This is Tomorrow

Ashley's take on, well, everything

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      24 Jan 2011

      Tory cuts - Aldershot Lido threatened with closure

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      via homepage.ntlworld.com

      I guess this type of story is going to become all to familiar over the coming months as communities battle to stop councils from saving a few thousand quid by closing Lidos.

      For me Lidos like Aldershot have huge architectural significance (as well as being fantastic places to hang out) and closing them is a horrific type of cultural vandalism.

      It's no surprise that the last serious Lido cull was in the 80s and early 90s - wonder who was in power then?

      Anyhow here are few words from the local paper - the full story is here http://www.gethampshire.co.uk/news/s/2086196_lido_could_be_axed_as_part_of_co...

      ALDERSHOT’S historic lido could be closed as part of council plans to cut £1million of public services next year.

      The outdoor swimming complex is thought to be one of the services to the public that might face the axe in Aldershot and Farnborough as Rushmoor Borough Council struggles to cut £2.4m from its budget in April.

      The proposal is understood to be one of those being considered behind closed doors by councillors.

      The threat to the lido is not the first it has faced in its 80-year history. The pool, which was used as one of the venues for the 1948 Olympic Games, has consistently run at a loss, costing taxpayers almost a quarter of a million pounds last year after the dismal summer weather in 2009 meant visitor numbers were down.

      Although it costs less than a third of both the Aldershot indoor pools and Farnborough leisure centre, it is thought that the cost is considered high for a facility that is only open for a few months each year, despite being enjoyed by up to 50,000 visitors.

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      18 Oct 2010

      Can I live here please? Art Deco houses don't get much cooler than this

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      via retrotogo.com

      http://www.retrotogo.com/2010/10/for-sale-1930s-five-bedroom-art-deco-house-i...

      £1.4 million quid. Looks amazing. Is Ilkley nice?

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      1 Aug 2010

      The rebirth of Uxbridge Lido

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      ... which has now been re-christened Hillingdon Leisure Centre.

      This is one of the capital's most stunning Art Deco Lidos which is
      famed for its unique cross-shaped pool. It closed over a decade ago
      and was in a right state when I vistited it (sneaked through the
      fence) in 2003 (see pic)

      It reopened in Spring with the original lido supplemented by a well
      equipped leisure centre and an indoor pool and it seems that the
      council have done a pretty sound job.

      The main outdoor pool itself is not heated so I suspect will only be
      open for the summer, which is a shame. I wonder how much more it would
      cost to install a solar heater as they have at London Fields Lido.
      This would mean the pool could be opened all year round. Nevertheless
      I loved my swim at Uxbridge. The council have done a pretty good job
      of restoring the lido and kept most of its Art Deco trimmings, though
      they have lost the trademark blue stripe on the main buildings.

      The only other minor moan I have is that the outdoor showers are cold.
      Surely after 20 lengths at 17 degrees C you are entitled to a hot
      shower.

      Anyhow here's a few pics I snapped of the place, along with a few of
      how it used to be.

      (download)
      Click here to download:
      The_rebirth_of_Uxbridge_Lido.zip (5.94 MB)

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      27 Jul 2010

      Recreating a unique swim - a day in London's pools

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      via londonfieldslover.wordpress.com

      Eight years ago I wrote a piece for The Guardian http://www.guardian.co.uk/travel/2002/jul/06/london.unitedkingdom.guardiansat... which described how I had spent one glorious day swimming in every London Lido.

      At the time things looked pretty grim for London's swimmers. Councils had been consistently closing Lidos since the 80s and there were only ten open air pools left in London.

      Tomorrow I am going to recreate that swim - more for my own amusement than anything else - with a twist. The difference is that I am going to tackle four pools that weren't actually open in 2002.

      In the last decade things have changed. Under pressure from local groups, as well as organisations like the London Pools Campaign (which I think has now disbanded) councils and private groups have built new pools and reopened pools that had been in mothballs and earmarked for closure.

      The jewel of them all used to be the gorgeous London Fields Lido, re-opened after some vigorous campaigning in the mid 90s. Now it has some serious competition with the Victorian/Edwardian splendour of the revamped Marshall Street baths http://ashleynorris.posterous.com/marshall-street-baths-sohos-iconic-swimming-p and Kentish Town Baths http://ashleynorris.posterous.com/londons-other-great-indoor-swimming-pool-re-o .

      I'll be swimming in both of these pools along with my local Clissold pool, which was reopened in 2007. Along the way I'll be popping into Parliament Hill Lido, and I'll be finishing with a dip in the Serpentine.

      It is fantastic too to see Uxbridge Lido back in business and Tooting and Brockwell Park continuing to thrive.

      Back in 2002 there was a very real concern that London could become a third world country in terms of its swimming pools. Tomorrow I'll be celebrating the fact that, for the moment, things looks a lot rosier.

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