Just a little personal shoot of one of my little personal havens. Urmston Meadows isn’t really what most of you will think of when you hear the word ‘meadow’… ‘wasteland’ is in truth probably more appropriate. It’s a wild, overgrown, rugged patch of land sandwiched next to the M60 motorway, the airport and inner Manchester. But for me and my greyhound Freddie it’s often a little piece of paradise. True, it’s a little desolate and unkempt, with the odd burnt out motorbike in it, high rise flats on the horizon, planes overhead and the dull hum of the motorway in the air… but it’s also a really peaceful, wild oasis where Freddie can run free and I can empty my thoughts, just two minutes from our house. It’s also almost always totally empty and feels like our little secret world – it’s tucked away in such a way that many people living right next to it don’t even know it’s there. For me one of its charms is that it looks totally different each time you visit, it totally transforms not just through the seasons but from week to week, even day to day. The plants spring up, disappear and change at an alarming rate, and in different light the place feels and looks totally different. Although the plants are rough and ready I love them just as much as their more colourful, glamorous cousins. So here is a little tribute to Urmston Meadows, taken on a wintry sunny walk a couple of weeks ago with Joe and Freddie…