HRH the Duke of Edinburgh inspects a guard of honour by the 8th Battalion, Sherwood Foresters, in the Old Market Square, 1949. (Source: Nottinghamshire Archives). Behind them a modern day shopper rides a mobility scooter, 2012. Photomontage by Paul Fillingham – Thinkamigo.

Pixels on parade: Then and Now

Sillitoe Trail Xtra: Paul Fillingham

A photoshoot with author Derrick Buttress by the Left Lion was the inspiration for a number of Old Market Square Montages

In May 2012, the Sillitoe Trail Team arranged to meet Nottingham ‘Broxtowe Boy’ author Derrick Buttress (1932-2017) outside the council house. Writers James Walker and Al Needham were familiar with Derrick’s work and happily posed for pictures by the left lion. The images were going to be featured in LeftLion magazine in support of an editorial piece about the Sillitoe Trail project. Derrick described how wartime Nottingham was populated by American GIs who were stationed here.

Read the Buttress Market Square Essays.

With vintage images from the Nottingham County Archives loaded on an iPad, I was able to compose contemporary shots that could be used to create photomontages. Whilst aligning an image of HRH Prince Philip taken in 1949, we were lucky enough to capture a modern day shopper riding a mobility scooter across Old Market Square – a perfect foil to the suave demeanour of the royal signatory and his upright soldiers.

Sillitoe Trail writers, ‘Browxtowe Boy’ Derrick Buttress, James Walker and Al Needham. Source; Paul Fillingham – Thinkamigo.

Cecil Howitt’s Council House viewed from the junction of Friar Lane, Wheeler Gate and South Parade, 1928. (Source: Nottinghamshire County Archives). Author Derrick Buttress, stands outside Starbucks’ Coffee shop, 2012. Photomontage; Paul Fillingham – Thinkamigo.

Nottingham author Derrick Buttress.  Inset; LeftLion magazine cover, June 2012. Source; Paul Fillingham – Thinkamigo.

The author posed for a photograph outside the Starbucks Coffee Shop at the junction of Friar Gate, Wheeler Gate and South Parade – matching a 1928 image, featuring the skeletal construction work of Cecil Howitt’s Council House. The resulting montage appeared on the front cover of LeftLion magazine in June 2012 and was also included in a crowd-funded anthology ‘LeftLion, The First 100 Covers‘ published in 2018.

Related links:

Victory in Europe Day 1945 – Derrick Buttress
The first Sillitoe Trail feature by Derrick Buttress author of Broxtowe Boy and contemporary of Alan Sillitoe.

A Strictly British form of Victory – Adrian Reynolds
On the trail in 2020 – As Britain celebrates Victory in Europe Day, it’s getting hard to tell what real is.

Derrick Buttress Interview
LeftLion Interview by James Walker July 2012

Derrick Buttress: The Guardian
Obituary by John Lucas, 4 Jan 2017

The Sillitoe Trail

Take your own interactive tour of the author’s city and follow in Arthur Seaton’s footsteps around Nottingham, exploring the real locations of key scenes from the novel. You can go back to the Old Market Square or visit The White Horse pub, the Raleigh factory, the River Trent and Goose Fair. For updated content, visit Sillitoe Trail Xtra

Follow: Arthur Seaton @Thespacelathe on Twitter

Download: Sillitoe Trail Factory Handbook (17MB PDF)