THING OF THE WEEK
POOL… There’s wealthy and then there is buy-your-next-door-neighbour’s-house-and-knock-it down-to-build-a-swimming-pool wealthy. That is what is happening in Hale where the owners of The Wood off Park Drive have acquired Le Petit Bois next door. The couple – who we won’t name – have commissioned Bridge Architects to come up with a rather lovely looking scheme that will see the site repurposed. The proposed pool building will feature a jacuzzi, while a garden office is also planned for some luxurious WFH action.
Richard Tice at UKREiiF. Credit: PNW
POUCH… There was an eerie silence in the sectors and markets tent – tucked away behind the Holiday Inn and removed from the main action of UKREiiF – as attendees waited for Reform UK deputy leader Richard Tice to arrive. As he did, thunder rolled outside and daggers of rain beat down on the canopy, forcing Nigel Farage’s right-hand man to raise his voice to make himself heard. One observer described it as pathetic fallacy.
The session, which saw Tice outline Reform’s emerging housing and regeneration policies, was not as full as one might have expected, given that his party is – at least at the time of writing – favourite to form the next government. There were more than a few spare seats, which seemed odd, but not as odd as the session host’s bizarre decision to not-so-surreptitiously switch out the pouch of powdered tobacco tucked under his lip for a new one mid-session.
Two party politics is back. Credit: PNW
POLL… A poll conducted at Place North’s Wednesday morning breakfast conference suggested that Labour’s name might not be mud to everyone or even most people. When asked who they would vote for if there were an election tomorrow, 61% of the audience voted for the incumbent party. Perhaps more surprisingly was the Conservatives commanding almost a third of the vote. Two party politics is clearly not as dead as we thought…
Rosie enjoying the sights. Credit: Phil Cooper
DOG… Having been left at home during MIPIM, Phil Cooper’s bulldog Rosie finally got to get her teeth stuck into a real estate exhibition this week. Hope Architects founder Cooper clearly could not take Rosie to Cannes but there was nothing stopping him bringing her along to UKREiiF. After a day on the fringes inspecting Leeds’ finest lamposts on the Tuesday, Rosie was spotted inside the cordon on Wednesday, drawing as many adoring looks as former Premier League footballer Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink and Tour de France winner Bradley Wiggins, who were there at the same time.
The centenary events kick off in October. Credit: Google Earth
CLOCK… Hats off to the Friends of Stanley Park, who have raised £50,000 towards a package of works including the renovation of the Cocker Memorial Clock Tower. With Blackpool Council weighing in with a hefty £500,000, improvements including restoring the clock to full working order will be carried out ahead of the park’ s centenary celebrations this October. The clock is named after Dr William Henry Cocker, the first mayor of Blackpool. Other works include the refurbishment of the fountain in the Italian gardens.
