This week I visited the old market town of Banbury and took the opportunity to do a bit of drawing in between the summer showers.

Banbury is a strange place. It feels like a town that had its heyday in the late 19th century with some fine old buildings, many of which now seem to be gently decaying – as the town struggles with the early 2000s.

After the evening rush-hour the town quietened down – with most people going home for their tea. Taking advantage of the quieter streets and lighter summer evenings I sat and drew some of the buildings around the market square.

Here is the view I chose to draw – The Lincoln Chambers building and The Istanbul Barbers next door.

Here is my sketch in progress…

and my finished sketch…

This drawing took about an hour, with mostly just the pigeons and one local passer-by taking an interest. It seems to be an enduring urban myth that there are (secret) tunnels under many other historic towns. In Banbury these tunnels are associated with Cromwell and the Civil War, although there is supposedly also one out to Broughton Castle, about 3 miles away – a bit unlikely.

It also rained on and off, making sketching a little more difficult, with the paper softening and more care required when drawing.

Eventually it was time to pack up and head home. With some cleaning up and a scan, this is what this particular drawing looked like…

And with some more line and detail added, here is the finished drawing.