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Edgbaston Reservoir
Edgbaston Reservoir, originally known as Rotton Park Reservoir and referred to in some early maps as Rock Pool Reservoir, is a canal feeder reservoir in Birmingham, England, maintained by the Canal & River Trust.Environment Agency public register of Large Raised Reservoirs, as at 2 November 2020, via It is situated close to Birmingham City Centre and is a Site of Importance for Nature Conservation. History Originally a small pool named Roach Pool in Rotton Park, it was extensively enlarged by Thomas Telford between 1824–1829 to supply water to the Birmingham and Wolverhampton Levels of the Birmingham Canal Navigations (BCN) canal system via Icknield Port Loop at the foot of the dam. It was excavated to a depth of 40 feet (12 metres) and covers an area of , holding of water, and was the largest expanse of water in Birmingham at the time. It is supplied by small streams and a feeder from Titford Reservoir (Titford Pools) in Oldbury. It was formed by damming a small stream. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Edgbaston
Edgbaston () is an affluent suburban area of central Birmingham, England, historically in Warwickshire, and curved around the southwest of the city centre. In the 19th century, the area was under the control of the Gough-Calthorpe family and the Gillott family who refused to allow factories or warehouses to be built in Edgbaston, thus making it attractive for the wealthier residents of the city. It then came to be known as "where the trees begin". One of these private houses is grade one listed and open to the public. The majority of Edgbaston that falls under the B15 postcode finds itself being part of the Calthorpe Estate. The estate is an active conservation area, and it is here that the areas most prized properties are situated. The exclusivity of Edgbaston is down to its array of multi-million listed Georgian and Victorian villas, making it one of the most expensive postcodes outside of London. Edgbaston boasts facilities such as Edgbaston Cricket Ground, a Test mat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Charles Blondin
Charles Blondin (born Jean François Gravelet, 28 February 182422 February 1897) was a French tightrope walker and acrobat. He toured the United States and was known for crossing the Niagara Gorge on a tightrope. During an event in Dublin in 1860, the rope on which he was walking broke and two workers were killed, although Blondin was not injured. He married three times and had eight children. His name became synonymous with tightrope walking. Early life Blondin was born on 28 February 1824 in Hesdin, Pas-de-Calais, France.''Irish Times'', Dublin, 25 May 1861 His birth name was Jean-François Gravelet, though he was known by many other names and nicknames: Charles Blondin, Jean-François Blondin, Chevalier Blondin, and The Great Blondin. At the age of five, he was sent to the École de Gymnase in Lyon and, after six months of training as an acrobat, made his first public appearance as "The Boy Wonder". His superior skill and grace, as well as the originality of the settings ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sport Rowing
Rowing, sometimes called crew in the United States, is the sport of racing boats using oars. It differs from paddling sports in that rowing oars are attached to the boat using oarlocks, while paddles are not connected to the boat. Rowing is divided into two disciplines: sculling and sweep rowing. In sculling, each rower holds two oars—one in each hand, while in sweep rowing each rower holds one oar with both hands. There are several boat classes in which athletes may compete, ranging from single sculls, occupied by one person, to shells with eight rowers and a coxswain, called eights. There are a wide variety of course types and formats of racing, but most elite and championship level racing is conducted on calm water courses long with several lanes marked using buoys. Modern rowing as a competitive sport can be traced to the early 17th century when professional watermen held races (regattas) on the River Thames in London, England. Often prizes were offered by the London Gu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kayaking
Kayaking is the use of a kayak for moving over water. It is distinguished from canoeing by the sitting position of the paddler and the number of blades on the paddle. A kayak is a low-to-the-water, canoe-like boat in which the paddler sits facing forward, legs in front, using a double-bladed paddle to pull front-to-back on one side and then the other in rotation. Most kayaks have closed decks, although sit-on-top and inflatable kayaks are growing in popularity as well. History Kayaks were created thousands of years ago by the Inuit, formerly known as Eskimos, of the northern Arctic regions. They used driftwood and sometimes the skeleton of whale, to construct the frame of the kayak, and animal skin, particularly seal skin was used to create the body. The main purpose for creating the kayak, which literally translates to "hunter's boat" was for hunting and fishing. The kayak's stealth capabilities allowed for the hunter to sneak up behind animals on the shoreline and successf ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Canoeing
Canoeing is an activity which involves paddling a canoe with a single-bladed paddle. Common meanings of the term are limited to when the canoeing is the central purpose of the activity. Broader meanings include when it is combined with other activities such as canoe camping, or where canoeing is merely a transportation method used to accomplish other activities. Most present-day canoeing is done as or as a part of a sport or recreational activity. In some parts of Europe canoeing refers to both canoeing and kayaking, with a canoe being called an ''open canoe''. A few of the recreational forms of canoeing are canoe camping and canoe racing. Other forms include a wide range of canoeing on lakes, rivers, oceans, ponds and streams. History of organized recreational canoeing Canoeing is an ancient mode of transportation. Modern recreational canoeing was established in the late 19th century. In 1924, canoeing associations from Austria, Germany, Denmark and Sweden founded the ''I ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Windsurfing
Windsurfing is a wind propelled water sport that is a combination of sailing and surfing. It is also referred to as "sailboarding" and "boardsailing", and emerged in the late 1960s from the aerospace and surf culture of California. Windsurfing gained a popular following across Europe and North America by the late 1970s and had achieved significant global popularity by the 1980s. Windsurfing became an olympic sport in 1984. Newer variants include windfoiling, kiteboarding and wingfoiling. Hydrofoil fins under the board allow the boards to safely lift out of the water and fly silently and smoothly above the surface even in lighter winds. Windsurfing is a recreational, family friendly sport, most popular at flat water locations around the world that offer safety and accessibility for beginner and intermediate participants. Technique and equipment have evolved over the years Major competitive disciplines include slalom, wave and freestyle. Increasingly, "foiling" is replacing trad ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dinghy Sailing
Dinghy sailing is the activity of sailing small boats by using five essential controls: * the sails * the foils (i.e. the daggerboard or centreboard and rudder and sometimes lifting foils as found on the Moth) * the trim (forward/rear angle of the boat in the water) * side-to-side balance of the dinghy by hiking or movement of the crew, particularly in windy weather ("move fast or swim") * the choice of route (in terms of existing and anticipated wind shifts, possible obstacles, other water traffic, currents, tides etc.) When racing, the above skills need to be refined and additional skills and techniques learned, such as the application of the "racing rules of sailing", boat handling skills when starting and when rounding marks, and knowledge of tactics and strategy. Racing tactics include positioning the boat at different angles. To improve speed when racing, sailors should position themselves at the windward direction (closest to the direction of the wind) in order to get " ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Angling
Angling is a fishing technique that uses a fish hook or "angle" (from Old English ''angol'') attached to a fishing line to tether individual fish in the mouth. The fishing line is usually manipulated via a fishing rod, although rodless techniques such as handlining and longlining also exist. Modern angling rods are usually fitted with a reel that functions as a cranking device for storing, retrieving and releasing out the line, although Tenkara fishing and cane pole fishing are two rod-angling methods that do not use any reel. The hook itself can be additionally weighted with a dense tackle called a sinker, and is typically dressed with an appetizing bait to attract the fish and enticing it into swallowing the hook, but sometimes an inedible fake bait with multiple attached hooks (known as a lure) is used instead of a single hook with edible bait. A bite indicator, such as a float or a quiver tip, is often used to relay underwater status of the hook to the surface. When ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Blondin Sculpture Ladywood
Charles Blondin (born Jean François Gravelet, 28 February 182422 February 1897) was a French tightrope walker and acrobat. He toured the United States and was known for crossing the Niagara Gorge on a tightrope. During an event in Dublin in 1860, the rope on which he was walking broke and two workers were killed, although Blondin was not injured. He married three times and had eight children. His name became synonymous with tightrope walking. Early life Blondin was born on 28 February 1824 in Hesdin, Pas-de-Calais, France.''Irish Times'', Dublin, 25 May 1861 His birth name was Jean-François Gravelet, though he was known by many other names and nicknames: Charles Blondin, Jean-François Blondin, Chevalier Blondin, and The Great Blondin. At the age of five, he was sent to the École de Gymnase in Lyon and, after six months of training as an acrobat, made his first public appearance as "The Boy Wonder". His superior skill and grace, as well as the originality of the settings ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lady Macbeth Of The Mtsensk District (opera)
''Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk'' (russian: Леди Макбет Мценского уезда, translit=Ledi Makbet Mtsenskogo uyezda, link=no, translation=Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District) is an opera in four acts and nine scenes by Dmitri Shostakovich, his Opus 29. The libretto, jointly written by Alexander Preys and the composer, is based on the novella ''Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District'' by Nikolai Leskov. Dedicated by Shostakovich to his first wife, physicist Nina Varzar, the roughly 160-minute opera was first performed on 22 January 1934 at the Leningrad Maly Operny, and two days later in Moscow. It incorporates elements of expressionism and verismo, telling the story of a lonely woman in 19th-century Russia who falls in love with one of her husband's workers and is driven to murder. Performance history Despite early success on popular and official levels, ''Lady Macbeth'' became the vehicle for a general denunciation of Shostakovich's music by the Communist ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Birmingham Opera Company
Birmingham Opera Company is a professional opera company based in Birmingham, England, that specialises in innovative and avant-garde productions of the operatic repertoire, often in unusual venues. History The company was founded by leading international opera director Graham Vick and conductor Simon Halsey as City of Birmingham Touring Opera in 1987, acquiring its current name in 2001. CBTO's public debut came in September 1987 with the production of ''Falstaff'' at the Cocks Moors Woods Leisure Centre in Brandwood. In 1989 City of Birmingham Touring Opera commissioned and performed Ravi Shankar's work of musical theatre ''Ghanashyam (A Broken Branch)'', which won the company's first Prudential Award for Arts; the 1990 production of Richard Wagner's ''Ring Saga'', adapted for performance over two nights and with a reduced orchestra of eighteen musicians, won the second. Birmingham Opera Company has also won the Royal Philharmonic Society Award for Music for its 2001 produc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tower Ballroom (Birmingham)
The Tower Ballroom was an attraction in Birmingham, West Midlands, England, which opened to the public in March 1876 and closed permanently in 2017. It is located beside Edgbaston Reservoir. Across its history, The Tower Ballroom hosted a wide variety of events, including roller-skating and ice-skating, dancing, discos, weddings, boxing matches, theatre, and musical performances including The Smiths and New Order. Background Beginning in 1824, Thomas Telford significantly enlarged Roach Pool in order to maintain a constant water supply to the West Midlands’ new canals, creating Edgbaston Reservoir. The reservoir was initially located in open land, but from 1850 onwards the surrounding area became increasingly urbanized, first to the south and east. The creation of the Harborne Railway in 1874 largely cut off the reservoir from the fields to the north. In 1870, the canal company leased 62 acres of land around the reservoir to William Wyatt, a boatbuilder from Oxfordshire, who c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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