I’m sure I recall reading about a modular park (similar to Kennington/Meanwhile) that was disassembled and moved to Norfolk in the late 80’s.
I’m wondering whether it might be this one (which I’ve been to/skated a few times) as its dimension/design and general state of repair suggest it’s of a similar era.
This one’s on the edge of a housing estate - very anomalous.
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That rings some bells. Nothing, forgive the pun, concrete but it does sound familiar. That Norfolk spot does look very similar. Grindable lips all round though. So I don’t know if that would preclude it from being parts of a dismantled Edgware bowl, as that was all roll-over. It takes us back to the question of just how many of these modular parks were commissioned/built?
Back to the photo, is that all that remains of a park that’s been buried or removed? Did it go in on a slope like that? What’s the deal with that place? It reminds me a little of the cover of Rolling Through the Decades. Which is a photo of, I think, the only surviving remnants of the park at Boston Manor, (I could be wrong on that though).
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I fucking love this thread.
Carry on.
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That’s all that has ever been there.
It’s also set into the soil at a downhill angle despite the photo I’ve posted looking like it isn’t.
As far as I know, it’s been there since the late 80s and started reappearing in mags/video around the time that Joe Habgood moved to Norwich.
He had the cover of Sidewalk issue 9 August 96 pivot fakieing the deep end.
After that (and Joe’s enthusiasm to skate it), it started to appear in videos etc a bit more and became something that people would seek out.
It does have ‘grindable lips’ but they’re rolled, not angular.
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I remember that cover. For some reason I always assumed that was a Bristol spot. What an odd park/obstacle…looks like fun though.
It looks very similar to the old Lockleaze bowl in that photo but it’s 100% the Norwich one.
Lockleaze being the 70’s concrete bowl made famous over here when Team Alva visited in the late 80’s - I can’t find the front rock pic of Jeff Hartsell that I’m looking for but it’s from the article below (before I’m corrected, I know the spread I’ve posted is mainly the Deaner). @buildafire do you know the pic I mean?
Whilst we’re on the topic - stoked to see this appear on Insta too.
I remember looking at this is amazement as a kid - the vert, the water spray, the fact that it was in Norfolk.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CManbOCl9ot/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link
Agreed.
#1 Shoes
#2 Trousers
#3 Concrete
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Also to add further prefab’, modular fuel to the fire…
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Got lost in obscure crete territory now.
Just found these pics of the modular bowl at Llandudno skatepark.
Similarly to the places discussed above, Llandudno had a dish bowl with rolled lips which was still there in the very early 90s (some of Rowley’s earliest pics were from there).
What I didn’t know (having visited it a few times on holiday) was that it also had a modular bowl too earlier on.
See below for Alistair Kerr photo.
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Crop tops and moustaches need to make a comeback
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I know the one. It’s from the 3 man tour eh? JT, Hartsel and Danforth.
Amazing pool shot. Pretty rare, a UK in the wild skateable pool. I got to skate the Swanage one before it was blown out and filled with rubble. The best one I got to skate was indoor in an old country club/ hotel type place that had closed down and become, of all things, a police dog training ground. That always added to the buzz of sneaking in there. It was sick. All mosaic tiles. Slidey as ice but banging. That’s gone too now. I missed out on the Shoreham Beach one a few years back - heard about it too late.
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Also, as Lorne Edwards has been mentioned.
Here’s footage of Skateboard Escape in Portland, Dorset (where I was born bizarrely) - this was the first skatepark built in the UK and was designed by Lorne.
Apologies for FB link
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Not sure how to embed FB videos on here - please feel free to do so as this one seems apt as we’re talking origin stories.
ABP by me a little while back 
. It’s Portland for sure. It was never finished and there were plans for a vert wall and a few other things. I think Lorne just barged it with no planning in place.
Congratulations on being born on Portland and managing to escape. A rare feat.
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I had to wait for low tide and I ended up in Wakefield so it’s open to interpretation as to whether I did ‘escape’.
Apols for the ABP post - just ended up there looking for Lockleaze
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Afraid it doesn’t seem to be. Whole thing is Dean Lane apart from one photo at Planet Rock, if that’s different.
Nah there’s deffo a slash grind photo from Lockleaze bowl in that article.
I’ll have a root through and see if I still have it but I’m not sure I do sadly
Planet Rock was a bit of the Deaner.
There is 100% a Lockleaze pic in that Skateboard! article though…
Where’s @pigdog237 ? He’ll have the info on this
Must’ve been used in a following issue - my apologies.
It exists though - just not in that piece.
Maybe a poster?
