The continuing row about the future of the IMAX cinema building on Bournemouth seafront will be featured on BBC1’s Inside Out programme to be shown in the South on Monday 6 March. A recent Channel 4 programme branded the building as one of the ugliest in Britain. Meanwhile the nearby pier is to undergo a £1m makeover over the next five years by Openwide International Ltd which has a 25 year lease on the kiosks, theatre and cafe.
Plans have been approved by the National Trust to erect a Portland stone monument near Old Harry Rocks marking the eastern end of the World Heritage Site Jurassic Coast.
The western boundary is at Orcombe Rocks, near Exmouth in East Devon where there is already a monument called the Geoneedle, unveiled by the Prince of Wales in 2002.
The new obelisk would be set back from the cliff-top so it does not become a focal point in the landscape or interfere with views.
Richard Raynsford, speaking for Dorset Council, said: “The idea is to inset in to the obelisk samples of all the various rocks that occur along the heritage coast. At the top there will be stainless steel. The base will have cardinal points engraved on it. Also other World Heritage Sites will be named on it.”
A spokesman for The National Trust said: “The National Trust has agreed in principle to the siting of a marker for the eastern end of the Jurassic Coast to be on its land at Studland. We will be looking at the published plans for the design and feeding into the consultation process before March 8.”
Unesco granted the coastline World Heritage status in 2001 giving this stretch of British coastline has the same protected status as Australia’s Great Barrier Reef.
Lecturer and expedition leader Russell Thompson of Swanage filled three plastic rubbish bags with discarded dog mess bags, cans and wrappers on one winter day when walking the coast path leading out of the town. He is calling on Purbeck District Council to take a more proactive stance to prevent the eyesores.
A female, who became stuck knee deep in the sand on the beach at Chewton Bunny, used her mobile phone to call the emergency services. Ambulance and fire service crews found her suffering from cold.
Highcliffe Castle has been voted the top visitor attraction by tourists to the Bournemouth area. The Bournecoast Award comes just weeks after the it was announced that an application for Lottery funding for further restoration work had been unsuccessful. Accepting the award, manager David Hopkins said: “We are absolutely delighted. It proves that the work we’re doing at the castle is appreciated by a wide variety of visitors.” The coast path runs through the grounds.
Nationwide press coverage of the the couple queuing for a beach hut during the Christmas holiday showed Avon Beach near Mudeford looking attractive in the winter sun. The beach, although accessible, is in private ownership and the coveted 80 huts cost £700 a year to lease from Easter to September.
The Solent Way now runs even closer to the coast between Keyhaven and Lymington. Just after passing in front of Creek Cottage at Moses Dock, the path joins a lane to run through a tunnel of trees. But where the way becomes metalled the Solent Way now turns right. There is a new kissing gate. Follow the path and at a junction go left to walk along the high bank dividing Eight Acre Pond from the sea. At the far end keep forward. The old route described in the guide is still valid but the new route is an improvement as it avoids contact with car traffic. See Walk 7 pages 81 and 82.
The IMAX cinema building next to Bournemouth Pier has been voted the second ugliest in Britain. The new edition of the Bournemouth Coast Path guide had to drop the drawing of the town’s seafront entrance because the low rise swimming bath building had been replaced by the controversial cinema which blocks the view. The IMAX, which has now closed, was voted into second place by angry television viewers in a nationwide poll run by the Channel 4 programme Demolition. Former Ramblers’ Association President Janet Street-Porter, who expressed her horror at the building’s design and location, interviewed the former Council Leader who backed the planning application a decade ago. The coast path runs past the southern side of the hated building.
The Crow’s Nest cafe, above Chewton Bunny and at the end of Highcliffe, was destroyed by fire in 1990. Now yet another design for the replacement is to be considered. The new plan, by architect Darren Crain, would replace the existing toilets with new facilities and provide indoor and outdoor seating for diners. At present the only refreshment at this spot is ice cream from an occasional van.