhood. What do you like to send audiences home thinking and feeling?
Our ambition is to make women weep, small children quail, and insurance salesmen vaguely aware that, somewhere, there is a whole world they’ve never experienced. more
colstonhall.org
• “When I am not having a geek moment in Forbidden Planet I like nothing more than visiting Under The Stars, the floating café/bar in the Centre. It serves Briska, a beautiful craft cider from Sweden, as well as wonderful tapas.’’ more
pridebristol.co.uk 15 shipshape
ss14_pp10-21_details_4re.indd 9
24/05/2013 14:27
details
Highbrow Lowbrow Bridget Pilkington Vee Double Moo ice creams, Bristol • “I love taking time to visit the exhibition galleries at Arnolfini. There are always interesting and progressive art and installations – I’ve loved getting lost in Jutta Koether’s current exhibition Seasons and Sacraments – and the whole interior is calming and cultured.
laugh Bristol Comedy Garden After a sabbatical last year, this four-day comedy festival returns to the green swards of Queen Square from Wednesday 3 to Saturday 6 July Comedy festivals are something Bristol has done well for some time – see the excellent Bristol BrouHaHa, previewed on p13 – but the Comedy Garden, which made a triumphant debut in 2011, offers something a little bit different. Each night features four comics performing in a marquee in the beautiful Georgian square, with a selection of bars and food stalls within easy reach. In short, the Comedy Garden mixes the vibe of a traditional comedy festival with something much more open-plan and alfresco. This year the Garden has teamed up with some of the best food traders in town, including Sausage Fest, Flame Baked Pizza Wagon and The Bristol Cider Shop. More importantly, the comedy menu is also impressive. There are visits from Alan Davies, the downbeat surrealist most familiar as Stephen Fry’s stooge on QI, and the
charmingly bemused, off-the-wall Dubliner Ed Byrne. Also pitching up are Isy Suttie (pictured) – perhaps best known for her role in ‘Peep Show’ – and two Bristol boys: the brainy, concept-driven Mark Watson and the brilliant storyteller John Robins. “We’re super excited to be back in Queen Square this July,” enthuses organiser Cass Briggs. “We had a brilliant first year in 2011 and were sad to miss it last year. We’ve got another fantastic line-up and tickets are selling fast. Queen Square will once again be transformed into a comedy wonderland for four nights – so come hungry, thirsty and ready for a good time!”
• “My lowbrow treat would be Asda Bedminster! It never fails to provide a bargain and usually there is something ‘interesting’ going on. As you’d expect, I have my highbrow experience rather less often than the lowbrow one (the latter almost every day…)” veedoublemoo.co.uk, twitter.com/VeeDoubleMoo
more
M Shed guided walks M Shed rolls out another season of guided walks around the city and its inner suburbs this summer, with each itinerary unfolding some key moments in that district’s past. Upcoming walks include M Shed to Victoria Park, Bedminster (Weds 12 June, 10 July & 14 Aug, 1.30-3.45pm), Old City (Thurs 20 June, 18 July & 22 Aug, 10.30am12.45pm), Redcliffe (Fris 28 June, 26 July & 30 Aug, 1.30-3.15pm) and The Floating Harbour (Tues 2 July & 6 Aug, 10.30am12.45pm)
more bristolcomedy
garden.co.uk
more
mshed.org
18 shipshape
ss14_pp10-21_details_4re.indd 10
24/05/2013 14:48
p17.indd 1
24/05/2013 11:14
details
watch Bristol Shakespeare Festival The annual Bristol Shakespeare Festival runs over two weeks and three weekends in July, at venues all over the city – and, in celebration of its first decade, 2013’s programme promises to be the biggest and the best yet The organisers of this celebration of Britain’s greatest cultural export are a surprisingly international bunch, with natives of Italy, the USA and Latvia among them. Also worthy of note is that this year’s team are all women. In 2012, the festival was relaunched as a Community Interest Company by events manager Emma Henry, community arts specialist Suzanne Booth and Bristol cultural activist Anna Farthing. For 2013, the board has expanded to include programmer Sophie Gould and producer Eva Martino, and yet more women, including Shakespeare expert Dr Terri Power, are delivering core areas of the programme. “This talented team has enabled the
festival to develop more leftfield and local activity,” Farthing reveals. “In this year’s programme, nestling among the summer picnic performances are some more adventurous events – including performances of Drag King Richard III and The Complete Reworks, a day of contemporary experimental and multi-media interpretations at Colston Hall. This year’s event feels much more like a genuine festival than a series of performances.” Although Bristolian theatregoers have proven themselves remarkably hardy, braving all weathers over the past 10 years, the 2013 programme includes more indoor events than before. Wiltshire-based Ripped Script company will perform their version of
As You Like It at Bedminster Down’s Zion Community Centre on Saturday 6 & Sunday 7 July, while two weekends later at The Looking Glass in St Nick’s Market, a fresh interpretation of Shakespeare’s erotic poem Venus and Adonis will be performed by Shakespeare Young Company. Meanwhile, audiences with an appetite can book for a Bardish brunch and film programme on Sundays at Watershed throughout June, or enjoy pop-up performances in one of several central Bristol pubs bearing the Bard’s name. What’s more, thanks to Somerset’s Dawkins Ales, the festival’s own Shakesbeer! will be served at licensed venues. more bristolshakespeare.org.uk
festival Highlights Romeo & Juliet 6 July, Brandon Hill First up are veteran tourers Heartbreak Productions, with their accessible, imaginative and original take on Shakespeare’s great, doomed romance.
ss14_pp10-21_details_4re.indd 12
The Two Gentlemen of Verona 8 July, The Station, Broadmead Bristol Waldorf Steiner School (slogan: “Play is the serious work of early childhood”) present this performance by and for children of all ages.
As You Like It 10 July, Brandon Hill One for the traditionalists. Muchadmired, rigorously traditional troupe The Lord Chamberlain’s Men stage Will’s fine comedy with an allmale cast.
The Tempest Within 11-15 July, Redcliffe Caves AlleyWay Theatre perform in the atmospheric setting of Redcliffe Caves.
A Midsummer Night’s Dream 19 July, Berwick Lodge The Festival Players, another all-male company, will perform in the grounds of Berwick Lodge. An evening of poetry, laughter and magical mayhem is promised.
24/05/2013 14:28
details
bristol: ambitious city This exhibition and events series, at the Architecture Centre until 28 July, is inspired by game-changing recent events in Bristol – including our first-ever elected Mayor, a commitment from Mary Portas for the regeneration of Bedminster, and Bristol’s bid to become European Green Capital. Using themes including creativity, transport and community empowerment, Bristol: Ambitious City asks: what are our city’s ambitions for its future? And, zooming in a little, what are your own hopes for the future of your street or suburb? The show features a mix of documents, photographs, stories, interactive maps and more: local stories profiled include the Temple Quarter Enterprise Zone and the Bristol Pound, now the UK’s largest alternative to sterling. Further ahead, the hope is to convert the exhibition into a more permanent forum for Bristolians to air their ideas for the city’s future. more
architecturecentre.co.uk
Pilton Cider
look Arnolfini summer shows A brace of intriguing summer exhibitions at Arnolfini… plus a one-off boat tour complete with storytelling and theatre Arnolfini’s summer programme includes an unusual intervention by Greek artist Yorgos Sapountzis, who will create an imaginary sculpture park in the Arnolfini galleries. These sculptures will then become protagonists in a series of performances and sculptural works, developed by the artist in collaboration with local actors and groups. Using simple materials including bright fabrics and sheet metal, Sapountzis will construct large-scale installations – and create a different idea of a public space and of how we might interact with it. Running across the same period (20 Jul-8 Sep) is a solo exhibition for Ian Hamilton Finlay (19252006), a prominent post-war poet and artist whose sculptures, stone
works and neon signs combined language and landscape. The Arnolfini exhibition will mix published works, prints and posters by Finlay with interventions by contemporary artists and writers who bear his influence. We also like the look of the Boat Tour devised by Travelling Light Summer School on Friday 9 Aug (6.30-8.30pm). Travelling Light are a brilliant and long-running Bristol company who make theatre for younger audiences, and who run a popular annual summer school for kids. On the Friday evening, you’re invited to join Arnolfini staff for a specially devised boat tour to Castle Park, featuring storytelling and experimental theatre devised by the Summer School. more
arnolfini.org.uk
This light, fruity, medium-dry cider from Pilton, Somerset is the perfect accompaniment to any summer’s day. Bottleconditioned, Pilton Cider has a natural sparkle and pops just like a bottle of Champagne (but twice as nice – and half the price…). 5.5 % ABV. £8.50 for 750ml from Bristol Cider Shop, 7 Christmas Steps, Bristol. more
bristolcidershop.co.uk 21 shipshape
ss14_pp10-21_details_4re.indd 13
24/05/2013 14:28
details
go green
Arnolfini hosts the Ugly Animal Preservation Society and Allegra McEvedy at An Evening of Fast Food! (below) during BIG Green Week
Bristol’s BIG Green Week This brilliant annual festival of eco ideas, art and entertainment returns to Bristol from Saturday 15 to Sunday 23 June. Organisers expect more than 40,000 visitors to turn up for two weekends of free family entertainment and nine days of inspiring talks, workshops, art, music, poetry, comedy and films
The opening weekend includes a return for Bristol’s enduringly popular Festival of Nature (Sat 15, 10am-6pm/Sun 16, 11am-5pm). Highlights include screenings of new wildlife films made by the next generation of natural history filmmakers and a visit to the Seeds of Change Garden, an Arnolfini / University of Bristol project that examines our city’s trading history via plants brought to Bristol as seeds on trade ships. City Hall hosts a glamorous ‘FareFashion’ festival launch evening on the Saturday, complete with eco-fashion show, music, recycling and sustainability – including a ‘pop-up’ buffet dinner of 15 dishes cooked entirely with food that would have gone to landfill.
Standout speakers during the week include Bristol’s Mayor George Ferguson who, on Monday 17, will be setting out his eco vision for the city. Richard Branson will be answering questions about business innovation on the Tuesday, while Wednesday evening features a Question Time debate at City Hall on the state of UK nature, with contributions from the RSPB and South West Wildlife Trusts. On Saturday 22, Bristol’s BIG Market hosts over 200 stalls across the Old City, with food direct from producers, local artisan products, crafts, vintage and ethical goodies and more. And on Sunday, Mayor Ferguson launches his Making Sunday Special initiative with events on Park Street,
College Green, Millennium Square, the Centre, Corn Street and Baldwin Street – don’t miss the Cascade Steps Music Stage. Other off-piste highlights include workshops at the CREATE Centre, a Solar Pavilion on College Green, walkabout theatre and a packed programme of walks and tours. more
biggreenweek.com
BIG Green Week in numbers 40,000 visitors expected ... 120 events across 9 days .... 25 community fringe festival events across the city ... £15 limited-edition festival pass – savings on festival tickets, discounts at cafes, bars and shops 22 shipshape
ss14_pp10-21_details_4re.indd 14
24/05/2013 14:46
details
Highbrow Lowbrow Todd Wills Head of Programme, Colston Hall, Bristol • “I’m looking forward to seeing John Cooper Clarke at Colston Hall on 7 June. A true original, he’s cornered the market for tall, rakethin, Northern punk poets. He’s got a great supporting line-up too, including singer-songwriter Thea Gilmore, comic Simon Day and, intriguingly, Keith Allen. • “Of a weekend, if I’m not on the sidelines watching my eldest son play for DRG Stapleton FC, I’m a bit of a rambler. Routes must start and end with a pub though! I can recommend a walk across the Malvern Hills, starting from the Red Lion in Great Malvern, walking up to the highest point, The Beacon, and then down to the Herefordshire/Worcestershire border at the Wyche Inn. More locally, I’m looking to explore the beautiful Chew Valley south of Bristol.” more
colstonhall.org
explore City Sightseeing Bristol There’s another busy summer in store for City Sightseeing Bristol and their absorbing, informative open-top bus tours. A brand new tour for this summer, Rebellious Bristol will take visitors on a 90-minute exploration of Bristol’s activist past. Notable stories told en route include 1963’s Bristol Bus Boycott, when Bristolians stayed off the buses for four months in protest at the Bristol Omnibus Company’s refusal to employ black or Asian bus crews – a decision then overturned by the company in a historic moment in the history of racial equality in the UK. Other stops on the tour include Stokes Croft, scene of riots in summer 2011, as well as several key pieces of socially-engaged street art by Banksy, Cheo and others. Trips depart from the bottom of Park Street at 1pm on Sundays 23 June, 28 July and 25 August. Tickets £8/£5 children. Younger visitors will love the
Story Bus tours, with Bristol performer Chris Brown returning for another season of swashbuckling open-top adventures. Tales of the high seas, dastardly pirates and ghostly sailors: these 90-minute tours will keep all ages absorbed. Early booking advised. The Story Bus departs from Broad Quay at 5.30pm on Tuesday 30 July, Tuesday 6 August and Wednesday 28 August. more
citysightseeingbristol.co.uk
3 reasons to hold your wedding at Glassboat 1. The panoramic views of the Avon are as gorgeous as the happy couple themselves 2. Glassboat are experienced wedding hosts, so you know your special event is in safe hands 3. With food and service delivered with care and passion, you and your guests are all set for a day to remember more
glassboat.co.uk
23 shipshape
ss14_pp10-21_details_4re.indd 15
24/05/2013 14:36
whiteladies ro
Hop on a bus, ferry or bike – or use your own two feet – for a different view of the city
ad
Explore Bristol Lido Restaurant, Spa & Pool, p43 •
Queens road
• RWA
clifton bs well ro ad
k
o jac
re
st
clifton village
r pa
• Clifton Suspension Bridge
City Museum •
• Cabot Tower
po )
a4
y( wa rt
clifton wood hotwell
No.1 Harboursid
road Cross Harbour Ferry •
hotwells
• Brunel’s ss Great Britain, p7
Lockside, p43 •
Illustration: Dawn Cooper
ashton court park
• Nova Scotia
spike island • Spike Island, p9
• Create Centre
ad
0m
ss14_map_4je.indd 2
200m
400m
h
ig
le
ra
ro
southville
• Tobacco Factory, p9, p45
24/05/2013 12:27
Ferries
markets
on your bike
City Sightseeing Bristol runs tours of the city’s most historic districts in its distinctive red double-decker buses. Tours, with commentary, run daily throughout summer. They last 75 minutes, but you can hop on and off as you please. Harbourside stops include Broad Quay, Anchor Road, Hotwell Road, Cumberland Road, Brunel’s ss Great Britain and Prince Street. CSB is now running street art and storytelling bus trips for families. More: citysightseeingbristol.co.uk
Number Seven Boat Trips (NSBT, numbersevenboattrips.com) and Bristol Ferry Boats (bristolferry. com) operate regular ferry services around the Harbourside, as well as public trips and excursions. The ferry stops are illustrated on the map or visit the operators’ websites for timetable information. NSBT also operates a cross-harbour ferry from Brunel’s ss Great Britain to the Harbourside (Hotwells).
The Tobacco Factory’s monthly vintage market Retroville continues on the first Sunday of each month, with 15 stalls selling vintage and retro clothing, jewellery and accessories, records and furniture. Meanwhile, at Temple Quay Food Market on the first Thursday of month, you’ll find chocs, chutneys, cheese, soup, wholefoods, breads, treats, cakes and more. For more, visit tobaccofactory.com or templequay-bristol.com.
Bristol Cycle Festival Sat 13-Sun 21 July A freewheeling not-for-profit fest that brings together dozens of bike-related events and activities over nine fun-packed days in mid-July. Full programme will be released via their Facebook page and Twitter feed: facebook. com/bristolcyclefestival, @bris_cycle_fest
m au
dl
in
st
re et
Sightseeing
up
pe
r
bristol shopping quarter
Bristol’s Biggest Bike Ride Sunday 16 June One of the UK’s largest noncompetitive cycling events celebrates its 20th birthday this year. Join the hordes at Millennium Square and take your pick from a choice of carfree routes – rides range from a nine-mile saunter to a calfstraining 38-mile yomp. More at betterbybike.info
k
r pa
way ple tem
redcliffe
redcl iffe w ay
tr
ee
t
ad
ns
ro
•M ud Dock Café & Cycleworks, p43 • Arnolfini, p6, p40
av o
d
• Spyglass, p45
Bristol Aquarium, p7 • • The Architecture Centre, p6 • At-Bristol, p6 • Shakespeare Tavern, p44 • Myristica, p44
an
QUEEn SQUAre
sl
• Glassboat, p41
• Bristol Old Vic
ng
castle park
Giuseppe’s Ristorante & Pizzeria, p41 •
No.1 Harbourside, p41 • • Tourist Infomation • Watershed, p9, p45
ki
et
re
st
Colston Hall p8 •
• The Barley Mow, p40
temple quay
• Bristol Temple Meads
clif red
• Mud Dock Deli, p44
fe h ill
• St Mary Redcliffe • M Shed, p8
bath r
coronation road
oad
Key Ferry Boat stops
le
City Sightseeing pick up points
ss14_map_4je.indd 3
24/05/2013 12:28
p26.indd 1
24/05/2013 11:15
Q&A
feature
Win Cnoops The founder of Star Yachts and passionate boatbuilder talks to us about life around the docks, the award-winning Bristol 27 and his cross-Atlantic dreams dinghy building in my free time, Very well, thank you – busy, as usual! but didn’t take the plunge until I was 35 and followed the intensive year-long boatbuilding course at the Congratulations on your Classic Boat Award for the Bristol 27 (inset). International Boatbuilding Training College in Lowestoft. We’ll never What does the award mean for you and the team at Star Yachts? have the superb skills, speed and knowledge of the old shipwrights I don’t think it will mean that we who started as boys in a boatyard, suddenly get a flood of orders, but it is recognition that we made the right but at least we can do our bit to continue to keep those skills alive choices in what we wanted to build as best as we can. and how. Of course, a big part has been played the designer, Andrew Wolstenholme, who translated the What’s the most expensive boat design parameters into this gorgeous you’ve built? shape. And we wouldn’t be talking That’s the Bristol 27, which costs about the boat without the man who around £125,000 plus VAT. But of saw the attraction of the design on course, we can build dinghies at a paper and decided to give us the go- fraction of that cost. ahead to build her – so all dues to Dudley Fishburn, who is using the How long does it take to build your boat intensively on the Thames average boat? and in the Solent! The boats we’re building at the moment (between 25ft and 27ft long) take just under a year to complete. When and where did you start your Hello Win. How are you?
around the docks so boats can plug in easily to improve water quality – then you don’t have to go crazy about people swimming now and again when it’s hot. Why have empty quaysides and rocky slopes that make it extremely uncomfortable for anyone sitting on them? Look at Amsterdam! Describe your dream sailing trip.
Before reality stepped in I always wanted to do a big sailing trip singlehanded – for example, across the Atlantic. I always thought it would suit me to sail on my own. Not in one of those superfast big things, but a nice and steady wooden little beauty. If you weren’t building boats, what would you be doing?
Doing up old houses, definitely. I studied architecture and restoration. I often dreamt that when I’d earned career in boatbuilding? enough money, I’d design my own house as modern as you like, all I started to get interested in boats What one thing would significantly and boatbuilding when I was rowing improve life around the Harbourside? glass and wood. No chance of that now – if you want to be rich, don’t in Holland during my studies, when More and nicer boats, floating go into boatbuilding! most rowing boats were still wooden. gardens, crazy houseboats, people The boatswain got me interested enjoying themselves on the water – in sailing, and I dabbled in a bit of more life. Install a sewage ring system more staryachts.co.uk 27 shipshape
SS.14-Win.Q&A_3je.indd 1
24/05/2013 11:16
white city
Thursday 28 May 1914 was a big day for Bristol. The city welcomed the mayors of Wells, Malmesbury, Tewkesbury and Chippenham. Along with the Lord Mayor of Bristol, Alderman Swaish, and several members of the council, all proceeded to Bower Ashton, where His Worship officially opened the Bristol International Exhibition. If you tell most Bristolians that there’s a part of town called ‘White City’, they’ll give you a blank look. It’s not surprising. The name only lives on nowadays in a patch of allotments. But a wider site, near Brunel Way, between Ashton Gate and the Cumberland Basin, hosted some intriguing episodes in Bristol’s history. The Rownham Meadows, as they were known, became the site of the Bristol International Exhibition of 1914, a vast extravaganza that was half trade fair, showing off the products and achievements of Britain’s empire and dominions, and half theme park. There were halls and pavilions and buildings with exhibits and entertainments. ‘Shakespeare’s England’ was a set of replica Tudor buildings. There was a fake Bristol Castle containing a huge exhibition of naval and military artefacts. Nearby was a full-size mock-up of Sir Francis Drake’s ship Revenge. Another favourite with many visitors was Bostock’s Jungle, a menagerie of performing animals.
Ever heard of White City? Neither had we until historian and author Eugene Byrne put us right. Read on to discover the curious history of this forgotten plot of land…
continued over…
The images used in this feature come from the Vaughan Collection at Bristol Record Office. This historic collection of more than 9,000 postcard images of Bristol can be viewed online at http://archives.bristol.gov.uk (reference no. 43207). Shipshape sends sincere thanks to Bristol Record Office for their help in illustrating this feature. 27 shipshape
SS.14-WhiteCity_3je.indd 2
24/05/2013 11:13
feature
the land that time forgot Words Eugene Byrne
27 shipshape
SS.14-WhiteCity_3je.indd 3
24/05/2013 11:13
white city
There was a dance hall, concerts by military bands and full-size orchestras, and a choir of anything between 650 and 1,000 voices. The choristers were all local enthusiasts, as was the 1,500 to 2,000-strong army of volunteers who staged the Bristol Historical Pageant at 8pm each evening. There was a huge funfair with one of the newfangled roller-coasters and plenty more rides besides, and at night the whole site was lit up by state-of-the-art electric floodlights. Bristolians called it the White City because of the colour of some of the pavilions. Admission was a shilling (5p) per adult, half-price for children; comparable to admission to, say, Alton Towers these days. Because there was so much to see and do the public were invited to buy season tickets. For 12 shillings and sixpence (seven and six for children) you got an unlimited number of visits until its planned closure in October. Trouble and strife
The exhibition was dogged by financial problems. Bad weather in the early summer put a lot of people off visiting, and it was only in July that word had spread about how good it was and people started going in large numbers. Not just Bristolians – the Great Western Railway put on special trains from around the South West. By then, though, it was too late. The exhibition company was beset by creditors and it was wound up by Bristol County Court on 20 July. However, it looks as though the city fathers, who had not at first been keen on the event, suddenly realised how popular it was. The major creditors agreed the show should continue. The hot, sunny weather of the first weekend of August was interrupted by intermittent showers. Wealthier Bristolians prepared for summer holidays in Wales, Devon or Cornwall, while the city’s hundreds of volunteer or Territorial Force soldiers took special trains to their summer camps. The men were barely into their tents when urgent telegrams from the War Office ordered them to return to their bases at once. On 4 August Britain formally declared war on Germany and Austria-Hungary. The exhibition closed a fortnight later. By September, the War Office had taken over the White City to use its buildings, fake Castle and Tudor houses as an army camp. Infantry and artillery
The first to move in were the recruits to the newly formed 12th ‘Bristol’s Own’ Battalion of the Gloucestershire Regiment. It would also be the first home of other
locally-recruited units of infantry and artillery. During the Second World War, part of White City would be a camp once more, this time with brick-built huts. It was associated with another, larger camp nearby, close to Colliter’s Brook. Now, though, White City would not be home to British soldiers, but to Italians and, after D-Day, Germans. Huge numbers of Italians were captured in the Western Desert early on in the war and many were dispersed to prison camps around the West Country. The Italians, often working as agricultural labourers, were generally liked, where Germans were not. Some local residents in South Bristol remember the White City inmates. Some tried to make a little money by making and selling simple wooden children’s toys and there were tensions among the locals between those who treated the Germans civilly and those who thought they should be shunned. The White City camp’s last little part in history was a remarkable incidence of civil disobedience in 1946. Britain was acutely short of housing after the War. Bristol’s problems were even worse because of German bombing. But the one thing Britain didn’t lack was military installations, which were now empty. Bristol, with its former army camps, prisoner of war camps, American camps, searchlight and gun sites, was very well endowed. In August 1946 people took the law into their own hands by squatting on these sites across the country.
30 shipshape
SS.14-WhiteCity_3je.indd 4
24/05/2013 11:13
white city
Squatters’ rights
The very first place to be squatted in Bristol – and one of the first in Britain – was White City. This happened with the encouragement of Alderman Henry Hennessy, a senior Labour member on the council, who was going against his own party’s policy. People moved in on 12 August even though they had been warned by the police that they were trespassing. The following day, Tuesday 13 August, seven disused military sites in Bristol were taken over by several hundred people, including camps at Hanham, Speedwell, Brislington and the former American camp at Shirehampton. That evening, Alderman Hennessy addressed the White City squatters. “We have captured our objectives,” said Hennessy, promising to do all in his power to persuade the council to make them as comfortable as possible. He described the squatters’ action as “invasion – but with no hostility” and “requisitioning by the people”. “Sit tight. Carry on. Take no notice of rumours. The police cannot touch you. They cannot drive you out of your huts unless they are
given sanction by the Ministry of Works in London, and I am satisfied the Minister will not give the police the power to enter this estate and turn people out.” In due course, the government caved in and authorised local authorities to provide services and collect rents from the squatters. White City and every other squatted camp was treated as council housing. Within a few years, White City and most of the other camps emptied as people were moved into newly built council houses and prefabs. The area fell to disuse and was landscaped some years ago. Pleasant parkland
The White City is now pleasant riverside parkland with cycle/footpaths and allotments. The area where the POW camp used to be is now modern housing, right next to Brunel Way. But perhaps late at night, when it’s very quiet, you might still hear the ghosts of laughter, or the choir of a thousand Bristolians, the chatter of people visiting the greatest show Bristol had ever seen, not knowing that their world was about to disappear for ever.
Bristol’s Own
12th Battalion, the Gloucestershire Regiment Large numbers of young men volunteered for the army in the first weeks of World War One, thinking it would be a splendid adventure and desperate to see some action before it all ended. All over Britain, volunteers sought permission to form all-local units, which would be part of their county regiments. These ‘pals’ battalions’ comprised young men who were friends, neighbours and workmates. The all-Bristolian unit would be the 12th (Service) Battalion of the Gloucesters, the local regiment. ‘Bristol’s Own’, the local press called it. Recruiters could afford to be choosy early in the war. The 12th was looking for “mercantile and professional young men of the city of Bristol and neighbourhood” – and it got them. A Battalion of 1,000 men had been planned, but its strength was increased to 1,350 in response to demand.
Still in their civilian clothes, they moved to White City, trained at Ashton Court and on the Downs, and dug trenches on Brandon Hill. Photos of the men at White City show they were having the time of their lives. They were out of their boring clerical jobs and once they got their uniforms they were popular with the girls. ‘Khaki fever’ was the term the older folks used for the way girls threw themselves at men in uniform. They were true local heroes. Huge numbers turned out to see them parade in Bristol and to wish them well when they marched off for further training in the North of England before going to France. On its very first day in action, at the Somme, the 12th lost a third of its
officers and men, killed or wounded. And so it would go on. The 12th was later at Passchendaele, and countless smaller actions. It was disbanded in October 1918, just before the war ended, and its surviving members sent to strengthen other units. In all, around 60,000 Bristolians served in the First World War, though few with as much enthusiasm as the early volunteers for ‘Bristol’s Own’. Of that 60,000, over 4,000 never came home.
31 shipshape
SS.14-WhiteCity_3je.indd 5
24/05/2013 11:13
w & sh e r F For one day every year the region’s cyclists can enjoy car-free rides around the city as part of Bristol’s Biggest Bike Ride. In honour of the festival, which celebrates its 20th anniversary this year, we invite four experts to choose their favourite trafficfree (or traffic-light) routes. Leave your car keys down the back of the sofa and enjoy these picturesque runs, pleasant strolls, leisurely cycles and more
1. Blaise Castle figure-of-eight Tamsin Chick, women’s team manager at Westbury Harriers running club, celebrates the beauty of the Blaise Castle Estate more
westburyharriers.co.uk
Potters Point
Hazel Brook Drive
don't miss Bristol Cycle Festival
Kings Weston Down
Westbury Harriers have a training base at Blaise Castle Estate – we train from there in the summer months. There are miles and miles of wonderful runs, all off-road, that take in the estate, neighbouring golf courses and nearby Kings Weston House. There are so many paths on the estate, you can run for miles without encountering a road or a car. This route is about five miles long and takes you down woodland trails, past historical buildings and up to an Iron Age fort. If you’re looking for something shorter, just do the first loop. Main Drive
Potters Point
Hazel Brook Drive
Goram's Chair Rhododendron Walk
Tarn Lake
Sat 13-Sun 21 July
Bristol’s Biggest Bike Ride
Kings Weston Drive
Blaise Castle
Castle Hill Drive
Sunday 16 June Turn to page 25 for details 32 shipshape
ss14_pp32-33_cycleroutes_4je.indd 2
24/05/2013 14:50
wild
ride, walk, run
2. The Festival Way
Queen Square, Bristol ss Great Britain
A369
Bedminster
Nailsea Long Ashton Golf Club
Long Ashton
Cook's Wood A370
Gill Bridge and her team at TravelWest take us on a gentle, eight-mile ride along Sustrans’ cycle path more
travelwest.info
3. The Floating Harbour Philip Adkins of LeSportif. cc guides us around Bristol’s beautiful harbour more
lesportif.cc
Hotwells Road
A really great, relatively short route is along the newly opened section of the excellent Festival Way Connect2 route joining central Bristol to Nailsea. Starting at Queen Square, this mostly off-road route passes through the beautiful Ashton Court Estate and Long Ashton to Millennium Park, Nailsea parallel to the A370 via the pretty villages of Flax Bourton and Long Ashton. It is well signposted, and is a great shared path for walkers too. If you enjoy a bit of off-road and mountain biking, The Festival Way is a very pleasant and direct route link to Ashton Court from Bristol City Centre.
The Floating Harbour is at the heart of Bristol and there’s no better place to start a ride than at Mud Dock Café and Cycleworks – there’s plenty of parking if you’re driving and refreshments before and after your ride. Being a seafaring city of world renown, the sites worth seeing in Bristol cluster around the waterfront. This route follows the water from Redcliffe as far as the lock at Cumberland Basin. You’ll pass Brunel’s ss Great Britain, a statue of Samuel Plimsoll (line, not shoes) and Underfall Yard. Not only is this a relaxing sightseeing tour, the route is also well supplied by waterfront pubs!
4. The Pill Path Ed Norton from Life Cycle UK recommends an afternoon exploring this route towards Pill Life Cycle runs regular supported cycle rides on routes across Bristol. The Pill Path, which runs down Avon Gorge and links Bristol with Pill Harbour, via Leigh Woods, is one of our favourites. Easily accessible from the middle of town, the path offers a safe, easy and predominantly flat ride suitable for all. Spot herons at Pill Harbour, peregrine falcons in Bristol – and an unusual view of Bristol’s most famous landmark, when the path goes directly underneath Clifton Suspension Bridge!
Watershed
SS Great Britain
more
lifecycleuk.org.uk
Queens Square
Create Centre
Portway
Pill
Redcliffe
Coronation
Road
Cumb
erland
Road
Queens Square
Hotwell Road
Clifton Down and Durdham Downs
Floating Harbour
ss Great Britain
Abbots Leigh Redcliffe Clifton Suspension Bridge
Create Centre
City Centre, Bristol
Ashton Court
33 shipshape
ss14_pp32-33_cycleroutes_4je.indd 3
24/05/2013 14:50
p34.indd 1
24/05/2013 11:16
Q&A
feature
Emily Nutbourne We speak to the manager of the newly refurbished Barley Mow about life at the helm of Bristol Beer Factory’s “flagship pub” Hello Emily. Congratulations on the refurb. How’s business?
The refurb has really lifted the feel of the pub – I had a lot of fun going to car boot sales finding bits and pieces for the décor! Business is booming; the pub has built a really good reputation and it’s been great getting all the extra keg and cask lines in. It’s lovely to see people enjoying the balance between craft beer and the traditional pub environment. You’re described as Bristol Beer Factory’s “flagship pub”. What does that mean?
We’re here to showcase Bristol Beer Factory’s beers, but we also very much want to promote the best of craft beer breweries from the UK and further afield. Beer is enjoying a huge revival and we want to show the innovative brews that are now being produced. With the current expansion of the Bristol Beer Factory brewery, The Barley Mow is a ready-made platform to release the new brews to the Bristol market. Part of being their flagship is about their mission to inform people about beer and brewing, so we will be having monthly events and beer education nights.
Has the local community responded well to your arrival?
The community has been really supportive. It’s been lovely meeting a new group of regulars and making new friends – it’s made the move to Bristol a really enjoyable experience on a personal level. People seem to be really enjoying the larger offer of products and we’ve had lots of positive feedback. Why will The Barley Mow succeed where so many others have failed?
The pub is a really important part of a great community and I think as long as you create a lovely place, with top-quality produce and service, people will want to come. All of my favourite pubs are going from strength to strength, and if a pub’s good it won’t fail. What’s your secret to coping with the late nights?
They say a drunk man’s words are a sober man’s thoughts. What’s one of the most memorable things you’ve heard when working behind the bar?
I’d say a drunk man’s words are almost always nonsense, and that a sober man’s thoughts are his own! Everybody should pay a visit to The Barley Mow because…
It offers a fantastic range of British and world beers, and we will always have something new and exciting to try. But it’s not only about beer – there is something for everyone here. We have a great selection of wines and spirits and a great chef who’s developing a lovely fresh and interesting menu using the best ingredients. We think we’ve struck the balance of it being a comfortable pub with a modern feel, which is at the heart of its community – but with a really strong offering that attracts people from further afield. It’s a very friendly place and we’d love to see you all soon!
Late nights for me are the same as busy days for everyone else. The only difference is that I have busy days too! I still get time to go out for a beer after work if I fancy it, and the upside more The Barley Mow, 39 Barton is having more daytimes free to enjoy Road, Bristol BS2 0LF, 0117 930 4709, barleymowbristol.com the sunshine. Also, coffee helps… 35 shipshape
SS.14-BarleyMow.Q&A_3je.indd 3
24/05/2013 10:42
sketch artist feature
Celebrating the work of Bristol-born illustrator Samuel Loxton, whose ink drawings give us a fascinating insight into the changing complexion of our city Words Eugene Byrne
Samuel Loxton (1857-1922) was the middle of three brothers born to engineer and surveyor Charles Byron Loxton and his wife Rosina, in Clifton. Samuel followed in his father’s footsteps, becoming an architectural draughtsman and surveyor, and spent at least some of his career in business with his older brother Charles. In middle age, he started to work more and more as an illustrator and in the years before the First World War he produced thousands of ink drawings, many of them published in the Bristol Observer and Bristol Evening News. This was a golden age of newspapers; thanks to compulsory elementary education almost the entire population of Britain was literate, and newspaper and magazine editors knew there was a huge demand for publications with pictures in. The problem was that reproducing photographs in print was time-consuming and expensive; drawings were more straightforward. In the early 1900s the Evening News ran a series of articles written by Frederick Stone and illustrated by Loxton on the ways in which Bristol had changed in recent decades. These were brought together in Bristol as it was and as it is, published in 1909. The Loxton illustrations in this article are all taken from it.
1
36 shipshape
SS.14-Loxton_3je.indd 2
24/05/2013 10:52
samuel loxton
2
3
1 The Dutch House, from an old sketch The Dutch House was one of Bristol’s best-loved landmarks. It was built at the corner of Wine Street and High Street in the late 1600s as part of the massive building boom that took place in the area when the castle was demolished. At various times it was split into shops, offices and housing. It was seriously damaged by German bombing in 1940 and was demolished, much to the alarm of many Bristolians who claimed it could have been saved. There are periodic calls for it to be rebuilt as the present site, with the derelict Norwich Union and Bank of England buildings, leaves a lot to be desired. 2 Bristol Bridge from an undated print Loxton copied a print that was probably made sometime in the early 19th century. The view is from Welsh Back, with the spire of St Nicholas Church in the background to the right. In the distance is the tower of St Peter’s Church, which remains nowadays only as a ruin that was gutted by fire in the Blitz. The arches of the bridge, built in the late 1800s, can still be seen today. 3 Offices of the Daily Press, Evening News and Bristol Observer, 1908 The building is no longer there, having been replaced by a more modern office block. The Western Daily Press was Bristol’s first daily newspaper, and one of the first dailies in the country. It was founded by Scottish businessman Peter Stewart Macliver and Newcastle journalist Water Reid in 1858. Bristol’s local newspaper scene was very lively by Loxton’s time with several daily and weekly titles competing for readers.
37 shipshape
SS.14-Loxton_3je.indd 3
24/05/2013 10:52
samuel loxton
4 The Fish Market, Baldwin Street Nowadays it’s the Old Fish Market pub. The building is a reminder of the complex of markets that used to be around St Nicholas in the days before chain stores, supermarkets... and fridges and freezers.
4
5 The Castle Moat, viewed from Queen Street, 1908 Bristol Castle had been demolished by the end of the 17th century, but part of the old moat remained until well into the 20th. Much of this area was destroyed in the Blitz and comprehensively redeveloped after the war, with most of the remaining moat being covered. 6 The Froom Near Lewin’s Mead, 1825 Loxton’s copy of a watercolour drawing made by Hugh O’Neil in the 1820s: the viewpoint is close to where the new Bridewell police station is nowadays and shows the River Frome before it was covered over. While it looks all quaint, the area was grotesquely overcrowded and the river was an open sewer. The smell in hot weather would cause ladies to faint. 7 Former Toll House, Ashton Gate, 1907 Still to be seen at the corner of Coronation Road and North Street, Bedminster, this was built in the 1820 to collect tolls for the upkeep of the roads.
7
5
6
38 shipshape
SS.14-Loxton_3je.indd 4
24/05/2013 10:52
samuel loxton
8
8 A Bird’s Eye View of Central Bristol Loxton drew this from the roof of the Co-Operative Wholesale Society Building, long since demolished. By this time, part of the City Docks in the Centre had already been covered over to help the traffic, particularly Bristol’s newfangled electric trams, get around more easily. Two sculptures were rescued from the CoOp building and were later incorporated into the fountain near Broad Quay House. 9 The Harbour Near St Philip’s Bridge, about 1904 There’s hardly anything recognisable as Bristol in this picture, aside from the tower of Temple Church, but this was Bristol’s grimy, smelly industrial backyard. The view is from close to the Temple Meads goods yards, and the industries in the neighbourhood belching out smoke included a glassworks, leadworks, two power stations, sugar mills and a distillery. Some of the barges and lighters pictured would have been supplying all these places with coal.
9 39 shipshape
SS.14-Loxton_3je.indd 5
24/05/2013 10:52
Eating & drinking A guide to our favourite restaurants, cafes, bars and pubs
arnolfini
The barley mow
bordeaux Quay
Stylish, buzzing eatery situated on the ground floor of this leading centre for contemporary arts. Arnolfini Café Bar serves up a mediterranean menu: find daily specials alongside boards of cheese and charcuterie and pizzette, as well as delicious cakes and ice creams – available to eat in or take home. To drink, find great-value wines from across Europe, made by small independent producers, beers and ciders.
With eight hand-pulls and 10 keg lines, the Barley Mow offers the best range of craft and world beers in Bristol. The newly refurbished interior and courtyard seating make for a comfortable and cosy pub both indoors and out, with a style that perfectly blends traditional with modern. Only five minutes’ walk from Temple Meads station and Old Market, the Barley Mow’s location away from the hubbub of the centre makes it a pub that’s definitely worth seeking out. The menu is designed to complement the beers and to reflect the seasons, and there are great bar snacks including homemade pork scratchings.
This sprawling Harbourside destination serves up great-tasting dishes while keeping one eye on sustainable food practices, responsible energy use and zero waste principles. The staple ingredients on the menus are sourced from the West Country in an effort to minimise food miles. It’s the first eco-restaurant to achieve a gold rating under the Soil Association’s sustainable catering scheme and is winner of the Bristol Hospitality Restaurant of the Year Award.
Bright, buzzing café-bar
Dishes: Eggs on sourdough toast (£4); garlic, parsley and Parmesan pizzette (£4); Italian charcuterie, artisan cheeses, salads, olives (£17.50) Times: from 10am daily Book: cafebar@arnolfini.org.uk
16 Narrow Quay, BS1 4QA 0117 917 2305
Bristol Beer Factory’s flagship pub
Dishes: Meat platter – chorizo, ham, runny Scotch egg, chicken liver pate (£8/£14); chicken stuffed with feta, asparagus and avocado salad (£8) Times: Mon-Thu 12-11pm, Fri-Sat 1211.30pm, Sun 12-10pm; food served: Mon-Sat 12-3pm and 5-9pm, Sun roasts from 12pm Book: hello@barleymow.com 39 Barton Road, St Philips, BS2 0LF 0117 930 4709
Ethical restaurant, brasserie and deli
Dishes: Moules marinieres (£6.50); spring vegetable, mint and mascarpone risotto (£10.50); strawberry and rhubarb ‘Eton mess’ (£5) Times: restaurant: Sat 6-10pm, Sun 12-3pm; brasserie: MonSat 9-11.30am, 12-10.30pm, Sun 9-11.30am, 12-9pm; deli: Mon-Sat 9am-6pm, Sun 9am-4pm Book: brasserie@bordeaux-quay.co.uk, restaurant@bordeaux-quay.co.uk
V Shed, Canons Way BS1 5UH 0117 943 1200
barleymowbristol.com arnolfini.org.uk
facebook.com/ barleymowbristol
bordeaux-quay.co.uk
40 shipshape
ss14_eating_2je.indd 2
24/05/2013 14:56
e at i n g & d r i n k i n g
glassboat
Sophisticated bistro classics
giuseppe’s No.1 Harbourside ristorante & pizzeria Multifaceted dockside venue Authentic Italian food
Located on the floating harbour in the heart of Bristol, Glassboat affords spectacular views of the city: bridges, churches and swans on the water. Whatever the celebration, small or large, with work or with loved ones, Glassboat remains the considered waterside restaurant of choice for Bristolians. Glassboat uses only the best local suppliers and cooks classic dishes simply. Groups of up to 40 can be accommodated on the lower deck, the ideal private space for your event. Dishes: Lamb sweetbreads, creamed morels, smoked bacon (£8.50); beef Wellington, celeriac, chervil root, chanterelles (£22.50); peanut chiboust, salted caramel, chocolate ice cream, brittle (£6.50) Times: lunch: Tue-Fri 12-2.30pm; dinner: Mon-Sat 5.30-10pm; Sunday lunch: 12-4pm. Book: restaurant@glassboat.co.uk Offer: two-course lunch for £10
This family-run business in the heart of Bristol has been serving up delicious, traditional Italian dishes for over 25 years. Owner Giuseppe came to Bristol determined to serve up authentic Italian cooking in a traditional setting at an affordable price, offering customers a true experience of Italian hospitality. He’s been true to his word and the cosy restaurant has now become a firm favourite for business lunches, family get-togethers and romantic dinner dates alike. Head here to sample some of the best Italian cuisine the city has to offer. Dishes: Fresh mussels cooked in spicy tomato sauce (£6.25); fillet of pork cooked in cream and Dolcelatte cheese sauce (£14.65); salmon al forno (£15.95). Times: Mon-Tue 12-2.30pm and 5.30-11pm, Wed-Sat 12-11pm, Sun 3pm-late Book: 0117 926 4869
Rather wonderful restaurant, bar, music venue, cake shop and home to the brilliant Harbourside market. The restaurant produces a short and elegant, weekly changing menu that showcases the best in regional produce, including delicious vegetarian dishes. The bar serves a wide range of brewed-in-Bristol craft beers, Somerset ciders, specialist spirits and a European wine list featuring some great English whites from just down the road. If live music is your thing, catch the best of Bristol’s musical talent on the little stage on Wednesday to Saturday nights – visit no1harbourside.co.uk/ music/ for listings Dishes: Chef’s salad (£6.50); Cornish mussels served with black pepper fries (£6); Silverside of Herefordshire beef with horseradish cream (£11) Times: Mon-Thu 10am-12am, FriSat 10am-1am, Sun 10am-11.30pm; lunch: 12-3pm, dinner: 5-9pm (weekends: food served all day). Book: ahoy@no1harbourside.co.uk
Welsh Back, BS1 4SB 0117 929 0704
59 Baldwin Street, BS1 1QZ 0117 926 4869
1 Canons Road, BS1 5UH 0117 929 1100
glassboat.co.uk
giuseppesitalian restaurant.co.uk
no1harbourside.co.uk
41 shipshape
ss14_eating_2je.indd 3
24/05/2013 12:00
p44.indd 1
24/05/2013 11:16
e at i n g & d r i n k i n g
lido restaurant, spa & pool
lockside
The Lido is a veritable oasis tucked within a courtyard of Georgian terraces in the back streets of Clifton. It is a unique location where chef Freddy Bird presides over two floors of poolside dining. Feast on wood-roasted scallops, lamb or venison in the first-floor restaurant or enjoy the outdoor pool and an opportunity to soak up some sun on the terrace. The ground-floor bar spills out on to the poolside in suitable weather. Open for breakfast and afternoon tea from 2.30-5.30pm.
Lovely, laid-back café on the edge of Cumberland Basin offering a range of tasty breakfasts (served all day), brunch and lunchtime treats. Formerly known as the Venturers’ Rest and Popeye’s Diner (not to mention acting as the location for Sid’s Café in Only Fools and Horses), Lockside is bright and airy, boasting fantastic views of the surrounding docks. In the warmer months customers can make the most of the alfresco seating. Lockside is also available for private hire and can cater for up to 75 people. Celebrations can be tailored to meet your requirements.
Laid-back waterside café
Mediterranean menu
European-inspired dishes
Dishes: Kale, buffalo mozzarella, gordal olive dressing (£7); woodroast chicken, prawns, romesco, fried potatoes (£17.50); chocolate and stout ice cream (£5.50) Times: restaurant: 12-3pm and 6-10pm, closed Sun evening; spa: 7am-10pm; poolside bar: Mon-Sat from 8am, Sun from 9am Book: spa@lidobristol.com
Mud dock Café & cycleworks
Dishes: Early bird breakfast with tea and toast (£5.95); poached egg with bubble and squeak and crispy pancetta (£8.95); warm salad of pan-fried calamari and chorizo & sweet chilli sauce (£9.50); blueberry cheesecake (£3.75) Times: Mon-Fri 7am-4pm, Sat 8am4pm, Sun 9am-4pm Book: 0117 925 5800
A hip hang-out for the city’s cyclists since 1994, Mud Dock Café has more than its million-dollar views and rustic decor to thank for its legions of fans. Freshly prepared meals with a Mediterranean twist keep diners sated from sun-up to sundown: favourites include the BIG breakfast to start, mushroom and baby spinach gnocchi with Stilton for lunch and the Mud Dock burger (made with locallysourced beef) for dinner. Head downstairs to the Cycleworks to find a range of bikes, secure bike shed, servicing and repairs, workshops, apparel and more. Dishes: Green shell mussels in a coconut chilli and fennel sauce (£5.95); barley risotto, roasted squash, sage and almond (£12.95); zesty orange bread and butter pudding (£4.65) Times: Café: Sun-Mon 10am-5pm, Tue-Thu 10am-10pm, Fri 10am-11pm, Sat 9am-11pm; Cycleworks: Mon-Fri 8.30am-6pm, Sat 9am-6pm Book: mail@mud-dock.co.uk
Oakfield Place, BS8 2BJ 0117 933 9530
No 1 Brunel Lock Road, BS1 6XS 0117 925 5800
40 The Grove, BS1 4RB 0117 934 9734
lidobristol.com
lockside.net
mud-dock.com
43 shipshape
ss14_eating_2je.indd 5
24/05/2013 12:00
e at i n g & d r i n k i n g
mud dock deli Eat in or take away
myristica
Fine Indian dining
shakespeare tavern
Traditional Harbourside pub
Mud Dock Café and Cycleworks’ sister establishment launched last summer, taking up residence in a beautiful 19th-century stone building just behind M Shed. The Deli’s all-day menu is packed with scrumptious delights to eat in or take away for breakfast, lunch and supper, including freshly-baked cakes, pies, scotch eggs, pizza, fish and chips, sandwiches and wraps. Full brunches are served at weekends. Customers on the move can also find a deli on the ground floor selling a variety of produce. Mud Dock Deli is also the perfect venue for private parties of up to 60. Head to the Deli on the first Thursday of the month to enjoy a beer, a pizza and two classic cycling films for £10 – online booking is now available.
Gazing serenely over Welsh Back, Myristica is one of the highlights of the harbour’s impressive dining landscape. The menu features a range of beautifully crafted dishes from across the Indian subcontinent. Kick off with baby squid deep-fried and tossed with bell peppers, chilli flakes and honey, and move on to pista murgh (breast of chicken in a mild cream sauce with ground pistachios and saffron). Then round things off with a luxuriant chocolate samosa dessert and ice cream. Dishes: Rabbit varuval (£6.95); achari venison (£12.95); okra stir fry (£4.95); chocolate samosas (£3.45) Times: lunch: Mon-Fri 12-2pm; dinner: Mon-Sat 5.30-11.30pm, Sun 5.30-10.30pm (last orders at 10pm) Book: myristica.co.uk
Dishes: Breakfast butty; fish and chips; freshly baked cakes Times: Mon-Fri 8am-6pm, Sat 9am-6pm, Sun 9am-5pm. Book: deli@mud-dock.co.uk Cumberland Road, BS1 6DS 0117 929 2141
51 Welsh Back, BS1 4AN 0117 927 2277
mud-dock.com
myristica.co.uk
This beloved old harbour boozer (and longest-serving ale house in Bristol) serves up an appetising mix of traditional dishes and sharing platters. Great deals include a sandwich, side and drink for £5.99, burger and drink for £7.49 and ‘share the love’ – a sharing platter plus a bottle of wine for £11.99. Behind the bar, choose from seven cask ales (including Golden Hen and Shakespeare), draught cider and lager and more than 15 types of wine. Dishes: Cheesy garlic ciabatta (£2.99); hunter’s chicken £5.99); butternut squash and sage cannelloni (£5.49); Sunday roast (£8.49); jam roly poly (£3.79) Times: Mon-Thu 11am-11pm, FriSat 11am-12am, Sun 11am-11pm Book: facebook.com/ theshakespearetavern, @shakespearetav Don’t miss: On 20 July the pub will be hosting a performance as part of Bristol Shakespeare Festival
68 Prince Street, BS1 4QD 0117 929 7695
44 shipshape
ss14_eating_2je.indd 6
24/05/2013 12:00
e at i n g & d r i n k i n g
spyglass
tobacco factory
Watershed CAFé/bar
A popular social hub in the heart of Southville. The solid, industrial interior of the large, contemporary Café Bar reflects the building’s history and, together with the music and lighting, ongoing art exhibitions and its young friendly staff, it has a great, welcoming atmosphere. The open kitchen serves healthy British/Mediterranean-inspired food with evening and weekend specials updated to reflect the seasons. There are two outdoor areas – the covered terrace and the open air yard – and various events take place throughout the year, including Upfest and Factoberfest.
Open every day from early in the morning to late at night, Watershed Café/Bar offers breakfast, lunch and evening meals all following a simple policy: stay fresh, local and seasonal. The ‘plot to plate’ policy means all ingredients are sourced from local suppliers, so you can eat a healthy, balanced menu while supporting the local economy. The bar stocks local favourites like Cotswold Lager and Cider, Arbor Ales and Bath Ales alongside a range of bottled drinks (which can be taken into the cinema), spirits, wines and hot and cold drinks. Free Wi-Fi is available to use throughout the Café/Bar.
Menu highlights: Full English breakfast (£6); goat’s cheese salad with honey-roasted vegetables (£6.80); marinated beef and mixed pepper skewers (£9.80). Times: Mon-Thu 12-11pm, Fri-Sat 12pm-12am, Sun 10am-11pm Book: 0117 902 0060
Menu highlights: Battered whitebait (£5); African beef ribs (£5.50); Moroccan spiced lamb burger (£10.95); Watershed fish and chips (£10.95); homemade sorbet £3.50). Times: Mon 10am-11pm, Tue-Fri 9.30am-11pm, Sat 10am-11pm, Sun 10am-10.30pm Book: cafebar@watershed.co.uk
Welsh Back, BS1 4SB 0117 927 7050
Raleigh Road, BS3 1TF 0117 902 0060
1 Canons Road, BS1 5TX 0117 927 5101
spyglassbristol.co.uk
tobaccofactory.com
watershed.co.uk
Barbecue boat
Contemporary café-bar
Spyglass, Bristol’s favourite waterside BBQ & Grill, offers delicious, simple, carefully sourced food at great value. It’s a fantastic central party venue for all occasions. Using trusted local suppliers, burgers and hot dogs are made to Spyglass’s own recipes and all ice cream is made from scratch on the premises. Children can choose from a special Pirates’ Club Menu for only £5. You can also find jugs of sangria alongside local ale, cider and great-quality wine at low prices. Dishes: Sweetcorn fritters, hot dogs, burgers, steaks, whole grilled fish and Spyglass’s famous homemade ice cream. Times: Mon-Sat 12pm-10.30pm, Sun 12pm-6pm. Book: Spyglass has a non-reservation policy for groups of fewer than eight. To book a table for eight or more, email groups@spyglassbristol.co.uk
Social space serving seasonal food
45 shipshape
ss14_eating_2je.indd 7
24/05/2013 12:04
my favourite things
Craft beers Chris Kay, Head Brewer at the wonderful Bristol Beer Factory, chooses his five favourite summer tipples 1 Arbor Ales Yakima Valley ABV 7%
Our good friends at Arbor have produced an epic beer: sweet, citrus notes and tropical flavours of passion fruit. Get down to The Three Tuns (78 St George’s Road, BS1 5UR) and give it a try. 2 Wild Beer Company Modus Operandi ABV 7% Brett and Andrew are making really interesting beers. Modus is made with wild yeast and oak-aged. Its complex aroma is enticing and continues on the palate with citrus tanginess and woody tannins. Buy from Lower Westcombe Farm shop and pick up some fantastic Westcombe Cheddar as well (Evercreech, Somerset BA4 6ER). 3 Bristol Beer Factory Independence ABV 4.6% A brewery favourite, an American Pale Ale and SIBA SW champion in 2013. Great citrus and spicy aroma from Citra and Amarillo hops that are continuously added through the boil. Available in cask and bottle. Try it at the Barley Mow (Barton Road, BS2 0LF) – a gem of a pub with the best range of beer in Bristol! 4 Moor Beer Company Revival ABV 3.8% Justin and his team have created a modern classic: spicy, grapefruity, zesty and refreshing. I can’t think of a better low-ABV beer. Always available at the Queens Arms in Corton Denham (Somerset, DT9 4LR) – a great country pub. 5 Bristol Beer Factory Southville Hop ABV 6.5% Our take on an American IPA – massive hop aromas of tropical fruit and pine with a substantial malt body to balance the bitterness. Always available in bottle, it was the national SIBA champion beer in 2012, and occasionally you’ll find it on cask. A great beer to enjoy in the sun on the Grain Barge (Mardyke Wharf, BS8 4RU)
1
2
4
3 5
46 shipshape
SS.14-5things_je.indd 1
24/05/2013 10:40
wapping wharf
car park Cheap City Parking Monday to Friday Up to 1 hour
Saturday 80p
1-2 hours
£1.50
2-4 hours
£3.80
Over 4 hours
£7
Week
£28
Month
£85
Any period
£2.50
Sunday & Bank Holidays Any period
£1.50
Special corporate rates available for 5 cars or more. Monthly season ticket enquiries: 0207 563 3000
To all our customers, Please note that the car park will remain open and fully operational for at least the next two years whilst we build phase one of the Wapping Wharf Development. We will keep you informed of progress.
sat nav: bs1 4rw www.wappingwharf.co.uk/cheapparking
p47.indd 1
24/05/2013 11:17
p48.indd 1
24/05/2013 11:17