Archive of articles, videos and blog posts

Looking for a tutor is just the same as looking for any other type of service. You have to find a way to make the ...
More

Private Tutor French German Redirect page ...
More

I can’t believe there are people who think you’ll learn a new language properly by doing the things I'm going to write about. And yet ...
More

I am a Languages and Media specialist. I’m a language tutor and occasional translator with a background in producing online media, including articles, blog posts, ...
More

In this article, I'm going to look at the importance of using guesswork in language learning. Why do we need to use guesswork? in scientific ...
More

Introduction: I wrote this article a few years ago for groups of Spanish and Italian students who were learning English with me as part of ...
More

This article is adapted from the script of my video 'Is Manchester a mini-Manhattan'. Article and video are of use to a general audience as ...
More

Since I first wrote this article, I have changed my thinking. I used to say: Think of it as a long term project. Like starting ...
More

I first published the following article in 1997. It told the story of our short period of ownership of a classic split screen camper. A ...
More

Aug 31 2016 On a visit to North Wales I unexpectedly witnessed a spectacular lightning storm. I had my camera and tripod with me as ...
More

This article provides some background information on the video presented on my AidanEyewitness channel 13.08.2021. In the video we take a tour around the UNESCO ...
More

This video, Building Boom in Manchester 2021 follows on from my 2020 video on the same subject. This time, I take a bike tour around ...
More

Two videos: The beauty of the Liverpool Waterfront - My views on the UNESCO delisting For years, the Liverpool waterfront has been one of my ...
More

In the AidanEyewitness blog, I reveal some of the background to my videos and other projects. I go into detail that's not practical in a ...
More

The AidanEyewitness blog is the diary of a multilingual content creator and coach. In this blog I want to share some background information about my ...
More

An article about the short film will appear on this page. In the meantime, here's a list of clips and photos, with timings. 00:00 Introduction ...
More

Article about Limerick in one day to appear here ...
More

I published this video on my AidanEyewitness channel the 29th of March 2021. Please note the channel was rebranded from 'AVZINE' in May 2021. Please ...
More

This article is adapted from the script of the video Manchester Before and After. It's a new version of a video I first made a ...
More

Miniatur Wunderland is the largest model railway in the world! But it's more than 'just' a model railway. It's a scaled-down version of the world ...
More

Do Not Refreeze was an exhibition at the Cornerhouse Manchester that was on in 2007. I wrote an article about it, uploaded on the 26th ...
More

INTRODUCTION In this feature, we go on a tour of 47 Beatles locations in Liverpool and Wirral. In 2018 I created a video featuring 38 ...
More

In this feature, we look at five artists who have depicted Manchester. Art defines cities. The Impressionists painted Paris and captured the Zeitgeist - the ...
More

INTRODUCTION I’m interested in cities. I love to explore them, photograph them and see how they develop. Unfortunately, sometimes things go wrong. In 1999 on ...
More

Video embedded at 23.56 hrs on Friday 18.12.2020. Video uploaded 16.12.2020 26 views after 3 days. In mid-2020 I wrote a new and extended version ...
More

This is a new version of my video from 2019 with some extra airport scenes from 2020. It's now in my AVZ channel format with ...
More

In Manchester herrscht seit einigen Jahren ein regelrechter Bauboom. In vielen Teilen der Stadt entstehen neue Gebäude. Überall sieht man Kräne. An jeder Ecke hört ...
More

Hello students, hello everyone! And welcome to my channel, the Audio Visual Zine. I am presenting a newer version of my video from 2019 with ...
More

In Manchester, for quite a few years now, a massive construction boom has been going on. From a distance, for instance from the airport some ...
More

Artikel und Videopodcast in deutscher und englischer Sprache Es gibt viele Verbindungen zwischen Liverpool und Wales. Es wird gesagt, dass viele Menschen in Nordwales Liverpool ...
More

I am a coach in languages and I’m keen to explore issues concerning the UK and Germany. This presentation is mostly in English but I ...
More

AidanEyewitness YouTube Channel There are many connections between Liverpool and Wales. It's said that Liverpool is regarded by many people in North Wales as their ...
More

Artikel und Videopodcast in deutscher und englischer Sprache ENGLISCHE VERSION Warum wurde der einst größte Flughafen der Welt mitten in einer Wildnis gebaut? Die Antwort ...
More

Article and Visual Podcast in English and German versions CLICK TO TO GO TO THE GERMAN VERSION Why was the airport that was once the ...
More

Artikel und Videopodcast in deutscher und englischer Sprache ENGLISH VERSION Es geht in diesem Beitrag um zwei Musik-Events in Europa: Bayreuth und Glyndebourne. Beide Festivals ...
More

Interview, transcript & photos, Multimedia Presentation I recorded this interview with CP Lee on Friday the 28th of July 2006 and the recording has been ...
More

A Beatles journey With this video I wanted to create a work of art, combining my photography with a wonderful contemporary-oriental musical backdrop and subtitles ...
More

Music slide show video and musician interview In July 2020 I made a slide show for a video by the singer Zinney Sonnenberg. The video ...
More

Im Juli 2020 habe ich eine Dia-Show für ein Video des Sängers Zinney Sonnenberg gemacht. Das Video erschien am 04.07.2020 im Global-Liverpool-Facebook-Event. Der Song 'Liverhearts ...
More

I went to Xaverian College, Manchester, UK, when it was a boys’ grammar school. It was a direct grant grammar school. It received funding from ...
More

The Japanese version of this article and video will appear here shortly ...
More

I wrote this essay on fashion photography for my A level in Photography which I completed in 1997 at Manchester College of Art and Technology, ...
More

Horst P Horst (born 1906-1999) was a friend of Hoyningen-Huene, and also had a fascination for classical imagery, indeed he made a detailed study of ...
More

Some images on this page were lost during the transfer to this new web page. I hope to place them in the text again. By ...
More

Norman Parkinson, (born in 1913) a contemporary of Beaton, also photographed the beau monde during the twenties and thirties, but, as he explains, with certain ...
More

Please click here to subscribe to my channel and view more of my videos- Thank you!I made this video in July, 2018 and it presents ...
More

Ich habe im Juli 2018 dieses Video gemacht. Es präsentiert meine Auswahl der fünfzig besten und schlechtesten Gebäude in Manchester. Ich interessiere mich seit meiner ...
More

CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE GERMAN VERSION OF THIS ARTICLE When we think about George Best, do we remember him for his football, or for ...
More

BITTE HIER KLICKEN, UM DIE ENGLISCHE VERSION ZU SEHEN. Wenn wir an George Best denken, denken wir dann an seinen Fußball, oder an seinen Alkoholismus? ...
More

I took this photograph in 1981 my final year at university. I was lucky enough to get a summer job at the CIEE student travel ...
More

GERMAN VERSION I went to Liverpool Anglican Cathedral and inside, I saw the moon - not the one in the sky but a scaled down ...
More

This bilingual video project is currently in pre-production. I am gathering the information and the photographs and hope to launch the video during October 2018 ...
More

ENGLISCHE VERSION Ich besuchte in Liverpool die Anglikanische Kathedrale und habe dort den Mond gesehen! Nicht den wirklichen, sondern einen verkleinerten Mond, der ein Fünfhunderttausendtel ...
More

GERMAN VERSION Many people in the UK wear poppies as a symbol of remembrance for the victims of war, especially the fallen soldiers of both ...
More

ENGLISCHE VERSION Viele Menschen in Großbritannien tragen Mohnblumen als Symbol des Gedenkens an die Opfer von Kriegen, besonders die gefallenen Soldaten der beiden Weltkriege. In ...
More

Manchester, a city in North West England - a British city with international and European influences, a city where migration has played a key role ...
More

Salford Quays is an area that has undergone huge transformation in recent decades. What was once the Manchester Docks is now a futuristic district where ...
More

As part of my photo e-book project, I’ve made a selection of my best photos of Stockport and presented them in a free photographic e-book ...
More

Blog post about my photo e-book on Trinity College Dublin will appear here ...
More

1. Take your photography to a higher level That's the main reason people come on the Photo Walk in Liverpool and in Manchester - to ...
More

In Jan 2020 I went to the Dublin Bowie Festival and I was capturing the people, sights and sounds of the event imusing my iPhone ...
More

As part of every photo walk I do and every private tuition session in photography I give, I deliver my 'should-be-patented' one-hour lesson in Aperture, ...
More

On this page I present photographs of Edgeley and Cheadle Heath from my portfolio of photographs. I have a special interest in the area as ...
More

In this post I present my portfolio of illustrations, done in various locations and at various times. I was good at drawing as a child ...
More

I’ve been running the Victoria Baths Photography Workshop for a few years now and have welcomed a large number of people, ranging from complete beginners ...
More

What goes through the mind of a photo competition judge when he or she is choosing which photos to select? Are there any tips or ...
More

In 2018 I made a video entitled 'Is it time to go back to film?" In 2019 I decided to do a new version of ...
More

London, capital of the UK. A great world city. A great European city. In early 2019 MPs here in Westminster had an important decision to ...
More

A VERY INSECURE EXHIBITION was an exhibition that took place on Friday, 22 February, 2019 in a skate park under the Mancunian Way flyover in ...
More

 This article is adapted from the script I wrote for this video for my Explore Learn German YouTube channel, launched 9.1.2019. Using bilingual headings ...
More

Vergehen was first recorded in 1985 as a demo tape, and re-recorded 20 years later, in 2005. Words and music by Aidan O'Rourke, who played ...
More

 This video is on the subject of Beatles locations in and around Liverpool and Wirral. The Beatles legacy is a huge reason for tourists ...
More

I’ve been interested in the history of Manchester for many years and as a full time coach in German, I'm very interested in the German ...
More

In this video I present some of my best photographs of Berlin from around 1982 up to 2018 against the backdrop of a song I ...
More

I've chosen 60 great places to visit in the Manchester area. Here I present them in 120 seconds. I aim to attract people from outside ...
More

I wanted to present 60 of the best places to visit in Liverpool in a short video and here it is. These are some of ...
More

 I made my Back to Film video (above) in 2018 in response to a comment I received an earlier video feature I did 2014 ...
More

Jon Parker-Lee has been active as a photographer in Manchester since 1993. An exhibition in November/December 2013 at the basement venue 2022 in Manchester's Northern ...
More

DUBLIN LIFFEY BRIDGES GERMAN VERSION Hello, my name's Aidan O'Rourke and in this video we're going to look at the bridges over the River Liffey ...
More

BRÜCKEN DES FLUSSES LIFFEY ENGLISCHE VERSION 1. Die West Link Brücke - Droichead an Nascbhóthair Thiar - führt die Autobahn M50 über den Fluss Liffey ...
More

Snow arrived in Manchester on the morning of Tuesday 27 February 2018. This was the first appearance of the 'Beast from the East' forecast to ...
More

I took this photograph of the Bata Building in Prague on a visit to the city in 2005. The images is dated 26.10.2005. I was ...
More

Music and architecture are connected. When I hear some genres of music I think of architecture, cityscapes and streetscapes. Rhapsody in Blue by George Gershwin ...
More

If you’re visiting a city and want to get the inside story on its history and attractions, who should you go to? A tour guide ...
More

Queer Noise is an exhibition at Manchester’s Pump House Museum about the development of the LGBT+ club and music scene mainly from the seventies and ...
More

The red brick arched doorway and facade of Salford Lads Club has been seen countless times in a set of black and white photographs of ...
More

As I understand it, one of the aims of the MIF is to stretch artistic boundaries, to encourage people, both performers and audiences, to move ...
More

Kraftwerk are a contradiction. They use synthesisers and computers yet their music is full of expressiveness. They deal with complex themes of modernity and technology, ...
More

This is the first in a series of video slide show presentations on the theme of 'Before & After'. From my archive, I have selected ...
More

They incorrectly call Manchester the city of rain, but I think it should be called City of Libraries, as there four major historic libraries in ...
More

 What's Stockport famous for? It's the last stop on the West Coast line from London Euston to Manchester Piccadilly, it's seven miles south east of ...
More

Following criticisms of the 2016 proposals, a redesign was produced in mid-2017 by Hodder Architects. Read my initial reactions in this article. After the police ...
More

There are few things more important in our lives than buildings. New buildings, old buildings, they make our world, they are a reflection of us ...
More

One of the themes of the Eyewitness blog is 'secrets behind the image'. In this post I am going to write about the creative and ...
More

At last! Finally! After all these years of documenting Manchester in photos and words, highlighting, writing, campaigning, I have finally gained some recognition! On Thursday ...
More

1) You need to use Manual mode all the time.2) You must always shoot RAW. 3) White balance should always be set manually. 4) Only ...
More

Here are some photographic impressions of a new symbol of Dublin, the Samuel Beckett Bridge. The bridge exists to provide a link between the newly ...
More

On a walk by the Mersey on 28 Dec I unexpectedly got two very interesting twilight views down the river, with the lights of the ...
More

The changing face of the city has been a dominant theme in my photography since the early days. It was fitting therefore that I was ...
More

This article appeared in the Manchester Evening News on Friday 12 February 2016. Many movies have been made in the Manchester area but few are ...
More

First of all, let me get one thing straight: The name of Manchester's main dual carriageway south out of Manchester city centre, the A5103, is ...
More

I’ve always been fascinated by the Dublin suburb of Rathmines. To English ears it’s a strange-sounding name. There are no coal mines in Rathmines, the ...
More

This article appeared in the Manchester Evening News dated Thursday 14th of January, 2016. I have always loved rooftop views whether in Paris, Berlin or ...
More

Here's my editorial and photo feature on Oldham Road that appeared in the Manchester Evening News on Thursday 7 January, 2016. It was the first ...
More

This article appeared in the Manchester Evening News that appeared on New Year's Eve, Thursday 31 Dec 2015. In the first line I made a ...
More

Lime St Station is probably the best known and most used building in Liverpool. People from the suburbs and beyond take the train to Lime ...
More

This article appeared in the Manchester Evening News in late 2015, along with a selection of photographs. I've been following the development of Ancoats, Manchester ...
More

This content is password protected. To view it please enter your password below: Password: ...
More

Over a period of many years, London Road Fire Station has been without doubt Manchester’s most magnificent disused building. Every day, thousands of people pass ...
More

Here's my editorial and photos that appeared in the Manchester Evening News on Thursday 17 September 2015. Recently I've been tutoring at a company in ...
More

This article appeared in the Manchester Evening News in late November 2015 and is on the subject of new squares in the city centre. It's ...
More

Here's my feature on forgotten bridges which have been uncovered and restored or will soon be. I've always been fascinated by bridges. They have an ...
More

Here's my article and photos published in the Manchester Evening News on Thursday 10 December, 2015. During the previous days, record amounts of rain fell ...
More

The celebrated photographer Anton Corbijn has announced that he is ‘bowing out’ of professional photography. From now on, photography will be just a hobby. This ...
More

Earlier this year I featured Shaun Keefe who has developed a highly individual style of art. It's guitar art or guitart for short. He takes ...
More

As I post this image, it's the middle of winter in December 2015 but there's been no snow yet! I decided to pick a featured ...
More

One day in November 2015 I had an appointment on Bury New Road and I took a short cut across the Greengate district of Salford ...
More

Street names can tell us a lot about the heritage of a place. Unfortunately most street signs in Manchester and the rest of the UK ...
More

Bill Rogers captures the darker side of Manchester in his crime novels. We met at the Portico Library and he told me about the inspiration ...
More

In December 2014 my late evening train from Liverpool was delayed. It stopped just beyond the platform at Lime Street. It was just a minor ...
More

In August 2015 I was asked to lead a photography workshop for bloggers to be held in Manchester. It organised by the 3 mobile phone ...
More

This article appeared in the Manchester Evening News in August 2015 There are some buildings people love to hate. I've listened politely to many opinions ...
More

Oxford Road begins at the River Medlock under the rail bridge and extends to Moss Lane East by the Curry Mile. Oxford Road and the ...
More

Few places symbolise the true character and spirit of Manchester more than Ancoats Dispensary. It’s not a stately home or a concert hall or a ...
More

Manchester has been called the ‘shock city’, where the future arrives early, and this is reflected in some of its buildings. When Urbis was under ...
More

As a followup to her recent Stripped Back exhibition and launch evening, I visited photographer and artist Karen McBride at her apartment and studio. She ...
More

The Train to Funky Island is my ‘against all odds’ film project, made between 2010 and 2013, and here are the reasons why you should ...
More

Here are a few of the photos I took this afternoon of the Manchester Day parade as it passed down Deansgate. It was a wonderful ...
More

Here's my interview on Radio Manchester on the morning of Wednesday 10th of June 2015. The transcript is below. Due to a technical problem with ...
More

ALL fm group show: The Tuesday Club with Heather Madden and Aidan O'Rourke by Aidan O'Rourke on Mixcloud Today we recorded the second show following ...
More

It might seem a bit egotistical, but I thought I would note down some of the things I've done that I'm proud of. I think ...
More

This article was one of my weekly editorial pieces in the Manchester Evening News. The Manchester town hall clock tower tour offers a unique opportunity ...
More

Soundcloud audio read by Aidan O'Rourke, including an interview with John McCormack. Press the 'Play' button, listen and read the article below. Charlie's Plan is ...
More

One of the biggest influences on me was a neighbour who was also a school friend. He was into pop art and illustration. One day ...
More

Whitworth Street West is a street that's associated with the field of media, culture and nightlife. It runs between two historic transport routes: the Rochdale ...
More

In the Manchester area, Tatton Hall, Bramall Hall, Lyme Hall and Heaton Hall are the most famous local mansions or houses that were once the ...
More

This article, accompanied by photos from my archive, was featured in the Manchester Evening News in late March 2015. The Rhine, the Rhone, the Danube, ...
More

Audio Part One: Introduction by Aidan O'Rourke 'Unbelievable' by EMF is one of the iconic songs of the Madchester scene, the music and dance movement ...
More

This is my illustration of a 1950s oval window VW Beetle next to the beach and the Promenade in Blackpool. I'm known for my photography ...
More

Library Walk used to be of my favourite locations in Manchester. It was a haven of peace from the noise of the city, an architectural ...
More

I asked my Mancunian friend Chris Joyce to recommend some places in Manchester for my English language students to visit. He came up with some ...
More

The home of renowned author Elizabeth Gaskell reopened to the public on 5 October 2014. The Victorian villa at number 84, Plymouth Grove was built ...
More

In June 2007 Tony Wilson interviewed Adele Loch Arlene McCarthy and me at the Cornerhouse Manchester. It was on a BBC Radio Manchester programme called ...
More

Manchester Then and Now is a book written by Jonathan Schofield presenting archive images of Manchester placed side by side with contemporary scenes - captured ...
More

I love the effect of dusk light, when street lights, buildings are cast into shadow and appear silhouetted against the sky. In the urban landscape ...
More

In 2006 I interviewed film and music historian C P Lee at his home in Manchester. On the occasion of his retirement on 30 January ...
More

I got to know Alex McCann when I was one of the official photographers at Manchester's In The City music convention and festival. He produced ...
More

In the aidan.co.uk PhotoGuide website I bring together all my interests and experience and one of the most important is education. I've been involved in ...
More

A POWERFUL VISIONARY QUALITY that transforms the way we see familiar objects and places - That's the hallmark of many great artists, and one that ...
More

From 1999 to 2002 Manchester's Piccadilly Gardens were completely remodelled in a stark Modernist style with an office building constructed on green space at the ...
More

Rebuilding Manchester was written by Euan Kellie. It’s a full colour, hardback edition with 255 pages, 467 images and graphics, of which 384 are photographs ...
More

This is a review of "My Guide to Manchester", the complete guide to the city, written by tour guide and author Jonathan Schofield, published in ...
More

Saint Aidan was an Irish monk and missionary who helped to bring Christianity back to Northumbria in the north-east of England in the seventh century ...
More

My earliest memory of U2 is from 1978 when they played at a 24 hour music festival at the Project Arts Centre, which had recently ...
More

I've always been fascinated by local history. I love to imagine how things were in different times, whether during my childhood or 100 or more ...
More

I was asked where is the best part of Berlin to visit on a three hour bike ride. I came up with this short tour ...
More