Mersey rails

Being half-Scouse i've always enjoy visiting Liverpool though in recent years have not been as much as i'd like... and should. Last Saturday i headed up there again though instead of Liverpool itself i spent most of my time on the Wirral visiting places like New Brighton. The main reason was to travel on Merseyrail's third-rail DC network and their fleet of BR era Class 507 and 508 EMUs. Planning for their replacement has begun so i thought it was time i took some photos of them (though they probably won't be replaced for a good few years yet).

New Brighton was enjoyable too, a great seaside resort though of course a bit bleak in February, a return in the Summer would be a good idea. You can see my Mersey rails photos here.

Planet

Planet was the UK's last manned lightship having served in Liverpool and later in the Channel Islands. The ship was built and launched in Liverpool in 1960 and served as the Mersey Bar lightship until 1972. After leaving BAR station Planet was sold to Trinity House and headed south serving until 1989 at CHANNEL station. Planet was then sold and has been restored to its original condition, arriving at its current berth at Liverpool's Albert Docks in 2006. Planet is now open to the public as a cafe and a museum.

Lightships are ships which act as lighthouses of course. They were used where the waters were too deep or conditions were unsuitable for building a permanent lighthouse. Most lightships have been replaced by permanent structures or buoys nowadays but there are still a number of unmanned lightships around British waters.

The Beehive, Liverpool

The Beehive pub in Liverpool, or one of them at least.

White Star, Liverpool

The Friday pub photo.

Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral

Liverpool's catholic cathedral, the Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral (or Metropolitan Cathedral of Christ the King) built in the 1960s.