I was just reading Mark Page’s excellent Manchester Photography blog and spotted OldSalford.co.uk, a new photo archive site.

It exists ‘to store memories and photographs of the past and present from Salford and the surrounding areas’ (Eccles, Worseley, Pendlebury, Swinton and Bolton) – including the one above, of Broughton Suspension Bridge, which was built in 1888 and lasted until 1914.

There are dozens of photos and captions already on the site but there’s also an appeal for more, and in particular those on the ‘most wanted’ list:

• Harry Ramsdens, off Regent Road – Now demolished
• Old NatWest Bank, Broad Street – Now Security Office
• Old Salford Crescent Police Station – Before boarding up
• Old Swinton Police Station – Now demolished
• Old Salford Market / Precinct
• Langworthy Road – before current upgrading
• Yates’s Swinton Precinct – before its closure

Contact them or post on their forum if you’ve got something to share or are looking for specific images.

If you’re up for a big weekend a fortnight from now, why not combine the aforementioned Chorlton Beer Festival with Summer in the Park, which takes place at Platt Fields Park in Fallowfield on 12 and 13 July.

From the team behind the excellent Manchester Food and Drink Festival, this two-day event promises ‘food. music. drink’ – and looks far superior to the Feast! event that took place at Platt Fields Park a couple of weeks ago. Whereas that event was free, Summer in the Park costs £9.50 (one day) or £17 (weekend pass)… but you get plenty for your money:

• Dine in the Park – Try and buy from some of Manchester’s best restaurants
• Drink in the Park – A chance to sample and purchase a stunning selection of wines, champagnes continental beers and Greater Manchester ales
• Producers in the Park – Meet some of the regions best producers and sample the delights of local produce
• Play in the Park – Something for the kids… Play in the Park will create a haven for the little ones. From a baby disco to fruit kebab making, Play in the Park has it covered. Plus kids under 11 come for FREE
• Learn in the Park – Pick up some useful cooking tips from some of the best chefs as they let you into their culinary secrets
• Tea in the Park – A dedicated home for the finest and most diverse, teas, coffees, juices, smoothies, cakes and biscuits that Manchester has to offer
• Music in the Park – What better accompaniment could there be for a festival of food and drink than festival of live music on the main stage, compiling some of Manchester’s favourite artists
• Feast in the Park – As evening draws in, the inimitable Robert Owen Brown will be hosting a traditional feast in the park, featuring a huge ox-roast and seasonal vegetables. The communal banquet will kick off at tea time for those who haven’t already filled up during the day, rounding off a perfect day in the park..

Making a change for events of this type, the musical lineup is actually pretty good, with I am Kloot, the Earlies, the Travelling Band, It’s a Buffalo, Bone-Box, the Bottomfeeders, Mr Scruff, Magic Arm and Cranebuilders among the bands I’d happily pay to see.

I’m also looking forward to trying samples from the following Manchester restaurants, budget permitting: Chaophraya, The Market Restaurant, Carluccio’s, Malmaison Brasserie, Ning, Northern Quarter Restaurant, Brasserie Chez Gerard, Grado, Marmalade and Evuna.

And, drinks-wise, Odd Bar is supplying 30 wines from around the world while 20 local brewers – including Banktop, Marble, Prospect, Allgates, Hornbeam, Leyden, Fallens, Owl, Phoenix and Millstone – will be keeping me content.

All in all, it sounds like a great weekend out. Now if only the weather is obliging…

I’ve touched on psychogeography here a few times before and, what with it getting mainstream coverage of late, it’s convenient that Manchester is currently hosting not one but two psychogeography festivals.

Territories Reimagined: International Perspectives, or TRIP for short, runs from Thursday 19 June until Saturday (and beyond) and takes advantage of some of the city’s most recognisable locations, both indoors and out, including…

Thursday, 2pm, the MMU John Dalton Building lobby: Identikit Manchester – Mark Rainey leads a walk themed around corporate chain stores.

Friday, 2pm, outside JD’s Refectory at the MMU John Dalton Building: Bury That Dog – A walk around haunted Manchester with Peter Portland.

Saturday, 3pm, at Whitworth Park: Frank Kickball Jesus presents a psychogeographical ball game – US v UK psychogeographers.

Saturday, 8pm, upstairs at the Britons Protection: A Psychogeographic Cabaret – featuring performance poetry with soundscape and field recordings, plus short films, surprise guests and random acts of subversive joy.

Sunday, 2pm, Café Pop on Oldham Street: Postcards from Nowhere – a wander addressing issues of surveillance and CCTV; all participants will receive a unique piece of GPS art by Max Livesey.

There are also art exhibitions at the Royal Exchange, Nexus Cafe and the Zion Centre, and this is just a small selection of the festival events. Here’s the PDF flyer and visit their homepage for late additions – or read the MEN and Metro previews for their recommendations.

TRIP is also running alongside Manchester’s own psychogeography festival, Get Lost, which is organised by the Loiterers Resistance Movement – visit their site for more information on that.

As an aside, it’s good to see the festival using WordPress.com blogging platform for its homepage. Looks much better than your standard Blogger.com site, doesn’t it?

The reason for my current blogging lapse isn’t anywhere near as good as Manchizzle’s – but it’s good to know that Mancubist can tick over in my extended absence:

• The Guardian Exchange tunnels continue to generate interest and speculative comments galore
• Urbis now runs a ‘60s Magical Music Tour‘ (wrong city, surely?) on alternate Saturdays, hosted by Brian Allen and finishing up at Twisted Wheel on Whitworth Street. It’s booked up til mid-May, so they must be doing something right
• Manchester has a new record label, Concrete Moniker – and its launch party is on Tuesday 4 March at Common bar on Edge Street. Any label with the Splice Girls on its roster is worth investigating, if you ask me…
• And, finally, one via email: ‘The first issue of if p then q magazine is out in March and the first book, in the if p then q classics series by Tom Jenks, in April. Also keep your eyes peeled for readings and happenings in Manchester. if p then q is keen to talk. We welcome all sorts of experimental submissions of poetry: see the guidelines on the website for more.’

Normal service will be resumed when I’m working less than 50 hours per week again.