Rotunda – Adam X

Explore #186: King’s Hall Cinema and Methodist Church, Southall, London – June 2016

After our nocturnal adventures rooftopping in central London, we headed to Southall to explore this beautiful derelict church… unfortunately I only managed to take one shot before things went rather wrong! History (rewritten from here) The 3-storey King’s Hall was built in 1916 with a stone and brick facade, designed by architect Sir Alfred Gelder of Hull. It was operated by the Uxbridge and Southall Wesleyan Mission, and screened religious films. By 1926 it was operating as a regular cinema,…

Explore #117: Castle of Sammezzano, aka Non Plus Ultra / the Fairytale Castle, Italy – December 2014

July 12, 2015

Adam X

Churches and religious, Italy, Palaces, Castles & Mansions, Recommended Reports - some selected highlights

Explore #6 of the Wet, with excitement Tour. The third and final day of our wintry long weekend in Italy was a traditional pre-dawn start. Our target: an incredible disused ‘fairytale’ castle… History (compiled and rewritten from here, here, and here) The Castle of Sammezzano was originally built in 1605 by Spanish nobleman Ximenes of Aragon. However, the castle truly became unique in the 19th century when Ferdinand Panciatichi Ximenes inherited the property, and over the course of nearly 40…