Empty.

The photo above - click on it to see a larger view was taken by a reader who prefers to remain anonymous. It shows the interior of the large Morrison's supermarket in Erith on a weekday morning. As is abundantly clear, the store was almost empty of customers. This situation is becoming regular, as it would appear that many formerly loyal shoppers are abandoning the supermarket chain to purchase foodstuffs elsewhere. This and several other photos were sent to me last week, coincidentally with the announcement in several trade publications including The Grocer and The Retail Gazette. Both of these trade organisations have reported that Morrison's have already made sweeping changes across its entire UK store estate, including shutting cafes, market kitchens, convenience stores, florists and selected fresh food counters. They now are apparently preparing to sell off the pharmacy department that exists in many of their larger supermarkets. The pharmacies have been run internally by Morrison's for a very long time. They are now in the process of individually selling off the pharmacy operation to independent chemist shops. The word is that the pharmacy units will still exist within Morrison's supermarkets, but will be owned and run by other businesses. This is another attempt for the supermarket chain to try and reduce its huge level of financial debt. It has been reported that the company has been seeking buyers for dozens of its in-store pharmacies with sites being sold on a branch by branch basis rather than as part of a single portfolio deal. This news coincides with an announcement made that German supermarket chain Aldi plans to invest a record, additional £900 million in building more than 40 new UK supermarkets. Aldi currently has 1,092 stores across the UK and Ireland, and is aiming to increase its estate to 1,500 locations over the long term. This does not bode well for competitors such as Morrison's, who are still doing extremely badly in a very competitive market. Locally I feel that Morrison's will only suffer more in Erith when the forthcoming Lidl supermarket eventually opens in Fraser Road. However, the delay in the demolition of the small retail park currently on the site, and the construction of the new store seems to have been delayed. I know that a number of locals have contacted Lidl to find out why, but have so far been met with silence. Comments and feedback to me at hugh.neal@gmail.com. 

On April the 12th 1884, a powerful earthquake shook an area from Woolwich to as far as Margate. Initially residents thought that one of the armament storage warehouses at Woolwich Royal Arsenal had exploded – as had happened back on Saturday the first of October 1864, when two massive gunpowder stores on the marshes in Lower Belvedere detonated – which was one of the largest non – nuclear explosions in British history - I wrote at length about that incident last week. It was understandable therefore that almost twenty years later, many who experienced the massive explosion would automatically assume that the earthquake was caused by another accident whilst handling explosives. The earthquake was a different beast altogether; the epicentre of the quake was in South Essex, from there the shock waves spread out causing disturbance over an area somewhat in excess of 53,000 square miles. It measured 6.9 on the Richter scale and caused buildings to sway and develop structural cracks, chimneys to collapse, slates to cascade down roofs, and several fires were caused. In North Kent, well away from the epicentre, the effects were still profound. People were understandably terrified – the ground beneath their feet was moving, and great clouds of dust rose into the air. Some people were knocked over, whilst others were sick with fright. Some even wondered if the day of judgement had come, as the motion of the earthquake caused many church bells to ring spontaneously. Eventually the earthquake passed; fortunately there were few serious injuries and no reported deaths. To date the Kent earthquake of 1884 remains one of the most serious geological events to have taken place in England. Let’s hope we are not scheduled for another, as the potential damage both to life and infrastructure would be proportionally worse nowadays – there were few gas mains, almost no electricity cables and certainly no fibre – optic lines for an earthquake to destroy back in 1884 – the same most certainly could not be said of today. Contemporary journalist J.E Taylor wrote of the earthquake:- "At last the people of these islands have been enabled to realise the meaning of the term “earthquake,” so terrible in its significance in many other parts of the globe. On Tuesday morning, at a time variously given from 9.15 to 9.30, a shock which was really alarming and did considerable damage was felt over the Eastern Counties and as far west as London and even Rugby. The centre of disturbance seems to have been at Colchester, and the wave apparently travelled from south-east to north-west, though impressions vary on this point. At Colchester, in addition to the undulations of the earth, subterranean rumblings were heard, buildings rocked to and fro, the streets were strewn with debris of fallen chimneys, a chapel spire was thrown to the ground, and other signs of seismic disturbance were evident, familiar enough to those who have been in countries where such phenomena are common occurrences. The shock, when it was most intense, commenced with a rumbling sound, increasing in intensity for about twenty seconds, and then suddenly stopped. It extended to Chelmsford, Cambridge, Northampton, Ipswich, Sudbury, Rugby, Leicestershire; it included London and the surrounding district in its sweep, and even caused some alarm in the Strand. At Woolwich it was so strong that some persons attributed the shock and noise to the bursting of a heavy gun".

A 104 year old local football club is currently on the verge of bankruptcy. Erith & Belvedere football club was founded in 1922, and for many decades was based in Lower Belvedere. Its ground at the time was located in what is now the B&Q store and Asda Supermarket adjacent to Belvedere Railway Station. The ground was eventually abandoned to to frequent flooding, and a major fire in their club house, and the team relocated to a shared ground with Welling United FC. Erith & Belvedere have been in financial difficulty for some time, and I am led to believe that this came to a head last month. Club chairman Paul Springett said in an interview with the Kent Online news website:- "We were genuinely facing the possibility” of closing its doors for good just over a month ago. Erith & Belvedere remains in a perilous financial position as we continue to deal with legacy debts. These are incredibly difficult times, and running a football club at this level is becoming harder by the day. Just over a month ago, we were genuinely facing the possibility of the club closing its doors for good. A High Court writ had to be paid in full to ensure the club could continue, and although that secured our immediate future, it has put an enormous strain on the club’s finances. It has been a huge struggle. But we are still here. And that is down to the people who continue to believe". Springett praised the management team and players for continuing to support the club despite its financial difficulties. He said: “I feel incredibly fortunate to have a management team and group of players who continue to give everything for this club, with many effectively working for little or nothing because they believe in what we are trying to build. That means more to me than I can put into words Our income is primarily generated through match days and functions. We don’t currently have the benefit of owning our own ground and generating additional revenue from ground hire, youth fixtures and passing trade. Instead, we are paying thousands every month to outside operators while doing everything we can to bring people through the turnstiles. We are fighting to survive while simultaneously trying to build for tomorrow. I am actively looking for partners, sponsors and potential investors who believe in what Erith & Belvedere could become. If you are someone who would like to get involved, support the club or discuss investment, I would genuinely love to hear from you". Thanks to reader Lincoln for bringing this story to my attention. 

In a development that many real ale drinkers will find extremely worrying, the Chairman of the UK's oldest brewery, the Faversham based Shepherd Neame - which was founded in 1698, announced last Wednesday that the brewer was considering some major changes to its business. In an interview with business news website and newspaper City AM, company chair Jonathan Neame said:- "There are three things that we’re grappling with, which is higher logistics costs, declining volume, and in our case, the need to to invest and modernize our plant. We’re not the only ones in the sector facing a squeeze in this respect. But we have to recognize that profitability in this part of the business has been falling for the last few years. We’ve been facing challenges for some time, and, therefore, it’s appropriate to have a much fuller, wider-reaching strategic review.” Neame was asked about the future of brewing in the still family run business. He replied - "Brewing is integral to our identity and, indeed, prosperity, so you can read into that what you want, but I can’t be drawn too far on this. There are major changes by category, as consumers move away from ale to stout, and from standard premium lagers to world lagers and specialist beers, and shifts in route to market. I don’t think that the appetite for going to the pub is diminished anywhere in the country – I think the need for a third place, the need for socializing in that third place, and the key occasions, either after work or Sunday lunch or Friday night, are still very much part of people’s lifestyle, but the cost inflation and impact on the sector, whether it’s driven by regulation, whether it’s driven by inflation, has been very significant, and that is proving difficult for many households to absorb. In London, though, it’s a very different market". There are indications that Shepherd Neame are actively considering their future in brewing, which if they do decide to quit that part of their business, they would follow in the footsteps of fellow historic brewery Youngs, and also Fullers, who both sold their brewing arms to third party companies in order to concentrate on their pub and hospitality businesses. I personally feel that Shepherd Neame would be making a huge mistake if they were also to do this. both Youngs and Fullers have lost credibility and image as a result of becoming nothing more than a logo stuck onto beers brewed by a third party contract producer - quite often made with inferior - and thus cheaper - ingredients. Your opinion of course may well vary. 

The end video this week is the view through the front window of a new B23 stock driverless train on the Docklands Light Railway (DLR). It shows the journey between Stratford International and its terminus at Woolwich Arsenal DLR station. Comments and feedback to me at hugh.neal@gmail.com.