Shipwrights, Benfleet

Along Benfleet Road, east of Vicarage Hill and opposite the entrance to Shipwrights Drive, lies an interesting property at 241. This house is called “Shipwrights”, …

Vange ROC Post

This Royal Observer Corps post opened in 1958 for the detection of nuclear blasts in the event of the Cold War going hot. The small …

St. Basil the Great Church, Basildon

The church of St. Basil the Great is a largely under-appreciated building. It is a fine yet understated example of mid-century modernist architecture and is …

Southend Queensway

Queensway is a dual carriageway running around the north and east of Southend town centre. It was originally designed as a ring road, with initial …

Timescapes Castle Point Documentary

From 2024 to 2026, Liam Heatherson of Beyond the Point has been working on a heritage project for the Borough of Castle Point; comprising Canvey …

Sadlers Farm A13 Defensive Roadblock

At the junction of the Sadlers Farm roundabout and Tarpots on the A13 road lies a suspected wartime remnant passed by hundreds of people everyday …

South Ockendon Hospital

In February 2024, we visited what remains of South Ockendon Hospital, and were shown around the beautiful recreation hall and other surviving rooms with kind …

State Cinema, Grays

The Esse theatre was constructed in the 1930s – no surprise given its style, and was officially opened on the 5th of September 1938, with …

Bata Shoe Factory & Estate

The Bata shoe factory and estate was built in East Tilbury the 1930s by Czecheslovakian entrepeneur Thomas Bata. It was modelled on the original factory …

East Tilbury Battery

Situated just half a mile away from Coalhouse Fort, East Tilbury Battery, was constructed from 1887-93 and supplemented Coalhouse Fort as part of the Thames’ …

Runwell Hospital

Today, the site of Runwell Hospital is nothing more than rubble, with over 500 homes now on the site, although turn back the clock a …

Coalhouse Fort

Coalhouse Point where the Thames suddenly narrows was home to several defences since 1402, and a D-shaped artillery battery fort stood here from 1539. The …

West Thurrock Pillboxes

Situated along the Thames foreshore, these two pillboxes were built around 1940 as part of a huge scheme to build almost 30,000 pillboxes across the …

Canvey Island Transport Museum

The exterior of the depot in 2025 (top), 2013 (bottom left) and 1990 (bottom right by Frank Whitnell) The Canvey & District Bus Depot was …

Red Sands Seaforts

At the outbreak of World War II, the Port of London was the busiest port in the world. As such, a large proportion of supplies …

Tilbury Fort

Tilbury Fort has been defending London from the threat of invasion for over 500 years. Since the fort was built in 1539, under the rein …

Dunton Plotlands Remains

The plotlands was an area of natural land available for rent/purchase as holiday spots, popular with Londoners who wanted to escape to the countryside. No …

Mulberry Harbour, Thames Estuary

After checking out Southend’s wartime sea-defenses, we then had a look from the seawall at the ‘Mulberry Harbour’ back in 2011, split in half and …

Woodham Ferrers ROC Post

The post in 2013 pre-demolition of the access structure Woodham Ferrers is a small village in south Essex, north of the largely later and more …

Coryton Oil Refinery

The refinery c.2014 (BTP) and 2016 (Slayaaaa) prior to the demolition of its many towers The refinery was built over Coryton village (Kynochtown) and Kynoch’s …

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