This phone box, which stands outside Whitley Bay Metro station, is a K4 model from the ’20s, which is very rare – it’s one of only ten still in existence and one of only four still in public use. Its ‘Post Office’ sign is not an indication of a later change of use – the K4 was designed by the Post Office to incorporate a postbox and stamp dispenser. Next time I’m in Whitley Bay, I’m going to investigate the box properly and see how much of the original infrastructure survives!
Two vintage fairs on in Newcastle today, both kilo sales. I have discovered that kilo sales are my new favourite thing.
Lots of funky ’80s patterns! Top (L-R): blouse, jumper, blouse, dress. Bottom (L-R): dress, blouse, dress, dress. I’m looking forward to wearing all of these!
I managed to get eight items of clothing for the price I would usually pay for two or three at a vintage fair, so I feel like I got some great bargains today!
I went to Worth The Weight Kilo Sale at the Civic Centre first. I’d managed to get a limited edition free entry ticket when they’d advertised them on Facebook, which meant more money for clothes! I’d intended to stick to lightweight dresses and blouses to try and get my money’s worth, and for the large part I stuck to that plan, but I couldn’t resist one jumper. I do love an ’80s jumper! At £15 per kilo, my 1.4 kilos came in at £21, which is not bad for a jumper, two dresses, and two blouses.
I then headed over to The Vintage Kilo Sale at Northumbria Student Union, which turned out to be the right way round to do things – by the time I got there it was past noon, which meant both discounted entry (£1.50 rather than £3) and discounted stock (£10 per kilo rather than £15!). This meant that I only had to pay £10 for my exactly-a-kilo haul of two dresses and a blouse.
Both fairs had a really good selection of late 20th century vintage (’70s to ’90s, mostly), which meant that my ’80s vintage wardrobe has grown significantly today. I’m already looking forward to when the next kilo sale rolls into town, and will be keeping my eyes peeled on Facebook!
Don’t know what ‘David Crow’ refers to, or why the glass has been replaced with a single panel, but it’s always nice to find a phone box in an unexpected place!
Update 26th February 2026: I’ve not been able to find an exact picture on Google Street View (a common problem with indoor phone boxes!) but I have added a coordinate link for the hotel bar. If you get that far you should be able to find it!
Today’s phone box is from a trip Geth and I took to Southampton in May 2017 so that Geth could conduct some work interviews. It was the first time we’d been back to Southampton since we’d moved away from the city more than two years previously, and I found the whole experience pretty strange! I did, however, take the opportunity to photograph this phone box that I remembered passing all the time when we used to walk down to the marina.
Red phone box, Platform Road, Southampton, 10th May 2017.
Moving onto a phone box that I first spotted while running the Sunderland 10K in 2016, but of which I only had the chance to take a photo the following year, when Geth and I went to Sunderland so he could look at the course in preparation (he ran it for the first time in 2017).
Red phone box, Borough Road, Sunderland, 14th April 2017.
I love a good phone-box-turned-cash-machine – it keeps the boxes useful in the world of the 21st century!
Update 26th February 2026: unfortunately this phone box has now been removed (and Google Street View doesn’t seem to have historical data available for Sunderland city centre) but I’ve added a coordinate link for where it used to be.
Vintage fairs are back for the autumn/winter! There’s another one I’m planning to go to next month, by which point I may no longer be strong/warm enough to resist the lure of vintage ’80s jumpers. I have plenty. I still want more.
I was sensible today, though, and didn’t buy any jumpers for now. Instead, I picked up two things I’d actually been visualising: a red blouse to go with one of this year’s Christmas outfits, and a jersey dress that will be nice and comfortable for ’round the house’ days, which, for a work-from-home type like me, is most days.
The red material looks shiny here but it’s actually more kind of sheer.
It’s very satisfying to be able to add a piece here and there to my vintage collection. Looking forward to wearing both of these!
I don’t know if there’s a special reason these ones have been painted black, but it looks very striking. It’s also great that they’ve been repurposed for wifi – another good 21st century use for phone boxes.
…and it’s another K2. I do like K2 boxes! Shame they have more breakable glass panels and are hence harder to maintain. This one’s in quite good condition though.
