please empty your brain below
I don't think I've ever seen you so enthused about a visit, DG! Good day out then?

It's kinda strange how the high street on all the major towns in Thanet has been gutted by Westfield Cross shopping centre, but the towns do so well with daytrippers, and indeed everyone moving to Margate from Hackney and Shoreditch.

Gav | 28.05.19 - 8:36 a.m. | #

There's a bit of a backstory to the Woolworths image in the description to this (similar) shot I took four years ago. Sad to see how little change there seems to have been.

RogerW | 28.05.19 - 9:19 a.m. | #

Is the photography exhibition the same as the one that was at the National Maritime Museum last year?

dg writes: No

Jonathan Wadman | 28.05.19 - 9:58 a.m. | #

Minnis Bay (Birchington) is quite impressive and you can walk or cycle to the twin towers at Reculver.

Half a physicist | 28.05.19 - 10:13 a.m. | #

It's probably 20 years since I last went to Margate, but I vaguely remember Woolies. Even though Woolworths as a company has long gone, it is nice to see an original store still displaying the name. No doubt the name will soon disappear. Normally when shops become vacant, especially if a chain that's gone bust (e.g. Maplin) the first thing that seems to happen is that any signage is removed.

My main memory of Margate was, as a child, seeing the news where the sea used to freeze over in the colder winters of the early 60's.

Rogmi | 28.05.19 - 10:30 a.m. | #

The two Maplins stores I go past on a regular basis still display the signs. The same for Poundworld...

Southern Heights (Light Railway) | 28.05.19 - 10:41 a.m. | #

I love a day at the seaside - though it tends to be more by proxy these days, so thanks for today's coastal fix!

Cornish Cockney | 28.05.19 - 10:45 a.m. | #

Never walked west from Margate, as usually go the other way towards Broadstairs. Must try that this summer

Mikey C | 28.05.19 - 10:48 a.m. | #

Archive video of Herne Bay on Ice, 1963.

GB | 28.05.19 - 11:00 a.m. | #

Other very large seaside biker meets in SE England are also available; including the Southend Shakedown, Brighton Burnup and Hastings 1066 Run. Admirably, the successful Ace Cafe (franchises in Florida, Italy, Finland and Beijing!) have managed to attach their name to these, on the back of existing less organised smaller biker meets, to create something bigger. Brighton Burnup was part of the very old Brighton Speed Trials, which I believe are now defunct due to a serious accident.

From the early 60's onwards the seaside has always attracted legions of bikes, mainly motorcycles, but there's a large proportion of scooters especially at bank holiday time. Other resorts have cottoned on to their biker visit potential and during the summer months both Poole and Paignton seafronts have weekly 'bike nights' which have been running for some years and I'm sure other coastal resorts have similar.

Biking, now being part of the leisure industry and bikers being somewhat tribal (adventure bikes, cafe racers, tourers, custom bikes, etc) still like to gather en mass for fish and chips and ice creams and tea from a polystyrene cup, when the weathers nice.

Dave | 28.05.19 - 11:25 a.m. | #

Ah Margate - Recollections of that wonderful OFAH episode 'The Jolly Boys outing'.

Lots of bikers here on IOM at present for obvious reasons

MO | 28.05.19 - 12:35 p.m. | #

I think at least one (good) Woolworths store (named) frontage should be preserved as part of our heritage.

E | 28.05.19 - 3:13 p.m. | #

As regards Westgate, my earliest memories of childhood holidays date back to stays with my parents at the (now long gone) Ivyside Hotel.

I've made a few return visits there over recent years, and observed what seemed to be a 3-stage evolution of the place. First the hotels seemed to be being or replaced by or turned into residential care homes. On the last visit, it seemed the retirement homes along the seafront were also declining in number, being demolished to be replaced by - presumably - apartment developments.

I can't say how the place looks now, or what my reaction would be: it was just about a relief enough for me that at least the shops near the station were still pretty much the way I remembered them. After my last trip there (I think it was actually on the back of bike ride down to Margate as part of the 'Meltdown') I figured it was probably time to follow the principle of "If you love a place, don't go back there" .

RogerW | 28.05.19 - 4:23 p.m. | #

If you think Margate town centre is deserted of shops you should have a look at Cliftonville. Of course it was a big secondary town centre for Margate’s size in the first place though.

Sprout Eater | 28.05.19 - 9:16 p.m. | #











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