Pretty, Vacant 4

All Images: Central Leicester, May 2020

Here are a few more images on the theme of vacant commercial property.  Once again, they were captured in the centre of Leicester (and separated by only a few metres), on another of my recent two-wheeled meanders through the city's relatively deserted, locked-down streets.

Being the erstwhile premises of a hairdresser and a bar, respectively - both are highly representative of the kind of enterprises forced to close during the pandemic.  Slightly ironically however, I know for a fact that both were empty some time before the current crisis.  What intrigues me in both of these cases, is the A4 missives giving notice of future intentions.  Clearly, the application for a bar license is more than a little irrelevant - for the time being, at least, whilst the move to an alternative salon nearby seems equally futile, even if the coiffeurs have "took over another business".  

So, while not actually documentary in nature, these images are still pretty symbolic of our current plight - I guess.  In particular, they seem to speak of an optimism that (with hindsight) feels more than a little misguided.  "When things get back to normal"  and, "When the pubs re-open" are phrases I hear pretty regularly these days, and it is true that the British  lock-down appears to have relaxed a little (officially), and frayed a little more (unofficially), in recent days.  However, it seems inevitable that the backwash from all this mayhem will cause more than a little turbulence, for years to come, both socially and  financially.  Something tells me 'normal' might no longer be quite what people expect.

  

I do need a haircut, though (and a social drink wouldn't hurt, either).