T H E D E R E L I C T M I S C E L L A N Y

About.

This website was created in 2005 by D. A. Gregory with a little help from my family and my friends at the Horshamite Group. Why I created it I'm not entirely sure any more, but it's something I enjoy doing and a subject that interests me. I've been in and out of derelict buildings since my childhood (though admittedly that's not too long ago) and have a passion for passing on my knowledge.

When I visit a derelict or disused building my two aims are to record and observe, nothing more. However, in making a website, my my main aims are to understand and promote understanding, to learn and promote learning, to inform, explain, illustrate and entertain. Though it's not really my main aim, I also hope to raise public awareness of buildings at risk.

This website was made to be different.

There are many 'urban exploration' websites on the internet, but this is not one of them. I dislike that label and its connotations (also, I have experienced too many idiotic generalisations, futile 'who can get there first/climb highest/take the best souvenir' competitions, petty arguments and pointless factions among such communities to stand by them.) . I prefer thoughtful narratives and good photographs to boasts and medal grabbing, word of mouth and well placed links to shameless self publicising and have the general interested public, not urban explorers as my main target audience. I understand that some urban exploration sites do this, and I will link to a few elsewhere, but in any case I've decided to distance myself from the Urban Exploration 'community'
I prefer to consider myself an individual who happens to enjoy photographing and documenting disused space and could do without another label and the oft incorrect presumptions that go with it.
As such I do not have the same pressure to conform to any ideas of what a U.E. website should do, include or look like - too often people are only interested by stuff that's big or complex such as disused hospitals, military installations or huge industrial complexes. When I made this website, as with its predecessor the now defunct Derelict Horsham, I chose instead to represent a wider range of places. The big locations were not to be left out, but alongside them would feature inns, wind and watermills, quarries, farms, castles, follies and even ordinary houses - a real miscellany.
In addition I am bound by no arbitrary hobby 'codes' and 'rules' or tiresome debates thereof. I can construct my own code of conduct, viz: Although I appreciate that what I do has some grey areas and ethical considerations, I aim to respect the places I visit by leaving things as I found them, neither removing nor adding anything and at all times behaving sensibly.

This vision still forms the backbone of this website
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