22 October 2016: The #LyricTheatreFitzroy in its last days hosting the #roneempty show. The building opened sat 4 Nov. 1911, making it the oldest intact purpose built cinema interior left in Melbourne I think. These firstgen cinemas were simple flat floored halls, to pack them in, often on benches (2500 in this case) to watch … Continue reading Lyric Theatre, doomed →

21 October 2024 Are these Melbourne’s narrowest terrace houses ? This pair is in the very short Henry Street, nos 9 + 11, near Johnston & Nicholson, and they’re just 3.2m wide internally. They’re around the corner from where I used to live and I took pic 2 in 2013; obviously abandoned for ages. Then … Continue reading Pretty small terraces →

21 October 2024 A floating priest in the brickwork ! Or Christ ? The 1972 parish hall of St Luke’s Anglican in Dorcas Street, South Melbourne. Doing figures in brick isn’t something I’ve seen in Melbourne before, but have seen it in maybe Eastern Bloc places, but there it would be Lenin. Designed by Bridge … Continue reading Picture in brick →

20 October 2024 An idle half hour seeing if Leonardo AI could make a convincing historic Melbourne street scene - the answer is no, but there’s some fun results ! The first three use a shot of the Rialto group as a prompt (pic 4), good buildings but too many spire tower things. The nest … Continue reading AI Melbourne →

19 October 2024 Cranlana, the Myer family estate in Clendon Road, is for sale. It was developed in stages, and the garden is widely thought to be one of best in Melbourne, if you like the formal Italianate style. The house itself is quite modest really, and dates from 1903. Sidney Myer bought it in … Continue reading Cranlana →

19 October 2024 Ex-pub, corner Kerr and Fitzroy Streets, Fitzroy. It was once the West of England Hotel c1864 but maybe rebuilt later, closed late 1920s. Corner door filled in, and probably had little attic rooms where those filled in square things are. Photos 2015 when it was Caprice panel beaters, owned by ‘slum landlord’ … Continue reading Smashed →

18 October 2024 A crazy bit of facadism from 2013; this is the back of 73 Bourke Street, now Marias. Looks better than just keeping the front wall and a bit of side wall, but it’s a weird interpretation of ‘no interior controls’. Even more weirdly, there’s a big blank wall there now, and the … Continue reading Odd facadism →

17 October 2024 Repost 2013: Leitrim Hotel, 130 Little Lonsdale Street, built #1888, architect Henry Tolhurst. Funny little skinny building not at all like your usual pub. That’s probably because it’s in the once notorious #LittleLon area of the city, and only a few doors from another pub. It was all late night drinking, women … Continue reading Little Lon pub →

14 October 2024 Charming Old English cottage style house in Southward Ave, Port Melbourne, which is part of the first State Government housing project in Victoria, and not only that, they’re all designed by the great Percy Everett - thanks to @other_peopleshomes for alerting me to this ! It’s one of Everett’s earliest projects, designed … Continue reading Public Housing, Port Melbourne →

13 October 2024 This looks to me like a 1920s German Bauhaus or Russian Constructivist sanatorium or institute, but once stood - in Heidelberg ! A late work by Public Works Chief Architect Percy Everett, Heidelburg High School was designed 1951, and completed in 1955. I guess it was just concrete and timber framed windows, … Continue reading Heidelberg High School →