Visited Barcelona in 2008

Visited Barcelona in 2008

Visited Trafford Centre, 25/09

The Trafford Centre is a large indoor shopping centre and entertainment complex in Trafford ParkGreater Manchester, England. It opened in 1998 and is third largest in the United Kingdom by retail space.[10][11]

Originally developed by the Peel Group, the Trafford Centre was sold to Capital Shopping Centres, later to become Intu, in 2011 for £1.65 billion;[12] it set a record as the costliest single property sale in British history.[13]

The battle to obtain permission to build the centre was amongst the longest and most expensive in United Kingdom planning history.[3] As of 2011, the Trafford Centre had Europe’s largest food court and the UK’s busiest cinema.[1]

Visited Aberystwyth in 2025 as part of looking for Universities for my eldest daughter

Visited Aberystwyth 2025

Located in the historic county of CardiganshireAberystwyth means “the mouth of the Ystwyth“. It has been a major educational location in Wales since the establishment of University College Wales, now Aberystwyth University, in 1872.

The town is situated on Cardigan Bay on the west coast of Wales, near the confluence of the River Ystwyth and Afon Rheidol. Following the reconstruction of the harbour, the Ystwyth skirts the town. The Rheidol passes through the town. The seafront, with a pier, stretches from Constitution Hill at the north end of the Promenade to the harbour at the south. The beach is divided by the castle. The town is divided into five areas: Aberystwyth Town; Llanbadarn Fawr; Waunfawr; Trefechan; and Penparcau.

Visited London in 2023

Visited London in 2023

Visited Swanage, Dorset in 2016

Swanage (/ˈswɒnɪdʒ/) is a coastal town and civil parish in the south-east of Dorset, England. It lies at the eastern end of the Isle of Purbeck and is one of its two towns,[2] approximately 6+1⁄4 miles (10 km) south of Poole and 25 miles (40 km) east of Dorchester. In the 2011 census, the civil parish had a population of 9,601.[1] Nearby are Ballard Down and Old Harry Rocks, with Studland Bay and Poole Harbour to the north; within the parish are Durlston Bay and Durlston Country Park to the south of the town. The parish also includes the areas of Herston, just to the west of the town, and Durlston, just to the south.

Visited Dorset, South West UK in 2015

Dorset 2015

Dorset (/ˈdɔːrsɪt/ DOR-sitarchaicallyDorsetshire /ˈdɔːrsɪt.ʃɪər, -ʃər/ DOR-sit-sheer-⁠shər) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by Somerset to the north-west, Wiltshire to the north and the north-east, Hampshire to the east, the Isle of Wight across the Solent to the south-east, the English Channel to the south, and Devon to the west. The largest settlement is Bournemouth, and the county town is Dorchester.

Visited South West Wales in 2012

Visited South West Wales in 2012

On Holiday at Higher Menadew Farm Cottages – 21/04/2011 – Swallow’s Nest, Cornwall

Holiday at Higher Menadew Farm Cottages – 21/04/2011 – Swallow’s Nest –  Cornwall
The Eden Project, 2011

Set in the Cornish countryside just north of St Austell Bay the traditional listed barns have been beautifully and carefully converted into comfortable, stylish and superbly equipped holiday cottages and have been nominated for conservation and heritage award.

The outstanding Eden Project is virtually on your doorstep. Beautiful beaches, truly magnificent coastal scenery, and picturesque fishing villages such as Charlestown, Fowey, Mevagissey and Looe are nearby as are many exquisite gardens and country houses including the memorable Lost Gardens of Heligan, the superb Lanhydrock Estate and Pencarrow.

Walking the coastal path, cycling the Camel Trail, golf, fishing, water sports, adventure parks, Bodmin Moor, investigating Cornwall’s ancient Celtic heritage …you will not find yourself short of things to do. Further to this the friendly advice on what to do and see in Cornwall is only a question away.

Or simply unwind … a glass of wine, swim in our indoor heated pool, a good book, unhurried time with friends and family … it’s not hard to see why the guests return again and again…

At Knowle Farm – Rattery – Near Totnes, Devon 2008

At Knowle Farm – Rattery – Near Totnes, Devon 2008

Knowle Farm set in 44 acres of South Devon countryside offers six beautifully converted barns overlooking wonderful farmland views.
The cottages sleep from two to eight plus cots.

‘Woodbine’ sleeps eight plus cots
‘Moncks Green’ sleeps six plus cot
‘Applecross’ sleeps four plus cot
‘Clematis’ sleeps two plus child or cot
‘Foxglove’ sleeps four plus cot
‘Cow-mumble’ sleeps four plus cot
‘Foxglove’ plus ‘Cow-mumble’ combined to sleep 8 plus cots (click for details)

Knowle Farm is rated Four Stars by ‘VisitBritain’ Quality in Tourism

The standard of each of our cottages is excellent, with simple but tasteful décor and furnishings.
We take a real pride in the condition of our cottages and you can be confident that when you arrive and see your home for your holiday stay you will be absolutely delighted (we are featured in the Good Holiday Cottage Guide for 2008).

We have tried to furnish the cottages with just about everything you will need and all include:
Wood burning stove, automatic washing machine and tumble dryer, electric hob and oven, microwave, fridge/freezer, iron, widescreen colour T.V., VCR & DVD player, CD/Radio, wireless internet access, linen, duvets and a stair gate. A booster seat is provided in each cottage and high chairs and cots are available on request (please ask when booking). Some cottages have a dishwasher also (see cottage descriptions). Guests should bring their own towels and where applicable cot bedding. Towels (for use within the cottage only) may be hired – see booking form.

We regret we are unable to take pets.
So that furnishings etc. are kept fresh for everyone there is no smoking within the cottages and indoor facilities.

Knowle Farm is a member of the Green Tourism Business Scheme

Rattery, Nr. Totnes
South Devon
TQ10 9JY

I owned one of these in the early Eighties…

Watched The Open Golf in Hoylake in 2006

Watched The Open Golf in Hoylake in 2006

In Scilly Isles 2003, 2006 & 2016

In Scilly Isles 2003, 2006 & 2016

Attended BIHE 1988 – 1990, Bolton Institute of Higher Education (University of Bolton – 2004)

BIHE, Bolton Institute of Higher Education (University of Bolton – 2004)

(University status attained in April 2004)

Website:    http://www.bolton.ac.uk

Year:         1988 – 1990

Course:     BTEC Higher National Diploma in Computer Studies

Awarded:   DISTINCTION  (overall first over the 2 years)

Operating SystemLanguages / Other

VAX / VMS OPERATING SYSTEM

PASCAL, DBASE3, MS-DOS, SQL, COBOL74, ORACLE, FMS

The HND course I attended at BIHE was a 2-year, full-time course made up of the following modules:

  • Computer Systems Architecture
  • Programming Methodology Theory / Practice (final year project)
  • Data Processing
  • Business Studies
  • Quantitative Techniques
  • System Analysis
  • Business Information Systems Theory / Practice
bihesideaspectview
The old Bolton Institute for Higher Education (BIHE) building

My final year project consisted of an ORACLE SQL-forms designed GUI interface running under an MS-DOS operating system. The GUI interface provided insert, update, delete and transaction rollback facilities for recording information about students attending courses at BIHE, along with their module assignment and exam result details.

The student data was held in an ORACLE SQL database set-up on a PC local to the application. The tables were designed in accordance with Third Normal form (TNF) design methodology in order to cancel out repeating student data. The resulting application catered for both snapshot and historical reports. System analysis work was carried out using SSADM (Structured Systems Analysis and Design Methodology).

1985 to 1988 : Computing at Leigh College (now Wigan and Leigh College)Marshall Street, Leigh, Lancashire, UK. WN7 4HX

Leigh College (now Wigan and Leigh College) pre-2007

1985 to 1988 : Leigh College (now Wigan and Leigh College)
Marshall Street, Leigh, Lancashire, UK. WN7 4HX

2 ‘A’ Levels – Computer Science and Biology

(building below demolished 2007 and now rebuilt at the Leigh Sports Village – 1234 article by Julie McKiernan courtesy of PastForward, produced by Wigan Archives & Museums, Issue No. 97, August – November 2024, Marking 50 years of the borough, Wigan and Leigh’s local history magazine – Address: Past Forward, Archives, Wigan & Leigh, Leigh Town Hall, Mark Street, Leigh, WN7 1DY) 

mark whitfield DSCF0519

My ‘A’ Level Computing Project was developed on a Amstrad PC 1512 and was written in Turbo Pascal. The software provided a means for a local town newspaper to store, track and calculate the money payable to delivery staff based on paper round metrics. These metrics related to size of round, papers delivered and any leaflets attached to a delivery for that week. 

My ‘O’ Level Computing Project was developed on a LINK 480Z Research Machine and was written in Extended BASIC. Three submissions were required with appropriate design and testing. The excerpts here show details of a BASIC program for storing and displaying student exam results.

Japan, Tokyo November 2004

Japan, Tokyo November 2004

Amazfit Balance 2 for golf yardage and score tracking with golf course maps

The Amazfit Balance 2 smartwatch for golf yardage / metres and score tracking with golf course maps. These can be imported from the Amazfit Zepp app on Android. I used it at the weekend and all worked well at the local course in Manchester, UK.

At Bangor University Open Day, 13th April 2025