MISS ELAINEOUS VISITS BISHOP'S PARK...

After spending the morning in Twickenham I intended to visit Fulham Palace, so I continued my day by jumping off the train at Putney railway station, on Putney High Street, and heading towards the River Thames.  Fulham is the London borough on the other side of Putney Bridge.
It was a bit of a nostalgia trip for me as I lived in Fulman for a year (2005) so know the area.  It didn't seem to have changed significantly.

This photograph was taken whilst waiting to cross the road to get onto the bridge.  The church tower belongs to medieval St Mary's Church, Putney.

Crossing the river and the church visible on the other side is All Saints Church, Fulham.  Putney Bridge is the only London bridge to be flanked on both sides by parish churches.

This was actually more of a 'wander through' than a 'visit' as such, as I had to traverse the park to get to Fulham Palace.
Here is my Fulham Palace blog link:-
https://elainerockett.blogspot.com/2019/07/miss-elaineous-visits-fulham-palace.html  

The park was opened in 1893, on land given by the Ecclesiastical Commissioners.

This area is Pryor's Bank Gardens and contains one very dry fountain!  

The gardens contain 1940s sculptures by James Wedgewood called Adoration, Protection, Grief and Leda.  In 1963, a fifth statue by Joseph Hermon Cawthra, called Affection was added.  The mock-tudor building behind is a refreshment pavilion.  It replaced Vine Cottage, which was demolished in 1897.

Beyond the park you can make out the river, and this is where The Boat Race starts every year.  I nipped down to witness it once and, believe me, if you've never seen it then you're not missing much!

Sun-bleached rose garden...

A shady, secluded section...  

Scenes from the 1976 horror film The Omen were shot in the park.  I remember watching it, and a couple of its sequels, as a teenager.  It was okay, and very much of its time, but generally horror films don't do that much for me- unless they're gothic, macabre and Bela Lugosi-esque; or a good old-fashioned ghost story.  Modern horror tends to be too far fetched and ridiculous for my taste.

Around the same time, I also read the book The Omen but had to put it down- towards the end I found it really distasteful.  I was a troubled seventeen-year-old going through a very difficult time, and I didn't want to add nightmares to my list of problems!

These small box hedges look a bit like a maze...

The war memorial is dedicated to members of the International Brigade, who volunteered to fight in the Spanish Civil War.

Walking down and behind the trees is the Thames... 

Looking back, and to the left of the photo Fulham Palace Gardens sit behind the hedge...

This beach area and fountain were just to the left as I exited Fulham Palace.  Further down from this is Craven Cottage, home to Fulham F.C.  Although I've walked down that far in the past, I didn't do it on this day.  There is another area to the right, which fronts Fulham Palace Road, but I just skirted past this.  Like I said, this was more a case of traversing the park to get to my destination than a visit.  The latter area looked like it contained tennis courts. 

Bishop's Park is quite pretty and relaxing but, unfortunately, it was infested by irritating middle class mummies (you know the sort- they refuse to tell their children 'no' as it might 'spoil their creative freedom', use prams soooo big you could fit an obese adult in them, allow the little darlings to use their scooters absolutely ANYWHERE and who think it's everybody else's responsibility but theirs to look after their children) and their pampered brats.

Nice park, shame about the people...  Okay, I know not everyone fits into this mould, but even so...😒

Whilst I was in Fulham, I nipped down Gowan Avenue and took this photo of the doorway where Jill Dando was shot dead, outside her own home, 20 years ago.

  Nobody is is prison for her murder, but I don't think it was Barry George- he was too simple to carry out a carefully controlled attack like this.

I did have a "why couldn't I have done this when I lived nearby?" moment...

 I ambled on to my old flat in New King's Road; my last stop-off of the day, as by now I was both hot and tired.  The shop downstairs, in my time, was an off-licence and it's now a furniture store.  

2005 was not a happy year for me- I would call it transitional...  

...But as my ex (who I was breaking up with at the time) recently pointed out, 'You lived above an off-licence, which you had the keys to!'  Okay, I guess it wasn't all bad!

You can see my balcony out the back.  I thought it was quite secluded and remember sunbathing here, thinking that I had almost total privacy.  But then I sat up, in my swimsuit, and a guy posing on the roof opposite waved to me!

TTFN

The Miss Elaineous

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