Black Sabbath Bridge

[Sea Dog]

4 hours ago, dmr said:

I chatted to a bloke in Oxford who claimed he had been a chargehand at a Birmingham Lucas factory and had a young man working for him on the production line who had no interest in work and just wanted to sing all the time, might just be an urban myth but he claimed it was Ozzy.

 

..................Dave

Paranoid, perhaps?

[MtB]

20 minutes ago, Sea Dog said:

Paranoid, perhaps?

 

More likely to have been Master of Reality, seeing as we are recycling the older posts in this thread now! 

 

 

[ditchcrawler]

9 hours ago, Derek R. said:

Renaming is part of a destabilising program, like 'reframing'. Lose an identity, and part of history is lost. The subject is deeper than you might think.

Leg O' Mutton lock only survived for the length of a film, but what if it had had a sign put up? Cow Roast sounds odd, but not if associated with the achievement of reaching the summit when built, and a Cow was roasted in the celebrations, or so the story goes.

 

Several locks are named after families that lived there even after their successors have long gone. It's like that with houses where I live, there's 'Annies' and 'Turners', people and families long gone, but their memories are held inperpetuity by locals, though there are no physical signs. Ashted Locks; Farmer's Bridge; Sutton's; Carpenter's; Corketts; Broad Street; Maffers (spell it how you like), so it will remain. Respect history by leaving it be, and passing it on.

We have just come down the Stratford Avon and nearly all the locks have re named or maybe that is re-re-named, maybe they are now the originals.

[Derek R.]

5 hours ago, John Brightley said:

The British Waterways shop and information centre on Kingston Row was open up until about that year, so you could have bought your maps from there. When it closed the general store opposite took on the role of selling a few canal related items.

Indeed, I do remember it selling a variety of general goods. Must have been that one, Thanks John.

[Wanderer Vagabond]

On 16/08/2019 at 14:15, Athy said:

As it happens I'm currently reading the autobiography of Jim Simpson, long-term music biz man who took Black Sabbath from Brum obscurity, as "Earth", to international success. He mentions the renaming of the bridge (and the unveiling of the Black Sabbath Bench on it) as "recent", but it must have been earlier than this June, I think, for it to have been included in a book published in July. He implies that the bridge had already been renamed before the bench was installed.

   Jim is justly proud of his one-time proteges' achievement, but I must admit that I'm not sure the name really fits the bridge's history. Perhaps, as the band all came from Aston, one of the coils of Spaghetti Junction could have been dedicated to them instead. "You are now entering the Black Sabbath Traffic Jam".

Just sort of guessing really, but the connection possibly goes back to 2007 when Ozzies Star on the Broad Street Walk of Stars was set into the footpath on the bridge.

[dmr]

Gas street Basin and central brum are good, and I really like the Flapper and Prince of Wales, but if these both go then we will jut use the Coventry canal on our frequent North to South travels, its less locks.

 

My wife used to hang out at the Canon Hill park Arts Centre, there was a heavy metal band used to practice there but she never went in to watch cus she thought they wern't much good.

 

.................Dave

[Heartland]

The actual naming of this bridge is of interest as the name BLACK SABBATH is on the Railings of the bridge, but the name Broad Street Tunnel is named below. Does this mean the road bridge is the former, but the waterway part is another. I suppose there is a tradition for naming junctions on the BCN twice depending on the direction the vessels travelled along- now there is a bridge!

 

 

[Derek R.]

When is a bridge - a tunnel. I believe there was a thread on that subject

Suffice to say, Broad Street is carried over the canal by a bridge, more often known as Broad Street Tunnel due to it having buildings above same, but now allocated a name of Black Sabbath Bridge. Which seems pretty pointless to me.

 

It's not called anything the other side except Broad Street Tunnel.

[Athy]

All credit to CanalPlan who have already got the new name on their web site.

I see that the "tunnel" is only 83 yards long, so it might be considered a long bridge - though I seem to remember that the shortest official canal tunnel is only about 25 yards long.

[StephenA]

On 19/08/2019 at 11:38, Athy said:

All credit to CanalPlan who have already got the new name on their web site.

I see that the "tunnel" is only 83 yards long, so it might be considered a long bridge - though I seem to remember that the shortest official canal tunnel is only about 25 yards long.

I tried to get clarification from C&RT about what part of the whole thing was Black Sabbath bridge - was it just the bridge for Broadstreet or the whole thing. But they didn't really seem to know so we decided that it  meant just the north bridge which supports the footpath and seating area

[Heartland]

That is no doubt of interest to know as yes there are two bridges and one group of buildings that span the canal. The original road bridge formed the boundary between Islington and  Easy Row. The widening of road led to the second span being made. The bridge has recently been strengthened for the Metro Extension,

 

There was at one time a turnover bridge adjacent, and north side of the original arch. The Church of the Messiah was completed at the end of 1861 and this led to a new roving bridge north of the Church. So by 1862, the "tunnel" would have been from Broad Street (old bridge) to the new roving bridge. Then in the 1890's the buildings spanning the south side  were made creating the longest covered space.

 

The original towpath was on the ICC side only when the canal was made to the Old Wharf, Paradise Street. Opposite was a boat dock and later a basin that served the Timber Yard.