Where Is This? No.118

Published on: 16 Jul, 2014
Updated on: 16 Jul, 2014

By David Rose

Plenty of readers identified last week’s mystery vintage photo as being taken from the A31 slip road bridge over the A3 near the Guildford end of the Hog’s Back.

See all the replies at the foot of last week’s post by clicking here.

Chris Townsend makes a note of the alleged Gipsy curse on that bridge. The bridge has indeed had its structural problems. About 20 years ago a good deal of repair work was done on it. At the time I was a sub-editor at the Surrey Advertiser and it ran a number of stories ahead of the work taking place. One of the stories I was checking stated that in an engineer’s report the bridge was ‘likely to explode’. I questioned this as it didn’t sound right to me. But evidently there was the possibility it could!

Not being an expert on such things, I still can’t imagine that it would have blown up suddenly. However, at that time the story of the Gypsy curse was again being mentioned.

As far as I can remember, the curse originated in the 19th century when (long before the bypass was built) there was a Gipsy camp near the site where the bridge was later built. At some stage the travellers were moved on, and being rather annoyed they put a curse on the land saying something like bad luck will befall anyone or anything that is ever built on that parcel of land. If anyone knows a different version, or can add more details, please reply.

Well, the bridge seems to be holding up now, but if you are of a mind to believe such things you might like to consider the regular traffic hold ups on the Guildford stretch of the A3. Is that a kind of bad luck?

Interestingly, for a couple of years now the stretch of the A3 between Guildford and Milford has regular night-time roadworks. I have noticed this many times when driving home at about midnight. There have been repairs to the road surface, the crash barriers and other features. Mostly it is down to one lane being kept open.

The time slot must be a short one – soon after the volume of traffic reduces (perhaps about 9pm) out come the gangs placing a plethora of cones, signs and lights. I wonder at what time in the early hours they are all taken away again, ready for the morning rush? At midnight on Monday this week, when we got to the Compton turn off the road ahead was closed, so we had to make a detour past Watts Gallery and up to the Farnham Road and home via Guildford Park. A bit of a fag, so perhaps the curse is still working!

Last week’s quirky photo of a memorial stone to Cornish rebels can be found on The Mount near Henley Grove. Lots of extra details by readers in their replies. So take a look.

I loved Margaret Cole’s comment that the stone might well be in Bernard Parke’s garden. Not quite right. I do wonder what he has there?

Here we go with this week’s mysteries.

Flashback to The Great Storm of 1987. Do you recognise this location?

The vintage photo dates from the time of what is generally called The Great Storm of 1987. The photo was taken by Stan Newman. Do you recognise the location? The path might be a give away. There is a bus passing on a road and an open space behind that, which is now occupied by a large complex. I’ve probably given you too many clues. Any memories of that night’s storm?

Where can this structure be found?

The quirky photo shows some interesting stonework on a small structure jutting out from a larger one. The clue is it’s a place of worship in Guildford. But the small building has an interesting story. A case of Roman Catholics adjoining the Anglicans (I think).

Do you know where it is and what is its story.

If you know the answers, please leave a reply in the box below. Replies will be published at about the same time next week along with the next pair of images.

Responses to Where Is This? No.118

Bernard Parke Reply

July 17, 2014 at 3:31 am

1) Stoke Park
2) Holy Trinity
Chaz Folkes Reply

July 17, 2014 at 10:15 am

The photo from 1987 was taken in Stoke Park. You would see the Spectrum Centre over the road if you were standing in the same place now.

The bottom picture is of the back of Holy Trinity in the centre of town.
Ray Springer Reply

July 17, 2014 at 4:25 pm

The Great Storm of 1987. I remember it well.

I had heard it during the night, but it was only in the morning as I tried to get to work that I realised the extent of the damage. I did get to work, at the time I was working in Guildford.

I think the photo is of Stoke Park and the large complex referred to would be the Spectrum leisure centre, on the other side of the road.

The quirky picture is of the Weston Chapel attached to the south side of the Holy Trinity Church in the High Street. It was built in 1540 by Richard Weston, a Roman Catholic. The rest of the building was destroyed in 1740 and the current main building was built between 1749 and 1763.

The dissolution by Henry VIII of Catholic churches was avoided and the chapel survived, although the main building was proclaimed Protestant.
Brian Holt Reply

July 20, 2014 at 9:41 pm
1. Stoke Park with the old Peacock woods on the left and the road is Parkway
2. Holy Trinity Church High Street,The “Weston Chapel” stands attached to the south side of the main church its external walls are of a decorative chequerboard pattern of flint and freestone squares. It was built 1540 by Richard Weston (1465-1541) of nearby Sutton Place, primarily as his intended burial place, as his will dated 15th May 1541 directs that his body buried there.