Cefn Coed Hospital, Swansea

History

The hospital was designed by George Thomas Hine and Hallam Carter-Pegg using a compact arrow layout, and was officially opened by the Princess Royal as Swansea Mental Hospital in 1932. It was used as a casualty hospital during the Second World War.

In 2002, the University of Wales Swansea reported that the hospital had to lock up patients due to understaffing.

Work started in 2009 to build modern replacement mental-health accommodation and facilities, including Ysbryd y Coed, which is purpose-built for patients with dementia, in the grounds of Cefn Coed . Other new-builds in the Cefn Coed grounds are the 18-bed Gwelfor Rehabilitation Unit, a pub featuring non-alcoholic beer called “The Derwen Arms”, and two supported houses for recovering patients preparing to move back home.

In March 2015, the health board's new low-secure mental-health unit, Taith Newydd, opened in Bridgend, replacing some of the old wards at Cefn Coed. Other new mental-health builds include the ARC Centre and Angelton Clinic in Bridgend, and Ty Einon in Swansea. In 2015, the NHS announced that the phased closure of Cefn Coed Hospital would continue for the next three to five years, with several decommissioned wards planned for demolition that year.

Source:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cefn_Coed_Hospital

Esoteric Eric

Barking Power Station 33kv Switch House, London

History 

Barking Power Station refers to a series of power stations at various sites within the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham in east London. The original power station site, of the coal-fired A, B and C stations, was at River Road, Creekmouth, on the north bank of the River Thames. These stations were decommissioned by 1981 and were subsequently demolished.

Source:

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barking_Power_Station

Esoteric Eric 

Belsize Park Deep Level Shelter, London

History

Belsize Park is one of eight London Underground stations which have deep-level air-raid shelters underneath them. The shelter was constructed in World War II to provide safe accommodation for service personnel.

Source: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belsize_Park_tube_station

Esoteric Eric

Theatre Royal, Halifax

History

The Theatre Royal, a replacement of an earlier theatre, opened in 1904/5 purely for live entertainment. A superb façade in ashlar stone in the Edwardian style dates from this period, and was designed by Richard Horsfall & Son of Halifax.

The 1,900-seat auditorium, believed to have been on 4 levels was gutted in April 1937 and to the plans of architect Christopher Rowland Cooper a new two tier 2,200-seat cinema auditorium was created which extended into the stage area.

The cinema closed around the 1960’s and became a bingo hall which in turn closed in the 1990’s. Various redevelopment schemes, retaining the façade of the Grade II Listed building, but demolishing the auditorium came to nought and it re-opened as a nightclub, Chinese restaurant and bar. Unfortunately, by 2007 these had closed and the building was ‘For Sale’, with the latest plans being for a hotel.

Esoteric Eric