Author Archives: Geoff Clements

* The ‘Stone-Alcoves’ of old London Bridge

Posted on by Posted in Bridges, Parks & Public Squares, Quirky Topics, Street - Fixtures & Fittings .

The most regular type of feedback London Shoes receives every week, is from people who express their surprise and concern that they have walked past a certain historic landmark that ‘Shoes’ has covered-off – hundreds/thousands of times in their lives, and yet never noticed something or never knew what it was or the history behind it !!!

The subject matter of this London Shoes trek out, typifies that sort of scenario – and the topic in question is certainly something that I never even knew existed, even though these specific historic landmarks have been around for over 300 years and are used every day.

This blog is all about the old ‘Stone-Alcoves’ of London Bridge – and an interesting little topic it is too.

Before covering-off these 3 ‘Alcoves’ in greater detail – it may help to take a step back in time some 300 odd years – to understand their origin.

There has been a crossing over the River Thames, where London Bridge stands today, since way back in the 12th Century – but probably the most recognisable and identifiable early incarnations of this historically famous bridge, is from the 1600 & 1700’s, when paintings & illustrations of that period in time, show the bridge as a stone construction made up of 19 arches, with loads of buildings situated on it.

Records from the Tudor period, clarify that there were over 200 buildings located on London Bridge, ranging from residential houses, commercial shops and business – and a pair of large fortified gates at each end.

The ‘arched’ version of the bridge stood in this format for almost 600yrs – and it became more and more overcrowded as the centuries rolled on.

By the mid 1700’s the authorities of the time deemed the entire London Bridge construction to be totally unsafe, and that something had to be done to address the problem.

Between 1763 & 1768 an extensive renovation and re-build of London Bridge took place – which resulted in the complete removal of all the buildings that had been built on it over the previous centuries.

Following the removal of all the buildings on the Bridge, it was felt that Londoners and travellers needed to have some sort of shelter on the new construction, to protect them from the elements when crossing from one side of the Thames to the other – or – something to protect their personal security, to make them feel more safe and secure – or – simply something where they could take the weight off their ‘plates’.

To resolve this issue 14 ‘stone alcoves’ were built and placed on the Bridge – 7 on each side.

These ‘alcoves’ became a noticeable feature of the newly constructed London Bridge, as can be seen from illustrations and paintings of that time.

Fast forward to the early 1800’s, because of London’s rapidly increasing population, it was clearly evident that a ‘new’ London Bridge was needed to cope with its daily ‘traffic’.

By 1831 a new Bridge was designed and constructed by the renowned architect of the day John Rennie-Junior.

Rennie sold off a number of the old Bridge’s original fixtures & fittings, including its ‘stone alcoves’.

Guys Hospital bought one of the ‘alcoves’ for the sum of 10 guineas and two of the others were donated to the newly opened ‘Victoria Park’ in Hackney east London.

The next subsequent re-build of London Bridge took place in the 1960’s. The ‘old’ Bridge was bought by a wealthy American who had its dismantled brick by brick and shipped over to the USA and relocated in Lake Havasa City-Arizona.

Remarkably these 3 old ‘stone alcoves’ survive to this very day, and so London Shoes quest last week was to track them down and see what they are all about.

Just a short walk from Hackney Wick overground station, lies the magnificent ‘Victoria Park’ in Hackney-London-E9, and just inside its eastern entrance, stand 2 of the old London Bridge ‘stone alcoves’ that were once fixtures of the Bridge throughout the 1700’s.

 

I was surprised and pleased to see that these 2 Victoria Park alcoves had obviously been well looked after and were in good condition. One of them even had its own ‘story-board’ and commemorative plaque.

As all the dog-walkers, joggers & cyclists in the park passed by these 2 ‘alcoves’ whilst I was taking my photos– it just made me wonder as to how many of them actually know anything about the origins and history of these 2 permanent park fixtures.

So – having found the 2 alcoves in Hackney, I jumped on a couple of trains and made my way south, down to the London Bridge of today – and just a short walk from London Bridge station, I located the other ‘stone-alcove’ in the grounds of the famous ‘Guys Hospital’.

Situated on a lawn in one of Guys inner squares, there proudly stands another old London Bridge ‘stone-alcoves’ – which again, has obviously been well looked after and cared for throughout the past couple of centuries – and also put to good use, as it is clearly now a place where hospital staff and visitors alike, can sit and relax for a while.

 

On the wooden bench inside the Guys Hospital ‘stone-alcove’ their sits a bronze statue of the famous romantic poet ‘’John Keates” who once trained as a surgeon at Guys Hospital.

Feeling pleased with myself that I had managed to track down these famous old landmarks, and learnt something about them on the way – it was time to find a pub and have a ‘cheeky’ one before setting off back home, and so I popped into a lovely little pub called the “Horseshoe Inn” tucked away in a small side street at the back of Guys Hospital.

Records evidence that there has been a pub on this particular site since 1848, and the current pub building dates back to 1897, when he pub was originally called the “Horseshoe & Wheatsheaf”.

The ‘Horseshoe’ has an interesting bit of recent history about it, as its exterior appeared regularly in the hit TV series ‘Ashes to Ashes’, where it was the programmes ‘Railway Arms’.

 

 

 

So that’s the story of the ‘stone-alcoves’ of old London Bridge – well over 300yrs old and still in practical use today for folks to plonk their ‘arris down on.

Hope you enjoyed this piece and its accompanying photos.

 

See below for the full range of photographs taken to accompany this blog

An illustration of London Bridge from the 1700’s – which clearly shows its ‘stone-alcoves’

 

Victoria Park-Hackney-London-E8 – where 2 of the ‘stone-alcoves’ of the old London Bridge are now located

 

One of the ‘stone-alcoves’ situated in Hackney’s Victoria Park

 

A close view of one of the ‘stone-alcoves’ situated in Hackney’s Victoria Park

 

The ‘story board’ relating to the ‘stone-alcoves’ in Hackney’s Victoria Park

 

One of the ‘stone-alcoves’ in Victoria Park even has its own ‘story-board’ and commemorative plaque.

 

The commemorative plaque situated alongside one of the ‘stone-alcoves’ in Victoria Park

 

A close-up of the commemorative plaque situated alongside one of the ‘stone-alcoves’ in Victoria Park

 

A close-up of the inscription inside one of the 2 ‘stone-alcoves’ in Victoria Park-Hackney

 

Another view of one of the ‘stone-alcoves’ in Victoria Park

 

Me – inside one of the 2 ‘stone-alcoves’ located in Hackney’s Victoria Park

 

Me – & a ‘stone-alcove’ in Hackney’s Victoria Park

 

Absolutely nothing at all to do with the ‘stone-alcoves’ – but I just thought this abandoned building near to Hackney Wick station – was quite amusing

 

Nothing at all to do with the ‘stone-alcoves’ – but I just thought this abandoned building near to Hackney Wick station – was quite amusing

 

Situated on a lawn in one of the inner squares of Guys Hospital – there proudly stands another old London Bridge ‘stone-alcoves’ – which again, has obviously been well looked after and cared for throughout the past couple of centuries – and also put to good use, as it is clearly now a place where hospital staff and visitors alike, can sit and relax for a while.

 

The commemorative plaque displayed at the site of the ‘stone-alcove’ at Guys Hospital

 

An ‘old & new’ photo showing the ‘stone-alcove’ at Guys Hospital – with the iconic ‘Shard’ in the background.

 

Situated on a lawn in one of Guys inner squares, there proudly stands another old London Bridge ‘stone-alcoves’ – which again, has obviously been well looked after and cared for throughout the past couple of centuries – and also put to good use, as it is clearly now a place where hospital staff and visitors alike, can sit and relax for a while

 

Me – and the ‘stone-alcove’ situated in Guys Hospital – with the old poet John Keates eyeballing me in the background

 

On the wooden bench inside the Guys Hospital ‘stone-alcove’ their sits a bronze statue of the famous romantic poet ‘’John Keates’ who once trained as a surgeon at Guys Hospital.

 

Me & old Keat’sie – a couple of old romantics

 

An illustration of the Tudor incarnation of London Bridge, with loads of buildings situated on it – ‘before’ it was demolished and the ‘stone-alcoves’

 

Another old illustration of London Bridge from the late 1700’s – clearly showing the ‘stone-alcoves’ situated on it!!

 

London Bridge as it stands today

 

Me – & a view from today’s London Bridge

 

The ‘Horseshoe Inn’ near Guys Hospital – Records evidence that there has been a pub on this particular site since 1848, and the current pub building dates back to 1897, when he pub was originally called the “Horseshoe & Wheatsheaf”

 

A front-view of the ‘Horseshoe Inn’ near Guys Hospital – Records evidence that there has been a pub on this particular site since 1848, and the current pub building dates back to 1897, when he pub was originally called the “Horseshoe & Wheatsheaf”

 

Inside the ‘Horseshoe Inn’ near Guys Hospital

 

 

Me – neckin’ down a ‘cheeky’ one in the delightfully comfortable ‘Horseshoe Inn’ close to Guys Hospita

 

 

*“V2 Rocket attacks on London-in WW2″-the ‘first’ the ‘worst’ & the ‘last’

Posted on by Posted in Military, Streets, WW2 .

This week ‘London Shoes’ looked back to the latter stages of WW2 and the devastating impact that one specific aspect of enemy attack had on the lives of so many Londoners.

This week’s publication onto the ‘London Shoes’ Website-FB & Twitter portals is entitled “V2 Rocket attacks on London – the ‘first the worst & the last” !!!.

Whilst battles were being fought throughout occupied Europe and in other countries – Germany knew that it had to come up with a new strategy to attack Britain from the skies in order to decimate production and defence, and to crush the morale of the British people.

The ‘Blitz’ had come and gone, and Britain’s ability to defend itself from aerial attacks had been greatly enhanced with the introduction of high tech radar mechanisms and also anti-aircraft weaponry.

Germany knew that it had to develop a more advanced and more lethal method of attacking Britain from the skies – and so it turned to one of its leading scientists in rocket technology-‘Wernher von Braun’ to design and develop a new form of bomb weaponry, that could be launched from the land, in Europe – directed to specific targets in Britain-then be fired across the English Channel – to hit and obliterate the designated targets on British soil.

Being the capital London was obviously a prime target for the majority of these rocket attacks.

The first rocket design that ‘Wernher von Braun’ came up with was known as the ‘V1’ Rocket – the ‘V’ standing for ‘Vengeance’. It became more commonly known as the ‘buzz-bomb’ because of the buzzing noise that could be heard when approaching, and when its engine cut-out, then you knew that it was going to land somewhere very soon and cause death and destruction.

The very first ‘V1’ rocket to hit London, was launched from European soil on 13th June 1944 and hit a railway bridge in Grove Road-Bow-East London, killing 6 people and badly injuring 42 others – all in all, 9,000 V1 rockets were launched on London.

By September 1944, Germany, and in particular von Braun, had started developing a much more advanced and deadlier version of the V1 rocket – which was known as the ‘V2’.

The ‘V2’ rocket was, at that time, the world’s first long range ballistic missile.

The ‘V2’ rocket weighed 23 tons – travelled at 3,000mph – flew so high that it couldn’t be tracked by radar or shot down by anti-aircraft weapons – their approach couldn’t be heard at ground level – and when they exploded, they could leave a crater of anything up to 10ft deep. They were so powerful that their destructive effect would fan-out for up to a quarter of a mile from where they landed.

Germany started its ‘V2’ rocket bombardment of Britain in Sept 1944, and over 1,500 were subsequently dropped on London alone.

So – what were the ‘first’ the ‘worst’ & the ‘last’ V2 rocket attacks on London?

The very ‘first’ V2 rocket attack on London happened on 8th Sept 1944 – and for some unknown reason, hit the quiet little suburban residential street of Staveley Road in leafy Chiswick, located down by the Thames in the far reaches of south-west London. This very first V2 attack killed 3 people outright and seriously injured 17. The blast from this rocket completely obliterated the area of the quiet little street.

The ‘worst’ V2 rocket attack took place a couple of months later on 25th Nov 1944, when the bomb dropped from the skies on a busy Saturday morning, and hit the Woolworths store in New Cross Road, in the Bermondsey district of south London – killing 168 people including babies and children who had been out shopping with their mothers – and its devastation also left 121 people seriously injured.

The Co-Op store next door to Woolworths collapsed as a result of the attack, and it took rescue services a whole 3 days to retrieve all of the bodies from the carnage.

The very ‘last’ V2 rocket attack on London took place on 27th March 1945 at around 7am in the morning, when it hit ‘Hughes Mansions’ – part of a residential block of flats situated at the Whitechapel end of Vallance Road-London E1 – killing 134 of its residents.

The devastation of the V2 rockets (and the V1’s) left thousands of Londoners homeless – or left them with home that no longer had a roof or utility services – but throughout all this tragedy and devastation, the resilience, camaraderie and community spirit amongst Londoners (and inhabitants of all Britain’s targeted cities) eventually saw them through what was one of the darkest periods of London’s history.

Shortly after the Hughes Mansions attack in March 1945, allied forces advanced into Europe and captured all the bases where the V1’s & V2’s had been launched from – and these bombardments finally came to an end.

As for the German scientist ‘Wernher von Braun’ who designed these ‘V’ rockets – he was ‘encouraged’ by the allied forces, to surrender to the US Army, as opposed to the Russians – and was very soon made a full US Citizen, and went on to become one of the leading designers of the early incarnations of the US NASSA space project……… the irony of War eh!!!

Today – it is somewhat reassuring & comforting to know that these awful unimaginable events have not been forgotten – as scattered across London are several commemorative plaques and memorials acknowledging what Londoner’s went through as a result of the V2 (& V1) rocket attacks and the tragic loss of life that followed.

So – for this blog, I set out to visit the exact locations of ‘The First – The Worst – The Last’ V2 rocket attacks – and this is what I found.

In quiet leafy ‘Staveley Road’–Chiswick, the site of the very ‘first’ V2 rocket attack on 8th Sept 1944 – there stands a memorial at the spot where the rocket initially hit. Next to this memorial is a sort of ‘story-board’ that reminds us of, and commemorates the lives of the 3 people who were killed.

In ‘New Cross Road’ south-east London, and not far from New Cross Gate mainline station – the ‘worst’ V2 rocket attack is commemorated by 2 plaques on the exterior wall of an Iceland supermarket store, which is built on the site of the old ‘Woolworths’ department store that was so devastatingly bombed by a V2 on 25th November 1944, taking the lives of 168 people – the ‘worst’ tragedy as a result of these rocket attacks.

Finally, in Vallance Road-E1 just round the corner from Whitechapel mainline station – there is a commemorative stone tucked away in the grounds of the ‘Hughes Mansions’ housing estate that the very ‘last’ V2 rocket hit on 27th March 1945 – killing 134 innocent people. A children’s playground now stands on the actual spot that was the centre of the explosion.

So – having spent the day travelling from south west to south east then east London seeking out the ‘first – worst & last’ V2 rocket attack sites, it was time for a little liquid refreshment before heading off back home – and so I continued walking up Vallance Road-E1 from ‘Hughes Mansions’ towards Bethnal Green, and popped into a legendary east-end pub “The Marquis of Cornwallis” situated on the corner of Vallance Rd & Bethnal Green Road.

‘The Marquis of Cornwallis’ is a typical old east-end type boozer that has a bit of history behind it. Records show that there has been a pub on the site since 1793, and the current pub building dates back to 1835.

It has a bit of notoriety about it as in the past it was often the preferred watering-hole for a lot of the local gangsters, and in fact, the Kray Twins dad ‘Charles Kray’ senior, was once a ‘regular’ – even when he was on-the-run’ from the authorities-as it is said, he often was.

Knocking back a couple of ‘cheeky’ beers in the ‘Cornwallis’ gave me the time to contemplate on just how difficult and terrifying life must have been for Londoner’s during WW2 years – and hopefully, through commemorative plaques and memorials, however big/however small – the courage and resilience of those who lived through this kind of stuff is appreciated and never forgotten.

Hope my accompanying photos help to bring a bit of reality to this article.

________________________________________________________________

See below for the full range of photographs taken to accompany this blog

Before the introduction of the ‘V2’ rocket model – the very first ‘V1’ rocket to hit London, was launched from European soil on 13th June 1944 and hit a railway bridge in Grove Road-Bow, killing 6 people and badly injuring 42 others – all in all, 9,000 V1 rockets were launched on London.

 

The ‘V2’ rocket weighed 23 tons – travelled at 3,000mph – flew so high that it couldn’t be tracked by radar or shot down by anti-aircraft weapons – its approach couldn’t be heard at ground level – and when they exploded, they could leave a crater of anything up to 10ft deep. They were so powerful that their destructive effect would fan-out for up to a quarter of a mile from where they landed.

 

Leafy, tranquil ‘Chiswick’ located in the far reaches of SW-London – the very first V2 rocket attack took place here.

 

The quiet little suburban residential street of Staveley Road in leafy Chiswick, located down by the Thames in the far reaches of south-west London. This very first V2 attack occurred here and killed 3 people outright and seriously injured 17.

 

The memorial at Staveley Rd-Chiswick – the site of the very first V2 rocket attack on London

 

The memorial at Staveley Rd-Chiswick – the site of the very first V2 rocket attack on London

 

The memorial at Staveley Rd-Chiswick – the site of the very first V2 rocket attack on London

 

A photo of Staveley Rd-Chiswick following the devastation of the very first V2 rocket attack on London

 

The memorial at Staveley Street-Chiswick – at the site of the very first V2 rocket attack on London

 

Next to the memorial in Staveley Rd-Chiswick is a ‘story-board’ that reminds us of, and commemorates the lives of the 3 people who were killed.

 

Next to the memorial in Staveley Rd-Chiswick is a ‘story-board’ that reminds us of, and commemorates the lives of the 3 people who were killed

 

Next to the memorial in Staveley Rd-Chiswick is a ‘story-board’ that reminds us of, and commemorates the lives of the 3 people who were killed

 

Next to the memorial in Staveley Rd-Chiswick is a ‘story-board’ that reminds us of, and commemorates the lives of the 3 people who were killed

 

Me – alongside the memorial in Staveley Rd-Chiswick – the site of the very first V2 rocket attack on London in 1944

 

New Cross Gate station – just a few yards away from the ‘worst’ V2 rocket attack on London in WW2

 

A photo showing the devastation of the V2 rocket attack in New Cross, that hit the Woolworths department store on a busy Saturday morning in November 1944

 

Another photo showing the devastation of the V2 rocket attack in New Cross, that hit the Woolworths department store on a busy Saturday morning in November 1944

 

In ‘New Cross Road’ south-east London – the ‘worst’ V2 rocket attack on London is commemorated by 2 plaques on the exterior wall of an Iceland supermarket, which is built on the site of the old ‘Woolworths’ department store that was so devastatingly bombed by a V2 on 25th November 1944, taking the lives of 168 people – the ‘worst’ tragedy as a result of these rocket attacks.

 

One of the commemorative plaques on the exterior wall of an Iceland supermarket in the New Cross Road-SE London – built on the site of the old ‘Woolworths’ department store that was so devastatingly bombed by a V2 on 25th November 1944,

 

Another commemorative plaque on the exterior wall of an Iceland supermarket store in the New Cross Road-SE London – built on the site of the old ‘Woolworths’ department store that was so devastatingly bombed by a V2 on 25th November 1944

 

The site today – of what was the worst V2 rocket attack on London in 1944 – New Cross-SE London

 

Although it could be argued that this has been shabbily put together – at least someone has had the decency and respect to display their own commemoration to all those who lost their lives as a result of the worst V2 rocket attack on London – in New Cross.

 

 

Me – alongside the commemorative plaques on the external walls of the Iceland store in New Cross Rd – that, back in 1944, was the scene of the ‘worst’ V2 rocket attack on London soil.

 

Me – with the site of the New Cross V2 rocket attack, in the background

 

The very’ last’ V2 rocket attack on London took place on 27th March 1945 at around 7am in the morning, when it hit ‘Hughes Mansions’ – part of a residential block of flats situated at the Whitechapel end of Vallance Road-London E1 – killing 134 of its residents.

 

A photo showing the devastation of the V2 rocket attack that hit ‘Hughes Mansions’ in Vallance Rd-Whitechapel on the morning of 25th March 1945, killing 134 people. The very last V2 rocket attack on London

 

 

A commemorative stone tucked away in the grounds of the ‘Hughes Mansions’ housing estate-Vallance Rd-E1. The scene of the very ‘last’ V2 rocket hit on 27th March 1945 – killing 134 innocent people.

 

A close-up of the commemorative plaque tucked away in the grounds of the ‘Hughes Mansions’ housing estate-Vallence Rd-E1.

 

At the ‘Hughes Mansions’ estate today – a children’s playground now stands on the actual spot that was the centre of the explosion of the very last V2 rocket to hit London in 1945.

 

Me – outside ‘Hughes Mansions’-Vallance RD-Whitechapel. The site of the very last V2 rocket attack on London, in 1945

 

“The Marquis of Cornwallis” pub situated on the corner of Vallance Rd & Bethnal Green Road in east London. Records show that there has been a pub on the site since 1793, and the current pub building dates back to 1835.

 

Me – knocking back an enjoyable ‘cheeky’ one in ‘The Marquis of Cornwallis’ pub-Bethnal Green-east London

* The Elephants of Marble Arch – have you ‘herd’ about them?

Posted on by Posted in Quirky Topics, Street - Fixtures & Fittings .

For a bit of ‘post’ Xmas –‘walking off the booze & other excesses’ activity this week, London Shoes headed off to the Marble Arch and the beautiful Hyde Park area of the ‘Smoke’, on what was a gloriously sunny winter’s day – for the specific purpose of seeing a newly exhibited work of ‘sculptured’ art, formally entitled “The Orphan’s Sculpture”, but more commonly referred to as the “Elephants of Tomorrow” – the largest exhibition of wildlife sculpture of its kind in the world.

The sculptures – which were unveiled at Marble Arch on the 4th December – consist of a ‘herd’ of 21 Elephants, who, in the real world; have been orphaned because of the despicable activity of poaching.
This work of art has been commissioned by the globally renowned wildlife charity the ‘Sheldrick Wildlife Trust’, and have been created by the world famous Australian sculpturers ‘Gillie & Marc’, who have their works exhibited in cities all over the world.

It is predicted that if elephant poaching continues at the rate which it takes place at today, then by the year 2040 there will be no more elephants left ‘living in the wild’ – and so the aim of this exhibit of sculptured elephants, is to educate and raise the awareness of Londoner’s and visitors to the city, to the plight of these wonderful animals, and just how badly their existence is endangered.

Each of the 21 sculptures is modelled on ‘real-life’ orphaned elephants that are currently being cared for by the Charity – and each statue has a nameplate of the orphan it represents.

The ‘herd’ is located just behind Marble Arch, on a road-island between the Bayswater Road and Hyde Park – and will be on display throughout the whole of 2020 – so that as many people as possible can come and see them.

These sculptured baby elephants definitely present a great photo opportunity, especially for children – and it is hoped that the exhibit will raise awareness of the enormity of their survival crisis.

So – having hung-out with the ‘herd’ sniffing buns – I was in need of some liquid refreshment before heading off back home – and so I wandered across the Bayswater Road to the ‘Swan Inn’ – a pub that has a few hundred years’ worth of history behind it.

In a previous life, the Swan pub used to be one of the main resting points for stagecoaches heading towards the city. Today, because of its location right next to Marble Arch and Hyde Park, it is very much a ‘tourists’ pub and is always rammed.

One of the Swan pub’s many historic claims to fame, is that it was where in 1670, the notoriously famous French highwayman ‘Claude Duval’ (known as the gentleman highwayman) stopped off for one last drink, before being executed at the Tyburn gallows -London’s most prolific execution site – just a couple of hundred yards further up the road, directly opposite where Marble Arch now stands.

So – having watched the barman at the Swan ‘stand & deliver’ me a couple of ‘cheeky’ beers, I said one last goodbye to the baby elephants, and headed off back home, contemplating the sobering thought about the future of these wonderful animals.

Hope you enjoyed this little article – ‘London Shoes’ final one of 2019.

 

A big thank you from me to all of ‘Shoes’ FB followers and the many hundreds that follow the London Shoes website – your continual support and encouragement make all this stuff I do worthwhile – and I hope you remain interested and continue to enjoy my work throughout 2020 – there are certainly some big-ones lined up on the shelf that I want to knock-out, whilst I’m still on this planet.

Here’s wishing you all a very happy, healthy and contented New Year – luv & peace-always.

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The full range of photographs accompanying this blog, are published below

 

 

This work of art has been commissioned by the globally renowned wildlife charity the ‘Sheldrick Wildlife Trust’, and have been created by the world famous Australian sculpturists ‘Gillie & Marc’, who have their works exhibited in cities all over the world.

 

The ‘Elephants of Tomorrow’ sculptures – in the middle of a road-traffic island between Marble Arch & Hyde Park

 

The ‘Elephants of Tomorrow’ sculptures

 

Me – & the big mummy elephant

 

The ‘Elephants of Tomorrow’ sculptures

 

The ‘Elephants of Tomorrow’ sculptures

 

Me – amongst the ‘Elephants of Tomorrow’ sculptures

The ‘Elephants of Tomorrow’ sculptures

 

The ‘Elephants of Tomorrow’ sculptures

 

The ‘Elephants of Tomorrow’ sculptures

 

The ‘Elephants of Tomorrow’ sculptures – these 2 are only playing :-))

 

Me amongst the ‘Elephants of Tomorrow’ sculptures

 

The ‘Elephants of Tomorrow’ sculptures

 

Me amongst the ‘Elephants of Tomorrow’ sculptures

 

The ‘Elephants of Tomorrow’ sculptures

 

The ‘Elephants of Tomorrow’ sculptures

 

 

Me – and one of the orphaned baby elephants – ‘sniffing buns’

 

Children love the ‘Elephants of Tomorrow’ sculptures

 

The ‘Elephants of Tomorrow’ sculptures

 

Me – and another of the orphaned baby elephants – ‘sniffing buns’.

 

 The ‘Elephants of Tomorrow’ sculptures

 

The ‘Elephants of Tomorrow’ sculptures

 

 

The pub sign of the historically famous ‘Swan’ pub on the Bayswater Road – just down the road from Marble Arch and opposite Hyde Park

 

The historically famous ‘Swan’ pub on the Bayswater Road – just down the road from Marble Arch and opposite Hyde Park

 

The ‘Swan’ pub on the Bayswater Road – just down the road from Marble Arch and the ‘Elephants of Tomorrow’ sculptures.

 

The infamous and notorious French ‘gentleman’ highwayman “Claude Duval’ – who popped in to the Swan Inn on the Bayswater Road, for a final ‘cheeky-one’ before being hung at the ‘Tyburn’ gallows, just a couple of hundred yards up the road!!

 

Displayed on a wall inside Marble Arch tube station – there is a reference to its close proximity to the infamous ‘Tyburn’ gallows execution site – just outside where the station stands today

 

A paving flagstone commemorates the site of what was once London’s main execution spot – the ‘Tyburn’ gallows – directly opposite where March Arch stands today

 

Me – knocking back a final London Shoes ‘cheeky’ one for 2019 – in the ‘Swan Inn’ on Bayswater Road. London Shoes wishes all its followers a very Happy & Healthy 2020 – ‘peace & luv’ to all :-)) xx

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

*London’s “Christmas Lights” – 2019

Posted on by Posted in Quirky Topics, Street - Fixtures & Fittings, Streets .

Sometimes us Londoner’s tend to take for granted the time, effort & finance that often goes in to making the ‘Smoke’, just that little bit more pleasant and enjoyable to wander around – especially at this festive time of year.

London’s magnificent ‘Christmas Lights’ display is a seasonal tradition that began way back in 1954 – and as a child, a trip ‘up-west’ to see the lights, was something that my mum & dad always tried to get done before Christmas Eve – but quite naturally, as you get older, the enthusiasm tends to wain a bit – especially when you’ve heard that devastating news that ‘Father Christmas’ doesn’t really exist!!!

However, in the past few years I have felt the urge to resurrect the pilgrimage up London to see the ‘lights’ again – maybe with me now being a grandfather to 3 little’uns has re-kindled some of that pre-Christmas excitement – and so it was really good to spend a few hours this week, roaming through the west-end streets to check out just some of this year’s Christmas lights on display.

The ‘Oxford Street’ display this year consists of 27 LED ‘Light Curtains’, hanging high above this famous street, that are made up of 220,000 individual lights.

For me, the best and probably the most poignant display I saw this year, has to be the newly introduced “Ever After Gallery” in ‘Grosvenor Square’ – where Londoner’s can plant a silk rose in memory of a loved one, or simply take time to remember absent friends & family this Christmas time – very tasteful & very moving.

The globally famous ‘Carnaby Street’ has an excellent underwater themed display designed by the ‘Project Zero’ ocean conservation charity – where everything on display is made from recycled material.

The famous ‘Liberty’ store and the world famous ‘London Palladium’ theatre are always good at creating a good old festive vibe at this time of year.

Then there just has to be the customary wander around the toy department of ‘Selfridges’. Not quite sure what Selfridges have got going on with their famous window display this year – it is titled ‘Future Fantasy Tales’, which is supposed to represent the old Xmas stories, but for the modern day times – it didn’t really make any sense to me – but the great thing about Selfridges at this time of year are the amazing toys on their 4th floor, especially the cuddly ones – just a pity I can’t afford any of them!!

‘Regent Street’ has returned to its usual ‘Spirit of Christmas-Angels’. The angels are inspired by the street’s debut display back in 1954, which featured traditional angels playing trumpets.

Last but not least, no trip ‘up west’ to see the lights, is complete without venturing a little further on up the road to Notting Hill Gate, to check out the historic and amazing ‘Churchill Arms’ pub (a simple 5min walk from the tube station) which is completely smothered with 97 Xmas trees containing 27,500 lights – always a fantastic sight to see.

So – having viewed and enjoyed all of the above sights, I have to say that even a renowned & seasoned old ‘Grinch’ like me, felt a slight twinge of the old Christmas vibe.

________________________

See below for more detailed photos of London’s Christmas Lights for 2019

The Oxford Street Xmas Lights display this year – is made up of 27 LED ‘Light Curtains’

 

The Christmas lights on display in South Moulton St

 

The Oxford Street LED ‘Light Curtains’

 

More of Oxford Street’s – ‘Light Curtains’

 

Without a doubt, the best buskers I’ve ever seen performing down on Oxford Street. A mini-string orchestra, captured the attention of everyone passing by, playing some beautiful classical stuff

 

More of Oxford Street’s – ‘Light Curtains’

 

The Memory Arch at the ‘Ever After Gallery’ in Grosvenor Square

 

The ‘Ever After Gallery’ – Grosvenor Square

 

A close-up of the commemorative silk roses within the ‘Ever After Gallery’ – in Grosvenor Square

 

The commemorative silk roses on display in the ‘Ever After Gallery’ – Grosvenor Square

 

Another close-up of a commemorative silk rose within the ‘Ever After Gallery’ – in Grosvenor Square

 

Me & the ‘GLW ‘ (eg Good Lady Wife) – amongst the ‘Ever After Gallery’ – Grosvenor Square

 

The famous London Palladium Theatre – a big Panto time for them

 

‘Goldilocks & the 3 Bears’ – this years Panto at the London Palladium

 

Even the back streets of Soho are getting into the Christmas spirit this year.

 

The ‘Project Zero’ ocean conservation themed light display in Carnaby Street

 

Crowds gathering to view the ‘Project Zero’ ocean conservation themed light display in Carnaby Street

 

The ‘Project Zero’ ocean conservation themed light display in Carnaby Street

 

A few luminous ‘squids’ on display in the side streets off of Carnaby Street

 

The ‘Project Zero’ ocean conservation themed light display in Carnaby Street

 

More of the ‘Project Zero’ ocean conservation themed light display in Carnaby Street

 

A festive Liberty’s department store – just off Regent Street

Nothing to do with the west-end Xmas lights – but ‘lights’ of a different kind – A ‘chandelier’ shop

Me – outside a chandelier shop just off Oxford Street

 

 

The world famous ‘Selfridges’ store in Oxford Street – looking all festive

 

Not quite sure what Selfridges have got going on with their famous window display this year – it is titled ‘Future Fantasy Tales’, which is supposed to represent the old Xmas stories, but for the modern day times – for me, nowhere near as good as previous years

 

Selfridges Xmas window display for this year

 

Selfridges Xmas window display for this year

 

Inside ‘Selfridges’ – Oxford St

 

I bumped into my dear old friend the ‘Gruffalo’ in the toy dept at Selfridges – I know this story off by heart, having read it hundreds of times to my 3 grandchildren over the past few years

 

Lovely cuddly toys – but I think it would have been a bit of a challenge getting them home on the tube

 

A Lego ‘Elsa’ from ‘Frozen’ – in the toy dept at Selfridges

 

Me & Frozen’s ‘Elsa’ in Selfridges – and that’s a film I’ve had to sit through countless times with our eldest granddaughter

 

Inside ‘Selfridges’ – Oxford St

 

A festive ‘Food Hall’ Inside ‘Selfridges’ – Oxford St

 

Even old ‘Queen Liz’ was on sale in the Selfridges toy dept!!

 

More of Selfridges lovely cuddly toys

 

‘Regent Street’ has returned to its usual ‘Spirit of Christmas-Angels’. The angels are inspired by the street’s debut display back in 1954, which featured traditional angels playing trumpets.

 

Regent Street’s ‘Spirit of Angels’ Xmas lights display

 

Regent Street’s ‘Spirit of Angels’ Xmas lights display

 

Regent Street’s ‘Spirit of Angels’ Xmas lights display

 

The amazing ‘Churchill Arms’ pub in Notting Hill – completely covered in 97 Xmas trees and illuminated by some 27,500 lights !!

 

The amazing ‘Churchill Arms’ pub in Notting Hill – completely covered in Xmas trees

 

Me – outside the entrance to the amazing ‘Churchill Arms’ pub in Notting Hill – completely covered in Xmas trees

 

Another view of the amazing ‘Churchill Arms’ pub in Notting Hill – completely covered in Xmas trees & lights

 

Me – under the Memory Arch in Grosvenor Square

 

As someone who is always referred to as ‘The Grinch’ at this time of year – it felt only right to have a photo taken alongside my mentor 🙂 🙂

*The Woolwich-“Thames-Foot Tunnel” & the Woolwich “Royal Arsenal”

Posted on by Posted in Historic Buildings, Military .

‘London Shoes’ had to go a little bit subterranean this week in order to reach its selected destination – when it had to walk ‘under’ the River Thames to get to the subject matter in question.

Everyone knows that there are numerous bridges, train tunnels and road tunnels scattered across the ‘Smoke’, that you can use to ‘cross the Thames’ from its north side to its south side and vice-versa – but what a lot of people don’t necessarily know, is that there are also 2 ‘Foot Tunnels’ where you can actually ‘walk’ from one side of the Thames to the other.

The oldest and most popular ‘Thames-Foot Tunnel’ in terms of its usage and also its credibility, is the ‘Greenwich Foot Tunnel’ where you can walk under the River from Island Gardens on the Isle of Dogs on its northern banks, and come out at the Cutty Sark in Greenwich on its southern shores.

However, there is another lesser known and lesser used ‘Thames Foot Tunnel’, that does not get the same care and attention as its more popular Greenwich neighbour – and that is the ‘Woolwich-Thames Foot Tunnel’, which links the north of the Thames at Silvertown–London E16 on the River’s northern banks, and emerges at the back of a small retail shopping centre on the other side, in Woolwich-London SE18.

Because London Shoes always sides with the lesser known and more unusual aspects of London’s history, it was the ‘Woolwich-Thames Foot Tunnel’ that was the subject matter for this particular ‘Shoes’ blog.

The Woolwich Foot Tunnel was opened in 1912, and cost £84k to build.

It is 1,654 feet long and was designed by the amusingly named architect ‘Sir Maurice Fitzmaurice’.
It crosses the River Thames from the London Borough of Newham on the north side – and comes out in the Royal Borough of Greenwich on its southern side.

It more or less runs alongside the historically famous and extremely busy ‘Woolwich Ferry’ service, and provides travellers with an alternative way of getting from one side of the Thames to the other.

Both is entrances on the north & south sides of the River, are protected by a Grade II Listed status.

It is estimated that approx 1,000 people per day use the ‘Woolwich Foot Tunnel’ – which doesn’t surprise me, as there are only 2 other alternatives to crossing the Thames at this particular point of the River – the DLR rail service and the Woolwich Ferry.

It takes roughly 15 to 20mins to walk from one end of the tunnel to the other – and there is certainly nothing glamourous down there – just a continuous long tunnel covered in old stained tiles with numerous little puddles of water scattered along its walkway.

Now – nothing much frightens me these days (other than the fury of the wife) but I have to say that, for some – walking the length of the ‘Woolwich Foot Tunnel’ could be a little bit scary, as your personal security & safety could certainly feel a bit vulnerable down there.

During my visit – when I walked the Tunnel from north to south, there was no-one else down there, except one young woman who I could just about see far in the distance walking towards me – and as she got nearer, I could sense her apprehension and tension as she passed me, which made me feel a bit awkward – because quite frankly, down there, no one can hear you scream – and strangely, I didn’t notice any evidence of CCTV coverage.

 

Later – at the end of my day out, and on my way back home – I walked the Woolwich Foot Tunnel again, but this time from south to north, and I was conscious that there were 2 lads some yards behind me, and because of the acoustics down there and the fact that there was no-one else about, I could literally hear every word they were saying – so I chose to pick-up my pace a bit and continue walking.

When I reached the end of the Tunnel I found that the ‘lift’ was out of service, and so I had to climb the hundreds of steps of the spiral staircase to the surface – a task which in itself had me old 62 year old ‘horse & cart’* pumping a bit, and left me old ‘scotch eggs’* wobbling. (*’horse & cart’=’heart’ – ‘scotch-eggs’=’legs’)

The other thing that crossed my mind when I was down there was, what if there was suddenly a ‘leak’ and old Father Thames came crashing down on me ‘filbert’*!!! – (‘filbert nut’ = ‘head’)

But – putting my personal anxieties to one side – this iconic 107 year old architectural masterpiece is most certainly worth a visit, if only for the fact that you can say you’ve ‘walked under the Thames’.

So – having emerged to the surface of the Woolwich Foot Tunnel, on the southern banks of the River, I then made my way a few hundred yards down Woolwich High Street to a place I knew about but had never ever visited before – a historic site, significant to the defence of this country – the “Woolwich Royal Arsenal”.

Again – a bit like the Woolwich Foot Tunnel, the ‘Royal Arsenal’ at Woolwich does not necessarily get the attention it deserves – but it is as equally important to the history of this country.

 

This once vast expanse of land was once the ‘proving ground’ for Britain’s artillery – which simply means that, throughout the past centuries – weaponry and ammunition was manufactured and ‘tested’ there.

Situated on the south banks of the River Thames in Woolwich south-east London, the Woolwich Royal Arsenal has a history that goes back many centuries.

Way back in 1671 it was simply a 31 acre site that was used as a depot for storing the Royal Armoury.

A ‘Royal Ammunition Laboratory’ was added to the site in 1695, enabling the King’s military to experiment with different concoctions of gun-powder.

Gun Powder Mills were constructed close to the Royal Laboratory – and the site was often used to hold ceremonial firework displays to celebrate Royal occasions and battle victories etc.

In 1717 the ‘Royal Brass Foundry’ was built on the site to manufacture the new weaponry of ‘guns’.

By 1777 the site had expanded to 104 acres and had a 3,000 yard firing range to ‘prove’ (e.g. test) all the King’s weaponry.

In 1804 a 20ft high and 3.5mile long boundary wall was built by incarcerated convicts, to help keep the site secure.

By 1805 King George III formally named the site as the ‘Royal Woolwich Arsenal’.

At the beginning of the 1800’s some of Britain’s and the world’s top up-and-coming engineers worked at the Royal Arsenal.

During 1814 to 1816 the sites ‘Ordnance Canal’ leading from the Thames was built – again, by convict labour.

At that time, ‘Guard Houses’ were built around the perimeter of the site to keep law & order over the convicts working on-site.

The ‘Royal Engineers’ and the ‘Royal Artillery’ both located their HQ’s at the Royal Arsenal site.

At the height of its prominence, all of the following operated from the Royal Arsenal site at Woolwich:- >Royal Storekeepers Department – that stored all war and weaponry material
>The Royal Laboratory – that manufactured ammunition for small arms.
>The Royal Brass Foundry – that manufactured artillery pieces
>The Royal Carriage Department – that manufactured gun-carriages

>The Royal ‘Proving’ Range – where everything that was built, was tested.
> The ‘Dial Arch’ department – where all the manufactured weaponry was taken to be ‘signed-off’ – a sort of quality control centre.

Right through the 1800’s the Royal Arsenal was key to servicing Britain’s weaponry throughout the Napoleonic and Crimean wars – manufacturing weapons, bullets, lead shot, cannon balls, shells and fuses.

Socially, by the late 1800’s, with the emergence and popularity of the sport of football, a munitions-works team was formed – called the ‘Woolwich Arsenal FC’. In 1886 this works team joined the professional Football League – and in 1913 they became ‘Arsenal FC’ and relocated to the Highbury Stadium in north London.

By the time of WW1, the site of Woolwich’s Royal Arsenal covered 1,300 acres and employed over 80,000 people.

It was such a big employer in the area that the Government commission the construction of over 1,000 residential homes in the area, for its workers.

In peacetime between WW1 & WW2 the Royal Arsenal had to diversify its production, and it built steam engines. It was also prominent in the production of memorial plaques for deceased service men and women.

During WW2 there were 32,000 workers on site at the Royal Arsenal, and it was understandably a prime target for the German Luftwaffe. The site was subjected to heavy bombing, which claimed the lives of 103 workers and left 720 badly injured.

 

Following WW2 the Royal Arsenal had to again diversify its production – and became successful in the manufacture of ladies nylons.

After WW2 the Royal Arsenal workforce was reduced considerably. However, output started to pick up again with the onset of the Korean War in the early 1950’s.

Throughout the 1960’s the majority of the factories and production works within the confines of the Royal Arsenal at Woolwich closed down, as there was simply no need for their product output.

A big chunk of the site’s land to the east was sold off to housing developers and became the massive ‘Thamesmead Estate’.

The remaining buildings within the Royal Arsenal perimeters became storage depots for the likes of The British Library – the National Maritime Museum & HM Customs & Excise.

Sadly, in 1994 the Royal Arsenal at Woolwich closed completely as a military establishment – but the majority of its old Georgian buildings still remain, and have been converted into luxury apartments and business offices, and are protected by either Grade I or & Grade II Listed status.

The Royal Arsenal’s 1729 built ‘Dial Arch’ building was converted into a pub (called the ‘Dial Arch’-surprisingly) – which opened in 2010.

So the ‘Dial Arch’ pub had to be the logical place for me to ‘rest me plates’ and neck down a couple of ‘cheeky’ ones, before heading back through the ‘Woolwich Foot Tunnel’ to the bright side of the Thames – the north side, and then off back home.

 

 

 

So – that’s the ‘Woolwich-Thames Foot Tunnel’ and the old ‘Woolwich-Royal Arsenal’ for you. Not as popular or as loved as its posh Greenwich counterpart – but, still an interesting place to visit for a good old day out.

Hope you enjoy the accompanying photos.

 

 

See below the more detailed photo coverage of this Thames-Foot Tunnel & The Royal Arsenal-Woolwich- blog

_______________

 

The Grade II Listed entrance to the Woolwich-Thames Foot Tunnel – on the north side of the River Thames – at Silvertown E16 in the London Borough of Newham

 

A close up of the entrance to the Woolwich-Thames Foot Tunnel – on the northern banks of the River Thames – at Silvertown-E16

 

The beginning of the spiral stairway leading down to the Woolwich-Thames Foot Tunnel – on the northern banks of the River Thames

 

Making my way down to the Woolwich-Foot Tunnel – at its northern entrance

 

At the bottom of the spiral stairway lies the entrance to the actual ‘Thames Foot Tunnel’ (north side)

 

The Woolwich-‘Thames Foot Tunnel’ – viewed from north to south of the River…….. where no one can hear you scream!!

 

Me – all alone in a deserted Woolwich-Thames Foot Tunnel – where no one can hear you scream!!!!

 

 

Inside the Woolwich-Foot Tunnel – with a lone female making her way towards me from south to north – in the far distance !!!

 

The entrance/exit to the Woolwich Foot Tunnel – on the southern banks of the River Thames (aka – the ‘Dark Side’)

 

The southern entrance/exit of the Woolwich-Foot Tunnel

 

There’s certainly a lot of interesting places to see once you emerge from the Woolwich Foot Tunnel entrance/exit on the southern shores of the River Thames

 

Me – with the Woolwich-Thames Foot Tunnel entrance/exit on the southern banks of the River Thames – Its stuck unceremoniously at the back-end of a small shopping mall!!

 

 

A view of the River Thames – looking eastwards – from just outside the Woolwich-Foot Tunnel entrance/exit on the southern banks of the River

 

A view of the River Thames looking westwards – where you can see the traffic queuing for the ‘Woolwich Ferry’ – with Canary Wharf in the far distance (a place where I worked for 16 years whilst with Barclays Bank)

 

The Woolwich Ferry Pier – on the southern banks of the Thames – right next door to the Woolwich-Thames Foot Tunnel entrance/exit.

 

The 2 ‘newish’ Woolwich Ferries – viewed from the southern banks of the Thames

 

 

Me – having a amble alongside good old Father Thames

 

A plane takes-off from ‘City Airport’ – on the northern banks of the River Thames

 

The River Thames – down Woolwich way

 

The River Thames – down Woolwich way

 

Exiting the Woolwich-Thames Foot Tunnel – and moving onwards towards the old ‘Royal Arsenal’

 

 

An old b&w photo of the Woolwich-Royal Arsenal entrance

 

The old “Royal Arsenal” entrance-Woolwich – as it is today

 

The entrance to the ‘Royal Arsenal’ site – Woolwich

 

Just one of the many old Georgian buildings situated inside the gates of the ‘Royal Arsenal’ – Woolwich

 

Commemorative plaques adorn exterior walls of the remaining Georgian buildings within the old Woolwich-Royal Arsenal grounds

 

The Main Gatehouse – another of the many old Georgian buildings situated inside the gates of the ‘Royal Arsenal’ – Woolwich

 

The commemorative plaque on the exterior wall of the Royal Arsenal’s ‘Main Gatehouse’

 

One of the ‘Guard Houses’ that were built around the perimeter of the site in the early 1800’s – to keep law & order over the convicts working on-site. Now converted into a ‘coffee-shop’.

 

Commemorative plaques adorn exterior walls of the remaining Georgian buildings within the old Woolwich-Royal Arsenal grounds

 

One of the Royal Arsenal’s ‘Guardhouses’ that were constructed by the perimeters of the site, to keep an eye on the convict labour doing construction work there.

 

Me – inside the grounds of what was the ‘Royal Arsenal-Woolwich’

 

Just one of the many old Georgian buildings situated inside the gates of the ‘Royal Arsenal’ – Woolwich – Most of which are now offices or private residential apartments

 

Just some of the many historic artefacts inside the gates of the ‘Royal Arsenal’-Woolwich

 

A ‘Saxony Demi Cannon’ – Just one of the many historic weaponry artefacts inside the gates of the ‘Royal Arsenal’-Woolwich

 

 

Another example of the many historic artefacts inside the gates of the ‘Royal Arsenal’-Woolwich

 

 

Me – alongside just some of the many historic weapons & artefacts inside the gates of the ‘Royal Arsenal’-Woolwich

 

Another view of one of the many old Georgian buildings situated inside the gates of the ‘Royal Arsenal’ – Woolwich

 

 

An example of how the old Georgian built buildings inside the ‘Royal Arsenal’ have been converted for more up-to-date purposes :-))

 

The ‘Woolwich Arsenal’ Football Team – reverted to the name ‘Arsenal FC’ in 1913, and re-located to the ‘Highbury Stadium’ in North London. The club are nicknamed the ‘Gunners’

 

 

Next to the Thames inside the grounds of what was once the ‘Royal Arsenal’- Woolwich are a load of iron men’ stuck into the ground. This display is entitled “Assembly” and was created by the sculptor Peter Burke. It is meant to represent a group of people coming together.

 

Me – and an ‘iron man’ – at the Royal Arsenal-Woolwich

 

Another example of the many architectural and stonework statues/decorative commemorations that relate to manufacturing and production work, that was undertaken there throughout the previous centuries

 

Throughout the ‘Royal Arsenal’ site there are many examples of architecture and stonework that relate to manufacturing and production work, that was undertaken there throughout the previous centuries

 

Commemorative plaque on display on the exterior wall of the ‘Dial Arch’ pub-inside the old Woolwich Royal Arsenal gates

 

The pub sign of the ‘Dial Arch’ inside the old Royal Arsenal-Woolwich. The signage making reference to the buildings past activities.

 

The entrance to the old ‘Dial Arch’ building inside the ‘Royal Arsenal’ – built in 1720, and opened as a pub in 2010

 

The ‘Dial Arch’ pub – inside the ‘Royal Arsenal’-Woolwich

 

Me – neckin’ down a ‘cheeky’ one in the ‘Dial Arch’ pub – at the ‘Royal Arsenal’-Woolwich

 

Inside the old ‘Dial Arch’ pub building – at the ‘Royal Arsenal’ – Woolwich

 

Me – neckin’ down another ‘cheeky’ one in the ‘Dial Arch’ pub – at the ‘Royal Arsenal’-Woolwich

 

 

 

 

 

 

* “The Music of Gil Evans” – Jazz at St.John’s-Smith Square-Westminster

Posted on by Posted in Historic Buildings, Music .

With old ‘London Shoes’ having visited the world famous “Ronnie Scott’s” Jazz Club, Sunday week ago – last Sunday I got the opportunity to attend another ‘live’ London music event. The same band, but with a few personnel changes – and a completely different ‘set’.

The venue this time was the prestigious and totally unique “St. John’s” Concert Hall located in the middle of the magnificent Smith Square, just a couple of hundred yards down the road from the Houses of Parliament.

The occasion was the finale of the ‘EFG London Jazz Festival 2019’, and my old drum teacher from back in the 1990’s- ‘Gentleman’ George Double – was thumping his tubs as part of the brilliant ‘Chris Ingham-Sextet’ – performing their entertaining ‘Rebop’ entitled set, of jazz music.

The concert itself was titled “The Music of Gil Evans” – and on the bill were the ‘Chris Ingham-Sextet’, followed by the 22- piece ‘Royal Academy of Music All Stars Jazz Orchestra’ – both bands playing a musical homage to the legendary jazz composer, arranger, performer and producer ‘Gil Evans’.

So – before describing the iconic St. John’s-Smith Square venue and the gig itself, it might be useful to perhaps provide just a little bit of background info as to who ‘Gil Evans’ was, and the massive influence he has had on jazz music.

Gil Evans, a Canadian by birth, was born way back in 1912.

He is universally famous in the world of jazz, for his collaborations with, and arrangements for, some of the all-time greats in the history of jazz music – legends such as:- Charlie Parker – Miles Davis – Quincey Jones – Gerry Mulligan & David Sanborn, to mention but a few.

Gil Evans is probably one of the main influences on the development of the styles of jazz such as cool-jazz, free-jazz & jazz fusion – and he became famous and very much in demand for his arrangement skills and technical abilities to compose orchestral musical scores for all sorts of jazz themed music, which involved adding horns, woodwind & strings.

He signed for Columbia Records label and played a leading part in the recording of 3 of legendary jazz trumpeter Miles Davis’s biggest selling and most influential albums in the late 1950’s-early 60’s:- ‘Miles Ahead’ – ‘Porgy & Bess’ & ‘Sketches of Spain’ – all three still looked upon as being classic jazz albums to this very day.

Gil Evans also recorded under his own name, and his bands were a launch-pad for many soloists and future jazz stars.

Gil Evans passed away in 1988 – but he left behind a massive legacy of work that consisted of some 18 studio albums – 20 ‘Live’ albums – 18 albums where he was the arranger plus 4 film scores.

So –last Sunday’s “The Music of Gil Evans” gig was held at the remarkable and very much unique St. John’s in Smith’s Square–Westminster.

“Smith Square” is a lovely little square of properties tucked away just down the road, south of the Houses of Parliament (eg Westminster Palace).

It was developed in the early 1700’s and was named after the family that owned the land.

House numbers 1 to 9 Smith Square as they stand today, are part of that original development.

No.17 Smith Square was once the HQ of the then newly formed ICI company back in the 1920’s and is now the HQ for the Department of Environment, Food & Rural Affairs. No. 18 was once the Labour Party HQ, whilst No’s 32/34 was once the Conservative Party HQ and is now the London HQ of the EU (don’t know for how much longer though!!!)

Smith Square really is a lovely little place to have a wander around and admire the old Georgian properties – however, it was a dark cold evening on the night of the ‘gig’ and as a result, the photos I took don’t really do the place the justice it deserves.

Bang in the middle of Smith Square is the magnificent “St. John’s” Concert Hall – the venue for the gig.

St. John’s is a Grade 1 Listed building, which basically means there are strict restrictions around any of its future development, internally or externally.

 

St. John’s used to be a church. It was built way back in 1728 at a then huge unimaginable cost of £40k, and-with its prominent 4 towers, it is regarded as one of the finest works of ‘English Baroque’ architecture.

The building took a massive hit from German bombing in WW2 and sadly was never used as a church again.

However, after WW2 the building was restored as a ‘concert hall’ and is now regarded as one of London’s major music concert venues, mainly because of its size and its acoustics.

Although all sorts of styles of music are performed there these days, it is especially noted for its grand orchestral performances.

 

So – getting back to Sunday’s very much in demand and completely sold-out “The Music of Gil Evans” gig.

The evening was kicked-off by a guitarist & singer duo who warmed the audience up nicely with some pleasant jazz themed ‘swing’ type favourites. Then it was the turn of the ‘Chris Ingham Sextet’ with my good friend ‘Gentleman’ George Double on drums.

For this ‘gig’ the Chris Ingham Sextet consisted of:- Chris Ingham (piano) – George Double (drums) – Arnie Somogyi (double bass) – Jamie O’Donnell (alto-sax) – Colin Watling (tenor-sax) plus the amazing Paul Higgs (trumpet).

Their ‘set’ for the evening, which they entitle “Rebop”, specifically showcased their versions of music from the ‘Miles Davis/Gil Evans’ bestselling 1957 album “Miles Ahead”, and included classic tracks such as ‘Blues for Pablo’ – ‘New Rhumba’ – ‘Maids of Cadiz’ – ‘The Duke’ – and, as with all Chris Ingham band gigs – Chris provided an excellent running commentary on the stories behind each separate piece of music the band performed – to the extent that, you left the gig feeling that you knew Gil Evans & Miles Davis personally.

I was fortunate to be seated just 2 rows from the front of the large St. John’s stage and so I got to witness first hand, just how good the band’s interpretation of these legendary jazz classics were.

Similarly, the enthusiastic sell-out audience really loved an appreciated the Chris Ingham Sextet’s set, and they left the stage to a rapturous applause – a very successful gig indeed.

Next up was the 22- piece ‘Royal Academy of Music All Stars Jazz Orchestra’ who performed the jazz classic Miles Davis & Gil Evans arranged 1959 album ‘Porgy & Bess’ – again receiving a rapturous ovation from a delighted audience at the end of their set. A great night of entertainment and thoroughly educational for a music nerd like me.

So that’s now a total of 8 gigs that I have been lucky enough to attend to see the various Chris Ingham band line-ups ‘live’ on stage – and 8 different venues that I would have probably never have visited if it hadn’t been for ‘London Shoes’ – and so I’m now very much looking forward to covering-off more performances by the band and visiting new venues again in 2020.

Hope you enjoyed this little story and its accompanying photos.

 

 

A ‘day-time’ photo that I took in Smith Square, a couple of years back when undertaking a previous blog. This Smith’s Square inscribed plaque is one of the oldest ‘street name’ signs in London

 

 

The lovely old Georgian streets leading to Smith Square-Westminster – with the magnificent “St. John’s” in the distance

 

The historic architectural splendour of the “St. John’s” Concert Hall – Smith Square-Westminster

 

A cold & damp me – in Smith Square-Westminster

 

“St. John’s” – Smith Square-Westminster – the venue for Sunday’s “The Music of Gil Evans” gig

 

Scenes in & around around “Smith Square”

 

Scenes in and around “Smith Square”

 

Scenes in and around “Smith Square”

 

Scenes in and around “Smith Square”

 

Me – loitering with intent in Smith Square-Westminster

 

No’s 32/34 ‘Smith Square’ was once the Conservative Party HQ and is now the London HQ of the EU (don’t know for how much longer though!!!)

Me – outside the current EU London HQ – in Smith Square

 

The audience starting to congregate inside the magnificent “St. John’s” concert hall – in Smith Square-Westminster

 

The audience continuing to congregate inside the magnificent “St. John’s” concert hall – in Smith Square-Westminster

 

The evening entertainment was kicked-off by a guitarist & singer duo who warmed the audience up nicely with some pleasant jazz themed ‘swing’ type favourites.

 

An old b&w photo of jazz legends ‘Gil Evans’ & ‘Miles Davis’ – working together in the studio

 

The ‘Chris Ingham Sextet’ – performing their “Rebop” set of Miles Davis/Gil Evans jazz numbers from their 1957 best seller album “Miles Ahead”- on stage at the St. John’s concert hall-Smith Square-Westminster

 

The ‘Chris Ingham Sextet’ set, entitled “Rebop” that they performed on the night – specifically showcased their versions of music from the best selling and influential ‘Miles Davis/Gil Evans’ 1957 album “Miles Ahead”, and included classic tracks such as ‘Blues for Pablo’ – ‘New Rhumba’ – ‘Maids of Cadiz’ & ‘The Duke’

 

The ‘Chris Ingham Sextet’ – performing their “Rebop” set of Miles Davis/Gil Evans jazz – on stage at the St. John’s concert hall-Smith Square-Westminster

 

The ‘Chris Ingham Sextet’ – performing their “Rebop” set of Miles Davis/Gil Evans jazz – on stage at the St. John’s concert hall-Smith Square-Westminster

 

The ‘Chris Ingham Sextet’ – performing their “Rebop” set of Miles Davis/Gil Evans jazz – on stage at the St. John’s concert hall-Smith Square-Westminster

 

The ‘Chris Ingham Sextet’ – performing their “Rebop” set of Miles Davis/Gil Evans jazz – on stage at the St. John’s concert hall-Smith Square-Westminster

 

The ‘Chris Ingham Sextet’ left the stage to rapturous applause from the enthusiastic sell-out audience – following a very accomplished and successful performance

 

The ‘Chris Ingham Sextet’ taking a final bow – following their excellent performance on stage at the “St. John’s” concert hall-Smith Square-Westminster

 

A old b&w photo of jazz legends ‘Gil Evans’ and ‘Miles Davis’ working together in the recording studio

 

Next on the evenings bill was the 22- piece ‘Royal Academy of Music All Stars Jazz Orchestra’ who performed the jazz classic Miles Davis & Gil Evans arranged 1959 album ‘Porgy & Bess’ to an extremely appreciative and enthusiastic audience

 

With the concert over & whilst making my way back to Westminster tube station – I just felt the need to capture a ‘cheeky’ one of me & old Westminster Abbey in the darkness of the night

 

 

 

* “Celebrating Stan Getz” – at Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club-Soho- LondonW1

Posted on by Posted in Music, People .

Last Sunday, London Shoes made a welcome return to one of its favourite topics….’live’ music – and I was extremely privileged to be included on the guest-list of the fantastic ‘Chris Ingham Quartet’ for their sell-out gig at the legendary world famous “Ronnie Scott’s-Jazz Club” in Frith Street-Soho-LondonW1.

The reason I was lucky enough to enjoy this experience is down to the kindness of my old drum tutor ‘Gentleman’ George Double – who, as a much younger man, was once a customer of Barclays Bank-Mare Street-Hackney at a time when I was branch manager there, way back in the 1990’s.

Because of our love of music, George and I struck up a friendship at that time, and he had the patience to give me drumming lessons in the basement of his tiny flat in Hackney – an enjoyable experience that I shall always remember.

Anyway – George went on to much bigger and better things musically, and is now one of the most accomplished drummers on the London jazz scene and beyond – and plays regularly in Chris Ingham’s group performances.

Followers of London Shoes will be aware that I have ‘blogged’ the band on a few occasions throughout the life-span of my London Shoes work – and made my initial visit to “Ronnie Scott’s” back in February this year, when the band performed their excellent ‘The Jazz of Judy Garland’ set with the incredible Sara Dowling on vocals – but their gig at Ronnie’s last Sunday, was something I was really excited about, as their set was all about the music of one of jazz music’s greatest ever saxophonists – the legendary “Stan Getz”.

 

The band have currently performed their “Celebrating Stan Getz” set at over 20 venues throughout the UK this year, earning rave reviews, especially from the jazz media – and so this was a gig that I (and the sell-out crowd) was really looking forward to experiencing – and I was certainly not disappointed. But before talking more about the gig itself, I thought it might be useful to briefly touch on the ‘history’ of the jazz legend that is ‘Stan Getz’.

Stan Getz was born ‘Stanley Gayetski’ in 1927 in Philadelphia-USA.

He started playing saxophone at the age of 13, and by the age of 16 he was a full-time musician.

Throughout his long career he has played with all the jazz greats such as Woody Herman – Jimmy Dorsey – Oscar Peterson – Dizzy Gillespie – Benny Goodman – Nat King-Cole – Horace Silver plus many many more.

In the 1950’s he became a soloist and started leading his own acclaimed bands – extensively touring the USA, Europe & other parts of the world.

In 1952 he received high praise for his playing on the ‘hit’ album ‘Moonlight in Vermont’.

During the early 1960’s ‘Getz’ became influential in introducing ‘Bossa Nova’ style music to America.

For those that may not know, ‘Bossa Nova’ is a style of Brazilian music that originates from the ‘Samba’ style, but places more emphasis on melody and less on percussion.

In 1963 Stan Getz won a Grammy for Best Jazz Performance for his recording of “Desafinado” – It sold over 1million copies, and was awarded a gold disc.

He also gained a second gold disc for his ‘Jazz Samba Encore’ album.

In late 1963 he teamed up with guitarist and singer Joao Gilberto to record an album – and on this album was a track entitled “The Girl from Ipanema”.

The vocal for this track was provided by ‘Astrud Gilberto’– Joao Gilberto’s wife at the time.

Astrud Gilberto had never sung professionally before, and it is her untrained and perhaps slightly nervous soft voice, plus Getz’s breathy sax solo – that gives the record its uniqueness.

‘The Girl from Ipanema’ single went on to be a massive worldwide hit and defined what Bossa Nova music was all about, to the world. Today, it is still up there as being one of the most recorded songs in music history.

In 1964 Getz had won another Grammy for ‘Ipanema’ but by that time, Bossa Nova music was starting to become less unfashionable.

Stan Getz could have spent the rest of his days creaming money off the success of ‘The Girl from Ipanema’ by sticking to playing just Bossa Nova music, but he chose not to.

Instead, he returned to his main love which was ‘cool jazz’.

In the early 1970’s Getz teamed up with legendary jazz pianist and former Miles Davis side-man ‘Chic Corea’, to form a sort of jazz fusion type music – which has influenced many subsequent jazz artists.

In 1986, Stan Getz was inducted in to the ‘Jazz Hall of Fame’ in recognition of his work and his influence on jazz music.

However, Stan Getz led a troubled private life. He had been addicted to alcohol and drugs from way back when he was a teenager – and he had also been married a few times and had had numerous affairs.

He was quite a complex character – One of his best mates and a fellow musician once famously described Stan Getz as being “a nice bunch of guys”.

Sadly, in 1991, Stan Getz died of liver cancer.

During his life Getz recorded over 100 albums either as a solo artist or as a side-man with other artists – and he was awarded a total of 5 Grammy’s in acknowledgement of his work.

Stan Getz ashes were poured from his saxophone into the sea, 6 miles off the coast of Marina del Rey-California – what a lovely touch.

So – back to the Chris Ingham Quartet’s Ronnie Scott’s gig.

The venue was sold-out for the Chris Ingham Quartet’s “Celebrating Stan Getz” performance – and the band, consisting of Chris Ingham (piano) – my old drum tutor mate George Double (drums) – Joe Pettitt (double Bass) and the incredible Mark Crooks (sax) – delivered a brilliant set that was lapped up by all the enthusiastic punters who were lucky enough to have got hold of a ticket.

What was really good about the gig was that, all the way through, Chris Ingham provided a commentary between numbers, explaining to the audience the stories behind each tune, such as what period in Getz’s life the number had been recorded-who played on the sessions etc, whilst adding snippets of info about Getz and his personal life – so, that by the time you left the venue to go home, you felt that you knew Stan Getz personally – really interesting and useful to music nerds like me.

Being on the band’s guest-list, my vantage point to watch the performance was on a stool up at the bar, in direct view of the stage – perfect.

During the interval my old mate George Double invited me backstage to the dressing room for a catch-up chat, and I couldn’t help thinking that, there I was, standing in a room where so many music legends and jazz greats had once stood – what a great buzz.

As the 2nd half of the show began and while the rest of the punters were sitting at their tables finishing off their 3 course meals – I was happily getting stuck in to a few ‘cheeky’ ones from the bar behind me.

My preferred tipple for the day, (and a complete change from my usual ‘pigs-ear’ norm), was gold-watch (e.g. Scotch) & lemonade – which was served-up in a lovely big glass, with plenty of ice, and a straw.

It goes without saying that the bands “Celebrating Stan Getz” set went down a storm with all the Getz aficionados in the audience – and at the end of the performance, following rapturous applause, the bad were called back for an encore.

By the end of the gig, I had downed 4 of these gold watch & lemonades, and I became aware that I was starting to ‘rock’ a little bit on my stool. What I didn’t take into account was the size of the measures being poured, nor the price of them – £11:25 each!!! – costly yes – but very very nice (but, as my good lady wife said to me when I got home, “I just don’t understand why you had to have 4 of them”).

So –that’s it, another great music related experience for me to capture and publish on the London Shoes website – historic venue-great band–epic music.

Hope you enjoyed this little tale and its accompanying photos.

__________________________________________________

Here are all the photographs  of this “Celebrating Stan Getz” at the Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club – blog

The entry on the Ronnie Scott’s calendar promoting the “Celebrating Stan Getz” gig

 

The punters queuing outside the world famous “Ronnie Scott’s” Club -in Frith Street-Soho

 

Me – outside the entrance to “Ronnie Scott’s” Jazz Club

 

An large poster of the late Ronnie Scott himself – on display just inside the entrance to his Jazz Club

 

 

The stage at Ronnie Scott’s – pre-gig

 

The stage at Ronnie Scott’s ‘pre-gig’, from my vantage point up at the bar

 

Inside Ronnie Scott’s – pre-gig

 

Inside Ronnie Scott’s – pre-gig

 

Me – on my stool up at the bar – knocking back my first ‘scotch & lemonade’ – whilst waiting for the show to start

 

An early image of the subject matter for this gig – the legendary jazz saxophonist – “Stan Getz” – (image extracted from www.the bassicsaxblog)

 

The ‘Chris Ingham Quartet’ take to the Ronnie Scott’s stage to perform their highly acclaimed “Celebrating Stan Getz” set

 

The ‘Chris Ingham Quartet’ on stage at Ronnie Scott’s – from l to r:- Chris Ingham (piano)-Joe Pettitt (double bass)-Mark Crooks (sax) & George Double (drums

 

The ‘Chris Ingham Quartet’ on stage at Ronnie Scott’s

 

Mark Crooks (sax) & Joe Pettit (double bass) & George Double (drums) – on stage at Ronnie Scott’s

 

Chris Ingham – provided an excellent commentary between numbers, explaining to the audience the stories behind each tune, such as what period in Getz’s life the number had been recorded-who played on the sessions etc, whilst adding snippets of info about Getz and his personal life – really interesting and useful to music nerds like me

 

 

My old drum tutor and good friend ‘Gentleman’ George Double – thumping his tubs on stage at Ronnie Scott’s

 

The door to the dressing room – backstage at Ronnie Scott’s

 

Inside the performers dressing room – backstage at ‘Ronnie Scott’

 

Me & George Double – enjoying a catch-up chat during the interval – backstage at Ronnie Scott’s

 

 

An old Stan Getz album cover – where the record featured the globally famous “Girl from Ipanema” track – Today, it is still up there as being one of the most recorded songs in music history

 

 

A later image of Stan Getz – (image extracted from The Brooklyn Paramount Theatre website)

 

The Chris Ingham Quartet on stage at Ronnie Scott’s – performing their “Celebrating Stan Getz” set

 

A close-up, but rather blurred action photo of my old drum tutor and good friend ‘Gentleman’ George Double – tub thumping on stage at Ronnie Scott’s

 

The brilliant saxophonist Mark Crooks on stage at Ronnie Scott’s – knocking out the music of Stan Getz

 

The Chris Ingham Quartet on stage at Ronnie Scott’s – bring their performance of their “Celebrating Stan Getz” set, to a close

 

The Chris Ingham Quartet being called back for an encore – on stage at Ronnie Scott’s

 

The Chris Ingham Quartet acknowledging the appreciation shown by the audience – following their “Celebrating Stan Getz” set – Historic venue-Great band–Epic music. 🎷🎼

 

A drop of ‘gold-watch & lemondade’ – my chosen ‘cheeky’ tipple throughout the event

 

Me – knocking back another gold-watch up at the bar at Ronnie Scott’s

 

Me – with more chins than a Chinese telephone directory – neckin’ down yet another cheeky gold-watch at the Ronnie Scott’s bar – always a pleasurable way to reflect on a great day out!!

 

 

 

*”Pimlico”-London SW1V……weird name-interesting place

Posted on by Posted in Street - Fixtures & Fittings, Streets .

Last week ‘London Shoes’ ventured out south west to a specific area of the ‘smoke’ that has one of the weirdest of names…..”Pimlico”!!!

The name Pimlico had always intrigued me as its always sounded a bit weird and mystical to me and so different from other place names.

And I guess Pimlico is a bit unique in its way, and it is certainly a place steeped in its own interesting history.

Pimlico is probably best described as a sort of extension of its wealthy neighbour Belgravia and is located to the south of Victoria, and down to the River Thames.

Centuries ago, as with most of the districts just outside of the City, Pimlico was a completely rural area.
Its terrain was noted for being a boggy marshy area, probably because of its close locality to the River Thames – and the district used to be known as ‘Neat House Gardens’ – a place where vast volumes of herbs and vegetables were grown by market gardeners.

There are no official historic records that clarify how Pimlico got its name – but it is thought that it could quite possibly be named after a brewer by the name of ‘Ben Pimlico’ who – back in the 1600’s, was famous for the production of his very popular nut-brown ale.

This old rural area of Pimlico was basically made up of 5 large fields – which, over the centuries, were owned by extremely wealthy and well to do London families.

The area was not at all fashionable – and certainly not urban or residential – quite simply because of the state of its marshy soil – which meant that houses or buildings couldn’t really be built there, as the land was not suitable to support building foundations.

However – by the early 1800’s, there was such a high demand for residential housing in London – the authorities and planners started to look at this barren land south-west of the City, to see what could be done about it.

One of the area’s biggest land owners Sir Thomas Grosvenor sold a big chunk of his estate to the renowned architect and Master Builder ‘Thomas Cubitt’, who had already gained a reputation for transforming some of the streets and buildings in the City and also east and north east London.

Cubitt saw this as an excellent opportunity to showcase his architectural talents further afield.
Firstly he compensated the market gardeners who had worked the land in the Pimlico area, and then set about designing streets and houses that would attract London’s wealthy and well to do to the area.

To solve the problem of the boggy terrain, Cubitt transported thousands of tons of earth and rubble from the recently excavated St. Katherine’s Dock and Shadwell Basin in east London – and had it shipped down the Thames to the Pimlico shores – and used this soil to firm-up the land to make it strong enough to support building foundations – and also elevate the land above the Thames flood levels.

 

Cubitt built the Belgravia area first, and then in 1843, ventured his building works southwards into Pimlico.

He designed a grid-system of wide streets and in the middle of them he plonked parkland squares, namely Warwick Square / Ecclestone Square & St. Georges Square – around which would be build large lavish residential mansions.

The very first houses that Thomas Cubitt constructed in the Pimlico district were no’s 1, 2 & 3 Ecclestone Square – houses that are still there to this very day.

Sadly Thomas Cubitt died in 1855, but his building vision continued, with the proviso that the architectural designs should remain the same as his earlier buildings – and as a result it was noted as being one of the most architecturally consistent places in Britain and Europe.

Pimlico soon became one of the most desirable and exclusive areas of London for the rich and noble to live in.

However, by 1860 the construction of Victoria Station had been completed and was up and running – providing quick and easy access to surrounding urban areas like Brixton and Streatham, just across the River – which meant that the working classes could gain easy access to the exclusive Pimlico district.

This didn’t go down too well with the Pimlico gentry, who wanted to retain the area as being exclusive to only the wealthy and well to do, and didn’t want London’s riff-raff infiltrating their ‘manor’. As a result the area started to become a little less desirable and fashionable.

By the late 1800’s early 1900’s many of Pimlico’s large mansions and houses had become hotels and lodging houses, occupied by low-income residents – which brought its own social problems.

As a result of this massive demographical change, most of Pimlico’s houses were occupied by 4 or 5 families at a time, which caused the properties to become poorly maintained.

Following WW1 the need for housing in London was immense, and so many of Pimlico’s grand houses were converted into self-contained flats.

By 1935, records show that out of the 3000 residential homes in Pimlico, only 846 were actually single-family occupations.

1937 saw the opening of the massively impressive ‘Dolphin Square’ housing complex in Pimlico, down by the Thames.

At that time, Dolphin Square with its 1,250 flats, was the largest self-contained residential housing complex in Europe – and was seen as the benchmark for all large scale municipal housing developments that followed.

It cost £2M to build – an unheard of fortune for that time – and 12 million bricks – 125,000 tons of concrete – 6,700 windows were used in the construction of its 1 x bedroom suites to its 5 bedroom apartments – all circling a massive inner square garden complex.

The impressive Dolphin Square complex still stands today, and many well-to-do’s have resided in its flats and apartments over the years and still do – but it has also gained a certain amount of notoriety.

Its past residents have included the likes of Oswald Mosley – numerous Soviet spies – Christine Keeler & Mandy Rice-Davies of the Profumo scandal plus several MI5 agents.

Other famous Dolphin Square residents have included former PM Harold Wilson – James Bond creator Ian Fleming – the French WW2 President Charles De Gaulle – the music hall entertainer Bud Flanagan (the guy who sang the Dad’s Army theme tune) – Rod Laver the Wimbledon tennis champion & Princess Anne, to name just a few.

Because of its close proximity to the Houses of Parliament, many MPs & Lords have and still do reside there.

 

Even old Boy George filmed the video to his massive worldwide hit ‘Do You Really Want to Hurt Me’ in the central gardens of Dolphin Square.

After WW2, to provide much needed social housing, high rise flats and council estates were built amongst Pimlico’s grand houses and streets – making it a very mixed community of residents.

It’s not just Pimlico’s Dolphin Square that’s had/has its share of famous historic residents. The following have also all lived in Pimlico at one time or another: – legendary Politician Winston Churchill – designer Laura Ashley – cancer relief founder Douglas MacMillan – Kenyan president Jomo Kenyata – the founder of lawn tennis Walter Clopton Wingfield – dancer Isadora Duncan.

Even the legendary east-end mod band The Small Faces have a big connection to Pimlico. In the mid 60’s they were put up in a house in Westmoreland Terrace by their then manager Don Arden (Sharon Osbourne’s father), at the height of their early fame, to get them away from the distractions of their east-end haunts and influences. In fact, one of their biggest hits ‘Lazy Sunday Afternoon’ was inspired by their experiences in their Pimlico house – particularly where the lyric goes:-
“Wouldn’t it be nice to get on with me neighbours
But they make it very clear
They’ve got no room for ravers
They stop me from groovin’, they bang on me wall
They doing me crust in, it’s no good at all – ah”

Pimlico is also blessed with a fair number of landmarks of historical interest.

Along the tiled walls of the walkways inside Pimlico tube station, are replicas of works by famous artists such as Salvador Dali – L S Lowry – Degas plus many others.

There are 2 particularly magnificent old churches in Pimlico.

In Warwick Square there is “St. Gabriel’s” – built in 1853 as part of Thomas Cubitt’s initial development of the area – and “St. James-the-Less” built in 1861 in a Victorian gothic style, and famous for its wonderfully intricate brickwork and decorative embellishments.

There are also many interesting statues scattered around the streets of Pimlico.

Down by the Thames there stands a statue of William Huskisson (1770 –1830) who was a highly respected financier and MP of his time – but that’s not what he became well known for – William Huskisson goes down in history as being the world’s first widely reported railway passenger casualty – when he was run over and fatally wounded by Robert Stephenson’s pioneering locomotive engine the ‘Rocket’.

Just outside Pimlico tube station is the best looking Underground ‘ventilation shaft’ you will ever see. This structure was designed by the famous artist/designer Eduardo Paolozzi whose probably more famous artistic work are the colourful mosaic tiles that can be seen all over Tottenham Court Rd tube station.

In Denbigh Street there is a statue of Thomas Cubitt – the man who ‘built’ Pimlico & Belgravia. The statue commemorates the life and work of this iconic master builder, and it is located very near to where his original workshops were originally situated.

Pimlico has also been the main feature in a couple of old British film classics. The extremely popular 1949 Ealing Studio comedy film “Passport to Pimlico” is all about Pimlico declaring its independence from the rest of Britain, and becoming exempt from any form of post-war rationing. Also, the 1940 thriller ‘Gaslight’ is set in and around Pimlico.

For this particular ‘gig’ I was delighted to be accompanied once again by my old work mate Les, who I worked with at Barclays Bank’s Whitechapel branch back in the late 1980’s – and like me, old Les is a bit of an ‘all things London’ nutter.

So, after a long day trekking around the streets of Pimlico’s me & me old mate Les were in need of taking the weight off our ‘plates’ and a little liquid refreshment, before heading off back ‘east’ – and so we headed to the nearest pub, which happened to be “The Grosvenor” down near the Thames part of Pimlico.

The Grosvenor pub dates back to the 1920’s when it was called ‘The Spread Eagle’ (there always has to be a Barclays Bank connection for us bunch of old bankers). The pub is built on top of the old River Tyburn, one of London’s ‘lost’ rivers that flowed into the Thames.

Anyway – having sunk a few ‘cheeky ones’ and warmed our cockles by the pubs open fire – it was time to say goodbye to Pimlico and head off back for home.

So – there you have it, the weirdly named but fascinating ‘Pimlico’ – just a couple of mins walk from Victoria station and down towards the Thames, and you’re there – well worth a visit.

Summarised below are all the photographs accompanying my Pimlico blog

 

Pimlico tube station – on the Victoria Line-just a couple of stops from Victoria Station

 

Along the tiled walls of the walkways inside Pimlico tube station, are replicas of works by famous artists such as Salvador Dali – L S Lowry – Degas plus many others

 

The tiled walls of the walkways inside Pimlico tube station, where replicas of works by famous artists such as Salvador Dali – L S Lowry – Degas plus many others are displayed

 

The tiled walls of the walkways inside Pimlico tube station, where replicas of works by famous artists such as Salvador Dali – L S Lowry – Degas plus many others are displayed

 

A statue of the Master Builder ‘Thomas Cubitt’ – the man who designed & built Pimlico

 

No’s 1, 2 & 3 Ecclestone Square – The very first houses that Thomas Cubitt constructed in the Pimlico, that are still there to this very day.

 

Me – outside no.1 Ecclestone Square – the very first house built by Thomas Cubitt in Pimlico

 

Thomas Cubitt designed a grid-system of wide streets throughout Pimlico – and in the middle of them he plonked parkland squares, namely Warwick Square / Ecclestone Square & St. Georges Square – around which would be build large lavish residential mansions

 

Thomas Cubitt designed a grid-system of wide streets throughout Pimlico – and in the middle of them he plonked parkland squares, namely Warwick Square / Ecclestone Square & St. Georges Square – around which would be build large lavish residential mansions

 

The streets of Pimlico

 

The streets of Pimlico – most of which surround ‘private’ parkland ‘squares’.

 

The streets of Pimlico

 

Pimlico’s – ‘private’ parkland ‘squares’.

 

A peak trough the railings of Warwick Square

 

The streets of Pimlico

 

The streets of Pimlico

 

The streets of Pimlico

 

The streets of Pimlico

 

St. Georges Square Pimlico – the only ‘square’ in Pimlico that is open to the general public

 

The streets of Pimlico

 

A sneaky peak through the railings of Eccleston Square

 

The streets of Pimlico

 

The streets of Pimlico

 

The streets of Pimlico

 

There are 2 particularly magnificent old churches in Pimlico – This is “St. James-the-Less” built in 1861 in a Victorian gothic style

 

“St. James-the-Less” church Pimlico – famous for its wonderfully intricate ‘Gothic’ style brickwork and decorative embellishments

 

Inside Pimlico’s magnificent “St. James-the-Less” church

 

The brickwork throughout St. James-the-Less church is so indicate and detailed, that current day apprentices are brought regularly as part of their teachings, to admire and assess the work that has gone into its construction

 

Me – alongside some of the ‘Gothic’ style brickwork throughout St. James-the-Less church

 

In Pimlico’s Warwick Square there is “St. Gabriel’s” church – built in 1853 as part of Thomas Cubitt’s initial development of the area

 

1937 saw the opening of the massively impressive ‘Dolphin Square’ housing complex in Pimlico, down by the Thames. At that time, Dolphin Square with its 1,250 flats, was the largest self-contained residential housing complex in Europe – and was seen as the benchmark for all large scale municipal housing developments that followed.

 

Inside ‘Dolphin square’ – Pimlico

 

Inside ‘Dolphin square’ – Pimlico

 

Inside ‘Dolphin square’ – Pimlico

 

Me – Inside ‘Dolphin square’ – Pimlico

 

One of many benches in the grounds of Dolphin Square – this one particularly caught my eye with its lovely inscription

 

A blue plaque commemorating the fact that Sir Winston Churchill once lived at this house in Pimlico.

 

Me – giving it a ‘V’ for Victory – outside Winston Churchill’s old house ion Pimlico

 

Designer ‘Laura Ashley’ – a one-time, long-time resident of Pimlico

 

A blue plaque on the external wall of “Douglas Macmillan’s” one-time home in Pimlico. Macmillan is tyhe founder of the renowned cancer relief charity organisation

 

A blue plaque commemorating the fact that Jomo Kenyatta – the first president of Kenya, once resided in Pimlico

 

 

Westmoreland Terrace-Pimlico – where the legendary band “The Small Faces” once resided

 

22 Westmoreland Terrace-Pimlico – the house where The Small Faces group once resided

 

Me – outside 22 Westmoreland Terrace-Pimlico – the house where the legendary “The Small Faces” group once resided

 

A view across the Thames of Vauxhall – taken from the Pimlico shores

 

A view down the Thames from the Pimlico shores – looking at Vauxhall Bridge

 

A statue of William Huskisson all done up in Roman robes for some reason – Huskisson goes down in history as being the world’s first widely reported railway passenger casualty – when he was run over and fatally wounded by Robert Stephenson’s pioneering locomotive engine the ‘Rocket’.

 

Just outside Pimlico tube station is the best looking Underground ‘ventilation shaft’ you will ever see. This structure was designed by the famous artist/designer Eduardo Paolozzi whose probably more famous artistic work are the colourful mosaic tiles that can be seen all over Tottenham Court Rd tube station.

 

 

The Grosvenor pub-Pimlico – dates back to the 1920’s when it was called ‘The Spread Eagle’. The pub is built on top of the old River Tyburn, one of London’s ‘lost’ rivers that flowed into the Thames

 

Entrance to The Grosvenor pub-Pimlico – which used to be called ‘The Spread Eagle’.

 

Inside The Grosvenor pub-Pimlico, there is still a mirror from the days when the pub was called The Spread Eagle

 

A cosy little fire in The Grosvenor pub-Pimlico. Ideal to warm up the old ‘plates’ after a long day out in the cold wandering the streets of Pimlico

 

Me – necking down a quick ‘cheeky’ one in The Grosvenor pub-Pimlico

 

 

 

 

 

 

*The 1975 “Moorgate Tube Disaster”-‘the worst peacetime accident on the Underground’

Posted on by Posted in Emergency Services - Police/Fire/Ambulance, Transport - Rail .

As with most of the topics covered-off by London Shoes, the subject matter is generally considerably historic in terms of its occurrence – however, although last week’s topic happened some 44 years ago, it is one of the rare occasions where I can clearly remember the incident, and the impact that it had on everyday Londoner’s like me.

So – this London Shoes publication goes back to 1975 to revisit an incident that was and still is to this very day ‘the worst ever peacetime accident on the London Underground’ – namely the “Moorgate Tube Disaster” – a tragedy that claimed 43 lives and left 74 badly injured.

 

 

At the time of the ‘Moorgate Tube Disaster’ in February 1975, I had just turned 18 and was working at Barclays Bank’s Wardour Street branch in Soho – and was totally reliant on the Tube for my daily commute.

I can clearly remember news of the Moorgate incident breaking, during the morning it happened – and the impact that it had on me at as a tube traveller, and the incident became a little more ‘real’ for me personally, when I found out later that a ‘friend of a friend’ had lost their life in the tragedy.

The story behind how this terrible incident happened has remained a mystery to this very day.

On 28th February 1975 at 08:46, a Northern Line tube train operating on the Highbury loop branch-line of its 6 stop route to the Moorgate terminus – left Drayton Park tube station, carrying 300 passengers, and headed off on its normal straight forward journey.

It was the height of the ‘rush hour’ and the train in question had already completed the journey a couple of times that morning.

The tube train, consisting of 6 carriages, departed ‘Old Street’, the last stop before the Moorgate terminus, and headed off towards its final destination.

It approached the Moorgate platform 9 at a speed of 30mph, and for some unknown reason, it did not stop, and crashed head-on into the hydraulic buffers that were located just inside the terminus tunnel.

The drivers coach and the first carriage hit the buffers in the tunnel at such a force, that the first carriage veered upwards into the roof of the tunnel – the second carriage went ‘under’ the first carriage – and the third carriage rode ‘over’ the top of the second carriage.

 

The impact crushed the first carriage from its standard 52ft to just 20ft in length.

The first emergency services arrived on the scene within just a couple of minutes –and very soon all the emergency services were there and the site declared a major incident & rescue.

Platform 9 were the incident occurred was one of the deepest parts of Moorgate tube station, which could only be accessed via a series of spiral and narrow stairways – and so all the rescue equipment had to be manually carried back and forth from street level to the incident site.

Radio systems were not operating properly because of all the structural disturbance down in the tunnel on Platform 9 – and so ‘runners’ were instigated to pass messages to and from the scene of the incident to ground level.

The air down at platform 9 was thick with soot, dust and rubble – and so massive industrial fans were called for to try and get some fresh air down there – however, this circulated air just made matters worse as all it was doing was churning up more dust making it difficult for the rescue teams to see anything in front of them.

Also – with no fresh air or ventilation – the temperatures down at the crash scene rose to ridiculous unworkable levels –which were only made worse when the Fire Services started using their cutting equipment. Temperatures exceeded 40 degrees+ which meant that it was only possible to undertake cutting and removing work at 20min shifts.

At ground level roads were closed and all the emergency vehicles based themselves in Moorfields, a small street that ran along the back of the main Moorgate Station entrance.

By 3:15pm that day, the emergency services announced that, in their opinion, only 2 more people were still alive within all the carnage – a 19yr old woman police constable, and a young Stock Exchange worker – who were both trapped in the tangled mass of the first carriage.

The emergency services worked for several hours to free them – but had to resort to amputating a foot of the WPC to be able to get her out.

By 10pm the emergency and rescue services confirmed that there was no one else alive within the wreckage – and the chief medical officer at the scene declared that all the other casualties were dead.

The operation to cut through all the wreckage to get the corpses out, took the emergency and rescue services another 4 days – and on the 4th March 1975, the very last of the passenger corpses were finally removed.

 

By the evening of the 4th, the tube driver’s body had also been reached and removed.

Overall – the rescue and clean-up operation involved total of 1,324 firemen – 240 police officers – 80 ambulance personnel – 16 doctors plus dozens of nurses and other willing helpers.

Unbelievably – a full tube service was resumed at the station by the 10th March.

So – how did this terrible disaster happen????

Was there a fault with the train’s mechanisms – was there a signal fault – did the driver have a heart attack – was he intoxicated – or – did he commit suicide???

The investigation work and enquiry into the operational aspect of London Underground that day – confirmed that there were no defaults with the actual tube train, or its break mechanisms – there were no signalling faults or problems – and no faults with the tube track itself.

A full inquest and enquiry revealed that ‘Leslie Newson’ the 56yr old train driver for that fateful journey – had worked for London Underground for several years, and was considered to be a loyal, trustworthy and extremely conscientious employee.

His colleagues said that he took his job and its responsibilities very seriously.

He was a happily married family man, who had no problems inside or outside of work. Everyone who knew him said that he was the sort of bloke who always appeared cheerful.

He was not a drinker – he had no debts – nor had he had any time off work with sickness or illnesses, other than a few days recovering from an incident when a troublesome passenger had punched him in the face whilst he was on duty.

The very morning of the disaster, he had already completed the journey to and from the Moorgate terminus a couple of times – and in between shifts he had joked with colleagues about them leaving him enough milk and sugar for his cuppa.

In his jacket pocket he had £270 in cash (roughly equivalent to £1,900 by todays calculations), which was a lot of money to be carrying about. However, his wife and family clarified that following his shift for that day, he had planned to purchase a decent 2nd hand car for his daughter who had just passed her driving test.

Leslie Newson had his drivers satchel with him, in which was found an London Underground Rule Book plus some sugar for his tea, and also a notebook in which he had documented ways in which he felt London Underground could make improvements and enhancements to their services – Hardly the evidence of someone who had intended to take their own life, and kill others in the process.

The post-mortem on the driver’s body was even more interesting, as it showed no evidence of him having had a heart attack, or a stroke or a brain seizure, anything debilitating like that.

There was no evidence of drugs or medication in his bloodstream, and his liver showed no evidence of him having been a drinker.

X-rays of his upper body showed that he hadn’t put his hands up to his face upon the trains impact, and that they would have been still pressed down onto the “dead-man’s handle” (the thing that makes the train go) mechanism in the driver cabin.

His bloodstream did show very low traces of alcohol – but forensic scientists claimed that this was more than likely a biological occurrence where the decomposing body had been left in the wreckage for 4 days – a situation that would cause alcohol to develop naturally in the body.

Obviously survivors and relatives of the deceased wanted answers – and the feeling between them and the media, was that the driver had either been intoxicated, or had committed suicide.

However, from the evidence put forward at the Inquiry, there was nothing within the findings to substantiate a claim of suicide or intoxication – and as a result, the jury returned a verdict of “Accidental Death”.

Following the Moorgate tragedy, there were some major safety changes made to the Tube network, like minimum speed limits, and automatic braking systems should a train exceed speeds or fail to stop when approaching a station.

Today – there are 2 memorials commemorating this tragedy – a plaque displayed on an external wall of Moorgate tube station – and a little further down the road in Finsbury Square, there is a memorial stone that lists the names of all the 43 people who lost their lives whilst travelling to work that day.

With all the advances in today’s technology – there is still no answer as to why and how this worst ever peacetime accident on the London Underground, that claimed the lives of 43 people and left 74 badly injured, actually happened – and I guess there never will be.

So – having spent my day visiting the scene of the Moorgate tube disaster and contemplating my own personal memories of that day – it was time for a little tipple before heading off back home – and so I found myself in the oddly named “Old Doctor Butler’s Head” pub, which is tucked away in Manson Ave – a tiny alley just a couple of mins walk from Moorgate tube station.

Apparently there has been an Inn/Tavern on this site since the 1600’s.

The “Old Doctor Butler’s Head” pub gets its name from a fella from the 1700’s called (not surprisingly) ‘Doctor Butler’.

Dr. Butler was a self-proclaimed specialist in nervous disorders – who offered ‘miracle’ cures such as dangling his patients upside down from London’s bridges – or – secretly firing a set of pistols next to them to scare conditions such as epilepsy from their ‘systems’.

Dr. Butler had no formal qualifications whatsoever, but his remedies were believed in by many people, including Royalty.

Dr. Butler also developed a beer which he claimed cured all stomach and digestive ailments.

However, this beer was only available at selected pubs (which apparently, he had a financial interest in) and these drinking establishments displayed a plaque depicting Dr. Butler’s “head” on a their exterior walls so that punters knew where to go to get their ‘cure’ – hence the origins of the name of this lovely little boozer I had selected for a couple of ‘cheeky’ ones.

 

 

So that’s all about the Moorgate Tube Disaster of 1975 – hope you found this summary of events & accompanying interesting.

Below is a full summary of the photos accompanying the ‘Moorgate Tube Disaster’ blog

Moorgate tube station – which on 28th February 1975, was the site of the worst tube train accident during peacetime Britain

 

The Moorfields entrance to Moorgate tube station where the emergency services set up their ground level base

 

The emergency & rescue services at the crash scene of the Moorgate tube disaster – 28th Feb 1975 (image from the official Fire Brigade website)

 

Me – down at Platform 9 Moorgate tube station- where on the morning of Feb 28th 1975, a Northern Line tube train, consisting of 6 carriages carrying 300 passengers, departed ‘Old Street’, the last stop before the Moorgate terminus, and headed off towards its final destination. It approached the Moorgate platform 9 at a speed of 30mph, and for some unknown reason, it did not stop, and crashed head-on into the hydraulic buffers that were located just inside the terminus tunnel.

 

The memorial plaque commemorating this tragedy – displayed on an external wall of Moorgate tube station

 

Platform 9 Moorgate Station – the scene of ‘the worst ever peacetime accident on the London Underground’

 

Down on Platform 9- Moorgate tube station

 

Firemen working in ridiculously hot conditions – carrying out their rescue work – (image courtesy of the official Fire Brigade website)

 

Platform 9 where the incident occurred, was one of the deepest parts of Moorgate tube station, which could only be accessed via a series of spiral and narrow stairways – and so all the rescue equipment had to be manually carried back and forth from street level to the incident site

 

Firemen undertaking the rescue work down at Platform 9 Moorgate tube station – (image courtesy of the official Fire Brigade website)

 

An example of how challenging it must have been for the emergency services, accessing Platform 9 at Moorgate tube station.

 

Platform 9 were the incident occurred was one of the deepest parts of Moorgate tube station, which could only be accessed via a series of spiral and narrow stairways – and so all the rescue equipment had to be manually carried back and forth from street level to the incident site

 

At ground level all roads were closed and all the emergency vehicles based themselves in Moorfields, a small street that ran along the back of the main Moorgate Station entrance – (image courtesy of the official Fire Brigade website)

 

The same station entrance and the Moorfields street, as it is today

 

A view of the memorial plaque on the side of an external wall of Moorgate tube station, that commemorates the Moorgate tube tragedy

 

Me – next to the commemorative plaque displayed at Moorgate tube station.

 

The memorial stone commemorating this tragedy – just a little further down the road from Moorgate tube station, in Finsbury Square, that honours the names of all the 43 people who lost their lives whilst travelling to work that day.

 

A close-up of the inscription on the commemorative head stone in Finsbury Square – which sadly the authorities have left untended and covered in weeds

 

Me – at the commemorative head stone in a corner of Finsbury Square – just down the roads from Moorgate tube station

 

The pub sign of “The Old Doctor Butler’s Head” pub – which ironically gets its name from a fella from the 1700’s called ‘Doctor Butler’.

 

 

The “Old Doctor Butler’s Head” pub – tucked away in Manson Ave – a tiny alley just a couple of mins walk from Moorgate tube station.

 

Another shot of the “Old Doctor Butler’s Head” pub – tucked away in Manson Ave – a tiny alley just a couple of mins walk from Moorgate tube station.

 

The entrance door of the “Old Doctor Butler’s Head” pub – tucked away in Manson Ave – a tiny alley just a couple of mins walk from Moorgate tube station.

A ‘grainy’ me knocking back a ‘cheeky’ one inside a very dimly lit “Old Dr. Butler’s Head” – near Moorgate

 

Inside a very dimly lit “Old Dr. Butler’s Head” pub – nr Moorgate

 

Me – knocking back another ‘cheeky’ one in the darkness of the “Old Dr. Butler’s Head” – I know the pubs origins are from the Dark Ages, but this was ridiculous 🙂

*The amazing history of “The Spotted Dog” Pub-Forest Gate-E7-and its sad demise

Posted on by Posted in Historic Buildings, Pubs .

It was a case of ‘rain-stopped-play’ for London Shoes last week – but fortunately I had a topic ‘on-the shelf’ ready to be deployed for such occasions.

A couple of week ago when I was wandering around Forest Gate in east-London, doing the ‘Trebor Factory’ blog – I happened to stumble across a pub that I used to frequent years ago in the early 1970’s, when – in my early teens – I used to pop into this place on my way to Upton Park to watch my beloved West Ham Utd play.

When attending the Hammers ‘home’ games as a young teenager, as an obvious underage drinker – I used to steer clear of all the boozers close to their Boleyn Ground – as not only were they a little bit ‘lively’, there was always a fairly strong Police presence close by.

So – I used to pop into to the much more out of the way and sedate “The Spotted Dog” pub, deep in a residential area about a 10min walk from the Hammers ground – where I would try my luck at getting away with the odd half of lager & lime or two, or getting someone else (often a complete stranger) to get one in for me .

Anyway – whilst conducting the Trebor blog, it just so happened that I came across the old ‘Spotted Dog’ pub again – which I had naturally assumed had been long closed down.

‘The Spotted Dog’ in Upton Lane–Forest Gate–E7 was always a very well know and popular pub amongst local residents and east Londoners – but it wasn’t until I did a little bit of research on it that I was amazed to find out just how important a part it has played in certain aspects of London’s history – something that I, and I’m guessing many others, don’t have a clue about.

Historic records indicate that there has been a house on the current site of the pub, since the late 15th century & early 16th century – a time when the surrounding area was completely rural, and known as the ‘District of Upton’.

King Henry VIII laid claim to most of the land throughout the ‘Upton’ district – as it was just east of the City, and so easy to get to.

Henry VIII used to use this rural land just to the east of the City – to undertake  his favourite pastime of ‘hunting’.

The site, of what later became the Spotted Dog pub, became one of the many ‘hunting lodges’ Henry VIII had scattered across the then rural districts of London.

It is said that the property on the site was given to the King’s ‘Master of the Hounds’ – and the house and its grounds were expanded to accommodate the ‘Kennels for the Royal Hounds’.

Old Henry’s ‘Master of the Hounds’ was granted a special Royal licence by the Crown to make personal profit from refreshing travellers passing that way – and as a result, the lodge soon became one of London’s most well-known taverns/inns.

In 1665 the famous author of the time Daniel Defoe refers to The Spotted Dog throughout his famous book ‘History of the Plague in London’ – as it was a common location for people living in the City who were trying to escape the devastation of the Great Plague, to escape to, and camp out in the fields surrounding the tavern – in the hope that they wouldn’t succumb to the fatal disease.

Throughout the following century, and now named ‘Ye Olde Spotted Dog’ the tavern was a popular place for ‘drovers’ to stop off at for refreshment, when transporting their cattle to the City markets.

Following the ‘Great Fire of London’ in 1666, the City’s merchants temporarily moved out of the devastated City, and conducted their daily business trading meetings at the ‘Spotted Dog’ – and so it sort of temporarily became London’s Stock Exchange.

By the early Victorian era, the pub continued to be extremely popular – particularly with the wealthy owners from the nearby London Docks, who had built their ‘country retreats’ in the pubs nearby fields – a few of which of these buildings are still in situ today.

By the late Victorian period, with the invention and expansion of the railway – thousands of new terraced houses were built in the area to accommodate London’s rapidly increasing population – and by the end of the 1800’s the area was no longer classed as ‘rural’ because up to 250,000 people were now living in what were once fields.

Also In the late 1800’s / early 1900’s, The Spotted Dog Inn leased out a big portion of its land to one of London’s oldest amateur football teams ‘Clapton FC’ who built their home ground right next door to the pub – and it is still there to this very day – which is kind of strange bearing in mind that Clapton itself is an area that is actually located a few miles further north, up near Hackney.

In the 1950’s the Government included The Spotted Dog pub in their ‘National List of Buildings of Architectural or Historic Interest’.

Throughout the late 50’s early 60’s the Spotted Dog underwent many transformations such as becoming  a steak house eatery.

In 1967, because of its fascinating history and the fact that the building was still in situ and operating – The Spotted Dog was granted Grade II Listed status – protecting its external structure.

And as I mentioned earlier – I used to frequent the place now and again in the early 1970’s on my way to and from West Ham home games.

However, by the early 2000’s, whether it be as a result of geographic or cultural reasons, The Spotted Dog seemed to have lost its previously held charm and popularity, and as a result slowly started to fall into a state of disrepair.

In 2004 the Spotted Dog pulled its very last pint – and, having been a tavern for 500 years, sadly had no option other than to close down.

But that’s not the end of the story – because the buildings on the site have Grade II Listed status – it is protected and can’t just be knocked down to make way for new structures such as much needed housing etc.

This restrictive architectural situation means that, since 2004, the Spotted Dog, with its immense history and visibly elaborate and unique external features, particularly for an inner city building, has simply been left to rot and decay, to the extent that it is now just an ugly eyesore to the area.

Personally, I feel it sad, for a building and site that has such a wealth of ‘local’ history, and a place that clearly holds so many happy memories for past generations – that some sort of funding can’t be found to restore the building to its former glory and turn it into something useful like an education centre for local school kids to visit, so that they can learn and see what their area used to be like in olden times – such a shame, but nevertheless, I still have my happy memories of the old place.

Hope my accompanying photos help bring this little story to life for you.

See below-a full summary of the photographs relating to ‘The Spotted Dog’ blog

Upton Lane – Forest Gate-London-E7 – the site of the old “The Spotted Dog” pub

 

The site as it is today, of what was ‘The Spotted Dog’ pub-in Upton Lane Forest Gate-London E7. A site & building with a wealth of history behind it.

 

An old postcard from the early 1900’s – showing The Spotted Dog pub in all its splendour – at a time when Forest Gate-London E7 was a lot different to what it is today

 

The old buildings that were once The Spotted Dog pub – and before that a Royal Hunting Lodge

 

The derelict and structurally condemned Spotted Dog pub in Upton Lane, as it stands today

 

Another view of the abandoned and derelict Spotted Dog pub, as it looks today

 

Me – on the site of ‘The Spotted Dog’ pub – with all its ‘Listed’ outhouse buildings that were once associated with it being a Royal Hunting Lodge

 

An advert from the late 1800’s/early 1900’s – promoting The Spotted Dog pub at the time when it had leased off a lot of its land to accommodate sporting facilities such as cricket & football

 

In the late 1800’s / early 1900’s, the Spotted Dog Inn leased out a big portion of its land to one of London’s oldest amateur football teams ‘Clapton FC’ who built their home ground right next door to the Inn

 

‘Clapton FC’ home ground – built in what were once the extensive grounds of The Spotted Dog Inn. door to the Inn

By the early Victorian era, The Spotted Dog pub continued to be extremely popular – particularly with the wealthy owners of the nearby London Docks, who had their ‘country retreats’ built in the nearby rural fields – a few of these properties are still in situ today

 

By the late Victorian era – Forest Gate was no longer classed as a ‘rural’ area – some of the grand old Victorian houses still remain

 

The Henry VIII connection is still visible in the Forest Gate area – The Boleyn Castle, which he built as a country retreat for Ann Boleyn – is still prominent on the club badge of West Ham Utd FC

 

In the deserted grounds of the now derelict Spotted Dog pub

 

Another view of The Spotted Dog ruins

 

An early 1900’s photo of The Spotted Dog pub

 

Another street view of The Spotted Dog ruins – from Upton Lane.

 

With The Spotted Dog have been closed down and left to rot for nearly 19 years – Regrettably, I was unable to enjoy the customary ‘cheeky’ post blog beer – such a shame 🙁