Uni: A Return to Plymouth Polytechnic, Devon - 17th Februry 2025

It's been a surprisingly long time since the last trip to actual Plymouth - despite having been to Chagford and Spreyton many times in between. In the nine years since the last trip the city centre remains broadly unchanged, although the Civic Centre is looking decidedly more derelict and House of Fraser could do with a clean. The University of Plymouth (formerly Plymouth Polytechnic) campus however is a different matter as it's been around 20 years since the last proper look around, and for the first time it's become more-or-less impossible to do anything like a "before and after" session as many buildings have gone or have been redeveloped beyond recognition. It's a bit unsettling in some ways, but is at least a measure that the university is still "happening". After dragging Harry around the campus for a bit, we retire to Drake Circus for a bit of sushi, then drive back across Dartmoor to Chagford. After a last couple of pints in the Globe, we drive back the next day in a ten-hour epic, thanks to roadworks and recharging sagas.

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Plymouth's covered market

Plymouth's covered market

Ivor Dewdney's pasties as amazingly still going

Armada Way is being dug up yet again

Looking up Cornwall Street

A look back down Cornwall Street

Looking up towards Cobourg Street

The new-ish Drake Circus

The old Moneycentre is still there

Looking down what was Glanville Street

The PPSU students' union building has gone

The former LRC remains, but the pyramid is gone

The old Maritime Halls of Residence

Looking back to the science block

The James Street Vaults is now hemmed in

Kirky Stores is now a wellbeing place

The old JSV is sort-of still in there somewhere

The Brunel building has been demolished

Harry on James Street

The GTB building (Babbage) is unrecognisable

The new Babbage Building (former GTB)

The Cobourg Street villas have been done up

Smeaton - formerly known as the Engineering Block

Smeaton's foundation stone from 1952

The old YMCA has been replaced with a tower block

KenRoy Thompson looks like it's been there a while

A view of the Civic Centre from Mayflower Street

The former underpass near the Money Centre

The old way into town, under the Money Centre

The former Charlie's nightclub

Harry in Yo! Sushi, Drake Circus

The Civic Centre from across Royal Parade

The 1960s Civic Centre is looking properly derelict

Street art on the hoardings around the Civic Centre

More street art and graffiti

The Link Building and the Civic Centre

A fountain by Princess Street

Smeaton's Tower on Plymouth Hoe

Harry wanders off to the bin

The flag poles on Plymouth Hoe

Bomber Harris has a seagull on his head

The clock and promenade café are still there

The Crowne Plaza hotel

Francis Drake on the corner of Notte Street

The funky 1963 stylings on Plymouth Crown Court

The Dingle's building is in a bit of a state

The London Camera Exchange on Cornwall Street

Grim flats on the back of Cornwall Street

The Dartmoor Brewery in Princetown on Dartmoor

The road to Two Bridges

A view of Dartmoor

Harry waits in the car

A Dartmoor stone wall

More winter cleakness on the moor

A Dartmoor stone row

The Globe Inn in Chagford

Harry reads a book in the Globe

Isobel has a quick game of Patience

A jackdaw in St. Michael's churchyard

A carpet of crocuses in the churchyard

The compact kitchen in the rented flat

Harry looks at shoes in Bowden's

Harry's found an interesting walking stick

There's queueing traffic on the A303

We stop to charge the car at Fleet Services North

The Scott Mills link bridge has a leak problem

Harry returns from a food-foraging mission

Isobel gets some KFC rice

Harry eats 'loaded fries'

Harry outside Fleet Services, northbound

Isobel returns to the car

Harry eats yet more food in Gridserve

Isobel looks at electric cars for something to do