Locations

Here We Go Again, by Hugh Westbrook – (///.vivid.gladiators/beams – Maternity Unit, West Middlesex Hospital)

Where better to start than where I was born, the West Middlesex Hospital. It was impossible to find the exact square where I came into the world, and my mother can’t remember precisely what the maternity unit looked like all those years ago (she was quite distracted at the time). So I’ve selected an address from the entrance to the current maternity unit to create a story.

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A Message from Afar, by Hugh Westbrook (///along.pulse.watch – National Space Centre, Leicester)

I always loved astronomy when I was a child, and there are a number of sci-fi shows I have enjoyed as an adult, so I wanted to find a location as a trigger for a story in that genre. Where better than the National Space Centre, which I have fond memories of from when I visited.
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In The Shadows, by Hugh Westbrook (///rugs.ranks.pies – Central Bus Station, Heathrow Airport)

Living in Oxford, there are many ways to get to London, and one of the regular routes I take is on a bus to Heathrow Airport. One day while I was waiting for a bus I checked to see what three-word location I was standing in, with a view to using it for a story. I toyed with all manner of stories involving airport buses and impossible sets of luggage, or journeys enlivened by the smell of delicious pies wafting among the passengers, but none would work. So instead I moved inside the airport itself and found the words could lend themselves very well to a tale of daily airport life.

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The Artificial Leader, by Hugh Westbrook (///input.caring.brain – 10 Downing Street, London)

With the recent state of UK politics astonishing every day during the autumn of 2022, I was keen to write a story about power and those in charge. When a friend of mine showed me the above address for 10 Downing Street, it felt like a perfect combination of words for a story speculating on who might be the real power behind the office.

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A Life of Fulfilment, by Hugh Westbrook (///invalidity.impose.tickling – Tiger’s Nest Monastery, Bhutan)

Bhutan remains one of my favourite countries, even though I have only visited once. My wife and I travelled there in November 2003 and enjoyed an amazing 10-day journey round the endlessly beautiful landscape. The sense of being cut off from the world was palpable. If we were to go back now, I know we would find a country that has modernised in various ways, while still retaining the magic which we felt on our visit. I have tried to capture something of that in A Life of Fulfilment.

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Symphony Interrupted, by Hugh Westbrook (///saving.violin.brains – New Scotland Yard, London)

This was not a story with a personal connection to a location. I was challenged to write a dark story with a an unsympathetic lead character, so chose New Scotland Yard as an obvious location to base a story featuring a series of crimes.

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The Missing Ingredient, by Hugh Westbrook (///arts.healthier.wonderfully – Brick Lane, London)

Brick Lane is one of the best places to eat in London, with plenty of great food and affordable options. So it’s probably a little unfair to end up with a story about overpriced food inspired by one of the best value food streets in the country. So apologies to the many fine eateries on Brick Lane – sometimes the words simply suggest a story. And the food critic Jay Rayner was in my mind as well when I wrote it, and a particularly scathing review he once wrote about people’s desperation to eat something just because it was expensive.

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Sheep’s Clothing, by Hugh Westbrook (///endlessly.hook.blotchy – Sherwood Forest, Nottinghamshire, UK)

I have visited Nottinghamshire and Sherwood Forest more than once, always enjoying the chance to see the oldest oak tree in the world. So when I decided I wanted to write a story set in a forest, it seemed the obvious location to use as an inspiration.

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Silly Love Songs, by Hugh Westbrook (///hurry.weds.pencil – The Beatles Story, Liverpool, UK)

I’ve loved the Beatles for 40 years, consuming all their music and many books about them when I was a teenager and always enjoying revisiting their music. So when I decided I wanted to write something with a Beatles hook, it was a case of finding a suitable location as an inspiration.

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Seeing the Light, by Hugh Westbrook (///allotment.fishlike.baroque – Ligatne nuclear bunker, Lativa)

We had a family holiday in Latvia a few years ago and one of the highlights of the trip was a tour of the Ligatne nuclear bunker, a brilliantly preserved bunker from the Soviet era. It was fascinating to see round all the different rooms of the underground complex and imagine what life there would have been like. So it was the obvious location to choose for a story which feels depressingly topical.

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The Woman in the Back Row, by Hugh Westbrook (///space.divide.acted – Radcliffe Camera, Oxford, UK)

My family and I have been living in Oxford for close to 15 years, so naturally I wanted to use an Oxford location as an inspiration for a story. I am sure there will be more. The Radcliffe Camera is one of the more iconic sights in the City, and we always take visitors there, so naturally I gravitated towards it as a first Oxford location. Something about the setting inspired a story which reminded me of recent events.

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Poker Face, by Hugh Westbrook (///.together.deal.zebra – Khalifa International Stadium, Qatar)

I saw a post on social media showing the exact what3words address from a key World Cup moment – the location of where the ball didn’t cross the line before Japan crossed for their winning goal against Spain – a result that put them into the next round and also knocked out Germany. So I used the words as an inspiration, together with the idea of cameras coming to the aid of a contest, as VAR did in the World Cup match. I have to say, the resulting story was not what I expected when I started thinking about it!

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Just Desserts, by Hugh Westbrook (///leaned.system.hunter – Westbrook Road, Staines-upon-Thames, UK)

I was brought up in Staines – before it changed its official name to include its geographical connection to the Thames. There is a Westbrook road in Staines, named after my grandfather, who was the mayor of Staines back in the 1960s. I used this as an inspiration for a story about someone being honoured by a town. The main character in this story bears no resemblance to any member of my family!

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Keeping up with the Cohens, by Hugh Westbrook (///outdone.lipstick.behind – The Western Wall, Jersualem, Israel)

I wanted to write some stories for the festive season, starting on the first day of Hanukkah, 2022. The obvious location to choose was the Western Wall in Jerusalem, as the story of Hanukkah centres around the rededication of the Temple

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Who’s on the List?, by Hugh Westbrook (///straying.enlised.chemist – Santa Claus Village, Rovaniemi, Finland)

For a Christmas story, where else to choose but Santa Claus village in Lapland, Finland – a place where many head every year for a little taste of Santa.

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Last Year’s Resolutions, by Hugh Westbrook (///clean.wider.both – Big Ben, London, UK)

For a story about New Year’s resolutions, the obvious place to pick was Big Ben in London, the place which is most closely associated with the start of the year in the UK. In the future, there are many other places which I could equally choose as representing the start of the year.

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The Eggs-treme Omelette, by Hugh Westbrook (///reading.readjust.nominations – Old Faithful Geyser, Yellowstone, Wyoming, USA)

Many years ago I backpacked around the United States and there are many locations from that trip which have very fond memories for me. One such place is Yellowstone National Park, and I can still picture many of the amazing things I saw during my visit. One of course was the famous geyser Old Faithful, and I have chosen that as a location for a story. Unusually for what3stories, the selected location actually appears in the story, rather than acting as an inspiration.

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A Nice Cup of Tea, by Hugh Westbrook (///damage.tags.path – PG Tips tea factory, Manchester, UK)

Many stories on what3stories are created by choosing a location and an address and then seeing what story emerges from those prompts. On other occasions, there is a story idea looking for a location to support it. That’s the case with this story. I had a story I wanted to write about drinking tea, and wanted to pick a suitable location to provide the words. I could think of nothing more iconic to the British tea drinker than PG Tips, so used the factory location as the inspiration.

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Cooking with Robin, by Hugh Westbrook (///olive.gross.admit – YouTube Headquarters, San Bruno, USA)

I wrote Cooking with Robin a couple of years ago. It was one of my earliest forays into flash fiction and I have always been fond of it and keen to bring it to a wider audience. In terms of finding a suitable location for it, the headquarters of YouTube soon emerged as a place which seemed an appropriate inspiration. As for a specific address to use, the original story had a reference to olives, so when I found an address containing the word olive, it wasn’t a difficult decision to select that and make a couple of other tweaks to accommodate the other words..

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A Taste Sensation, by Hugh Westbrook (///sushi.zest.crate – Gtech Community Stadium, Brentford, UK)

There was never any doubt that at some point I would use the home of Brentford Football Club as a story inspiration. After all, I have been devotedly watching Brentford since the mid-1970s. After around 45 years going to Griffin Park, I am now up the road at the recently renamed Gtech Community Stadium, and loving life in the Premier League. I picked the centre circle to provide the address for a story, and wrestled for some time with what that story might be. In the end, a tale about how football catering has changed in recent times came together. And no, I would never eat Sushi at a football match.

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The Weight of the World, by Hugh Westbrook (///plenty.reject.fired – Weight Watchers International HQ, New York, USA)

This was one of those stories in search of a location, rather than seeing a story grow from the location and words itself. I had the idea of an ancient weight transference machine and wanted to use it in a story, so picked the Weight Watchers HQ as my location to inspire it. But I still ensured that I picked an address that corresponded as closely as I could see to the entrance to the building, and then allowed the words of the address to help dictate the narrative.

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A Worrying Decline, by Hugh Westbrook (///punt.calls.fell – Entrance to the old City of London School building)

My wife and I have a running gag that whenever we are near the River Thames in London, I will always point out my old school building, as if I have never shown it to her before. It is a highlight for her every time we are in London! The building itself, standing near Blackfriars Bridge, is now home to banking giant JP Morgan – the majority of the old school is long since demolished and replaced with shiny new offices, but the glorious building at the front remains, much to my wife’s delight. The substance of the story it inspired bears no resemblance to my schooling.

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The Middle of Everywhere, by Hugh Westbrook (///prosecuted.amplification.showings – Null Island (0 degrees lat, 0 degrees long), international waters)

I have never been to Null Island. I imagine very few people would ever claim to have done. But when I read about it I was fascinated by the idea of the exact point in the world where the lines of latitude and longitude meet, and was pleased to find it was named and marked with a buoy called the Soul Buoy at its location around 375 miles off the cost of West Africa. Finding the what3words address proved easier than I thought, as you can search its database via co-ordinates as well as place names, and the three words which came up were interesting and challenging.

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The Case of the Missing Seafarer, by Hugh Westbrook (///admiral.pram.orchestra – The Sherlock Holmes Museum, London, UK)

I wanted to challenge myself to write something which felt like a complete Sherlock Holmes story within the 350-word limitation I have sent myself on what3stories. I looked at various possible addresses at the Sherlock Holmes Museum, which is at 221B Baker Street in London, and felt that the admiral.pram.orchestra combination felt the most suitable for a Holmes story. Though the basic structure came quickly, the detail seemed almost endless, and I hope I have created something which feels authentic.

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Divergence, by guest author Helen Westbrook (///figure.major.fault – Royal London Hospital, London, UK)

I have been interested in the history of the hospital where I was born a long time ago, and where I was again a few years ago for treatment.  It has grown vastly in the intervening years. Originally known as The London Hospital, it was granted a Royal title by Elizabeth 11 in 1990 to celebrate the 250th anniversary of its opening on the Whitechapel site.  It is a renowned teaching hospital with a full range of specialist care.

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A Night Under Canvas, by Hugh Westbrook (///crumple.thundered.pickles – College Farm, Norfolk)

My family has been put off camping for life after our tent blew down in an overnight storm in North Wales. However, the desire to go camping still remains, so we have upgraded to glamping, and recently enjoyed a wonderful glamping trip at College Farm in Norfolk, part of the Featherdown Farms network. This particular address was very near where our yurt was, rather than right on top of it, but the combination of words came together perfectly to inspire this story.

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At the Foot of the Mountain, by Hugh Westbrook ((///flickered.oilier.measurements – Mount Sinai)

My wife and I were watching a documentary about the life of Moses, which included a walk to the top of Mount Sinai by presenter Josh Gates. It got me thinking about the multitude of untold stories from that time – after all, the Bible is our only source of information for the story of the Exodus, and even the Mount Sinai featured may not be the one cited in the famous story. The three-word address is the first one which comes up when you search for Mount Sinai – I made no attempt to find an alternative address, as this combination suggested a number of creative avenues.

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Strangers on a Train, by Hugh Westbrook (///lake.motel.bonus – Derby Railway Station, UK)

This is a story with a complicated history. I was on a train travelling south from Leeds when we were held up for a few minutes at Derby station. I became aware of a number of mobile phone calls happening around me and started thinking how snatched moments from one side of conversations could form the basis for a story of conjecture and uncertainty. I swiftly looked at the what3words address which came up for where I was at that moment and decided to use those words, wherever they took me. The word ‘motel’ took me to the United States, a far cry from Derby.

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The Claret Jug, by Hugh Westbrook (///romantics.punk.topmost – Beeston Hills Putting Green, Sheringham, UK)

I tend to find putting greens a bit dull, and only ever roll out my finely tuned golfing skills on crazy golf courses. However, Beeston Hills Putting Green in Sheringham, Norfolk, is the exception to this rule – set on a cliff side, with long holes and forbidding slopes, this putting green was a proper test of my golfing credentials, which I am happy to say I passed by beating my wife and then nine-year-old son. What a triumph? The address chosen is from the entrance to the course and leant itself to a story of an altogether bigger golfing triumph.

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Voyage of Discovery, by Hugh Westbrook (///warming.pungent.peppery – near the Cape of Good Hope, South Atlantic Ocean)

It’s fair to say, the genesis of this story is complicated. My wife had bought a book called The Science of Spice by Dr Stuart Farrimond, which is full of fascinating details about the world of herbs and spices. The book contains pages dedicated to many different ingredients, and those pages start with the name of the spice together with a three-word description. Naturally I started putting some of those three-word combinations into what3words, to see whether any registered as addresses, and quite a few did, though not immediately in helpful places. Then I tried Galangal, and found that the three-word description ‘Warming, Pungent, Peppery’ landed in the South Atlantic, pretty much on the route that Europeans would have taken around Africa as they began to spread into Asia. So in many ways, the challenge of this story was not so much about allowing the words to dictate the story, but more about finding a way to make the location key to the narrative.

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The Rise of the Fuzzybutts, by Hugh Westbrook (///wreckage.coagulated.propertied – Andes Mountains, Bolivia)

Two years ago I never figured that guinea pigs would play a big part in my life. But my family wanted them, and so Marshmallow and Lotus came to join our family, worming their way into my affections. So it seemed only right that I should write a story about guinea pigs, and in terms of finding my three words, I went with the Andes Mountains as a location, as guinea pigs emerged there, and determined to use whatever three word combination came up with a basic Andes Mountain search in what3words. The words that came up led perfect to a story of guinea pig world domination. Which is what I am convinced they are really after!

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Head Trauma, by Hugh Westbrook (///loggerheads.ended.inadequacy – Easter Island)

I thought it would be run to write something to publish on Easter, and decided Easter Island should be my location of inspiration. I simply put Easter Island into what3words and decided I would use the first combination which came up, with no hunting around for alternatives. I couldn’t have wished for a better trio. They fitted an Easter Island story so perfectly that I had the idea within minutes.

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The Great Race, by Hugh Westbrook (///helicopter.wormhole.bicycle – Western Iceland)

The genesis of this story is a little odd. I was having a chat on WhatsApp with a friend about the date of a football match being changed at short notice due to industrial action affecting travel. He said that trying to get to a station in the circumstances would have been interesting, so I replied ‘Helicopter. Wormhole. Bicycle’ to give him some random options. I then checked to see whether that combination was a what3words address. Which it turned out it was, somewhere indeterminate in Western Iceland. I then checked to see whether there was anything specific about Iceland that could affect wormholes, and loosely connected the potential positive impacts of gravity with the higher gravity in Iceland because of the volcanoes. Finally the bicycle prompted me to think about triathlons (and one of my favourite recent jokes – A shark can swim faster than me. But I can run faster than a shark. So in a triathlon it would really come down to which of us is better on a bicycle). And so The Great Race came together.

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The Captain’s Tale, by Hugh Westbrook (///nebulas.parsnips.confesses – The Wreck of The Titanic)

I’ve always liked the feature in what3words which allows you to look up addresses for co-ordinates as well as named locations. So when I saw something about the location of the wreck of The Titanic, I found the co-ordinates and the address to go with them. For the story,, I remembered something I wrote at school a very long time ago – an idea I was proud of at the time and have never forgotten but one which for some reason my then English teacher seemed less enamoured of. So I saw this as the opportunity to revisit it.

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Terry’s Big Adventure, by Hugh Westbrook (///gravy.amplifier.frog – McDonald’s, Apia, Samoa)

At the start of 2004, my wife and I were travelling and arrived in Samoa for what was meant to be a relaxing couple of days as part of our journey back to the UK. A day later, Samoa was hit by Cyclone Heta. Thankfully the damage was not too bad, and we were only delayed by a few days before we were able to leave again. One of our abiding memories is that one of the first places to open back up after the cyclone was the McDonald’s in the capital, Apia, and the queue seemed endless to welcome its reopening. One other memory is how we thankfully rang home to tell people we were OK once the cyclone had passed to find that nobody had heard anything about it! Reporting of these kind of events was quite different 20 years ago.

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A Question of Authorship, by Hugh Westbrook (///front.dock.charge – Shakespeare’s birthplace, Stratford-upon-Avon, UK)

I’ve always found the arguments over whether Shakespeare was really Shakespeare fascinating, and while I have never seen anything that has yet convinced me that he wasn’t a genius from Stratford, I still enjoy looking at the theories. So when I discovered that when you search for Shakespeare’s birthplace on what3words, the first word on the address that comes up is ‘front’, then the push to write a story about the man from Stratford being a front for one or more Elizabeth noblemen became too much to resist.
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Pre-Loved, by Hugh Westbrook (///swing.brick.umbrellas – Oxfam Shop, Winchester, UK)

My family was in Winchester a few weeks ago and they wanted to have a look in one of the local charity shops. I stayed outside as I didn’t really feel like going in, and my daughter came out to join me. She said she often wondered about the stories of the objects in the store – what was their history before they found themselves on the shelf. She suggested it could make a good basis for a story. So I noted down the address of the shop and got to work. And my wife suggested the title.

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The Attack, by Hugh Westbrook (///awaited.passively.landings – Stonehenge, UK)

The reason for this location is pretty obvious really! Sometimes it is just fun to see what address comes up for various famous locations, and when ‘landings’ appeared as one of the words to accompany Stonehenge, the story really wrote itself.

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Seventeen, or Thereabouts, by Hugh Westbrook (///tripled.obstruction.stubble – Matsuyama, Japan)

This location was more about finding somewhere to fit an idea – I wanted to write a story entirely in haikus, and Matsuyama in Japan came up as a city particularly associated with this form of poetry. So I picked the first address which came up when I searched for Matsuyama and took it from there. The words fed very neatly into the story I wanted to write.

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The Greatest Game in the World, by Hugh Westbrook (///squashes.unattached.sake – Socks Island, Maine)

This was very much a story in search of a location, rather than a story suggested by a location. Well almost! I wanted to write a story about what is an almost universal problem, missing socks, and the creation of a game to try and address this. So I looked for a location with socks in its name and stumbled across Socks Island in Maine, which despite having looked into it, I can still find very little about. But the fact that the word ‘unattached’ came up in relation to a planned story about socks missing their pair meant that this was definitely the right location!

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Derelict Janefield, by guest author Laurie Donaldson (///magpie.tracking.loudness – Janefield, Ardbeg, Isle of Bute)

Here is a poem, rather a sombre one admittedly, about my childhood home until I was 12 and my dad died and we moved off the island. Every time I go back to Bute I visit the house, which has been long boarded up and fenced off. We lived upstairs and the remnants of my plastic coloured window blinds in my small boxroom/bedroom are still just visible. Until comparatively recently I felt it such a shame that it should have been allowed to become such a state, all the windows now empty spaces that allow the birds to occupy our home, but recently my mood has changed. As it is has been a no-go zone for so long, it is surrounded and overcome by plants and trees, and the sight of the building poking out among the lush foliage makes it akin to a Mayan temple found in the jungle after centuries, and I now think it resplendent!