As many will be aware, the English Defence League will be undertaking a protest in Centenary Square this Saturday the 29th of October 2011. A simultaneous Peace Rally is taking place in Chamberlain Square with police cordons segregating the two groups. On Wednesday, the EDL’s protest area was altered to conform to safety requirements, as confirmed by the Birmingham Safety Advisory Group (incorporating West Midlands Police and the other emergency services). West Midlands Police have also issued a number of conditions upon the protest:
The protest shall take place in Centenary Square.
The duration of the protest will be no longer than 2 hours commencing no earlier than 1pm and ending no later than 3pm on 29 October.
A static protest will be taking place by supporters of the English Defence League, while a separate community event will also be held in the city simultaneously.
They continue,
The event, and any counter demonstration, will take place in Chamberlain Square.
The event will be no longer than three and a half hours commencing no earlier than 12.30pm and ending no later than 4pm, on 29 October.
As on previous occasions, police have no power to ban a static protest – in fact the right to protest peacefully is a sign of a healthy democracy and we have a positive duty to facilitate that right. Assistant chief constable Marcus Beale, who will lead the policing operation, said: “We have to balance the desires of those involved with the safety requirements for the event, and ultimately this has to take precedence.
“We want people to feel reassured and in response to community concerns, we will be staging a large-scale operation on the day to ensure that everyone who comes to the city centre, be it to take part in the protests, or to go about their day to day business, can do so in safety.
“West Midlands Police do not welcome this protest as we recognise that many people feel anxious about it being in the city so soon after the disturbances in August. Like them, we believe that our resources would be better placed in neighbourhoods tackling the crimes which matter most to local people.
“With that in mind, we urge people to go about their normal business and not allow the protest to affect them or undermine Birmingham’s reputation as a harmonious city with many different cultures living alongside each other in peace. The policing operation will strive to ensure it remains that way. Any criminal or public order offences will be robustly dealt with.”
If you are intending on visiting the city centre on Saturday, please bear these restrictions in mind and avoid the area entirely if at all possible. The last time the EDL were in town, acts of random violence and some vandalism occurred (although mostly undertaken by people purporting to be EDL supporters, other groups of people were also involved, possibly in retaliatory action.) No doubt police presence will be visible and high profile in order to curb any inflammatory actions.
A press release from this afternoon reports the following cordons are to be imposed upon the centre as a result of the protest:
[...] Access to Victoria Square will be restricted with police cordons in place around [Centenary] Square. Assistant Chief Constable Marcus Beale, who is leading the policing operation, said: “We understand that the policing operation may cause some inconvenience to members of the public who intend to visit attractions around Victoria Square on Saturday, however the cordons are unavoidable.
“We apologise for any inconvenience the cordons may cause, however we have to balance the desires of everyone involved, with the safety requirements for the event, and ultimately this has to take precedence.”
Under Section 14 of the Public Order Act, conditions have been placed on both events, and organisers have been informed.
ACC Beale added: “We want people to feel reassured and in response to community concerns, we will be staging a large-scale operation on the day to ensure that everyone who comes to the city centre, be it to take part in the protests, or to go about their day to day business, can do so in safety.
“[...] We urge people to go about their normal business and not allow the protest to affect them or undermine Birmingham’s reputation as a harmonious city with many different cultures living alongside each other in peace. The policing operation will strive to ensure it remains that way. Any criminal or public order offences will be robustly dealt with.”
Haroon Jahan (21), Shazad Ali (30) and Abdul Musavir (31)
Wednesday, October 5 2011:
18:50: West Midlands Police has dubbed the investigation into the deaths as Operation Pointer. Since the August updates, more people were arrested, eventually bringing the total to fourteen arrested (the most recent being a 21 year old Quinton man arrested on suspicion of murder, subsequently bailed pending further enquiries).
As of October the 5th, nine men have appeared at Birmingham Crown Court charged with murder and remanded in custody pending their trial. Four men remain on police bail having been arrested on suspicion of murder. Another 28 year old man appeared at Birmingham Magistrates on the 22nd of August having been charged with perverting the course of justice.
The police are urging anyone with more information about the incident to contact the Operation Pointer incident room via their central contact number, 0345 113 5000. Alternatively, independent charity Crimestoppers can be contacted anonymously on 0800 555 111.
Sunday, August 21 2011:
19:50: BBC News is reporting that a fifth man, Liam Young from Winson Green, has now been charged in connection with the killings.
Saturday, August 20 2011:
19:00: Two more people have been arrested: a 33 year old man, arrested at his home in Smethwick on Friday morning on suspicion of murder, has been released on bail; the ninth person is 28 year old Liam Young, arrested in Winson Green. Four people remain charged in connection with the murders; Ian Beckford, 30, from Quinton; Joshua Donald, 26, of Kelsall Croft, Ladywood; Adam King, 23, of no fixed address and a 17-year-old who cannot be named for legal reasons.
17:15: the open air funeral has finished and mourners are largely dispersed; traffic is still fairly heavy in the locality. Prayers were held for the three individuals; Sheikh Muhammed al Yaqoubi addressed the assembled crowds and Saqib Majid, the cousin of Ali and Musavir, read out a poignant tribute.
16:15: an open air funeral is currently taking place in Summerfield Park, Birmingham to commemorate the deaths of Jahan, Ali and Musavir. Prayers have been said and some 20,000 people from all faiths and communities have attended to show their support for the deceased and their families. Tariq Jahan has continued to urge the communities to remain united and at peace.
Motorists have been asked to park responsibly and respect that local residents may need to enter and leave their homes on the day. The area around Summerfield Park is residential and highly built-up; there is only limited parking available at Summerfield Park. There are bus services every 5 minutes along the Dudley Road (www.nxbus.co.uk or TravelineMidlands.co.uk for live timetables and route planners). There may be delays to travel on the routes near to Summerfield Park. Traffic restrictions have been in place between midday and 16:00; the area will remain congested until this evening.
Also, West Midlands Police earlier released an update on the number of arrests and charges filed as a result of last week’s disorder:
Arrests: 509
Charges: 141
So far we have results for 80 cases. Of these:
57 have been Remanded in Custody (71%);
6 have been convicted, sentenced and released (8%) and
17 have been bailed, most with conditions (21%).
Wednesday, August 17 2011: A fourth man has tonight been charged in connection with the deaths.
Monday, August 15 2011: West Midlands Police today announced the arrest of a SEVENTH individual in connection with the Winson Green deaths last week. A 30 year old man from Birmingham was detained on suspicion of murder shortly after 10am today (August 15). To date, thre men aged 17, 23 (Adam King of Kings Norton) and 26 (Joshua Donald of Ladywood) have been charged with murder and have appeared before Birmingham Crown Court. Three other people (three males aged 16, 27 and 32) have already been bailed pending further enquiries.
A third vehicle, a black Audi 3, was recovered late on Saturday night and according to West Midlands Police “is undergoing forensic examination by officers”. Their press release goes on to say,
DCI Anthony Tagg from Force CID said: “We are now confident that we have recovered all three vehicles which we believe were involved in the murder in Dudley Road in the early hours of Wednesday 10 August.” He added, “enquires are ongoing and we are still actively seeking a number of people in relation to the murder enquiry. We would appeal for anyone with information about the incident to contact us.”
A team of 70 detectives and 15 police staff are continuing to work on the investigation into the deaths of Shazad Ali, Abdul Musavir and Haroon Jahan in Winson Green.
Anyone with information should contact police on 0345 113 5000 or call Crimestoppers confidentially on 0800 555 111.
Also, a reminder to check out the Birmingham Riots 2011 tumblr maintained by Casey Rain. I’ve been reblogging images and updates including the ones he’s been amassing, his site’s been very excellent since Monday.
Carol Ann Duffy’s written a moving tribute to Tariq Johan. It’s entitled, simply, “Birmingham for Tariq Johan.”
After the evening prayers at the mosque,
came the looters in masks,
and you three stood,
beloved in your neighbourhood,
brave, bright, brothers,
to be who you were –
a hafiz is one who has memorised
the entire Koran;
a devout man –
then the man in the speeding car
who purposefully mounted the kerb …
I think we all should kneel
on that English street,
where he widowed your pregnant wife, Shazad,
tossed your soul to the air, Abdul,
and brought your father, Haroon, to his knees,
his face masked in only your blood
on the rolling news
where nobody’s children riot and burn.
Paul Lewis has also had a remarkable week journeying around England; during his travels he encountered the Birmingham riots and has recounted what he experienced on the Guardian web site.
Image via The Guardian
Friday
17:27: Wow – an astounding 6,986% increase in visitors to About Brum since Monday! Thank you very much for choosing to use my humble web site to keep up to date on events in Birmingham. I make no money from this site; I only hope you’ve found what I’ve posted so far informative and useful. Stay tuned or subscribe to About Brum’s RSS feed and Twitter account for further updates as they come down the wires.
17:13: An inquest into the Winson Green hit-and-run deaths was opened and adjourned today. Given the ‘exceptional circumstances’ surrounding the case, the coroner has announced that he will be releasing the bodies to the parents’ relatives next week. The car suspected to be involved in the incident was found burnt out in a side street approximately 200 yards away from the crime scene. Police also recovered a second vehicle, also believed to be involved in the incident. It is likely that police will request extra time to detain the currently arrested individuals for further questioning; CCTV imagery obtained from the area may also prove useful.
Any individuals who have information or witnessed the accident are encouraged to come forward to West Midlands Police and have been guaranteed anonymity.
The Birmingham Magistrates Court also worked late again last night, with 13 individuals appearing in court ‘accused largely of violent disorder, burglary and going equipped to steal.’ (WMP press release). I also personally witnessed the arrests of several people last night on Colmore Row, with one individual charged with possession of a controlled substance and another individual on charges relating to this week’s looting! So all in all, a nice way to round off things. That was the only bit of trouble last night; the entire town was pretty calm and very peaceful.
I spent a while last night walking and talking with officers patrolling the city centre – at once a very enjoyable experience and a fairly eye-opening experience. One thing which was clear was each and every officer has given their absolute utmost this week, with all rest days cancelled and 12 hour shifts put in place – many were also working extra hours unpaid, coming in hours early and leaving hours later – to support each other. They were all fairly exhausted – particularly officers who had fought against looters and rioters on Monday and Tuesday across Birmingham, then continued with beat duties and undertaking raids on suspects involved in the lootings. However, they were all very happy that their combined efforts had brought the situation under control and maintained the peace for everyone else.
West Midlands Police is also encouraging organisers of various smaller ‘peace marches’ on Sunday to postpone or join forces with the cross-community Peace Rally, due to take place at 3pm on Sunday the 14th of August at Summerfield Park, Dudley Road, Winson Green.
Thursday
18:23: West Midlands Police has formally issued an update on the further arrests following the hit-and-run deaths in Winson Green. Three people have been arrested on suspicion of murder; a 16-year old, 17-year old and man aged 26, all from Birmingham. The 32-year old man initially arrested following the incident has been bailed pending further enquiries.
Enquiries into the collision are ongoing — anyone who witnessed the collision or has information in connection with the incident is asked to contact West Midlands Police on 0345 113 5000.
16:52: A day of reflections. Many questions to be answered, including how the circumstances surrounding the Winson Green hit-and-run came about. Was it avoidable? Many things to be learnt from WMP’s area-by-area response and whether analysis was undertaken correctly concerning any possible conflict between different communities. Still much to also be learnt about the person currently under arrest related to the case.
On the whole though, Birmingham is returning to peace with people surveying the scene. Wolverhampton’s carrying on as normal, bar a few shops with boarded up windows. Damage mostly limited to a couple of sections of town, the Nisa near the railway station was smashed but still open for business as usual. The new railway bridge escaped completely unscathed, not a scratch on it!
In music news, AIM (the representative body of independent UK record labels) has worked furiously to put things in place to assist the indie labels who’ve lost all stock following the Essex SonyDADC warehouse blaze. On Tuesday, they put out a call to action urging fans to support their favourite artists and labels to help them survive the crisis – read it in full on the A2IM site. Today, they announced a fund to help those labels:
Following the devastating fire on Monday night at SONYDADC’s Enfield facility, which destroyed the stock of hundreds of independent labels AIM and [PIAS] have been working together to coordinate the extraordinary number of offers of help which have been pouring in from across the world. This morning, we are announcing the creation of a fund to help independents affected by the catastrophe. They will be able to draw upon the fund to help cover the interruption to their business and the cost of getting back onto their feet.
The fund is being provided by some of AIM’s larger member labels, other well wishers and from AIM’s reserves, and will be made available to affected smaller labels pro-rata to labels’ [PIAS] turnover this year, as required.
[PIAS] are first and foremost focused on supporting their labels. AIM will be coordinating the fund, and also other offers of help in the form of promotions and benefit gigs. Alison Wenham commented “the independents will survive this disaster, as they have survived other business challenges. We represent a community which has a mutual respect for the work of all indie labels, be they large or small, and the industry needs to nurture and protect these small companies in times like this. We wish to thank everyone in the community for their generous and unfettered support”.
Martin Mills, Chairman of the Beggars Group, said “Larger labels are much better resourced to weather this storm – but small and new labels are the future and need support from their peers to see them through this crisis “.
Daniel Miller, Founder, Mute said “Following the sad events surrounding the fire at the Sony DADC warehouse which houses [PIAS]‘s physical distribution, it is crucial that the independent community stands together to ensure the ongoing business of the labels so badly affected. Mute supports any initiatives that will enable this to happen.”
Details regarding how to contribute and who to contact:
Anyone wishing to contact [PIAS] and AIM in respect to this fund should email labelsupportfund@musicindie.com
12:14: Cameron currently leading an emergency recall of Parliament; beginning to get a little fractious. Watch live, either on BBC News online or ParliamentLive.tv.
02:37: Rumours of a Gurdwara in Derby on fire are completely false. Silver Commander Superintendent Kul Mahay has visited the site (a former pub on St. THomas Road) and confirmed that a small fire was set but no damage done. Minor fire and smoke damage.
From the Sangat Television Justin.tv chat earlier:
soldier89: just got back from the so called burnt down gurdwara
gss9: soldierrr89 khidddaaa u good?
soldier89: yeah man
gss9: soldier wuts the situation no fire?
chris131084: well I’m clearly not
soldier89: its an old pub that is currently being converted into a gurdwara. 6 kids broke in and started a small fire inside
gss9: ohh i seee
soldier89: police and fire service got there fast
fayce: prove it
soldier89: 1 witness, no arrests
gss9: ya thanks soldier89 for clearing it up
Malicious text message circulating about mosque being firebombed in Birmingham. This is untrue.
Sky news still have a correspondent with live breakaway coverage of the candelit vigil in on Dudley Road. They’re also showing a VT about the murders, worth a watch if you have Sky TV. (you can currently watch online for free via the Sky News web site).
Some stills from the VT:
Wednesday
21:45: Dudley Road, Winson Green
I live nearby, so I decided to visit the scene of the accident on Dudley Road where Haroon Jahan, Abdul Musavir and Shazad Ali were killed last night. When I arrived about 200 or so people were milling around, talking amongst themselves – I must’ve stuck out like a sore thumb as one of the only white people there but I was greeted warmly and fell into discussion before most people went to the local restaurant or nearby houses to break fast.
Quite a sad moment, people around were voicing their anger and a few people were frustrated that they felt treated like terrorists or criminals – but there was no intention of anyone going to stir up trouble. Police presence was moderate but low-key; one (who said he was drafted in from Worcestershire) said they were there mostly to reassure and help anybody who might need assistance. I felt very safe.
“I am sorry for the lack of humanity”
Skid marks from WMP’s assessment of braking distance at the accident site. Plainly visible at 9pm.
Earlier today, whilst Dudley Road was closed (via The Guardian)
Just two of the numerous camera crews all reporting from the scene
The immediate vicinity at dusk, as people drifted away to break their fast
If you want to use any of these images please do so, please just link back to AboutBrum.co.uk so I can see where they get used. (Non-watermarked print quality available for press/media upon request.)
“Blacks, Asians, Whites, we all live in the same community. Why do we have to kill one another? What started these riots and what’s escalated them? Why are we doing this? I lost my son. Step forward if you want to lose your sons. Otherwise, calm down and go home.”
– Tariq Jahan, whose son Haroon was one of the victims of the hit-and-run last night
19:19: The Bullring’s board(ed up)… geddit?
(@Carl_Poulton via Twitter)
18:11: An exact transcript of a message circulating on BlackBerry Messaging:
‘everyman keep off the road tonight, Birmingham is going to be madness, people from london, leicester, derby, manchester to f**k up birmingham of them 3 asian guys that got killed in winson green there coming to riot hard and i don’t want no one to lose their life because of it, stay in your yards and pass this on’
17:45: After a relatively quiet afternoon (with just an unrelated fire at a Nechells metal recycling plant) most attention has been focused on what might happen tonight. On Sangat TV, people have been expressing their anguish and determination not to let things boil over into violence as many are fearing it might. Reports of EDL and BNP attempting to capitalise on the friction – perhaps by bringing in supporters into the city to incite violence – are thus far unconfirmed, as are the rumours of Birmingham City fans (“Zulus”) arriving in town to help defend it against rioters.
Pershore Road has apparently been blocked by police in both directions between Edgbaston Road and Belgrave Middleway due to a ‘police incident’. Riot vans are amassing at a police bases in preparation for anything which may happen tonight.
The earlier fire at the Smurfitt Hawkswood Metal Recycling Plant
(lord_apricot on Twitter)
(BeckyJohnsonITV on Twitter)
So… It’s been a tumultuous night. Uneasy calm at the moment, @RobSmithUK says, “Bham New Street looks battered and bruised. Lots of boarded up windows. #BirminghamRiots”. Much discussion needs to be had re: police strategy, policing numbers, balance of allowing looting and criminal damage and whether water canon and baton rounds should have been sanctioned earlier by Cameron & co.
The killing of two brothers and a third friend in cold blood on Dudley Road last night is being treated as murder by West Midlands Police. Appears to be a clear-cut hit-and-run. An eyewitness explained in a BBC WM news report, “the car came flying, took out three of us, flying into midair. Then it drove off – it intentionally mounted the kerb, it was gone within five or six seconds.” A 32 year old man has been arrested on suspicion of all three murders and police investigations are ongoing.
12:30: Smoke blowing across M6 in vicinity of Aston Expressway Aston Church Road closed (due to the Nechells metalworks fire) between A47 Heartlands Parkway and Chartress Road.
A417 Dudley Road in vicinity of Cavendish Road expected to remain closed until at least 16:00 according to WMP.
04:40: Upinder Randhawa, presenter with Sangat Television, has confirmed with sadness via Twitter that the third Hussein brother has died as a result of his injuries, making a total of three deaths as a result of the earlier RTA on Dudley Road. Very sad news.
03:33: reading that an official media blackout has been agreed upon and imposed by BBC & Sky. Makes a lot of sense if you consider the massive lack of updates on what is a very fast-paced situation in London in particular (and the deaths in Birmingham!) From DigitalSpy:
From tvforum.co.uk
There is an Official Media Blackout! I have had official confirmation from 2 sources, both at BBC and at Sky. It is an UTTER DISGRACE that the majority of us is not being told of the real picture. I have friends in various parts of London who are absolutely distraught at what’s going on…
Manchester is a mere ‘diversion’ as to what’s taking place country wide.
I am absolutely appalled at this ‘starvation’ of news…. These ‘mindless’ ‘child’ like thugs DO NOT watch the news networks for logistics or excitement as to where the riots are happening…. An D / DA Notice is not valid here!
Formerly News RoomPosted: 9th August 2011 11:14pm #483
03:10: The amount of independent reports and circumstantial evidence makes it fairly easy for me to now say this with certainy: two British Pakistani men have now died in City Hospital (the Hussein brothers). The two brothers, along with a third member of the same family, were run over in the Dudley Road area adjacent to the Jet petrol filling station (BBC WM) during earlier rioting. Full circumstances are still being clarified. The third individual is still in critical condition. West Midlands Police have confirmed three people were taken to hospital following an RTA:
Twitter is ahead of the curve as usual so search for #birminghamriots for uncensored news.
02:22: Off to bed now, going to keep monitoring the news feeds until I doze off – more tomorrow. Sky News currently has updated features and some new interviews with people who’ve suffered at the hands of the thugs and looting, worth a watch. Keep an eye on Casey’s Birmingham Riots 2011 blog too.
02:16: Reports on Casey Rain’s tumblr that a police officer has been shot in Aston and two British Pakistanis have been murdered in the Dudley Road area. TAKE THIS WITH A BIG PINCH OF SALT, currently unverified.
01:47:
TAKEDOWN OFF THE TOP ROPE! It seems that karma is not withot a sense of irony. (Yes, I’m aware this is from Canada a few years ago – if only British riot police were authorised to utilise such tactics
01:27: Barton Arms pub in Lozells has been bricked, windows gone, riot officers inside.
(via @CharlotteITV and @JayTDWP on Twitter)
00:40: Reports of “a shooting” in Aston. LOTS of hearsay. May just be gunfire, may be attempts to shoot police. Casey Rain’s blog has an email submission which reads,
“police have lost control in the aston/lozells area Asian youths have started to beat up the looters police outnumbered the looters don’t know where to run”
Take this with a BIG pinch of salt. In good news though, Harborne high street was completely deserted when I drove down it at midnight.
Tuesday
23:54: Foreign students snap video of riots through central Brum (taken from the private student accommodation building opposite the (former Matthew Boulton College) Birmingham Met College faculty (next to Millennium Point on Curzon Street):
23:47: another shot of the Hat Man store
23:10:
23:06: Via @Rolo_D on Twitter, the smashed entrance to Birmingham Crown Court (opposite the old Virgin Records shop unit on Corporation Street):
23:03: Sarah Falkland was live on BBC WM just as this happened:
Richer Sounds, Smallbrook Queensway, RIGHT before the police rocked up and scattered the scumbags. Read all updates from before 22:51 09/08/2011
For those who were unaware, the Public Consultation for the planned £193m Birmingham Library is halfway complete (it’s been running from the 20th of April and will end on the 22nd of May).
This is the last opportunity the general public will have to voice their opinions - you can contribute yours, so get going – there’s more info on the BCC web site. Likewise, they’re also running focus groups which you can participate in.
As local residents, it’s your Council Tax money they’re spending, so why not have your say?
Some blurb from the BCC web site;
Mike Whitby, Leader of Birmingham City Council, has unveiled the design concepts for the new Library of Birmingham by the acclaimed Dutch architects Mecanoo.
The Library of Birmingham will be situated on Centenary Square between the Birmingham Repertory Theatre (The REP) and Baskerville House. The project will make a huge contribution to the regeneration of the city, creating 250 new jobs including 25 apprenticeships.
The library building will be joined to The REP at ground and mezzanine levels and will share the foyer, bars, restaurants and a new 300 seat theatre.
What bothers me the most (aside from the astounding cost, and the fact that this redevelopment isn’t really necessary) is that they’re going to be using the entire plot of land currently used as a car park – granted the multi-storey behind Baskerville House will still be there, but it’s always full in the daytime with commuters’ vehicles. When this Library is built, parking your car in the centre of Birmingham will become just that little bit more difficult.
Worst of all, as part of the redevelopment of the surrounding area, all but a few circles of grass will be removed and paved over wholesale – what happens to the water table, and why are the few remaining patches of green space in the middle of our city to be so neglected? There’s a lot to be said for being able to relax during your lunch breaks while sitting on a nice patch of grass in the warmer months.
The one good thing about this redevelopment taking place is that archaeologists from the UoB have unearthed some interesting finds just below the car park tarmac, including a “canal arm and factory remains.” From the site;
A previous desk-based assessment showed that the site was formerly within the vicinity of John Baskerville’s house in the 18th century, a canal, and was the later location of the Union Brassworks in the early-19th century, and Winfields Brass Works, one of the largest brassworks in Birmingham during the mid to late-19th century.
There’s a more detailed writeup (old link, obsolete) (with more photos and a video of an animated above- and below-ground virtual tour) on the University’s Archeology and Anthropology web site.
The eagle-eyed amongst you may have already noticed unmarked black gantries appearing in several areas of Birmingham over the past week or so. Some have already gone up in Digbeth, and from informal discussion with contractors installing the gantries today it appears that there are at least 10 more to go. Today (Monday), two gantries were erected at the top of Broad Street (the Five Ways end), one overlooking each direction of traffic. These gantries will shortly be outfitted with ANPR cameras – so for all you Vehicle Excise Duty, car insurance evaders and generally Naughty People, Broad Street and Digbeth high street (amongst other areas) are soon to officially become No Go Zones.
Update, August 2009: these gantries are now fitted with ANPR cameras – the reason you might not see them is because they are really small! If you look at the gantries closely, there’s one or two ‘lumps’ on each one – those are the cameras. Your travel in and out of the city, including dates, times and durations of journeys, are now being logged by Central Government. Enjoy.
According to sources at Birmingham City Council, the cameras themselves are not under their management or jurisdiction as West Midlands Police undertake day-to-day operational responsibility (with much of the central gantries set to be operated from of their Steelhouse Lane station). However, Birmingham City Council’s CCTV department can supervise and control the CCTV cameras being fitted alongside some of the gantries.
Personally, I am in two minds to the introduction of ANPR to the city centre (as I am sure many others are)…Read the rest of this entry »
Corny I know, but appropriate… Just now (about 1am), Birmingham (and much of the Midlands and Central England) had a little earthquake! It only lasted about ten seconds here, but was strong enough to make my speakers rock on their stands and my radiator make a noise… Amusingly, we all initially blamed each other in our house
Through quickly jumping onto Facebook, fast proving to be the quickest way to gauge opinion and feedback from your friends around the country, it seems that this was felt as far afield as Sheffield, Manchester, right down to Northampton (although Bristol didn’t apparently feel it, according to one of my friends). A friend who lives in Milton Keynes says that it was much more severe, shaking the house quite violently – he heard things moving around and falling over in the loft.
The BBC hasn’t even published a full article about this yet – proof positive that citizen journalism is good at a few things! [01:18: BBC News 24 reports that it was felt as far afield as Darlington, Cheshire, Northampton and parts of London]. However, they do have much more comprehensive info on the 2002 Dudley earthquake (5 on the Richter scale!) here and here – and Wikipedia has an article about it. MadJad, a Dudley area resident, has a little minisite dedicated to it. There was also a much stronger earthquake in Kent last year.
Yay for unexpected exciting things!
Edit: my housemate’s just sent me a link to the USGS site, where there’s a much more detailed technical writeup of the quake: it was apparently 4.7 on the Richster scale at its epicentre! Here’s the initial stats:
50 km (30 miles) S of Kingston upon Hull, England, UK
70 km (45 miles) NE of Nottingham, England, UK
80 km (50 miles) E of Sheffield, England, UK
205 km (125 miles) N of LONDON, United Kingdom
[02:44: The Sun, in its usual restrained manner, has taken the time to carefully and objectively report on the night's events. I won't spoil it for you, but it's really worth a read. I liked the bit with smoke and flames.]
I’ll say it loud, and I’ll say it clear: I like Birmingham Central Library. It’s a real landmark. Being built from concrete, it’s a bit dirty here and there but it has a real sense of character, plus it’s pretty cool inside.
I got lost in there the first time I went in.
The current location of Birmingham Central Library, snapped on the 2nd of May, 2007.
However, it’s looking more and more like the existing BCL is going to be knocked down to make way for a new development, with an estimated cost of about £193 million (this isn’t such a long time after they picked up the remainder of the tab for the expensive Town Hall renovation, something like £18 million on top of the EU and Lottery funding). The Guardian picked up on this story a long time ago, and published an article to that extent (and while it’s dated, it’s still relevant, so it’s worth a read). A little has changed though from the original article. This is how the Guardian report reads:
Still dominating Chamberlain Square and squaring up to some of the city’s best Victorian and Edwardian buildings, the library is to be replaced by gleaming office towers. The Richard Rogers partnership, meanwhile, has been commissioned to design a new £130m library at Millennium Point, Eastside, Digbeth. The Rogers building – a stately ultra-modern galleon – will be the flagship of Birmingham’s new cultural quarter, set across a ring-road and web of railway lines from Chamberlain Square.
This has changed slightly – insofar as the new plans talk about the location being a shared site along with the Birmingham Rep, “with the library and theatre joining together and sharing a number of facilities to create a unique centre for knowledge, learning and culture.” Hmm. “Subject to Cabinet’s approval of the proposals (on 22 October), the next step will see a project manager and design team appointed to take the project forward and conduct an international search for an architect so that design work can get underway by summer 2008, and the new centre completed by 2013.”
The council’s plans include converting the space between the Rep and Baskerville House, currently used as a car park (which is kinda useful!) into a massive Library. However, what’s wrong with Birmingham Central Library being in Chamberlain Square? It’s a great venue, the vista as you stand with the Birmingham Gallery to your back is really something (with the “inverted ziggurat” of the library towering over you and curving around the long ampitheatre-like steps down to the fountain).
I can see the need to put one’s best foot forward, and as Britain’s Second City, I fully agree with that. However, a cost of £193m for a new building on property already serving a useful purpose – parking is already hard enough in the city without another car park being bulldozed… Is it really necessary?
The Council rationalise their thinking by informing us that:
Birmingham’s existing Central Library is the busiest public library in Britain and the city’s most visited public building. However there are major problems with the building, which was built in the early 1970s. The fabric is in very poor condition and the design unsuitable for modern-day needs. The storage capacity and environment, and level of public access for archives, photography and rare printed collections are unacceptably poor given their national and international significance. The Library of Birmingham will provide an exceptional solution to this.
So just closing the Library, gutting it and renovating it then reopening it isn’t enough? Oh wait, I forgot, you want to convert the prime real estate in Chamberlain Square into office blocks, I forgot about that.
If you want to support those who would keep things the way they are, there’s a Facebook group where all the cool people hang out. According to Love Concreation, “Friends of Central Library are proposing to have a meeting on Tuesday 20th November at 6pm – location TBC, somewhere in Bham town centre.” So, keep your eyes peeled if you’d like to take part.
You may have traveled to this corner of the Web expecting to see my scribblings about the new UCE logo and how I was concurring with what many other people had already roundly described as a big waste of money and a poorly-implemented rebranding. You’ve just got the short version, but if you’re looking for the long version – sorry, you’ll be disappointed – I was strongly advised to remove this from my site (more on this later). So, this post has automagically gone into hiding for the time being, as some people in high places feel it may be sufficient cause for me to receive an official telling off or maybe even removal from my course. I’m opinionated, but I’m not an idiot, so this post will most likely stay in hiding until UCE have stamped my degree.
(And you can count on the fact that I’m quite surprised about this happening now of all times, and I won’t be letting this lie when I have a proper chance to sit back and consider all of this and argue properly in my defence, but now is not the time.)
The Grauniad put out an insert with today’s paper, in association with the EC and Advantage West Midlands, focusing on the range of innovation, development (and redevelopment) and diversity within and around Brum and the rest of the County. It’s a very interesting read, and doesn’t smack of “look at our area, come and invest now please, aren’t we great” so go and pick a copy up!
It has some interesting factoids in it too – like, for instance did you know that the first steam engine was perfected in the area of Birmingham which is now called Handsworth? And, did you also know that Birmingham is set to become the first majority ethnic community in 15 years’ time (due to the relative population growth of non-native communities versus incumbent British citizens?)
Nope, I didn’t know that either. Go buy it and read it for yourself, it’s a worthwhile read for anybody interested in our fair city.
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