Chapter, "one of the leasing arts centres in Europe" has been awarded £1.75M lottery grant and will get a £3.8M makeover and modernisation.
Echo report here:
http://tinyurl.com/2deksk
Good news indeed for the arty farties but, to me, it will always be my adventure playground. Derelict old school with gyms and classrooms, brilliant for exploration and we loved it.
But there was one other place we loved more and that too is now an arts centre - Llanover Hall in Romilly Road, Canton. You see, I lived next door to it most of my life - and all my life spent in Cardiff. My parents lived next to it for almost 50 years until last year.
As a kid, the former school was derelict and abandoned and many an afternoon was spent by my brother and myself in the old gym, many an evening jumping off the air raid shelters (kid you not) where the car park now is that adjoined our house and, where we felt daring, there were those times when we dared go around the back in the coal bunker. And boys will be boys - what a great place for letting off railway detonators that we used to nick - well, until the law cautioned us anyway!
The first we knew it was becoming an arts centre was when a caretaker - Ted from Carmarthen Road - appeared on site. One of his first jobs was repairing the smashed windows mostly caused by my wayward shots dreaming I was the next Gil Reece or Tony Evans! Then a bloke called Jack built a castle on the waste ground that later became the car park .and we helped him do it - alright it was a 12 foot high incomplete turret with three walkway entrances. He spent 2 years of his life doing that, art eh?
Suppose it's great to see progress but for me, it can never be what it was..
Echo report here:
http://tinyurl.com/2deksk
Good news indeed for the arty farties but, to me, it will always be my adventure playground. Derelict old school with gyms and classrooms, brilliant for exploration and we loved it.
But there was one other place we loved more and that too is now an arts centre - Llanover Hall in Romilly Road, Canton. You see, I lived next door to it most of my life - and all my life spent in Cardiff. My parents lived next to it for almost 50 years until last year.
As a kid, the former school was derelict and abandoned and many an afternoon was spent by my brother and myself in the old gym, many an evening jumping off the air raid shelters (kid you not) where the car park now is that adjoined our house and, where we felt daring, there were those times when we dared go around the back in the coal bunker. And boys will be boys - what a great place for letting off railway detonators that we used to nick - well, until the law cautioned us anyway!
The first we knew it was becoming an arts centre was when a caretaker - Ted from Carmarthen Road - appeared on site. One of his first jobs was repairing the smashed windows mostly caused by my wayward shots dreaming I was the next Gil Reece or Tony Evans! Then a bloke called Jack built a castle on the waste ground that later became the car park .and we helped him do it - alright it was a 12 foot high incomplete turret with three walkway entrances. He spent 2 years of his life doing that, art eh?
Suppose it's great to see progress but for me, it can never be what it was..
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