IMAGES TAKEN NEAR TO
Wimborne Road, BOURNEMOUTH, BH9 2AU

The facelift of the former Image bingo hall is nearing completion and the scaffolding is being dismantled, revealing the work that has gone on to reproduce its original art-deco look. The building will fairly soon start its new lease of life as a church and community centre.

This building was originally a cinema, but became the Moderne social club around 1970 and was later taken over by the Gala bingo hall chain. It closed in late February 2008. The small frontage belies the size of the premises, which can be realised by looking at the large grey section beyond, including into the very far right of the picture behind the red-brick gable in the foreground. The history of the cinema is told on the Winton Community website here http://www.wintonforum.co.uk/cinemas.html and here http://www.wintonforum.co.uk/modernememories.html

On Wimborne Road; opened as a cinema in 1935, converted to a bingo hall in 1963; currently boarded up. http://www.wintonforum.co.uk/cinemas.html

Balfour Road is a strange little road - it appears little more than a rear access alleyway between shops on the main Wimborne Road. But it in fact leads down to Moordown Conservative Club and has a few houses beyond. The sign is a nonstandard version of the standard Bournemouth one from around 2000, with the borough coat of arms at the left, but it does not have BOURNEMOUTH BOROUGH COUNCIL in smaller print at the top, which is usual. PRIVATE RD is, though, added at the bottom. This is photo no.25 of a series of 451 in my coronavirus lockdown walking project: See https://www.geograph.org.uk/article/My-2020-Coronavirus-Lockdown-walking-project for the complete set of photos.

Two kids on their skateboards skate home after their day at school has finished.

One of the densely packed, early 20th century roads containing mainly detached houses with no off-road parking, Brassey Road is seen here from its junction with the main shopping street, Wimborne Road. It is only the first hundred yards or so which falls within my 2km radius. The sign is of the design dating from about 2009 when the modern emblem was adopted as a working logo for the council, in place of the borough coat of arms. It is a double-sided sign rather than the usual low-level version on two legs. This is photo no.46 of a series of 453 in my coronavirus lockdown walking project: See https://www.geograph.org.uk/article/My-2020-Coronavirus-Lockdown-walking-project for the complete set of photos.

The laptop repair shop here has relocated. The 5a yellow bus is in the background and there's also a junction into Jameson Road.

These premises have been a car workshop for many years. In the last decade or so, the upstairs has been occupied by the Phoenix MMA boxing gym (which offers martial arts tuition too). The gym's entrance is the right-hand door and comprises a long slope which is recognisably an old car ramp, from the days when the garage took up both floors. The business name Westway is I believe related to the workshop that once accompanied the petrol station on the corner of West Way and Castle Lane (Image)

It was blowing a gale tonight and the Union Jack outside Moordown Conservative Club was flapping gaily - its shadow is being cast on the large wall opposite. The wall is the rear of the side, so to speak, of the Moordown Life Centre - see Image for the front of the building. See Image for a wider view including the flag itself.

Balfour Road is a narrow side-street, little more than an alley, off the main Wimborne Road alongside the Life Centre (see Image]), whose side wall we are viewing here. The Union Jack is outside the Moordown Conservative Club and, in tonight's very windy weather, it is creating a large, almost surreal shadow on the wall thanks to a nearby floodlight for the club's car park.