Weird Bristol

The Browns building at the top of Park Street was built in 1871 and its design was heavily inspired by the 14th century Doge’s Palace in Venice.
Initially built as a museum and library, the building was almost destroyed by an incendiary bomb during the Bristol Blitz but was rebuilt in 1950.

As the title suggests, bridges are a recurring theme in my upcoming murder/mystery novel SUSPENSION.
Templeway Bridge serves as the scene of a ghastly, violent crime committed in the dead of night.
SUSPENSION is available in ebook, paperback and hardback now!
Link in Profile.

You’re welcome. It’s truly special - both sad AND uplifting

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In order for the amphitheatre (and the Lloyds building) to be built, the height of the quay had to be lowered by several feet. The platform on which the crane-base stands is actually a section of the quay at its original height.

This structure on the Lloyds Amphitheatre was once the base for a steam crane. Built in 1891, the crane was demolished in 1969 and a weathervane was added to the top.

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When a pair of undertakers witness the gruesome, bloody murder of a man over webcam, the police rush to the home of the victim to discover:
No body.
No signs of violence.
No trace of the man or his wife.
A fiendish, deadly plot has been set in motion…
SUSPENSION is available NOW!
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When the people of Bristol heard that in the winter of 1947, children in Hannover, Germany had no shoes to wear to school, a citywide effort to collect thousands of pairs for them resulted in one of the first post-war reconciliation efforts and a 75+ year long friendship, which continues to this day

Thanks very much. Hope you enjoy it!

My murder/mystery novel SUSPENSION is available in paperback, hardback and ebook NOW.
A tense thriller set in pandemic era Bristol.
With a man murdered and a woman kidnapped, two friends must uncover a deadly secret which will plunge them both into mortal danger.

www.amazon.co.uk/Suspension-F...

Thank you very much. Really hope you enjoy it!

Sadly, they both dress like normal people!

SUSPENSION - my murder/mystery thriller set in pandemic-era Bristol is available in paperback, hardback and ebook NOW!
When two undertakers witness a savage murder on webcam, they are thrust into a web of secrets and danger which may cost them their lives…
www.amazon.co.uk/Suspension-F...

Seldom visited beneath Plimsoll Bridge, “Brunel’s Other Bridge” (or B.O.B.) was designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel in 1849 as a tubular bridge on a circular track which could swing open to allow boats to come into the harbour.

SUSPENSION is my fifth murder mystery novel featuring Bristol-based undertaker/sleuths Franklin Gallow and Rowan Kaplan - but you can join the series with this story as it serves as a reintroduction to my characters.
SUSPENSION is available in ebook, paperback and hardback from 27/02/26.

There has been a Bridge at this spot for as long as there has been a Bristol. In fact Bristol probably takes its name from “Brigstowe” meaning “place by the bridge”.

And the answer is:
The ruins of the New Gaol, Bristol.
Well done if you got this one right!

WHERE AM I WEDNESDAY

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The image (based on an illustration named “The Silent Highwayman” from an 1858 edition of Punch Magazine) remained on the ship until 2014 when wear and exposure to the elements meant that it was put on permanent display in M Shed.

Painted in the early 00s, Banksy’s figure of Death on the Thekla ship was at first painted over by the council (without the permission of the Thekla’s owners, who were understandably furious at the council.) Banksy returned soon after to repaint the mural.
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As the title suggests, bridges are a recurring theme in my upcoming murder/mystery novel SUSPENSION.
Templeway Bridge serves as the scene of a ghastly, violent crime committed in the dead of night.
SUSPENSION is available in ebook, paperback and hardback from 27/02/26.

In 1914, before enlisted soldiers from Bristol and its surrounding counties were sent overseas to fight in “The Great War”, Ashton Court was used as a training ground. This image depicts the field which is now part of the red deer enclosure.

Around north Bristol there are several old signposts pointing to a non-existent place named Charlton.
Charlton was a village on the outskirts of Bristol which was demolished in the late 1940s to make way for a runway and factories for the failed Brabazon aeroplane.

This structure at the top of Blackboy Hill was built in 1904 as a memorial drinking fountain to Reverend Urijah Thomas, the first minister of Redland Park Church.
Rev. Thomas (1839-1901) is remembered for his love of Bristol and for his support for workers, the poor and underprivileged of the city.

My murder/mystery thriller SUSPENSION will be available in paperback, hardback and ebook from 27/02/26.

March 2020. The world has been forced into a state of suspension - and a killer’s deranged plan is about to be set in motion…

All Lit Up @brunelsbridge.bsky.social

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At this time, Harford was a celebrated abolitionist (and friend of William Wilberforce), whereas Miles had made his huge fortune through the slave trade (and was still heavily invested in plantations which relied on slave labour).
Relations between the two men were presumably quite frosty…

This stone on the boundary between the estates of Blaise Castle and Kings Weston dates back to the 1830s.
It is engraved with “JSH” on the Blaise Castle side - the estate of John Scandrett Harford. The Kings Weston side reads “PJM” for the estate’s owner Philip John Miles.
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Why not recreate the delightful area around Bath Abbey?
Provide copious amounts of permanent outdoor seating and have areas for licensed buskers to perform. Turn the area into a fun, creative space where people just want to take a seat and hang out for a bit.

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However, the number of pedestrians who now use the Centre would turn this garden into a quagmire within hours (back in the 1970s “heyday” of the Centre, this area was basically a traffic island with very little footfall).
My plan is that we should steal an idea from our sister city of Bath.

My thoughts on what should be done with “The Centre”.
Every time the issue of how to beautify St. Augustine’s Parade comes up, there are many people asking for a return to the 1970s - grass and flowerbeds.
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