Category: 5. Great Yarmouth

English coastal town of Great Yarmouth, Norfolk has been selected as the first location for the Haphazard Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) Innovation Hub

A FUTURE GLIMPSED

A co-designer of the New Scotland Yard Control Room commented on LinkedIn that Discussion Festival is a glimpse into the future of meetings. Fourth Portal Stage 3 testing focuses on the virtual Lucia House and how this developing business model will soon become the new normal. 

New Scotland Yard Control Room 1969 and 2000 (Google images)

Communication and relationships

A co-designer of the Bank of England and New Scotland Yard Control Rooms commented on LinkedIn, Discussion Festival is a glimpse into the future of meetings. Denis O’Brien spent his career in and thinking about design and ergonomics. Control in the context of a Control Room is probably misplaced as the room is a room for communications; control is a result of communication, not vice-versa.

Denis is one of several people whose work involves understanding systems and have become intrigued by the developing Fourth Portal Lucia House hybrid. Investigating how to build a hybrid concept began in 2018 and has concentrated on how people will communicate and form meaningful relationships in the future.

A straightforward concept

On paper, the hybrid concept is simple; a location where a person can talk to others in the room and simultaneously elsewhere.

The concept is not new; teleconferencing dates back to the 1980s and was available much earlier. Technical issues developing publicly accessible hybrids are audio, not visuals. Conversations bleeding into one another and audio feedback are the main challenges for hybrid spaces to become more broadly available. Solving the audio issues is complex and the reason why audio is attracting large amounts of public and private funding for research and development. In time, affordable technical solutions will overcome problems concerning sound.

Swedish Prime Minister Tage Erlander using an Ericsson videophone to speak with Lennart Hyland, a popular TV show host (1969). Image via Wikipedia

The end of real-world meetings?

So does the emergence of hybrid equate to there never being a reason to meet another person in real-life again, as it can be done virtually? No, and far from it.

Articles and research discussing virtual meetings, gigs, consultations, shopping and metaverse are often simplistic. The tendency is to concentrate on technology and the pros and cons of whether hybrids are taking off or dying. These arguments are symptomatic of an economic transactional mind-frame, even when people believe they are not talking about economics. Writing and research on hybrids should instead focus on human behaviours and need. 

Hybrid will dwarf Facebook and YouTube combined economically. This is how extensive the hybrid market will become. Does this also mean Facebook and Google will dominate the space? Unlikely. If anything, Facebook and Google may end up in an exhibition cabinet in a virtual museum along with Ask Jeeves and Myspace.

Not social media

Three aspects of modern hybrid communication make this period different from the transformation brought about by social media.

  1. How humans communicate and form meaningful relationships
  2. Accessibility to global communication systems and the cost
  3. Developments in machine learning, artificial intelligence, virtual reality, linked data and semantic technology.

1. How humans communicate and form meaningful relationships

Is there any evidence that the invention of the telephone destroyed the ability to have meaningful relationships? No.

The invention of the telephone enabled the expansion of meaningful relationships with people who would otherwise have been almost inaccessible. Society’s fascination with telephones soon faded and was absorbed into everyday life, becoming just an instrument for communication.

Through communication, relationships are formed. Hybrids are no different. They will become just another instrument or tool for people to use to connect with another human with the added ability to also engage with an object or activity.

2. Accessibility to global communication systems and the cost

Laying cables and building exchanges made the rollout of the telephone a slow process. More than a century after its invention, half the world still did not have direct access to the telephone. This has changed dramatically even since the launch of social media around 2004/5.

Satellite communications allow communication to inaccessible places. Relay systems even provide for those with hearing impairment and deafness. Communication infrastructure has now spread to all parts of the world. The cost of employing such infrastructure continues to fall.

In terms of people communicating, the world could become one big village.

3. Developments in machine learning, artificial intelligence, virtual reality, linked data and semantic technology

As with laying the cables and building the exchanges of the early telephone network, much of the digital technology foundations are now in place. Machines only learn what a cat looks like by looking at millions of images of cats. These images have been provided by millions of people uploading photos of their cats to social networks and websites.

As hardware, like camera phones improve, and as more people are connected to the web, machines will have more data from which to learn. In time, this will lead to further innovations and opportunities.

The layout of Discussion Festival Season One table and topics

Understanding the need

In 2005, few people could realise the potential of YouTube. The key reasons were that camera phones and broadband were still relatively primitive to what is experienced today. There was also little perceived need for such a technology. This also applied to Zoom in 2019; it will never catch on. Then came the pandemic.

The Discussion Festivals research highlighted many of the same comments and resistances noted in 2005 when this author was trying to raise interest in self-video creation and podcasting. At that time, there was almost no one willing to discuss further than as a general chat. The key reason was there was no perceived need.

Poets, professors, dancers, teachers, engineers, politicians, business people and more show interest in the Fourth Portal before returning to doing what they are doing. There generally remains a disconnect between how life was lived before social media, text messaging and camera phones and now because these things have become the norm. The Discussion Festival is highlighting that most see hybrid as another form of social media. This is a misplaced understanding.

The hybrid needs to be imagined as the arrival of the invention of the telephone. It will be fundamental to everyday communication and life. Social media, as it is used and understood today, will be absorbed into hybrid communications. Hybrid allows for much richer contact with others. It will expand connection beyond the restraints of physical walls and controlled virtual spaces, as provided by Zoom and others.

Global Cafe

Hybrid is likely to explode in locations where other forms of physical infrastructure are less developed. Areas suffering from poor public transport, roads and bridges. Towns suffering from a lack of conducive meeting places like cafes, pubs and community spaces. Remote or inhospitable places, like Antarctica.

A new kind of global cafe community will transpire. These communities already exist in a lesser form, gaming being the best example, and to some degree in international corporations. The global cafe community will be more diverse, open and exposed to new ideas and innovation. New businesses and forums will emerge that have not yet been imagined. How everyone works, socialises, purchases and is educated will expand beyond recognition.

Screenshot from Discussion Festival DF026 Camille Table

The layout of the Discussion Festival Season One table and topics

That’s all in the future

“The future is already here – it’s just not evenly distributed”, as William Gibson the author has written (Wikipedia)

The opportunities are enormous, as are the risks of becoming even more isolated for those determined to resist. It is why spaces where people can come together, whether physical or virtual, are the necessary next step in how people communicate.

Fourth Portal and the Fourth Portal Lucia House are early attempts to develop a hybrid equivalent of the telephone exchange. 

Telephone exchanges were set up to centralise the telephone network within a smaller geographic area. This system allowed other individual lines to be connected through a central station. These were the forerunners of switchboards. An individual would need to manually connect the wires to each other through the switchboard. Most of the early users of phones were businesses. Many phones would go to a doctor’s office, police station or bank. Individuals could subscribe to the switchboard for a monthly fee that gave them access to the telephone network.

https://www.mitel.com/en-gb/articles/history-telephone-and-communication-businesses

Each Fourth Portal will be the hub for a smaller geographical area. Each hub will allow people to connect both manually, in the physical space, whether to socialise, work, learn or shop and virtually, via remote access. The majority of early adopters will be those considering the next evolution of their business, education, friendship circle or personal development.  

The Fourth Portal is an opportunity to immerse in the near future.  

Relational Industry

A prosumer is an individual who both consumes and produces. The term is a portmanteau of the words producer and consumer. Research has identified six types of prosumers: DIY prosumers, self-service prosumers, customising prosumers, collaborative prosumers, monetised prosumers, and economic prosumers.[1]

The terms prosumer and prosumption were coined in 1980 by American futurist Alvin Toffler and were widely used by many technology writers of the time. Technological breakthroughs and a rise in user participation blur the line between production and consumption activities, with the consumer becoming a prosumer.

(Wikipedia)

Social media was, and remains, a prosumer industry. The Facebook model is predicated on people posting content that others wish to look at. US Cable television had already introduced this model in the 1980s, and social media only expanded it.

Pool room 2 sofas 2 armchairs 5 stools Record player Pool table Games, meeting friends, meetups, drinks. Social occasion, club get together, play records.

Screenshots of the Fourth Portal Lucia House virtual and real-world testing (2022)

Hybrid is different

Hybrid will be much less about consumption and more about connection and reconnecting, not only to individual people but to places, activities, environments and communities. Hybrid will become more democratic and less dictated. It will reverse the trend towards social isolation that has been growing.

Social isolation and loneliness are increasingly being recognised as a priority public health problem and policy issue for older people. (World Health Organisation, Social Isolation and Loneliness)

https://www.who.int/teams/social-determinants-of-health/demographic-change-and-healthy-ageing/social-isolation-and-loneliness

Whereas social media is about creating content for others to consume, hybrids will become an avenue to connect to like-minded communities. Geographical location will become less of a hindrance to meeting new people. Even language will become less of a barrier to finding such communities as languaging applications allow instant translation.

Providing spaces for this new collective mind view is at the heart of the Fourth Portal and the Fourth Portal Lucia House. Spaces where people seed new ideas, grow networks, watch relationships flower and feed a new generation of positive connectivity.

Viewing the Fourth Portal Lucia House promotion

Conclusion

Many of the recent ills in society are blamed squarely on social media. Algorithms driving social media have certainly contributed towards antagonistic social interaction. Feelings of inadequacy and FOMO – fear of missing out – have had consequences for many people. On the other side, there have been, and are, many positive aspects to social media, including bringing old acquaintances together, forming new friendship circles and keeping people updated on personal and business developments.

Social media can create connections but does not, in general terms, build meaningful relationships in the same manner as real-life interaction. This is where hybrids will be different. Hybrid spaces will be more akin to physical interaction.

The combination of global, efficient telecommunications accessible to much of the population provides opportunities to form relationships that were not possible in previous times. Advancements in machines and artificial intelligence will bring about a revolution in business and social interaction. It will lead to previously unimagined engagement with other people, some already known, others yet to be met.

Fourth Portal has been envisaged much like the World Wide Web (www). A web of nodes communicating with each other and sending messages back and forth. Instead of computer nodes, it will be people communicating with each other.

The Discussion Festival Season One was set out with virtual hosted tables that visitors could move between uninhibited. The Fourth Portal Lucia House has virtual rooms, with sofas, record players and wine racks, that people can wander in and out of and interact. The Fourth Portal’s tests in Great Yarmouth were to develop the real-world aspect of the hybrid model.

What comes next is how these seemingly different contexts bleed into one another to form a space that feels normal. Places like fully hybrid Fourth Portals will soon become the new normal. The technology will be almost secondary, it will be the meaningful relationships that form within the spaces. And not only between people but also between objects, the environment and the wider world. Join us! Subscribe or email here.

John M

We are testing our virtual Lucia House throughout 2023. To have a tour, check https://www.fourthportal.com/ for upcoming dates.

MIND ROOM

The Mind Room was the unexpected star of the Fourth Portal stage 2 testing. Exhibited on the walls were paintings by Kevin Gavaghan. In this 15-minute video, Kevin speaks candidly about his mental health struggles and discusses the relief painting can bring and why visitors engaged as they did with the Mind Room.

Window to an inner emotion

When asked why people open up so quickly about their mental health issues on entering the mind room, artist Kevin Gavaghan responded, ‘because it probably opens a window to their own inner emotions.’

Kevin has been asked by the Wellcome Trust to write a piece on his work for an upcoming issue of their magazine. This piece will expand on the motivations of the work and the varied reactions of the viewer.

Watch Kevin Gavaghan discuss his work

Artist Kevin Gavaghan discussing the Mind Room with Fourth Portal’s John McKiernan

Mind Room Surprise

The purpose of the Mind Room was to introduce some freely available technologies that can have a positive impact on people suffering from mental health issues.

The success of the Mind Room was the biggest surprise during test 2 of the Fourth Portal popup in Great Yarmouth. It was composed to experiment with ideas that might initiate conversations around mental health issues without being too direct. In designing the Mind Room, it was essential to create a sense of relaxation while gently challenging visitors. Displayed on the walls were a series of paintings by artist Kevin Gavaghan. Kevin suffers from Tourettes Tics, anxiety and an acute eye issue that causes vision distortion. In the video, Kevin discusses his conditions and how he embraces them in his art.

Poetry performance in the Mind Room.

Response

The paintings resonated with people of all ages. NHS employees and mental health practitioners commented on how the Mind Room could benefit clients and the potential for it to expand. People who had suffered a mental health episode told of how they could relate directly with the artist through the paintings. We had a number of returning customers who had received an ADHD diagnosis. They found the space calming. The most surprising reactions were from people not presenting any mental health issues or having any diagnoses but who shared quite personal information about themselves within moments of walking into the Mind Room. Although these conversations cannot be documented for obvious reasons, they did boost the scope of what technologies can be included in future Mind Rooms.

Future Mind Rooms

The intention of the Mind Room was to host a number of technologies focused on the mind. Time constraints and internet infrastructure issues restricted the ability to install the first series of apps. In hindsight, this may prove beneficial, as we now have a better insight into the range of challenges people face in daily life. Discussions on how best to embed this learning from test 2 into future Fourth Portal Mind Rooms have begun.

More about the video

This video was filmed in one take on an iPhone14pro, with no editing, by John McKiernan, Founder of the Fourth Portal.
Narrator: John McKiernan
Interviewee: Kevin Gavaghan
Recorded at the Fourth Portal, 2 Stonecutters Way, Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, England

http://www.fourthportal.com. | @fourthportal

JohnM

UCL VISITS GREAT YARMOUTH

Students from The Bartlett, UCL’s Faculty of the Built Environment, spent four days at the Fourth Portal. Using emotional mapping software, students engage people in Great Yarmouth to gauge body reactions to the built environment when walking around the town.

Unit 8

Students and lecturers from UCL The Bartlett Unit 8, Engineering and Architectural Design MEng (MEAD) arrived in Great Yarmouth on Tuesday, 8th November 2022. Establishing themselves at the Fourth Portal, the four-day exercise encouraged public engagement using emotional mapping technology.

Unit 8, Engineering and Architectural Design in Market Row, Great Yarmouth

Day one: Students and lecturers arrive in Great Yarmouth

The group began their stay with an enjoyable visit to the Time and Tide museum before walking across Great Yarmouth as darkness fell. Arriving at the Fourth Portal, they met Gillian Harwood, owner of the buildings where the hub is situated. An overview and introduction to Great Yarmouth followed.

Catch The Tide Museum. Read about this important Great Yarmouth asset here

Day two: Guided tours and meeting local people

Students had two guided tours of historic Great Yarmouth before gathering at the Fourth Portal for an evening event. In the weeks leading up to the visit, the Fourth Portal team had been contacting local businesses, institutions and groups with an open invitation.

Fourth Portal invitation October-November 2022 

A range of local people came to discuss the town, including the principal of East Coast College and the chair of the Civic Society. The locally made short film, Love Letter to Row 116 was shown followed by a Q&A with the filmmaker, Karl Trosclair. Enjoyable conversations continued late into the evening. The feedback from attendees and students was positive.

Students and local people discuss Great Yarmouth at the Fourth Portal

Day three: Emotional mapping

Students employed the open-source electronic prototyping platform Arduino to construct emotional maps of Great Yarmouth. The Arduino proved fascinating to everyone coming into the Fourth Portal; even the students seemed excited.

Arduino emotional mapping devices

What is Arduino?

“Arduino designs, manufactures, and supports electronic devices and software, allowing people around the world to easily access advanced technologies that interact with the physical world. Our products are straightforward, simple, and powerful, ready to satisfy users’ needs from students to makers and all the way to professional developers.”

https://www.arduino.cc/

Emotional mapping walks

Two finger sensors connected to the Arduino were attached to the volunteers. The sensors measured how the body reacted to different urban environments as the volunteer walked around Great Yarmouth. Students set a pre-defined destination and followed the volunteer, who chose the walking route.

Volunteers and students set off on different walks

Analysing the data

Students worked late into the evening on the data they had gathered. Not all the Arduino boxes worked as was hoped. Data was interrupted for several reasons, including loss of GPS connection. As frustrating as it was for the students, enough data was collected for the exercise and to present results on day 4.  

Students analysing data from the emotional mapping walks

Day four: Presenting results

Day four saw the Fourth Portal mind space transformed into a room for student presentations. Each student group presented their findings to professors back at UCL in London. The 3D models provided a fascinating insight into how people react when walking around Great Yarmouth.  

Presentations and 3D emotional mapping visualisation of Great Yarmouth

Conclusion

Great Yarmouth would benefit from an extensive study using such technology as Arduino. Engaging a large sample of local people and those new to the town could provide a deeper understanding of what the citizens of Great Yarmouth feel about their hometown. Such an undertaking could be a positive step toward addressing some of the many issues the town suffers.

The UCL students also had a direct beneficial impact on the income of local businesses, particularly accommodation, restaurants and gift establishments. The Fourth Portal will encourage more academic partners to visit Great Yarmouth over the coming year.

John M

STAGE TWO

Stage two of the Fourth Portal testing has begun in Great Yarmouth. It will introduce the hybrid LiftPod, developing the provenance system and other technologies. 

Stage one

Stage one focused on opening a physical Fourth Portal in a former Citizens Advice Bureau. The goal was to gauge public reaction and inform the Platform-7 network. As expected, we hit problems that all new businesses face when starting up. We fell behind on bringing in the technologies we wanted to sample and need a second testing period. Read TEST HUB for more on stage one.

Lauren in emerging Fourth Portal popup in Great Yarmouth

Stage two testing 

Stage two runs throughout October and November 2022, Monday to Friday, 11am-6pm. There will be occasional Saturday openings and evening events.  Free WiFi and an internal network allow visitors to surf the internet and work offline.

The main goal for stage two is to set up our in-house technologies. Showing various apps and raising awareness of the Fourth Portal will also be a priority. 

LiftPod

The Lucia Collective developed a four-floor virtual house in 2020. With pandemic lockdowns, the online house became a meeting point for friends. The fun 2D space has simple keyboard commands to move around and resembles early video games. 

Around the same time, Platform-7 was running the online Discussion Festival. The weekly event sought to understand how people move around unaided during an online event. 

Conversations developed between Lucia Collective and Platform-7 on the future of hybrid events. These conversations have led to the development of a hybrid arm of the Fourth Portal. The LiftPod is our first real-world experiment. 

The old lift will be the test site for our hybrid space
Testing hybrid ideas in the physical lift.
The virtual lift under development.

Provenance system

Graham Klyne developed his linked data tool as part of the Fusing Audio and Semantic Technology (FAST) programme. Platform-7 was working on presenting FAST to the music industry at Abbey Road Studios. 

Discussions began on using linked data as a form of provenance system. Provenance is the ability to know the history of a product or object. Fourth Portal is creating ‘In The Frame’ (ITF) to test some ideas. Framed photos of people who changed the course of history will be on display. These photos will have an identifier that a mobile phone can read. This identifier will open and provide information about the person in the frame. 

The basics of linked data are not very complicated. The challenge lies in the classification of information. This is important, as it partly underpins AI and Machine Learning. See THE SEMANTIC WEB for more. 

Introducing Ada Lovelace
First photos mounted for In The Frame

Assistive apps

Great Yarmouth suffers from deprivation and low educational attainment. A benefit of the Fourth Industrial Revolution is the availability of assistive apps. Such apps are widely available and often have a free element. This provides an opportunity for people to improve their life chances through self-help. Apps can assist in helping to improve reading to way-finding for those with a disability.

A selection of apps will be on display with visitors urged to try them and see if they are of benefit. 

Art and creativity

Understanding creativity through the lens of art is an established method. Peter Rodulfo and Kevin Gavaghan are the two artists exhibiting this autumn. Technologies relating to the artists’ work will be displayed alongside the paintings.

Artist Peter Rodulfo with his painting of Stonecutters Way, the location of the Fourth Portal popup.
Artist Kevin Gavaghan with his work up in the mind room.

Raising the profile

Stage two will begin the process of raising the profile of the Fourth Portal. Low-key publicity, live events and future blog posts will introduce the business. Feedback from visitors will prove vital to the development of the business model. 

Conclusion

The Fourth Portal is a business model of the future. It is complicated as it brings together elements that are often separate. Retail, work, learning and social all mix within the same space. For a public unused to such an experience, the place may cause confusion. Stage two is to understand how to ensure people are comfortable coming in. What encourages them to stay and what causes them to leave? It is all part of an enjoyable learning process. 

John M

Fourth Portal, 2 Stonecutters Way, Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, NR30 1HF (find us)

TEST HUB

We have now completed our 6-week Fourth Portal popup test in Great Yarmouth. The reaction has been positive despite not completing all the tasks we set ourselves. Testing the business model will extend for two further months over autumn 2022. 

Low-key launch

We began implementing the Fourth Portal business plan at the beginning of August 2022. Without fanfare, the doors opened to an unexpecting public. The erection of a temporary banner above the entrance announced our presence. The wider world was made aware through a small number of social media posts. It was an intentionally low-key affair. 

Erection of Temporary sign.
Building team bringing light.
Creating the Fourth Portal popup space

Team

There is a large team feeding into the Fourth Portal concept. Lauren Lapidge, a Platform-7 colleague, flew in from Greece for two months to help set up the popup. Lauren has years of experience in events and public interventions. She has worked on several Platform-7 interventions, including Margate 2011. We began setting up the physical space and liaising with the broader team and suppliers. 

Much of the team is remote. We have technicians, technologists, engineers, artists, academics, researchers, builders and retail specialists. It’s incredible to have such impressive expertise feeding into the business. 

Building owner, Gillian Harwood visiting the emerging Fourth Portal.
John sets out the first stage of garden plants of the future.
Platform-7 colleague John Pigram arrives to set up sound systems.
Lauren in emerging Fourth Portal popup in Great Yarmouth
James Stevens with Lauren setting up the Wifi and internal network
Some of the team

Developing the space

The business plan describes the physical space of the hub. It is geared to ensure flexibility while providing some consistency. Each Fourth Portal requires its own identity while sharing a similar vibe. Writing this on paper is one thing, developing the physical space is quite another. Only when people enter is it possible to know if the plan is on the right track. 

The feedback from people who have wandered in has been excellent. The interventionist approach developed by Platform-7 is proving successful. It provides a sense of involvement for visitors and gives them a voice in how the space develops. People’s views are listened to and taken into account. These conversations often furnish a sense of ownership and belonging from the outset. It is real-time feedback.

The old lift will be the test site for our hybrid space
Work on developing the physical side of the hybrid LiftPod.

Blending Cafe, Retail and Technology

The 6-week test period was to try out different strands of the business model. Having a physical space allows the wider network to see what a Fourth Portal looks and feels like in reality. 

Bringing different experiences and services together under one roof is not unique. It’s commonplace to see cafes, retail and workshops in one place. The difference with Fourth Portal is adding technology, arts and learning to the offer. 

Collection of mobile phones from the 1990s onwards.
A small selection of retail products available.
1820s spinet converted to a table to become a modern sound desk.
Mixing the space

Public reaction

The positive public reaction was a bit of a surprise if being honest. The space was not much more than a building site when opening and was still not tidy by the end of the 6-weeks. People seeing the space change each day generated intrigue. It attracted people who would otherwise not have noticed. With the gloomy political and economic climate, the popup brought a sense of positive change and fun. 

Two of Fourth Portal’s new regulars
Customers buying eco products for their guesthouse.
Great Yarmouth locals appreciate Fourth Portal’s arrival and wishing to support it.

Suppliers, furnishing, and art

Since Brexit and the pandemic, supply chains are under strain. Reestablishing relationships with previous suppliers and building new relationships was a priority. Observing the reaction to the eclectic furnishing was important learning. Hanging artworks to create a stimulus, as well as having them for sale, has proved popular. 

Artist Kevin Gavaghan with his work up in the mind room.
Artist Peter Rodulfo with his painting of Stonecutters Way, the location of the Fourth Portal popup.

Technologies

Our hardware guru, James Stevens managed to secure an internet connection while we wait for an optical fibre internet connection to be installed. He also brought a raspberry pie for the internal network. Lauren spent several days preparing this for visitors to use. We did not manage to test our provenance system or the hybrid space; both are the priority for stage two. Building the structure to surround the tech took precedent and longer than expected. 

Learning

Shifting from a business plan on paper to real-world testing provides excellent insights. Throughout the popup test stage, we had building issues (no power), sickness and supplier delays. Such issues help build resilience. It allows for robust systems to be established in the future business model. When operating at capacity, it becomes difficult to adapt processes within a business. 

Fourth Portal begins to establish itself as a gathering space.

Conclusion

The fourth Portal is novel, making it a complicated business model. 

Each Fourth Portal needs to be sympathetic to the neighbourhood where it’s located. The local community needs to be intrigued, feel welcomed and know the business is for them. Over this first test period, we appear to have achieved this in Great Yarmouth.

Although we did not complete all the tasks we set ourselves, we did get the place open and operational. Feedback from the people coming in has been invaluable. The reaction has given a boost to what is possible and how the Fourth Portal can grow. Generating income in a town suffering deprivation remains a challenge. 

Stage two is focused on installing technologies and making the business financially sustainable. Creating a sustainable business in Great Yarmouth may encourage others to open up in the town. 

John M 

The external building undergoing complete refurbishment.
How the space looked before removing the wall.
Signage ready to go up, August 2022
The former Citizens Advice Bureau on Stonecutters Way in its full glory following major external renovation.
Transforming an unloved building

Also, see other Haphazard posts of the journey to creating the Fourth Portal.

IRONING OUT CREASES

Fourth Portal

Week 4 (of 6) at the Fourth Portal Great Yarmouth popup. These weeks are to iron out the wrinkles in the business plan and to reconnect with suppliers and the broader P7 network. Things are going well, and most importantly, it’s fun!

Welcome Drinks Invite | Thursday, 8 Sept 2022 from 6pm

We are on week 4 (of 6) at the Fourth Portal set-up stage. It is going as much as I was expecting. Some things are going smoother than anticipated, in other areas we have encountered challenges. We have nothing bad to report. In fact, it has – mostly – been fun. We are attracting attention and already have some cheerleaders. Our coffee is roasted in HMP Mount prison. It is going down very well and bringing people back. It looks likely we will have a really cool pizza popup from week 6 outside. Yet another business working with released prisoners.

Our attention this week shifted back to the hybrid Liftpod. The concept is challenging but also hugely enjoyable. I am annoying Lauren, my long-suffering occasional colleague who has to endure me each day! This week I am being deliberately too vague on what hardware we should use in the Liftpod 🙂 🙂 :). John and Val, developers of the Flatlands part of the LiftPod, are a real giggle to work with. Lauren is close to having the local network (our own internal Google drive) up and running. Once done we can then pick up the chat about the next stage of our internal network with guru James Stevens. A large chunk of the prep work for our provenance Annalist system is complete. Now Graham, the developer of Annalist, is back from holiday we will continue with stage one.

New artworks

On Thursday, Peter Rodulfo brought his first painting of Stonecutters Way to the Fourth Portal. The artwork juxtaposes nicely with Kev Gavaghan’s work in the Mind Room next door. Local artist Lisa came in with some work to show us. We liked it and plan to display it soon.

Moonbow Margate 2011 Feel

There is a Margate 2011 feel developing. I can sense the slow build-up of positive energy. The Fourth Portal is inspiring confidence in locals. Already some are taking the plunge to ask to become involved.

Several couples from the Roma community have been popping by to try and buy a particular chandelier. I have resisted selling for two reasons. 1) the offers are too low and 2) it is a real attractor. The chandelier is forming relationships. Whereas at the beginning of this popup there were stern faces, now we receive big smiles and hellos. Despite language barriers, a sense of fun is building around who will manage to buy the light – if anyone!

There’s a different atmosphere in GY from the previous time I sought to open Fourth Portal. I cannot nail what it is, all I know is it is just a different feel. Maybe the unfolding economic crisis is focusing minds on what is important. Maybe it’s just because it is sunny and lovely weather this summer. No doubt we will find out soon enough.

Fancy some Prosecco?

If you fancy a glass of Prosecco on Thursday 8th September 2022, after 6pm then come down to the Fourth Portal at 2 Stonecutters Way, Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, England, HR30 1HF. You’ll receive a warm welcome.

More soon, John M

TOWN SQUARE

The Fourth Industrial Revolution will bring many challenges. As the world goes virtual, the role of public gathering places will need addressing. The Town Square must again become the centre of local discourse. If not, the 4IR may become known as the Period of Polarisation.

From Wikipedia

“A town square (or square, plaza, public square, city square, urban square, or piazza) is an open public space[1] commonly found in the heart of a traditional town used for community gatherings. Related concepts are the civic center, the market square and the village green.”

Piazza della Signoria, in Florence, Italy, a historic example of a traditional public square

Announcement of the establishment of the State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs on Congress Square in 1918

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Town_square

Warning

Town squares will become contested during the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR). Technology will permeate every part of daily life. As it does, the need for physical gathering places will rise. The risk is that such public spaces become battlegrounds.

Urban planners need to pay close attention, particularly in England. The virtual world is changing behaviours. These changes are spilling out into the real-world streets. [1]

Class system

Since the Edwardian period, England has neglected public spaces. Public squares that encourage the mixing of cultures are rare. The Georgians began the trend to fence off public spaces and streets. The policy was steeped in the British class system. In recent years, the privatisation of public space has accelerated.

Sample of English public spaces

In Southern continental Europe, the opposite is the case. Town squares are the centre of the entire community. The design, construction and purpose are all geared towards civic pride and participation.

Sample of Spanish public spaces

Spanish Squares

In Spain, all urban planning revolves around public space. There are plenty of elaborate squares and boulevards to be happened upon. Most though are of simple design and materials. They work for all occasions. Organised events, family gatherings, meeting friends or eating a sandwich. Finding a public space with a fence or a locked gate will be a challenge in Spain.

Some squares have a cafe or restaurant bordering the parameter; many don’t. It is unusual to see a cafe in the middle of a town square. Modern Spanish libraries and museums spill out onto public squares. Public spaces in Spain are welcoming and well used because of their simplicity. [2]

Comparison

The two photo galleries above show the public realm where people live. These are not tourist areas or places of commerce. Public spaces are there, in theory, for the local community and visitors to use and enjoy. The public realm in Spain sits at the very heart of a community. Unless there is a commercial reason, public space in England is a low priority.

Metaphor

Town Squares can be a metaphor for what is happening in the virtual world. Some people wish to see them controlled with restrictions on who has access. Others want them completely open, freeing and welcoming to all. [3] [4] [5]

Demonstration

Recent history has demonstrated how the virtual world can spill out into the real world.

Tahrir Square in Cairo, Egypt, is the most prominent example. Protests in 2013 began online, discussing government corruption and policies. WhatsApp groups and Facebook posts began to grow and to spread. Soon these virtual spaces were not enough. People had to come together. Tens of hundreds of thousands of people started filling Tahrir square. Night after night protests continued until Egypt’s President Mubarak toppled.

Similar scenes with different results played out across the Arab world. These 2013 protests became known as the Arab Spring.

Although not on the same scale, most areas of the developed world have seen similar protests. The rise of the online protest hashtag has been instrumental. #MeToo and #blm (#blacklivesmatter) are the most successful to date.

Brexit

Britain’s exit from the European Union was a direct result of online campaigning. What followed has been years of disruption, strife and polarisation. The struggle between the Leave and Remain camps manifested physically in London’s Parliament square. The argument has continued right up to the present day. [6]

Brexit supporter carrying Great Britain cardboard cutout, Parliament Square.

Rise of technology

As life moves further online, the need for real-world gathering forums will increase. Failure of authorities to not plan for this change could lead to dire consequences.

Reasons for people to engage within the physical world has been declining since the 1990s.

The internet changed the world of work, allowing employees to be more distributed. The onset of the pandemic brought a further scattering of the workforce as people work from home. Retail has been shifting steadily online. Restaurant food can now be delivered directly to the family dining table. The world of supermarkets without cashiers is upon us. Online gaming transformed from a table gathering to global competitions. The gaming industry now dwarfs, by revenue, the movie and music industries combined. [7]

There are plenty of Apps that anyone can access for free. However, to receive the full benefit requires buying a subscription. Public squares in England surrounded by cafes and shops are similar. To fully partake in the space requires a certain amount of purchasing power.

Two-tier England

English Extremes

Above photos from the Argent development, Kings Cross, London (2020). Below, public squares managed by Great Yarmouth borough council (2021).

In Spain, public squares are places where people congregate, play and celebrate. The public realm encourages the community to come together for serendipitous moments. Spending power is not relevant except in the most exclusive of shopping areas.

Public forum, with permanent outdoor screen, multilevel seating, no barriers. Eivissa, Ibiza, Spain, 2022. [4]

In England, the opposite is too often the case. There is heavy reliance on the private sector to create public amenity spaces. It is another aspect of Britain’s two-tier society. Money buys access.

Fenced public spaces, ‘Keep off the Grass’ signs and other rules are commonplace around England.

Bridge-building 

Public space needs to become the bridge between the virtual and physical worlds. Some may believe this is about introducing VR – virtual reality. VR will soon be playing a much larger role, but this is more about the physical spaces themselves.

The layout, ambience and purpose of the public domain in England should be along Spanish lines.

Free to access town squares must have 5G connectivity. Multipurpose seating and tables that encourage gatherings, games, meetings and work. Architectural flair can overcome issues around Britain’s inclement weather. The public realm needs to be attractive to all cultures, ages and abilities.

Without change, England risks further polarisation. Addressing the poor quality of places for public gatherings is now urgent.

Conclusions

The internet has slowly eroded the need for people having to meet fellow citizens. The pandemic has further reduced real-world interactions. Technology seeping deeper into everyday life raises the potential of a more isolated society. Free to access public spaces is critical for communities to stay in touch in the real world.

The political discourse around local issues cannot be online alone. To allow this will lead to unhealthy debate and will undermine stable democracy. Views are best challenged and debated in the open, in places where alternative voices can be heard.

Open, free, real-world forums, like town squares, are the best spaces for such discussion to happen. Being open will also allay some fears around privacy, censorship and freedom of expression.

Britain is in the grip of a mental health crisis, with loneliness and a sense of isolation increasing. Social media gets some of the blame. Not much is written about the lack of public amenity spaces.

England needs to rethink its approach to the public realm. Design should encourage serendipity and random conversations. Learning from Spain’s public spaces would be a good start.

We are in the fifth decade of the internet. It will be one that will see the virtual world and the physical world merge. Successful societies this decade will be the ones with the most engaging public realm.

Introducing technology into these spaces is the next phase around the world. Creating buzzing ambient public spaces will be essential for community lifeblood. Animated public squares will also attract the next generation of innovators.

England needs to rethink the public realm urgently! This is where ‘levelling up’ has to begin.**

John M

All images John McKiernan ©2022

** Levelling Up. A Conservative government manifesto pledge. What does it mean? https://www.centreforcities.org/levelling-up/

[1] see Public Space

[2] see Eivissa

[3] see Censorship

[4] see Apple Privacy

[5] see Leiston and Sizewell

[6] see Brexit

[7] see AI Supermarkets

CROMER

Arriving at the shabby-chic North Norfolk seaside town of Cromer, I was taken aback by how little it resembles Great Yarmouth and spent a very pleasant day strolling the lovely streets and excellent beaches.

Great Yarmouth myths

While in Great Yarmouth, there were numerous comparisons to Cromer in North Norfolk being similar, with poverty, social issues and struggling. Norfolk friends would scoff and those from outside the county were a little puzzled as they could not remember Cromer being down at the heel. So I took the bus from Holt, where I am based for two weeks while I explore North Norfolk to see the town for myself.

Old Cromer photograph, shop window.

First impressions

As the bus pulled in, Cromer looked clean but shabby. Looking up at some of the windows, it was obvious that there is poverty in the town, so my expectations initially leaned towards what I heard in Great Yarmouth. This swiftly changed however, and the more I walked the more I could appreciate why so many people, particularly those who grew up or holidayed as children in Norfolk, are in love with the town.

Architectural Motifs

The schools are back, so the kids on the beach were infants with parents, paddling in the sea on a glorious warm sunny day. It was a day for creating childhood memories.

The first thing that struck me was how untouched the town has been by ugly developments and in all likelihood, was not bombed very much during World War Two. The mixed architecture resembles that of several Kent seaside towns. Whitstable houses and beach huts. Three floor Georgian houses in street rows at right angles to the sea, as found in Cliftonville and Ramsgate. Long sweeping paths from the top of the cliffs down to the seafront, as in Folkestone. Some of the housing is in need of TLC but not much that I observed would be deemed unfit for human living, as is the case right across Great Yarmouth. The town has living accommodation for all tastes it seems.

Keep it simple

Whether through lack of money and funding or whether it is by policy and design there is a noticeable difference in the approach to urban planning in Cromer versus Great Yarmouth.  Cromer appears to have a more thoughtful approach to planning.  No doubt irritating to local developers and people wishing to see change, the town benefits from allowing things to develop at a considered pace, not seeking to gentrify (although that is seeming to be happening in pockets), the town is self-regenerating, the best kind of change. 

The children’s play area on the beach and wildlife exhibition (photos below) are prime examples of very simple yet highly effective public art, information and play spaces. All over the town there are small yet strong permanent or semi-permanent interventions that are informed, intriguing and easy on the eye. An old Ford tractor on the seafront, which I guess never moves, is a perfect example of creating a public intervention that will appeal to people of all ages that has probably cost little or nothing to install.

L to R: Public artworks and wildlife information on seafront paths with open access, Tribute to local hero, Ford tractor parked alongside other ageing vehicles and boats, attracting interest of people of all ages, Simple, beautifully designed and constructed children’s play area on seafront, free and open access.

Care and attention

There is no more damning evidence of the disrespect and lack of care in Great Yarmouth from borough council and outsiders than when taking a cursory glance at any building site in the town. The council itself does not enforce rules on its own sites or cares how construction takes place on other sites. The three photos below are just some examples of practices in Great Yarmouth that you just don’t see elsewhere. Coming across a clean building site with some block paving being laid in Cromer brought home the difference in approach and mentality to that found in Great Yarmouth. 

L to R: Great Yarmouth Aldi refit (summer 2021), Man in flat cap and worker with trainers on demolition site on North Quay, Great Yarmouth (May 2021), Market square roof construction, Great Yarmouth council led project (September 2021), block paving and restoration, Cromer (September 2021).

Food and Drink

Cromer’s food and drink offer has been the best I have found in Norfolk, outside Norwich. Still not a huge choice but there are some very good coffee shops, nice new bars and The Red Lion pub has a wide and excellent selection of Norfolk ales. The local speciality is crab, which I did not try on this visit, and makes the town regionally famous. I opted to visit No1 Cromer, a Fish and Chip shop that I have only heard good things about. Chips were the first thing I tried on my first visit to Great Yarmouth in 2019 and with hindsight set the tone for my time in the town. Cromer No1 fish and chips were very good, and far far superior to anything available in Great Yarmouth town centre or beach front, however probably only on par with the White Swan in Great Yarmouth, an excellent fish restaurant deserving of national accolades.

L to R: First portion of chips in Great Yarmouth in 2019 (read more here), Fish and Chips from No1 Cromer, High St, Part of a wide selection of Norfolk beers available at The Red Lion.

Comparison

Besides both being by the sea and in the same county of England, there is little else in common between Cromer and Great Yarmouth. The brash and uncaring approach of the council, businesses and developers in Great Yarmouth is amplified by the quiet, reflective and highly effective approach being undertaken in Cromer. Spending a day does not provide a deep insight into a town it has to be acknowledged, however comparing this visit with the first trip to Great Yarmouth in 2019 (here) provides a pretty good indication of the power of first impressions.

JM

STAYCATION PICTOGRAPHIC

Pictographic of Great Yarmouth capturing the middle and last weekends of the holiday peak season and indicating the hoped for 2021 summer staycation boom was a muted affair, leaving a bleak outlook for the businesses still operating.

Staycations

With the Covid-19 pandemic still spreading across the globe, international travel has been a less attractive proposition in 2021. There was expectation across hospitality and tourism for a staycation boom with the British public choosing to stay in the UK for the summer holidays rather than travelling overseas. Despite the UK summer weather being generally poor with weeks of grey, rain and often chilly, many regions and towns have been booming as predicted, particularly Cornwall and North Norfolk. Unfortunately, Great Yarmouth seemed to have bucked this positive trend.

Weekend 20-21st August 2021

Bleak outlook

Visiting Great Yarmouth on two separate weekends during summer peak season, it became apparent that the town was not having the staycation boom that other UK holiday destinations were experiencing. This once vibrant holiday destination was again struggling, with sparsely populated restaurants and few retail customers to be spotted. Many more shops have closed since leaving the town in May 2021 and the outlook for a good number of the businesses that remain operating looks bleak indeed.

Saturday 05th September 2021

Sunday 06th September 2021

Sunday 5th was the busiest day observed during my time in Great Yarmouth. A classic car event was taking place and the weather was good, warm, sunny, no wind, just a gentle summer breeze.  The seafront was comfortable, certainly not packed and there were plenty of spaces to park a car.  Away from the seafront the town was empty. Unfortunately, for reasons unknown, many businesses were not open, including a whole stretch of the Pleasure Beach at 1pm. It is a mystery why the businesses are not open until 11pm throughout the summer to maximise trade, one of the many mysteries of Great Yarmouth. 

Delusion or obfuscation

This post documents, for the record, the streets and seafront of Great Yarmouth over two weekends of peak season during summer 2021, regarded locally as the most important and busiest weeks of the year.  It serves to counter any claims from those in power in the town that Great Yarmouth thrived throughout the entire summer.

John M

TIME AND TIDE

A Great Yarmouth gem and must see museum, the Time and Tide presents an outstanding permanent collection documenting the rich history of the town’s fishing industry and offers a sober reflection on the challenges it continues to face. In addition, there are two marvellous galleries for touring shows, presently housing the terrific Fisherwomen exhibition, by Craig Easton.

Street Scene Reconstruction

Excellent reconstruction of a Great Yarmouth Row (narrow passageway street) and the inside of homes. Far right, photo of a row before WWI.

History of Time and Tide Museum

The following is a cut directly from the gallery website, https://www.museums.norfolk.gov.uk/time-tide

Time and Tide occupies the premises of the Tower Fish Curing Works, originally built c.1850 and enlarged in 1880. The works closed in 1988.

In 1998 the Tower Fish Curing Works were purchased for conversion into a museum – designed by Norwich architects Purcell Miller Tritton.

The museum tells the story of Great Yarmouth and its herring industry and the lingering aroma of the smokehouse remains today. 

A town built on herrings

Visitors are taken on a well curated journey of the herring industry, with beautifully created rooms that avoids the schmaltz that sometimes accompanies recreated scenes.

Left to right: Reighing room, Woman with herrings, Barrel stencilling, Fisherman with catch

Fashion

Because of the nature of the work, coastal towns had their own fashion, and one enterprising local entrepreneur has realised that there is probably a good market for such garments today.

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Spin off industries

A short film on the Great Yarmouth basket industry was absorbing, and as with the clothes it is one of those industries that could easily make a small come back as the world continues to turn its back on plastics.

Left to right: Short film on the importance of baskets to the herring industry, Selection of baskets, A port for 800 years

Other machinery

The museum has an eclectic range of machines.

Left: Herring packing machine, Right: A mutocope

Gallery architecture and curation

The gallery is housed in a beautiful building, sensitively designed and lovingly restored with a clever use of sculpture and illustration to provide the viewer with a strong sense of life in a smoke house.

Left: Roof rafters, Right: Illustration of herrings being smoked

Left to Right: Head of Britannia (concrete, around 1850), Glass herring sculpture, Excellent series of stories of people from overseas who moved to Great Yarmouth

Fisherwomen touring exhibition

Fisherwoman is a moving and informative travelling photo exhibition of the often forgotten women of the herring industry. The narrative plots the path of the boats that would follow the herrings from Shetland down the North Sea, bringing catches to shore all along the east coast where women would gut, pack and sell the fish.

Thinking of modern Great Yarmouth

The Time and Tide and the Craig Easton exhibition shines a light on a place like Great Yarmouth, providing detail on how such a place evolves and why some things that may appear odd to outsiders makes perfect sense within the town. Whether considering the diet, the housing or the drinking, only by visiting such cultural places can a real glimpse into the past be found that determines the present and likely shapes the future.

John M