More oldies. We got into Becton works soon after Stanley Kubrick had finished filming Full Metal Jacket there. Very weird with all the Vietnamese signwriting, palm trees in skips and even a Vietnamese newspaper (see below). This was the first time we were nabbed by security, though when we made a bolt for it, he was too fat to chase us. He did try and nearly got us when we found the battery was flat on the old Morris Minor I was driving and we had to bump-start it....
History Lesson, Beckton was built to make gas from coal in 1870 and stopped operating in 1969 after the development of the natural gas fields in the North Sea rendered it redundant. It was a huge site, covering over two square kilometres. When I went, I spent hours wandering around, it went on forever. It's long gone now and almost no traces remain. But, the spoil heaps have the distinction of being the highest point in the borough of Newham!
Apologies for the quality, these are on old Ektachrome slide film which is deteriorating. Gotta get 'em all digitised asap!
History Lesson, Beckton was built to make gas from coal in 1870 and stopped operating in 1969 after the development of the natural gas fields in the North Sea rendered it redundant. It was a huge site, covering over two square kilometres. When I went, I spent hours wandering around, it went on forever. It's long gone now and almost no traces remain. But, the spoil heaps have the distinction of being the highest point in the borough of Newham!
Apologies for the quality, these are on old Ektachrome slide film which is deteriorating. Gotta get 'em all digitised asap!
