In the company of the Manchester Bees ..... no. 4 inside the Ref with a thank you to Ron

Now as you would expect, the Bees have proved very popular so here are some taken by my old friend Ron in Central Ref.

Location; Central Ref
















Picture; Manchester Bee, Central Ref, 2018, from the collection of Ron Stubley

Where are the bees of yesteryear ………………..?

Now, back in the summer of 2018, the city was full of bees, which became both a tourist attraction and ultimately raised money for charity.

And the blog joined in the fun, running 21 stories, featuring countless pictures of bees many of which were contributed by friends and others.

Nor was it just the city, because as bees do, many settled in Salford and even further afield.

All of which made me decide to run a few of those stories again during the lockdown.

The first few went out last week and I was tempted to post just one more, but then after a series of responses to the one I posted earlier today I think there is a new series in the offering.

Ken Grainger had  commented  “It was great fun doing the Bee trail. We went from the Whitworth to Angel Meadow and all Bees in between. Would be great if they could reposition them all again across Manchester after this crisis is over, that would be a huge fillip for Mancunians and visitors”.

To which Paul Sherlock had added,  "I imagine that would be difficult, Ken because they were auctioned off, so many of them now belong to different people. 

At the time I photographed every one of them It would be interesting to see how many of them I could find again, wherever they are. 

There are still some in very obvious places, including a few that are back where they were at the time but others must be hidden away. Sometimes I've spotted items from similar events, including cows and benches”.

And, yes Paul is dead right, ….. the follow up series will focus on what happened to the bees, which will require people who acquired one to follow Paul’s advice and post a picture of the new location with a few words.

So that is it.

I was going to leave this one till tomorrow …. But I won’t.

You can send them via social media to me on my facebook or twitter site or leave a message for me to contact you.

Location, Manchester

Picture; Manchester Bee in New Cathedral Street, 2018, from the collection of Andrew Simpson

In the company of the Manchester Bees ..... no. 3 St Peter's Square

Now they are in no particular order, although for those who want to know I walked from Exchange Square down to Castlefield.

I missed the one in Piccadilly and Salford Quays and I believe there is one outside Didsbury Library and more across Greater Manchester, so in that great tradition of cigarette and tea cards, I will do swoppies.

In the meantime I will post all I have.

Location; St Peters Square








Picture; Manchester Bee, St Peters Square, 2018, from the collection of Andrew Simpson

In the company of the Manchester Bees ..... no. 2 Albert Square

Now they are in no particular order, although for those who want to know I walked from Exchange Square down to Castlefield.

I missed the one in Piccadilly and Salford Quays and I believe there is one outside Didsbury Library and more across Greater Manchester, so in that great tradition of cigarette and tea cards, I will do swoppies.

In the meantime I will post all I have.

Location; New Cathedral Street









Picture; Manchester Bee, Albert Square, 2018, from the collection of Andrew Simpson

In the company of the Manchester Bees ..... no. 1 New Cathedral Street

Now they are in no particular order, although for those who want to know I walked from Exchange Square down to Castlefield.

I missed the one in Piccadilly and Salford Quays and I believe there is one outside Didsbury Library and more across Greater Manchester, so in that great tradition of cigarette and tea cards, I will do swoppies.

In the meantime I will post al I have.

Location; New Cathedral Street








Picture; Manchester Bee in New Cathedral Street, 2018, from the collection of Andrew Simpson

Walking the city in the company of those Bees

Now I didn’t start out to photograph the bee installations ...... it just happened.

And as I went from Exchange Square gown to Deansgate, other people were doing the same, except they had come prepared with maps showing the locations which left me at a disadvantage.

Still I got a fair few, and over the next week and bit I will share them.

For now, here are four to sample, taken in Exchange Square, St Ann’s Square, Albert Square and St Peter’s Square.

Location; Manchester

Pictures, the bees in Manchester, 2018, from the collection of Andrew Simpson

In the company of the Salford Bees ..... no.2 in the Lowry

Now I am the first to admit that Manchester isn't the only city to have bees.  

Salford also has them on their coat  of arms.

So here are some more of Ron's bees from the Upper Mall of the Lowry ..... more to follow.

Location;Salford













Pictures; Salford Bees, 2018 from the collection of Ron Stubley

The Didsbury Bee …… with fond memories of all the others

Now I wonder just how many Manchester Bees are now left across the City.

Back in 2018 they appeared almost everywhere, crossing the border into Salford, became a tourist attraction and raised lots of money for charity.

The blog did its fair share of telling their stories, some were ones I had collected but others were photographed by friends.*

And here are back in Didsbury with the bee first spotted by David Harrop.

Location; Didsbury

Picture; the Didsbury Bee, 2020, from the collection of Andrew Simpson

*Manchester Bees, https://chorltonhistory.blogspot.com/search/label/Manchester%20Bees

In the company of the Manchester Bees ..... no.22 ..... The Inscape 3

Now, just a few months ago the Manchester Bees were a tourist attraction.

Lady Buzzington

They were visited, photographed and written about and during the summer I regularly featured them on the blog, and then they were gone.*

But not quite, because here are three I missed, courtesy of the archivist of the Together Trust who alerted me to the final resting place of three bees.

These are Lady Buzzington, Let there bee love and Robot battle bee, which are now in the offices of the Together Trust in Cheadle.**

The design and names of the bees were created and voted for by students from Inscape House School which is a non-maintained day special school in Cheadle, Cheshire,  meeting  the needs of children and young people aged five to 19 years with autism spectrum conditions and related social communication difficulties. ***

Let there bee love

At which point I shall just quote what the school has said about each bee.

"Lady Buzzington was painted at Inscape's 25-year anniversary party this May, with each hexagon on the bee decorated by past and present students and staff. 

The multicoloured design of the bee reflects the diverse nature of autism and its glorious variety of outcomes.

Let there bee love was inspired by a song with the same name from Manchester band Oasis. 

Many of the young people at Inscape are nature lovers, so they designed their bee covered with flowers. 

Robot battle bee

Its design also represents peace, love and unity and the colourful and diverse nature of the many children who painted it.

Robot battle bee's unique design is partly realistic and partly robotic, with a steampunk edge. 

Its design reflects Manchester's industrial and worker-bee heritage, with cogs, wheels and Victorian machinery hidden amongst its design"..

And that is it.

Location; Together Trust, Cheadle

Pictures; three bees courtesy of the Together Trust

*Manchester Bees, https://chorltonhistory.blogspot.com/2018/08/in-company-of-manchester-bees-no21.html

**Together Trust, https://www.togethertrust.org.uk/

***Inscape House School, https://www.togethertrust.org.uk/special-education/inscape-house-school

In the company of the Manchester Bees ..... no.21 ..... The Queen Bee

Now it never occurred to me that amongst all our Manchester Bees there would be the Queen Bee.

This is it, in the Royal Exchange Arcade.

Location; the Royal Exchange Arcade














Picture; the Queen Bee, the Royal Exchange Arcade 2018, from the collection of Andrew Simpson

In the company of the Manchester Bees ..... no.20 ..... with the swarm at the Corn Exchange

There will be many who have fond memories of the Corn Exchange when it was just that.

Others who will talk fondly of the quirky stalls that inhabited it before it became a designer outlet with that futuristic cafe tn the centre of the hall.

And now it has reinvented itself as a collection of very interesting restaurants, which is where we were recently admiring the Manchester Bees.

Location; The Corn Exchange




Picture; the Corn Exchange Bees 3, 2018, from the collection of Andrew Simpson

In the company of the Manchester Bees ..... no.19 ..... still in the Corn Exchange

There will be many who have fond memories of the Corn Exchange when it was just that.

Others who will talk fondly of the quirky stalls that inhabited it before it became a designer outlet with that futuristic cafe tn the centre of the hall.

And now it has reinvented itself as a collection of very interesting restaurants, which is where we were recently admiring the Manchester Bees.

Location; The Corn Exchange








Picture; the Corn Exchange Bee 2, 2018, from the collection of Andrew Simpson

In the company of the Manchester Bees ..... no.18 ..... in the Corn Exchange

There will be many who have fond memories of the Corn Exchange when it was just that.

Others who will talk fondly of the quirky stalls that inhabited it before it became a designer outlet with that futuristic cafe tn the centre of the hall.

And now it has reinvented itself as a collection of very interesting restaurants, which is where we were recently admiring the Manchester Bees.

Location; The Corn Exchange








Picture; the Corn Exchange Bee 1, 2018, from the collection of Andrew Simpson

In the company of the Manchester Bees ..... no.17 ..... Cathedral Gardens

Location; Cathedral Gardens










Picture; the Manchester Bee in Cathedral Cardens, 2018, from the collection of Ron Stubley

In the company of the Manchester Bees ..... no.18 ..... on Liverpool Road

Now, the one slight hiccup with photographing the Manchester Bees, is that everyone else has the same aim.

And that can mean strangers are captured in the image.

No matter a small, its a small price to pay to share the bees.

Location; Liverpool Road










Pictures; the Liverpool Road, Manchester Bee, 2018, from the collection of Andrew Simpson

In the company of the Manchester Bees ..... no.17 back in Exchange Square

From Ron.

Now there are two in Exchange Square, and when I was passing one was painted all yellow, and this one I miss

Location; Exchange Square





Picture, the Exhange Square Bee, 2018, from the collection of Ron Stubley

In the company of the Manchester Bees ..... no.16 ....... Wythenshawe

From Sandra.

Location; Wythenshawe Hospital















Picture the Wythenshawe Hospital Bee, 2018, from the collection of Sandra Hopgood

In the company of the Manchester Bees ..... no.16 ..... by Duke Street

It's the one behind the old St Matthew's Sunday School.

I nearly missed, but caught a glimpse from Liverpool Road

Location; Duke Street













Pictures; the Duke Street Manchester Bee, 2018, from the collection of Andrew Simpson

In the company of the Manchester Bees ..... no.14 ..... the swarm in the Cathedral

Now when Ron shared his cathedral bees with me, I have to say I was overwhelmed.

In sending over the images he added "there is a swarm of bees in the Cathedral".

And here are the first two in the series.

Over the next few weeks we will return to the Cathedral Bees, mixing and matching with others across the City.

Location; Manchester Cathedral

Pictures; the Cathedral bees, 2018 from the collection of Ron Stubley 

In the company of the Manchester Bees ..... no.13 opposite the Midland Hotel

Now I have tried to move away from the bees but with no luck.

This one is opposite the Midland Hotel.

Location; Opposite the Midland Hotel

Pictures; Manchester Bee; Peters Street, 2018, from the collection of Andrew Simpson