A Ticket To Ryde

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The bus crawled down Union Street towards the sea. The scooters from the weekend festivities had mainly left town and the place was returning to normal business. The odd Lambretta was left and I snapped a nice example down by the pier a few minutes later. A clothes shop had removed the real 1960s Lambretta window dressing and the drinkers were going about their early morning business in the Spoons. I alighted at the Bus Station. A healthy crowd was waiting to board the Island or Downs Breezer open top summer special buses. I crossed the railway line that feeds passengers straight out on to the Pier to link up with the cat to Portsmouth. Three hovercraft laid dormant next to their terminal. There was no sign of an imminent departure across the water. Portsmouth and Southsea we quire clear across the channel; a channel that was devoid of much shipping activity today. I gazed out across the Solent and back round to the Pier. An information board informed that this was the oldest pleasure pier in the UK and dated back to 1815. The cat from Portsmouth docks at the end, which has a railway station for the onward transportation of visitors to "the Island". Cars can still drive down to the end on the far side. I walked along the seafront to the small marina. The place was empty compared to the super yachts and expensive craft that litter the moorings at Cowes. An advert billboard was promoting the Ryde Illuminated Carnival. It seems the summer is one long Illuminated Carnival parade around the whole island. The funfair that had been in St Helens over the last few days was no doubt following. There wasn't an onslaught of early morning business and a few stalls selling ice creams and coffee were empty - their outside seating spaces 100% vacant. The Ryde Ice Rink nearby looked a bit sorry for itself and I couldn't make out whether it was still open for business. The signs advertising the Wightlink Raiders ice hockey remain in place, although I read that they withdrew from the league after a dispute over rent for the use of the arena.

I walked back along the esplanade. There were signs of life at the Hover terminal. A roar and the skirts lifted on one of the beached craft. The "Gateway to the Island" was starting to live up to the name. The Beatles allegedly got inspiration for the song Ticket to Ride, after John and Paul took a trip to visit a cousin working in a pub in the town. The song writers later contradicted each other over the facts, Paul maintained the "ticket" was the trip to Ryde and John got all philosophical about the hookers in Hamburg. I suppose we'll never know, but Ryde can stick with the side of the story that suits them best. In all honesty, I'd sooner listen to Karen Carpenter singing it everyday anyway. However I’m with Paul and his version though, as the Beatles also made reference to the Isle of Wight on the track “When I’m 64” released on the St Pepper album. They possibly saw the masses on the trip to Ryde and wrote about renting a cottage on the island if it wasn’t too dear. A good thought, but I suspect Cowes Regatta Week would be out of financial reach for most!



Ryde is the largest town on the Isle of Wight and marginally bigger than the "capital" Newport. The vista of the rises from the waterfront - the focal point being Union Street. The traffic is one way and limited stay parking is easy either side. The architecture is mainly Victorian and most feels like it could do with a bit of a makeover. The Other Half was up the street with her mother in the Liz Earle shop, where makeovers come true. Liz Earle cosmetics originate from the Isle of Wight and apparently this is one of the few actual shops as opposed to concessions within large department stores. I popped my head in. I am not an expert on the cosmetics stuff, but they do a nice cooling mint water to refresh customers as they browse and on a warm day the air conditioning was most welcome. A couple of ladies that lunch were browsing and spending - they spoke as though they had made a pilgrimage to the hallowed shop from the leafy suburbs of Surrey. We took coffee and teacakes in a Victorian hotel opposite and I snapped the old covered shopping arcade nearby. A horse drawn carriage made it’s way down towards the seafront. The four legged friends left some cargo on the road, which possibly didn’t the brasserie with the outdoor seating area within nostril range.





I hitched a ride with the Liz Earle shopping specialists towards the village of Brading. We dropped by the large Tesco megastore on the outskirts of town, which bizarrely seemed to offer petrol at a cost below that on the mainland. There is a perception that prices should be higher over here, but apparently not. The grey pound was busy being buying. Brading – now a sleepy little village snarled up by traffic on the way towards Sandown – was once higher up the pecking order in island life. The inlet at Brading Haven allowed ships safe harbour and they were able to navigate the river through the Brading Marshes all the way to near the High Street. The clue was in the name of the lane by St Marys Church – Quay Lane. The quay and old sea wall are apparently to be found behind the Bugle Inn. The river has long since silted up and the visiting ships are no more. The trade brought prosperity to Brading and at one point the Parish unbelievably returned 2 MPs to Parliament! We wandered into the church. The sign points out that the first christening took place here on the Isle of Wight in 687 AD. The half-timbered Old Town Hall stands at the entrance to the church with the old stocks still in place. The attractive timber framed building on the other side of the Quay Lane junction was once the Waxworks, but that attraction seems to have proved unviable and now is a tearoom with antiques. The Lilliput Doll Museum on the other side was still open for business. I tried in vain to cross the road, as the traffic completely backed up. A fairground ride meets double decker bus didn’t fit with the narrow road space further down the High Street. I had one more thing to do, before we departed. I walked up to the end of the car park to check the information board for the evening fixture at Brading Town FC and to my horror it suggested a 7.30 pm kick off. I had been counting on the previously stated 6 pm. The ground was empty and locked up, but at least there were floodlights.



Brading Town have been around a long time.....since 1871 to be precise. They used to play at a higher level, having been involved across the water in Hampshire and Wessex until 2012. They have now returned to the local scene; the costs of travel making an existence not sustainable in "mainland football". The irony of course of watching a game in the Isle of Wight Saturday League on a Tuesday was not lost on us. I returned to the Peter Henry Sports Ground at the designated time and paid my £1 entry. The Other Half also made an appearance for the feisty clash with nearby Shanklin - her debut as a groundhopper on this island. She was even charmed into the name the team raffle and didn't wait to see if she had been victorious to claim a prize. She must like them! I was impressed to find 2 small grandstands. She was most impressed to find a clubhouse – with tea bar and bar - and we took advantage at half time! We were both surprised to see a rabbit proof fence installed around the pitch. An ideal barrier to prevent the big eared locals digging up the turf and ideal for the local Non League Dogs from getting a good view - 3 turned up to prove the point. A couple of committee men counted the crowd and decided 79 - exactly the same as the game on the previous Saturday. We had parked up in the car park by the church, but a series lined the outer perimeter above the pitch in the top corner. The far end had the railway line passing behind and 5 or 6 roared past during the game. I say roared - but these are in fact old London Underground trains that populate the line between the pier at Ryde and Shanklin. Shanklin proved too good on the night with a goal in each half. The home team were not helped by a lack of discipline and following my experience at Cowes Sports, another straight red card was dished out. The recipient had apparently received a similar punishment on the Saturday before, so most locals couldn't even understand why he was playing tonight. The proceedings ended late. Floodlight failure caused a few attendees from Shanklin to nearly miss their bus back.



Appendix 1

Isle of Wight "Harwoods Renault " Saturday League Division 1

Brading Town FC 0 Shanklin FC 2

Date : Tuesday 29 August 2017 @ 1930 Hours

Venue : Peter Henry Sports Ground, Vicarage Lane, Brading, Isle of Wight

Attendance : 79 plus 3 Non League Dogs

Scorers : 0-1 Moseley (Shanklin FC), 0-2 Gregory (Shanklin FC)

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Photos

Ryde
Hover Terminal

Brading
Old Waxworks Museum

Ryde
Hover Terminal

Ryde
Victoria Arcade

Brading
Old Town Hall

Ryde
Ryde Marina

Ryde
Esplanade

Ryde
Ryde Marina

Brading
St Marys Church

Ryde
Union Street

Brading
High Street

Ryde
Union Street

Ryde
Union Street

Ryde
Union Street

Ryde
Ryde Marina