Author Archives: Geoff Clements

* “Harry Beck” – the man who drew London

Posted on by Posted in People, Transport - Rail .

The topic for this week’s ‘London Shoes’ publication on its Website, FB & Twitter portals, is not about a building or a location – it’s simply all about a humble, ordinary Londoner, whose work has touched millions upon millions of people throughout the years and will most probably continue to do so for future generations.

So – the subject matter in question is all about the genius that was “Harry Beck”!!!

I’m sure there are many reading this that will be thinking to themselves ‘who the hell is Harry Beck’. Well, quite simply, Harry Beck is the man who designed what is probably one of the most instantly recognised and familiar ‘map’ on this planet – the ‘London Underground Tube Map’.

In some ways Harry Beck’s story is quite sad – as it was only after his death that he gained the recognition he deserved for what he created and left as a legacy to the London, and beyond.

Harry Beck’s story begins in 1902 when he was born in east-London at no.14 Wesley Road-Leyton-London-E10.

In 1925 Harry Beck started work as a draughtsman for what was then known as the ‘London Underground-Signals Office’ located in the City – where his job was to draw-up electrical circuits and systems for the London Underground network.

From its early inception back in the late 1800’s, London’s underground rail network evolved rapidly, spreading from the City out to the ‘burbs’ – and as a result ‘passenger’ maps of the rail network were forever being re-designed and updated, to accommodate the constant changes.

‘Tube’ maps were only distributed or displayed at selected stations – and were not particularly ‘user-friendly’ as they were extremely confusing because they tended to show where the various tube lines ran out to ‘geographically’ against a backdrop outline of London.

For many years, the most common Underground map was the 1908 version – which critics said looked more like a bowl of spaghetti escaping off a plate – very confusing for travellers to understand and interpret.

As a ‘side-of-desk’ activity whilst drawing up electrical circuitry designs for London Underground, Harry Beck enjoyed drawing up tube map designs of his own, in his spare time – just for fun really.

He based his designs on the recognised structure of electrical circuits that he used to produce in his day job.

His designs discarded any references to geographical accuracy or the quantification of distances between stations – he simply colour coded the various rail lines and displayed all the networks stations roughly in the direction the lines were heading out to – and he also emphasised those ‘link-up’ stations passengers had to get to, to change lines and get on to another train service.

London Underground had never commissioned or asked Harry Beck to produce a new design of tube map – it was just something he enjoyed doing as a sort of hobby.

However – by 1930, with the tube network expanding rapidly – Beck felt that the time was just right for him to propose his designs to his London Underground bosses, for their consideration.

So – he put forward his ideas to the organisations hierarchy for them to review. However, they rejected it out of hand, on the basis that his design and the positioning of the stations, was not geographically accurate.

Not to be deterred, and having total confidence that his new design proposals were far better than the existing tube map design – Beck challenged back at the LU bosses, claiming that the average tube passenger couldn’t give a toss about the geographic accuracy of the stations – all they wanted to know was where the various lines headed out to – the ability to see all the stations, and those stations where you could change from one line to another.

London Underground eventually relented and in 1932 agreed to ‘pilot’ Beck’s new map design – but only on a small scale, producing just 500 copies which they distributed to just a few selected stations only.

Harry Beck’s version of London Underground map/chart was an immediate and outstanding success, which was welcomed enthusiastically by the public. It received such a positive response, that just 1yr later in 1933 following the initial pilot exercise, London Underground commissioned a further 700,000 copies to be printed and distributed throughout the entire tube network – and the passengers loved it.

It wasn’t just London that benefited from Harry Beck’s tube map design – in 1939 Australia adopted his style and layout for the Sydney rail network – Beck also designed and submitted proposals to the French for its Paris Metro, although these proposals were never taken any further. In more recent decades, many countries throughout the world have adopted Beck’s design to map out their metro network routes.

Throughout the years following its formal launch, Beck continued to make amendments and tweaks to his original design, to accommodate the ever changing and modernisation of the London Underground network.

By now Harry Beck was living in Courthouse Gardens-Finchley-London N3, and would commute daily from Finchley Central tube station to the LU HQ in the City.

Beck continued to work for London Underground (by now known as London Transport) right up until 1960 – but then he had a massive falling out with its bosses, when a newly appointed publicity manager decided to make considerable design changes to Beck’s tube map, without even consulting him.

Harry Beck was so deeply hurt and angered by this action; he resigned from his job with the organisation, and took up a job teaching typography at the London School of Printing, where he spent the rest of his working life.

Harry Beck spent the 5 years from 1960 to 1965 fighting a legal battle with London Underground through the courts, for the ownership rights to his tube map design – a battle that sadly he never won.

Harry Beck died in 1974 at the age of 82 – and it was only sometime after his passing that the ‘man who drew London’ finally got the recognition he, and his remarkable ground-breaking & influential work, deserved.

It is alleged that because Harry Beck was never formally commissioned by his London Underground bosses, to produce a new tube map design – he was only ever paid a total of 5 Guineas (eg £5.25) for his efforts.

Today, Beck’s genius and the influence his piece of work has had on public transport throughout the world, is at least recognised and commemorated at the London Transport Museum in London’s Covent Garden.

Apart from that – there is a blue commemoration plaque displayed on the exterior of no.14 Wesley Road-Leyton-E10, the house where Harry Beck was born – and another blue plaque commissioned by the Finchley Society at the house in Courthouse Road-Finchley-N3, commemorating the fact that it was Harry Beck’s home for many years.

Tucked away on the London bound platform at Finchley Central tube station, a copy of Harry Beck’s original tube map is framed and displayed, along with a black plaque commemorating the fact that Harry Beck used to use the station for his daily commute into the City, when working for London Underground.

Gift shops throughout London sell mugs, t-shirts and all manner of other memorabilia that display Beck’s iconic tube map – and I myself own up to possessing a pair of tube-map socks, that my little grandkids bought for their old grandad last Christmas, to wear with his ‘London Shoes’.

So Harry Beck may have been just a humble hard working, conscientious Londoner – but he was the man responsible for one of the most globally renowned and most copied designs ever – what a legacy to leave for past, present and future generations.

So – having trawled across London on the Harry Beck trail, I ended up at Piccadilly Circus tube station, and so thought I would take the opportunity to wander off to Wardour Street in Soho, where I worked for Barclays Bank between the years 1974-1978.

With the branch now long gone, I found myself in ‘The George’ pub located on the corner of Wardour Street and D’Arbley Street. This boozer was a right old seedy dirty dive when I used to frequent it back in the 1970’s – and although a lot cleaner, it isn’t that much different now, some 45 years later.

Records show that there’s been a pub on the site since 1727, with the present building dating back to 1897, with a few of the original Victorian fixtures & fittings still in situ – and it was an ok venue to neck down a couple of ‘cheeky’ lagers, before setting off back home.

So – the next time you find yourself looking at a London Tube-Map, just spare a thought for old Harry Beck, and the influence his work has had on past-present & future generations of travellers – what a legacy this humble Londoner left for the world.

_______________

Below are the full sequence of photographs accompanying this Harry Beck blog

 

One of only a few publicity photographs taken of Harry Beck – some time after the introduction of his design for the London Underground tube-map in 1932 (image extracted from the London Transport Museum website)

 

Wesley Road-Leyton-London-E10 – the birthplace of Harry Beck in 1902

 

 

no. 14 Wesley Road-Leyton-E10 – the family home and birthplace of Harry Beck back in 1902

 

The blue plaque at no.14 Wesley Road-Leyton-E10 – commemorating the fact that Harry Beck was born there

 

Me – outside nop.14 Wesley Road-Leyton-London-E10 – the birthplace of Harry Beck

 

For many years, the most common Underground map was the 1908 version – which critics said looked more like a bowl of spaghetti escaping off a plate – very confusing for travellers to understand and interpret. (image extracted from the London Transport Museum website)

 

Beck’s original 1932 London Underground tube-map (image courtesy of the London Transport Museum website)

 

Me – in Courthouse Gardens-West Finchley-London-N3 – where Harry Beck lived for a number of years whilst working as a draughtsman wat London Underground

 

The house in Courthouse Gardens-West Finchley-N3 – Beck’s family home for many years, whilst working for London Underground

 

The blue plaque on the Beck family home in Courthouse Gardens-West Finchley-N3

 

Finchley Central tube station – where Harry Beck would commute from daily, to his job as a draughtsman for London Underground, in the City

 

Tucked away on the London bound platform at Finchley Central tube station, a copy of Harry Beck’s original tube map is framed and displayed

 

A close-up of a copy of the Harry Beck designed 1932 original tube-map – on display at Finchley Central tube station

 

The narrative about Harry Beck, that accompanies the map displayed on the platform at Finchley Central tube station

 

A close-up of the Harry Beck tube-map on display at Finchley Central tube station – If you look closely, you will notice quite a few of what are known today as ‘ghost’ stations

 

The original Harry Beck tube map – had his ‘moniker’ displayed in the bottom l/h corner – as did all the future maps for some considerable number of years.

 

Me – on the London bound platform of Finchley Central tube station – with old Harry Beck’s original 1932 designed map on display in the background

 

The black plaque on display at Finchley Central tube station commemorating the fact that Harry Beck used to use the station for his daily commute into the City, when working for London Underground.

 

Today’s branding for ‘Transport for London’ – formally London Underground, and then London Transport

 

A typical London tube-map today. Based on Harry Beck’s design, but these days incorporating all of the London Overground & Network Rail stations of the Metropolis

 

The pocket sized tube-maps available almost everywhere throughout London today – have numerous tube travel related sayings/prose/odes etc on their front cover. I thought that this particular one was very relevant for this Harry Beck article

 

One of today’s pocket sized London tube-maps – still published using Harry Beck’s 1932 design

 

The pocket sized tube-maps available almost everywhere throughout London today – have numerous tube travel related sayings/prose/odes etc on their front cover. I thought that this particular one was very representative of today’s traveller

 

The tube-map socks that my 3 little grandchildren got for me as a present – because they felt that they would go well with their grandad’s ‘London Shoes’ 🙂

 

An old b & w image of Harry Beck – ironically standing underneath one of his employers roundels – an employer that his work put them well and truly ‘on-the-map’ 🙂 – (image courtesy of the London Transport Museum website)

 

‘The George’ pub located on the corner of Wardour Street and D’Arbley Street. This boozer was a right old seedy dirty dive when I used to frequent it in my late teens, back in 1974 to 1978. Records show that there’s been a pub on the site since 1727, with the present building dating back to 1897, with a few of the original Victorian fixtures & fittings still in situ

 

Me – knockin’ back a ‘cheeky’ one in ‘The George’ pub-Wardour Street-Soho-W1, whilst contemplating the remarkable legacy that Londoner Harry Beck left to the world

 

 

*The “50th Anniversary” of the ‘Beatles’ -“Abbey Road” album

Posted on by Posted in Music, Streets .

Thursday 26th September 2019, saw the 50th anniversary of the release of the iconic Beatles album “Abbey Road” – and, with it being an album that was named after a London street, London Shoes felt it only right to cover-off its own tribute to commemorate this musically famous piece of recorded work.

Abbey Road itself is just a normal street located in the wealthy St. John’s Wood district of north-west London.

However, Abbey Road is far from being just any old London street, because at No.3 Abbey Road stands a large old 1830’s built Georgian townhouse – that has become probably the most famous music recording studio in the world.

In 1931 this large detached property was bought by the ‘Gramophone Company’ and converted into recording studios – famous for the recording of prestigious classical works, and also for producing recorded propaganda material throughout WW2.

As the years past, the studios were bought and owned by the powerful EMI Company – and today they are owned by Universal Music.

Today, the reason as to why the Abbey Road Studios are probably the most instantly recognised and well known studio name throughout the entire world – can be attributed to one thing…….the ‘Beatles’ – who adopted the studio as their recording home from between the years of 1962 through to 1970.

The artist that actually paved the way for the Beatles using Abbey Road as a home base, was in fact Cliff Richard, who in 1958 recorded his first big hit ‘Move It’ there in its Studio 2, and it has become the home of popular music recording ever since.

From that day onwards and right up to today, anybody who’s anyone in popular music, from Pink Floyd to Kanye West will have at some stage recorded material at Abbey Road Studios.

But it is the ‘Beatles’ who are responsible for putting Abbey Road studios well and truly on the world map of music.

The Beatles music recording journey started at Abbey Road way back in 1962 with the recording of their single ‘Love Me Do’ which peaked at no.17 in the UK singles chart – and the rest, as they say, is history.

Fast forward to 1969, and the 4 Beatles, John-Paul-George & Ringo, converged on Abbey Road Studio to record their 11th album – which would turn out to be their very last recording as a group.

Technically their ‘Let It Be’ album, was their 12th and last album as a group, however, the material for that album was in fact recorded ‘prior’ to the ‘Abbey Road’ sessions.

At the time, back in 1969 – relationships between the 4 Beatles had become fractious to say the least, and the band were very close to breaking up.

However, Paul McCartney approached their legendary record producer ‘George Martin’, (often referred to as the 5th Beatle) – with a suggestion that they all get together one last time and make a record in the way that they used to in the old days – a suggestion that everyone involved eventually agreed to.

Throughout the summer of 1969 the Beatles worked on tracks that would eventually become the album entitled “Abbey Road”.

The album contained compositions from all 4 Beatles – all recorded in stereo on an 8 track reel to reel set-up – and the record consisted of the following tracks:-

Side 1
*Come Together
*Something
*Maxwell’s Silver Hammer
*Oh Darling
*Octopus’s Garden
*I Want You (She’s So Heavy)

Side 2
*Here Comes the Sun
*Because
*Medley (16mins) consisting of:- You Never Give Me Your Money > Sun King > Mean Mr. Mustard > Polythene Pam > She came in through the Bathroom Window > Golden Slumbers > Carry that Weight > The End > & ending with the extremely brief ‘Her Majesty’ ditty.

The album was going to be called ‘Everest’ after a brand of cigarette that was smoked by one of the chief engineers working on the record – and even a photo shoot of the Himalaya mountains had been arranged for the front cover – however, at the last minute, it was decided to simply name the album “Abbey Road” after the street and studio in which it was made.

The cover for the Abbey Road album, is again, probably one of the most instantly recognised and globally known album covers in history.

It is just a simple photo of John-Paul-George & Ringo walking across the zebra crossing located directly outside the entrance to the Abbey Road Studio – nothing more, nothing less – but the album cover photo created and caused an interest that went a lot deeper than that – I will explain.

Back at the beginning of 1969 a rumour had started in the US claiming that Paul McCartney was actually dead, having been killed in a car crash on the M1 Motorway – and he had been replaced in the Beatles by an stand-in. This rumour created a massive conspiracy theory around the Beatles hiding the fact that Paul was simply no more.

 

The ‘Paul is Dead’ theorists claimed that the ‘Abbey Road’ album cover contained many subliminal ‘clues’ that clarified the fact that Paul was now deceased and replaced by a look-a-like.

Clue 1 – the Beatles attire

John – in an all-white 3 piece suit – was the preacher
Ringo – in an all-black 3 piece suit – was the undertaker
George – all in denim – was the grave-digger
Paul – wearing a blue suit, was completely out-of-step with his other 3 bandmates, and was also barefoot, a Buddhist symbolism of the dead.

Also, Paul’s eyes were closed, symbolising that he had ‘passed’ and he was holding a cigarette in his right hand – even though he was totally left handed.

Clue 2 – the Volkswagen Beetle car.

The VW Beetle car parked next to the zebra crossing on the far left of the photo, displayed the number plate registration ’LMW – 28 IF‘.

Conspiracy theorists believed that ‘LMW’ stood for ‘Linda McCartney Weeps’ – symbolising Paul’s wife Linda’s grief at his passing (in reality – Paul hadn’t even met Linda at this point in time).

Theorists claimed that the clue in the ’28 IF’ part of the VW’s number plate, signified the age that Paul would have been ‘IF’ he had lived.

Clue 3 – The Police van

The Police van seen in the photo was the type that was used to attend road traffic fatalities – and the theory was that the Police were very much involved in the cover-up of Paul’s death – and they were present at the photo shoot to ensure that the secret of his death was not uncovered.

Clue 4 – the back cover of the album

A simple photo of an Abbey Road street name sign – but the letter ‘S’ in the word Beatles, is cracked – which conspiracy theorists claimed was a deliberate subliminal sign that the Beatles were a broken unit following Paul’s death.

Clue 5 – the back cover of the album

In the photo of the wall there are a series of dots, which – if they were all joined up – would for the number 3 – the remaining number of Beatles following Paul’s death.

Clue 6 – the back cover of the album

In the shadow on the wall, it was said that an image of a skull can clearly be seen – depicting the fact that Paul was there, but in skeletal form.

Looking back on the above conspiracy theories, then it all seems a bit silly today – but at the time of the ‘Paul is Dead’ rumours , the allure and the power of the Beatles as a world force and influence, was so great that I guess you couldn’t blame some people for being sucked in to believing the ‘evidence’ put before them. It certainly makes a good story though and all adds to the legacy and myth of what was, and to some still is, the greatest band in the world.

Statistically – the Beatles ‘Abbey Road’ album was no.1 in the UK album charts for 11 consecutive weeks – and spent a total of 92 weeks in the album charts.

It sold 4 million units in the first 6 weeks of its release – and today over 43 million copies of it have been sold.

Today – the Abbey Road Studio location and particularly the zebra crossing outside are visited by thousands upon thousands of sightseers from all over the globe – all wanting to have a photo of them walking across the zebra crossing.

Also, every conceivable inch of the exterior street walls of the studio are covered in Beatles related graffiti, caricatured etchings, lyrics & messages from fans paying homage to the Fab Four – so much so that it is claimed that these walls have to be re-painted every couple of months – well worth going to see, even if you’re not a big fan of the Beatles.

The photos accompanying this London Shoes piece were accumulated from 2 previous visits I’ve made to Abbey Road. The first being in Feb 2017, just 1 month into my retirement where I put together only my 2nd London Shoes blog entitle ‘The Beatles-London’ – and the second visit was in June this year (2019) when my cousin Robert was over, visiting from Perth-Australia, and wanted me to take him to the ‘shrine’.

So – here’s wishing you a very Happy Anniversary “Abbey Road” – and long may your legacy of fine music continue to be enjoyed by current and future generations.

Below are a summary of the photos accompanying this

“Happy 50th Anniversary-to the Beatles-Abbey Road album”

St. John’s Wood tube station on the Jubilee Line – just a couple of minutes walk from Abbey Road.

St. John’s Wood tube station takes full advantage of its location – cashing in on its Beatles connection.

The cover for the Abbey Road album, is again, probably one of the most instantly recognised and globally known album covers in history. It is just a simple photo of John-Paul-George & Ringo walking across the zebra crossing located directly outside the entrance to the Abbey Road Studio – nothing more, nothing less – but the album cover photo created and caused an interest that went a lot deeper than that !!!

 

The back-cover of the Beatles ‘Abbey Road’ album, is just a simple photo of an Abbey Road street name sign – but ‘conspiracy theorists at the time of its release, claimed that the photo hid numerous ‘clues’ as to the existence of Paul

 

At No.3 Abbey Road stands a large old 1830’s built Georgian townhouse – that has become probably the most famous music recording studio in the world.

 

The zebra crossing directly outside ‘Abbey Road Studios’ – which became the backdrop for probably the most famous LP cover in history

 

The Beatles music recording journey started at Abbey Road way back in 1962 with the recording of their single ‘Love Me Do’ which peaked at no.17 in the UK singles chart – and the rest, as they say, is history. Fast forward to 1969, and the 4 Beatles, John-Paul-George & Ringo, converged on Abbey Road Studio to record their 11th album – which would turn out to be their very last recording as a group.

 

The ‘Fab Four’ – back in the early 1960’s, on the steps of the Abbey Road Studio

 

Me back in Feb 2017 – at the famous zebra crossing outside the Abbey Road Studios

 

A still from the original photo shoot for the Abbey Road album cover – with all 4 Beatles waiting to cross the zebra crossing

Almost every inch of the walls outside the Abbey Road Studios are covered in graffiti – put there by the thousands and thousands of visitor that flock to the site.

 

The graffitied walls of the Abbey Road Studios

 

The graffitied walls of the Abbey Road Studios

 

The graffitied walls of the Abbey Road Studios

 

The graffitied walls of the Abbey Road Studios

 

The graffitied walls of the Abbey Road Studios

 

The graffitied walls of the Abbey Road Studios

 

Me & my Aussie cousin Robert on a visit to Abbey Road Studios – in June 2019

Me – admiring Paul McCartney’s Hofner Violin bass – on display at the gift shop alongside the Abbey Road Studios – (June 19)

Beatles-Abbey Road merchandise is today big business – this is one of my own fridge-magnets

 

The ‘attraction’ and ‘influence’ of the Beatles Abbey Road album cover – is globally recognised – This is a Canadian fridge-magnet

 

Me – clutching a precious piece of vinyl – in me 1969-Abbey Road t-shirt

 

 

*The history of the “Trebor” sweet factory – Forest Gate-London-E7

Posted on by Posted in Food, Historic Buildings .

 

London Shoes received an e-mail last week from one of its followers in Australia, who enquired as to whether I knew anything about the old sweet factory that used to be located in Forest Gate–London E7 – as his grandfather had once worked there, and as a child, he remembers his grandad telling him countless stories about the place and the process of sweet making, back in the old days.

Now – I know the Forest Gate area very well indeed, having grown up just a mile or so down the road in Ilford, but I didn’t know anything about this sweet factory being referred

to – and so I thought I would do a little bit of research to see what I could come up with – and what an interesting ‘find’ it turned out to be.

(image courtesy of The Trebor Story-www.e7nowandthen.org)

So – this week’s publication onto the London Shoes website-Facebook & Twitter feed is all about the history of the old ‘Trebor’ sweet factory in Forest Gate–London E7.

I unearthed so much interesting historic stuff whilst researching this particular article that I have enough material to publish a history of Forest Gate blog in its own right – so I have now added that topic to my ever increasing ‘To Do List’, so watch-this-space for that one, coming up soon.

So – returning to this ‘sweet factory’ enquiry I received from Oz – my research (mostly referencing the excellent ‘The Trebor Story’-www.e7nowandthen.org) uncovered the following.

 

In 1907 a group of 4 east London ‘sweet makers’ got together to form a business manufacturing confectionary – and to do this they built a factory on the corner of Katherine Road & Shaftsbury Road in Forest Gate–London E7.

The business initially traded as ‘Robertson & Woodcock’ (the names of 2 of the founders) – and it would buy sugar from the massive Tate & Lyle foundry in nearby Canning Town – then transport it to their factory in Forest Gate, where the sugar would be boiled-up to make the confectionary on-site.

In 1915 ‘Robertson & Woodcock’ became one of the very first manufacturing businesses in London to use ‘motorised’ transport for their collections and deliveries.

During WW1 the business was badly affected by sugar rationing – but they played to their market by manufacturing confectionary products specifically aimed at the troops (e.g. their very popular ‘Army & Navy Paregoric Tablets’) and they also started producing a new design of sweets known as the pear drop, pineapple drops & mixed fruit drops.

Only 4 days after the end of WW1 the company changed its name from Robertson & Woodcock to “Trebor”.

(image courtesy of The Trebor Story-www.e7nowandthen.org)

It is believed by some that the name ‘Trebor’ came about by reversing the first name of one of its founders ‘Robert’ Robertson – others say that the company was named ‘Trebor’ because the Forest Gate factory was situated next to a row of Victorian terraced residential houses in ‘Trebor Terrace’.

Following the end of WW1 and the lifting of sugar rationing, the ‘Trebor’ business grew rapidly – and by 1920 they yet again became one of Britain’s most innovative production companies, by going ‘electric’ which brought an end to their hand-production process.

The company made several trips to Germany to find out about new automated mechanisation and production techniques – and then came back and incorporated these into the Forest Gate factory – an activity that didn’t always go down too well with some of the folks back home, who felt that they were fraternising with the ‘enemy’ – but this new mechanisation was pivotal to the company’s increased production and output.

‘Trebor’ were also one of the first companies to produce products from compressed compounded powders, which removed the need for the messy and time consuming process of boiling sugar.

In 1930 the Trebor Factory in Forest Gate was re-built to a distinctive ‘art-deco’ design – making it a prominent and well known landmark in London’s east end.

In 1935 the Trebor factory produced and launched the iconic ‘Refreshers’ sweet – which went on to be a best seller for many decades.

In 1937 the Trebor factory produced and launched its new ‘Extra Strong Mints’ – which is another best seller, even today.

At the same time, Trebor became one of the very first companies to adopt a new commercialism technique by linking a product to the film industry, when it paid just £150 to buy the rights from Disney for Snow White – and produced and launched it’s ‘Snow White & the 7 Dwarfs’ sweets.

Trebor were so successful that production at the Forest Gate factory was reaching full capacity, and so in 1937 the company purchased another factory up in Chesterfield up in Derbyshire.

(image courtesy of The Trebor Story-www.e7nowandthen.org)

With the clouds of the possibility of WW2 gathering over Europe, Trebor felt that it had made sense to have a 2nd factory up north, as it was less likely than London to be damaged and production halted, should Britain ever be attacked from the air.

When WW2 eventually broke out, production at Forest Gate was hit badly yet again by national sugar rationing, but that was nothing compared to the ‘hit’ it took from a German bomb in 1944, which severely damaged the factory warehouse, but fortunately not too much of the mechanical production line.

The factory was left in a right old state structurally following the bombing, and the local police had to maintain a guard over it at all times, to prevent the many looters that had tried to gain entry to ‘alf-inch’ the sugar supplies.

However, the Trebor company at Forest Gate (and now also Chesterfield) continued to adopt innovative forward thinking business methods by launching sickness & benefit schemes for its employees, along with a company pension scheme and profit sharing scheme. It also introduced new industrial initiatives such as ‘time & motion’ studies and statistics, to improve production output.

Not long after WW2, the Trebor factory in Forest Gate was painted white, with a huge “Trebor Quality Sweets” branding displayed in green on its exterior.

With production in full swing, Trebor bought up many other smaller confectionary companies – and in 1950 it built a new headquarters just up the road at Clayhall in Ilford.

However, as the decades progressed the inevitable happened, as it usually does – and in 1989 the Trebor business was eventually taken over by the giant global confectioners “Cadbury’s” – which saw the slow eventual demise of production at the Forest Gate factory.

Sadly, in 1981 the Trebor factory in Forest Gate closed down completely.

At its peak the Trebor brand were knocking out a stunning total of 452 products – but today there are just 4 main products that bear their brand :- ‘Extra Strong Mints’ – ‘Soft Mint-Spearmint’ – ‘Soft Mints-Peppermint’ – ‘Max Gum-Berry Fruit/Spearmint’ – their famously popular ‘Refreshers’ product is now produced by Barrett’s.

However – the story didn’t end with the closure of the factory, as the Trebor premises at the corner of Katherine Road & Shaftsbury Road in Forest Gate is ‘still’ standing and in use to this very day, but for something completely different than making sweets.

After closure in 1981, over a period of time it was converted into 65 luxury flats and 2 penthouse apartments – which are now valued from £350K to £500K – The penthouses provide a stunning panoramic view of nearby Docklands and the Greenwich Peninsular – and so the legacy that was once Trebor still lives on in the area.

Anyway – having experienced a bit of a ‘sugar rush’ by standing a bit too close to the old Trebor Factory, I thought it best to calm my nerves down a bit by having a quick beer, before hopping on the train for the short journey back home.

 

So – I sought out one of Forest Gate’s local pubs, and found myself in ‘The Hudson Bay’ pub in Upton Lane, just off the historic Romford Road, for the purpose of necking down a mandatory ‘cheeky’ one.

This Weatherspoon’s pub only opened in 1999, and is built on the site of an old Co-Op supermarket.

However, the history behind its ‘name’ is very much relevant and specific to Forest Gate.

You may be thinking what the hell has a historically iconic institution such as the “Hudson Bay Company” got to do with a run-of-the-mill east-end boozer.

Well – interestingly the pub’s named is connected to one ‘Sir John Pelly’ who was the governor of the globally renowned ‘Hudson Bay Company’.

Sir John Pelly was a Forest Gate ‘local’ as he owned a massive amount of the land in the Forest Gate district throughout the 18th & 19th Centuries – and he was made ‘First Baronet of Upton’ by Queen Elizabeth in 1840.

In 1670 the Hudson Bay Company was given a royal charter by King Charles II in 1670, and made huge profits for Britain from selling imported furs and skins it had obtained by trading with North American Indians.

Today, several places in Northern Canada bear the Governor’s name, including Pelly Mountain, Pelly River and Pelly Lake – and locally, there are numerous street name and building references to this local lad who was often referred to as the un-crowned ‘King of Canada’, and basically individually instrumental in the creation of Canada as a British Colony.

Throughout ‘The Hudson Bay’ pub there are many references to Sir John Pelly and his remarkable historic achievements.

And as well as Sir John Pelly, there was also a pictorial reference to the ‘Trebor’ factory.

So – all in all an interesting little day out, and I only hope that London Shoes ‘findings’ now leave the initial enquirer from Oz, a little bit more informed than perhaps he was before – and who knows, there may be others reading this particular ‘Shoes’ posting, who may have a past connection or memories of the Trebor factory, and enjoy finding out a little bit more about it.

Hope you enjoy the accompanying photos.

Published below are more detailed photographs of this ‘Trebor Factory’ blog

 

At its peak the Trebor brand were knocking out a stunning total of 452 products – but today there are just 4 main products that bear their brand. In 1937 the Trebor factory produced and launched its new ‘Extra Strong Mints’ – which is another best seller, even today.

 

The Trebor factory on the corner of Shaftesbury Road & Katherine Road-Forest Gate-London E7 (image courtesy of The Trebor Story-www.e7nowandthen.org)

 

The same shot as above – but as of today – where the Trebor factory is now home to residential luxury apartments

 

It is believed by some that the name ‘Trebor’ came about by reversing the first name of one of its founders ‘Robert’ Robertson – others say that the company was named ‘Trebor’ because the Forest Gate factory was situated next to a row of Victorian terraced residential houses in ‘Trebor Terrace’. (image courtesy of The Trebor Story-www.e7nowandthen.org)

 

Not long after WW2, the Trebor factory in Forest Gate was painted white, with a huge “Trebor Quality Sweets” branding displayed in green on its exterior.

 

A view of the old Trebor factory in Forest Gate-E7 – as it is today

 

A view of the old Trebor factory in Forest Gate-E7 – as it is today

 

In 1935 the Trebor factory produced and launched the iconic ‘Refreshers’ sweet – which went on to be a best seller for many decades.

 

In 1937 the Trebor factory produced and launched its new ‘Extra Strong Mints’ – which is another best seller, even today. (image courtesy of The Trebor Story-www.e7nowandthen.org)

 

An old b&w aerial view of the Forest Gate Trebor factory in its heyday (image courtesy of The Trebor Story-www.e7nowandthen.org)

 

The original chimney of the Trebor factory can still be seen today

 

The old Trebor factory is now home to residential luxury apartments

 

Me – underneath the Trebor braiding that was added to the building following the cessation of WW2

 

The Trebor factory in Forest Gate took a ‘hit’ from a German bomb in 1944, which severely damaged the factory warehouse, but fortunately not too much of the mechanical production line. The factory was left in a right old state structurally following the bombing, and the local police had to maintain a guard over it at all times, to prevent the many looters that had tried to gain entry to ‘half-inch’ the sugar supplies. (image courtesy of The Trebor Story-www.e7nowandthen.org)

 

A close-up of one of the 2 luxury penthouse apartments – constructed within the old Trebor factory in Forest Gate

 

The story of the Trebor factory is so important to local history – that there is even a book published about it. (image courtesy of The Trebor Story-www.e7nowandthen.org)

 

At its peak the Trebor brand were knocking out a stunning total of 452 products – but today there are just 4 main products that bear their brand :- ‘Extra Strong Mints’ – ‘Soft Mint-Spearmint’ – ‘Soft Mints-Peppermint’ – ‘Max Gum-Berry Fruit/Spearmint’ – their famously popular ‘Refreshers’ product is now produced by Barrett’s.

 

Today there are just 4 main products that bear their brand – this one of them

 

Today there are just 4 main products that bear their brand – this is another of them

 

Today there are just 4 main products that bear their brand – this is yet another of them

 

Today there are just 4 main products that bear their brand – this is yet another of them

 

A close-up of the Trebor braiding – added to the re-built art-deco style factory just after WW2

 

‘The Hudson Bay’ pub in Upton Lane, just off the historic Romford Road part of Forest Gate-London E7 – for the purpose of necking down a mandatory ‘cheeky’ one. This Weatherspoon’s pub only opened in 1999, and is built on the site of an old Co-Op supermarket.

 

Me – outside ‘The Hudson Bay’ pub – Forest Gate-London E7

 

Another view of ‘The Hudson Bay’ pub – Forest Gate-London E7

 

Throughout ‘The Hudson Bay’ pub there are many references to Sir John Pelly and his remarkable historic achievements

 

Another of the many references within ‘The Hudson Bay’ pub commemorating local lad Sir John Pelly and his remarkable historic achievements

 

Another of the many references within ‘The Hudson Bay’ pub commemorating local lad Sir John Pelly and his remarkable historic achievements

 

In ‘The Hudson Bay’ pub – there is even a commemorative reference to the local ‘Trebor’ factory 🙂

 

Me – neckin’ down a ‘cheeky’ one – in ‘The Hudson Bay’ pub – Forest Gate-London E7

 

 

 

“World Car Free Day”-London 22/09/2019

Posted on by Posted in Quirky Topics, Streets .

Today (Sunday 22nd Sept 2019) – London held its first ever “World Car Free Day” – an event commissioned by the Mayor of London –Sadiq Khan, to promote the tackling climate change, and to encourage Londoners to cycle, walk and use public transport to improve air pollution and cut down on car emissions.

Statistically, more than 50 % of London’s toxic air is caused by vehicles, and is a major contributory factor to causing potentially serious health conditions.

 

Usually on a Sunday, as with any other day of the week, London’s roads are totally congested with cars, but throughout today’s ‘World Car Free Day’ selected central London streets, and the main streets of many other London boroughs, were totally closed to vehicles.

These ‘car free’ streets hosted hundreds of activities for people of all ages to come together and enjoy – creating a unique community spirit, and a safe place for children to play without fearing the dangers of traffic and fuel emissions.

The total of road closures equated to nearly 200 football pitches in length – providing Londoner’s and visitors the capital, the opportunity to explore London streets without fear of having to dodge the traffic.
The event was titled ‘Reimagine’ – where Londoners got an idea of what some of the busiest parts of the City would be like without cars and traffic.

So – before heading to the London Stadium at Stratford today, to watch my happy little Hammers play Man Utd – ‘London Shoes’ decided to venture into the ‘Smoke’ to catch the vibe and get a feel for what it would be like to stroll down the middle of a few of the City’s busiest streets, without a car or lorry up the backside.

Although pushed for time, and unable to get to all of the streets that were closed, ‘London Shoes’ did enjoy the unique experience of wandering down the middle of the road across Tower Bridge, and back again – and then headed off to the normally chaotic junction at Fenchurch Street and Leadenhall Street, where it felt like being on the set of some ‘end-of-the-world’ film, as the vibe was just so quiet and weird – especially when looking back at the usually traffic rammed Aldgate district.

Whether the moral or intention of the day will be fully taken on board and help influence how we travel around London in future – I don’t know – but events like this “World Car Free Day” can’t do anyone any harm, and at least it gives people the opportunity to explore the City comfortably, peacefully and safely, and from a completely different perspective – so I personally give the initiative the thumbs-up and hope they continue.

___________________

Below are more photos of the entire ‘World Car Free Day’ blog experience

 

A familiar sight on many of the City’s main streets on ‘World Car Free Day’

 

Me – gambling across Tower Bridge – in the middle of the road

 

More unique ‘car free’ scenes from Tower Bridge

 

More unique ‘car free’ scenes from Tower Bridge

 

These ‘car free’ streets hosted hundreds of activities for people of all ages to come together and enjoy

 

More ‘car free’ scenes from Tower Bridge

 

More ‘car free’ scenes from Tower Bridge

 

Old Father Thames – photographed from the middle of the road on Tower Bridge

 

‘car free’ scenes from Tower Bridge

 

A familiar sight on the roads surrounding the City on ‘World Car Free Day’

 

 

The spookiness of the normally chaotic junction of Leadenhall Street and Fenchurch Street

 

 

The normally chaotic Fenchurch Street, as it was on ‘World Car Free Day’

 

The normally chaotic junction of Leadenhall Street and Fenchurch Street – on ‘World Car Free Day’

 

Looking back at the usually traffic congested Aldgate district – on ‘World Car Free Day’

 

The unusual peace and tranquility of the City streets on ‘World Car Free Day’

*’Proms-in-the-Park’ – Hyde Park-London-Aug 2019

Posted on by Posted in Music, Parks & Public Squares .

 

Last Saturday the 14th September, I had the pleasure of experiencing my very first ‘Proms-in-the-Park’ event at Hyde Park here in London – and I have to say that surprisingly, I found myself enjoying it much more than I had initially expected.

The ‘Proms’ event itself is a globally recognised annual musical event, that has been a British institution since they were founded way back in 1895.

 

The term ‘Proms’ derives from the word ‘Promenade’ – and from as early as the mid 1700’s, ‘Promenade Concerts’ were held throughout the summer months in central London’s bigger parks and pleasure gardens.

It wasn’t until the mid-1800’s that these series of music concerts moved from being held outside in park venues, to inside in prestigious music hall venues.

These ‘Proms’ events were so popular that by 1895, they had become a formal annual event in the social calendar – and a British institution – and various theatres and concert halls were used to hold these annual series of concerts.

 

Since 1941 the series of concerts that make up the annual ‘Proms’, have been held at the ‘Royal Albert Hall’, and every year the concerts are attended by many thousands of people, and watched by many millions more on tv, especially the entertaining ‘Last Night of the Proms’.

The event has become so popular in recent decades, with the demand for tickets so high, that the Albert Hall could quite easily be filled 10 times over, to accommodate all those that want to attend.

In 1996, to meet the excessive demand for tickets, a decision was made to run a ‘Proms-the-Park’ concert event in London’s Hyde Park, in conjunction with the real ‘Proms’ taking place in the nearby Royal Albert Hall.

These annual ‘Proms-in-the-Park’ events proved to be so popular, that by 2000, similar events were held at the same time throughout other prominent locations across the UK.

The ‘Proms-in-the-Park’ events have various ‘live’ musical acts performing throughout the afternoon and evening, whilst the ‘Last Night of the Proms’ was taking place over at the ‘Royal Albert Hall’ – and these shows are concluded by a synchronised ‘live’ tele-link to the Albert Hall so that the both sets of audiences can join in with the a rousing flag waving sing-song to the old traditional nationalistic standards such as ‘Rule Britannia’ – ‘Jerusalem’ & of course ‘Land of Hope & Glory’.

 

Anyway, this year I was delighted to be invited by one of my oldest and closest of friends, to accompany her to the Hyde Park ‘Proms-in-the-Park’ event, as she had a ticket going spare.

Gill and I first met at junior school back in the 1960’s., and have been close friends ever since. Living just a few streets apart from each other, we grew up together, and throughout our 55 years of friendship, we have shared and supported each other through the highs and lows of life’s rich tapestry, including milestones such as marriage, children & now of course, grandchildren – and so for me, it was an absolute pleasure to accompany one of my oldest and closest of mates to this year’s gig in Hyde Park.

Hyde Park is clearly now very experienced in staging these ‘Proms-in-the-Park’ events, as the whole scene was extremely well organised and controlled, with easy access to all the necessary amenities and necessities such as food, drink and toilets – making it as comfortable as possible for the thousands of punters contained within the venue field.

On the bill for Saturday’s ‘Proms-in-the-Park’ event that was superbly compared by Michael Ball were:- Aled Jones, Gabrielle, Bonnie Tyler, The Lighthouse Family, Jack Savoretti, Chrissie Hynde and topping the bill was the legend that is ‘Barry Manilow’!!!

Late afternoon, saw the commencement of the main acts to the stage – starting with Gabrielle, who knocked out her hits such as ‘Rise’, ‘Dreams’ & ‘Out of Reach’.

Then it was the turn of ‘Bonnie Tyler’ who banged out ‘Total Eclipse of the Heart’ & ‘Holding out for a Hero’.

Bonnie Tyler was followed by the ‘Lighthouse Family’ – who had the audience singing along to some of their most popular numbers such as ‘Lifted’, ‘High’, ‘Ocean Drive’ & ‘Lost in Space’.

 

 

As the sun went down it was the turn of Jack Savoretti to take the stage and serenade the audience with numbers such as ‘Candlelight’ & ‘What more can I do’.

Next up was the ex-Pretender ‘Chrissie Hynde’ who banged out a great set that included a brilliant version of the old Beach Boys, Brian Wilson classic ‘Caroline No’ from their iconic ‘Pet Sounds’ album – plus Pretenders hits like ‘Brass in Pocket’ & ‘I’ll Stand By You’.

Then it was the turn of the headline act of the day – the legend that is ‘Barry Manilow’!!!

Now – I have to confess that I’ve never been a big fan of the Manilow (or a ‘Fanilow’ as his fans are more commonly known as) and even if I was, I would never admit to it, as an admission such as that could seriously damage my ‘street cred’ – However, I have to give credit where credit’s due, and admit that the 76yr old trouper delivered a blinding set that had all the 40,000 strong crowd on their feet singing and dancing along to every song – and even had me waving a ‘glow-stick’ to material such as ‘Mandy’ – ‘It’s a Miracle’ – ‘Cant Smile Without You’ – ‘I made it through the Rain’ – ‘Weekend in New England’ – ‘I Write the Songs’ – ‘Could it be Magic’ and of course his mandatory finale ‘Copa-Cabana’. He may be an old man now, with replacement hips (and some serious work on his ‘boat’), but the geeza most certainly knows how to work and entertain a crowd – and I have to say that I thoroughly ‘got into’ and enjoyed his performance – and I can honestly say, that I would not hesitate to part with my ‘hard earned’ cash to get tickets to see him in action again!!

So – with the sun having already been set for a couple of hours, and the audience fully Copacabana’d out – me & the rest of the Hyde Park crowd were transfixed to the large video link screens located throughout the field, to watch and join in with the customary ‘Last Night of the Proms’ finale ‘live’ from the nearby Royal Albert Hall – an activity that prompted enthusiastic jingoistic flag waving patriotism whilst singing along to the old Proms standards of ‘Rule Britannia’ & ‘Land of Hope & Glory’ – after which it was time for us cheery punters (many – considerably inebriated) to slowly make our way to the park exits, and our eventual journey’s back home to the ‘burbs’ – having enjoyed what can only be described as a really entertaining day out in the good old ‘Smoke’ – great fun.

See below, for more detailed photos of this ‘Proms-in-the-Park’ blog

 

All the punters queuing at the entrance to ‘Proms-in-the-Park’ – Hyde Park-London – 14th Sept 2019

 

Me settling down on the blanket – whilst Gill, my accomplice for the day – is nice and comfy in my fishing chair 🙂

 

The ‘Proms-in-the-parks stage

 

The crowd starting to get larger, in the build up to the days events

 

 

Me & my companion for the day – awaiting the main attractions

 

One of the many food establishments that circled the perimeter of the event field

Eagerly awaiting the bands to kick-off the days performances

 

Another example of the many food outlets that circled the perimeter of the event field

 

The crowd starting to hit the 40,000 mark

 

More examples of the many food establishments that circled the perimeter of the event field

 

Me – getting prepared for the festivities, with me Union Jack

 

Patriotism from both sides of the ‘Pond’

 

Another example of patriotism on display in the Park

 

The popular singer, entertainer & presenter ‘Michael Ball’ did a great job entertaining the 40,000 strong crowd & comparing the evenings performances

 

‘Bonnie Tyler’ churning out her ‘Total Eclipse of the Heart’ & ‘Holding out for a Hero’.

 

‘Bonnie Tyler’ churning out her ‘Total Eclipse of the Heart’ & ‘Holding out for a Hero’.

 

 

The ‘Lighthouse Family’ – who had the audience singing along to some of their most popular numbers such as ‘Lifted’, ‘High’, ‘Ocean Drive’ & ‘Lost in Space’.

 

Dusk starts to settle on the Proms-in-the-Park arena

 

Dusk starts to settle on the Proms-in-the-Park arena

 

As the sun went down it was the turn of Jack Savoretti to take the stage and serenade the audience with numbers such as ‘Candlelight’ & ‘What more can I do’.

 

A patriotic me – awaiting performances by Chrissie Hynde & the headliner ‘Barry Manilow’

 

Darkness having now settled in

 

The ex-Pretender ‘Chrissie Hynde’ who banged out a great set that included a brilliant version of the old Beach Boys, Brian Wilson penne classic ‘Caroline No’ from their iconic Pet Sounds album, plus old Pretenders hits like ‘Brass in Pocket’ & ‘I’ll Stand By You’

 

The 40,000 strong crowd waiting for Barry Manilow to take the stage

 

An aerial view of the ‘Proms-in-the-Park’ site – I think I can just about see my barnet & my flag

 

Me & my long time mate Gill – awaiting Bazza

 

The 76yr old Barry Manilow takes the stage to deliver a blinding set that had all the 40,000 strong crowd on their feet singing and dancing along to every song – and even had me waving a ‘glow-stick’ to material such as ‘Mandy’ – ‘It’s a Miracle’ – Cant Smile Without You’ – I made it through the Rain’ – ‘Weekend in New England’ – ‘I Write the Songs’ – ‘Could it be Magic’ and of course his mandatory finale ‘Copa-Cabana’.

 

Barry Manilow in action

 

The crowd dancing enthusiastically to Manilow’s ‘Copa-cabana’ 🙂

 

Barry Manilow in action

 

The crowd dancing enthusiastically throughout Barry Manilow’s set

 

Me and me ‘glow-stick’ to material during Barry’s set 🙂

Following Barry Manilow’s entertaining set – me & the rest of the Hyde Park crowd were transfixed to the large video link screens located throughout the field, to watch and join in with the customary ‘Last Night of the Proms’ finale ‘live’ from the nearby Royal Albert Hall – an activity that prompted enthusiastic jingoistic flag waving patriotism whilst singing along to the old Proms standards of ‘Rule Britannia’ & ‘Land of Hope & Glory’

 

The ‘Proms-in-the-Park’ crowd enjoying the ‘Last Night of the Proms’ finale – televised via a link to the Royal Albert Hall festivities

 

The ‘Proms-in-the-Park’ crowd enjoying the ‘Last Night of the Proms’ finale

 

The ‘Proms-in-the-Park’ crowd enjoying the ‘Last Night of the Proms’ finale

 

Me & my old mate Gill – reflecting on what can only be described as a good ole London day out 🙂

 

A firework display brings the curtain down on the 2019 ‘Proms-in-the-Park’ event 🙂

 

 

 

 

 

*A “Boxing Day” out-(but nothing to do with Christmas)

Posted on by Posted in People, Pubs, Sporting People .

A slight deviation of subject matter this week saw ‘London Shoes’ venture into the sporting world, to focus on the topic of ‘Boxing’.

This particular blog started life as being just about famous ‘east-end’ boxing legends – but as my research on the topic progressed, I expanded the subject matter to include some of the historic boxing related ‘landmarks’ that are scattered across the ‘smoke’.

So – the article published on the ‘London Shoes’ website and Twitter feed, goes under the working title of “A ‘Boxing Day’ out-(but nothing to do with Christmas’).

For this excursion, I was delighted be accompanied again by Les, my old mate from our days working together at the Whitechapel branch of Barclays, back in the late 1980’s – always great to have ‘Sir Les’ along for the ride, as he is a big follower of ‘Shoes’ and a fellow exponent of London’s lesser known and unique history.

Starting off at our old east-end haunts, from our good old Barclays branch banking days – we found ourselves down in Poplar E15 – and this is how the day panned out:-

‘Teddy Baldock’ – “The Pride of Poplar”
Born in Poplar in 1907, Teddy Baldock went on to hold British/Commonwealth/Empire & World Titles at light & bantam weights.

Known as ‘The Pride of Poplar’, Baldock became Britain’s youngest ever World Champion boxer at the tender age of 19, when he won the World Bantamweight Championship belt in 1927

Baldock’s impressive boxing record stands at: – 81 fights / 73 wins / 37 knock-outs / 5 losses / 3 draws.

Teddy Baldock passed away in 1971 – and in 2014 a bronze statue of him was erected in Poplar’s Langden Park, to commemorate the achievements of one of Poplar’s favourite sons.

 

 

‘Ted (Kid) Berg’ – “ The Whitechapel Windmill”
Born ‘Judah Bergman’ in 1909 in a house just off of the famous Cable Street in Stepney – ‘Kid’ Berg clocked up an impressive professional record of:- 192 fights / 157 wins / 61 knock-outs / 26 losses / 9 draws.

Fighting under the title of ‘The Whitechapel Windmill’ Kid Berg always fought with the Jewish ‘Star of David’ on his shorts – and he was also one of the very first British boxers to be successful in the United States.

‘Kid’ Berg died in 1991 and today a blue plaque is displayed on an exterior wall of the Noble Court housing estate in Cable Street, near to where he used to live, to commemorate his achievements.

‘Victor McLaglen’ – b.1886-d.1959
Victor McLaglen’s fascinating life story is a subject matter in its own rights – it really makes impressive reading.

To briefly summarise – McLaglen was born in 1886, down in the Limehouse district of Commercial Road.

At the age of 14 he signed up for the Army to fight in the Boer War – but when it was discovered that he was under age, he was thrown out.

So he stowed away to Canada where he became a circus entertainer, wrestler and boxer.

In 1909 whilst in the United States, McLaglen fought a much publicised contest against the legendary ‘Jack Johnson’, who was the first ever African American World Heavyweight Champion – McLaglan lost, as did most boxers who fought the great Jack Johnson.

In 1913 Victor McLaglan returned to the UK to fight in WW1 – where he reached the rank of Captain, and he also held the title of British Army Heavyweight Champion.

McLaglen retired from boxing in 1920 clocking up professional stats of: – 35 fights / 16 wins / 8 losses / 1 draw.
He then went back to the United States and ended up being an actor.

In 1935 Victor McLaglan won an Academy Award for his role in the award winning film ‘The Informer’ – and he was nominated for many more Academy Awards throughout his film career, where he worked regularly with the likes of famous stars such as John Wayne and Douglas Fairbanks Jnr.

McLaglan made his last film in 1958, and in 1960 his ‘Star’ was added to the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

The ‘Lamb & Flag’ pub – Covent Garden:
Records show that this Covent Garden building dates back to 1623 – becoming pub in 1772, and it is in fact the oldest pub in Covent Garden.

It is situated in an area which was once one of the most violent districts of London.

Bareknuckle prize fights were held upstairs and the pub gained the nickname ‘The Blood Bucket’.

It was once a regular haunt of author Charles Dickens, plus many other celebs, all of whom enjoyed watching the boxing bouts staged there.

Today the walls up on the pubs 1st floor, where the boxing ring once was, are covered in framed old boxing newspapers of the time.

 

‘The National Sporting Club’ – Covent Garden
The National Sporting Club in Kings Street-Covent Garden was founded in 1891 as an exclusive private members club – and it became pivotal in establishing and regulating the sport of boxing in Great Britain.

Its first president was the ‘5th Earl of Lonsdale’ – who first introduced the ‘Lonsdale Belt’ to the sport in 1909.

Many top bouts were held at the venue, and the rules of boxing were always strictly observed when fights were held there.

Following WW2 the National Sporting Club slowly began to lose its control and influence over the sport, to the British Boxing Board of Control, who eventually took over the national management of the sport.

The National Sporting Club finally closed its doors in 2009.

‘The Ring’ Pub-Southwark
This 1783 built pub, now situated directly opposite Southwark tube station, was originally called the ‘Surrey Chapel’.

In 1910 it was bought by the British Lightweight champion Dick Burge and his American music hall star wife Bella Burge.

The pub started to stage boxing bouts and it soon became an extremely popular venue, because Dick & Bella Burge deliberately kept cost down so that the ‘ordinary Londoner’ could afford to come and watch the sport of boxing.

Unfortunately, Dick Burge was imprisoned for his part in what was, at that time, Britain’s biggest fraud case – but the business carried on, and continued to grow from strength to strength – run by his wife Bella – who was to be the very first female boxing promoter, and very successful she was at it too.

During WW2 ‘The Ring’ pub took a direct hit from a German bomb, and sadly its fame as a top boxing venue fell into decline.

Today, the pub’s walls are completely covered floor to ceiling with boxing photos and memorabilia – and there is also a lovely little mosaic of Bella Burge on a pavement at the South Bank.

 

The ‘Thomas A Becket’ pub – Old Kent Road:
Situated at 322 Old Kent Road, just down the road from the Elephant & Castle, sits the grand old Victorian building that was once the famous ‘Thomas A Becket’ pub – renowned for its connections to the sport of boxing.

The actual Thomas A Becket pub dates back to 1894 – but its origins as a tavern site go all the way back to 1393, when its tavern was referenced in Chaucer’s ‘Canterbury Tales’.

The pubs connections to boxing are now legendary, mainly due to the fact that from 1956, the great ‘Sir Henry Cooper’ used the upstairs gym as his main base for 14 years of his magnificent box career.

Also – the likes of all time boxing legends Mohammed Ali – Joe Frazier – Sugar Ray Leonard, always used the Thomas A Becket as their training base whenever they were fighting in London.

 

Away from boxing, it is said that the late David Bowie used the pubs upstairs floor as a rehearsal room in preparation of his first Ziggy Stardust tour in 1972.

Today, the ground floor of this iconic building is a Thai restaurant – but there is a blue plaque tucked away in an unused door way, that commemorates the fact that ‘Our ‘Enry used the pub as his training base.

Tom Cribb – Bareknuckle Champ –b.1781-d.1848
Although born in Bristol, Tom Cribb moved to London at an early age and spent the rest of his life there.

He initially worked as a coal porter down at the Wapping Docks.

He took up bareknuckle boxing and went on to become Heavyweight Camp of the World.

His 2 most famous and publicised fights were those against American’s ‘Tom Molineux’ & ‘Bill Richmond’ who were both former slaves – and Cribb went on to become firm and close friends with both of them.

Cribb retired from bareknuckle boxing in 1812 aged 31, and went on the start his own business as a coal merchant, and later became a publican and owner of ‘The Union Arms’ pub in Panton Street-Covent Garden – which later became the ‘Tom Cribb’ pub.

The Tom Cribb pub – Covent Garden:
Records show that there has been a tavern on this Panton Street site since the mid 1600’s.

In the early 1700’s the pub’s name was changed to ‘The Union Arms’ to commemorate the ‘1707 Act of Union’ between England & Scotland.

The pub was rebuilt in 1878 and in 1960 the name of the pub was changed to ‘Tom Cribb’ in commemoration to the champion bareknuckle prize fighter who was the pubs landlord between the years 1820 to 1835.

Today, the Tom Cribb pub is a must for any boxing fans as its wall are adorned with boxing memorabilia, the majority of which related to its famous previous landlord.

And it was at the Tom Cribb pub that me and my accomplice Les, having spent the day ‘walking’ back and forth across the River Thames to seek out these specific landmarks (no public transport was used – Les wanted to do it all by foot), that we finally ‘threw-in-the-towel’ and sat down to take the weight off our ‘plates’ and get stuck in to a plate of chips and a couple of well earned ‘cheeky’ beers.

So – after a unanimous decision – and just before we became a bit too ‘punch drunk’ – it was seconds out, and time to quit the ring and head off for home.

Hope you enjoyed this article and its accompanying photos.

See below for a more extensive photo gallery of the ‘Boxing Day’ blog

Born in Poplar in 1907, “Teddy Baldock” went on to hold British/Commonwealth/Empire & World Titles at light & bantam weights. In 2014 a bronze statue of him was erected in Poplar’s Langden Park, to commemorate the achievements of one of Poplar’s favourite sons.

 

Teddy Baldock – the ‘Pride of Poplar’ – who went on to hold British/Commonwealth/Empire & World Titles at light & bantam weights.

 

The inscription on the statue of Teddy Baldock – located in Langdon Park-Poplar E15

 

Me & the Teddy Baldock statue in Langdon Park-Poplar

 

Born ‘Judah Bergman’ in 1909 in a house just off of the famous Cable Street in Stepney – ‘Kid’ Berg clocked up an impressive professional record of:- 192 fights / 157 wins / 61 knock-outs / 26 losses / 9 draws.

 

Fighting under the title of ‘The Whitechapel Windmill’ Kid Berg always fought with the Jewish ‘Star of David’ on his shorts –

 

Today a blue plaque is displayed on an exterior wall of the Noble Court housing estate in Cable Street, near to where he used to live, to commemorate Ted ‘Kid’ Berg’s achievements.

 

The house in Commercial Road-Stepney, where Victor McLaglen was raised

 

The blue plaque displayed on the wall of the house in Commercial Road-E1 where Victor McLaglen once lived

 

An old b&w photo taken before Victor McLaglen’s high profile fight in the US against world champion ‘Jack Johnson’

 

After he retired from boxing, Victor McLaglan ended up in in the US and worked his way up to become a top Hollywood actor – earning an Academy Award for his role in the box office best seller film ‘The Informer’

 

The ‘Lamb & Flag’ pub Covent Garden – which was once one of the top London venues for bareknuckle prize-fighting bouts.

 

The ‘Lamb & Flag’ pub-Covent Garden – situated in what was once one of London’s most violent areas – gaining the pub the nickname of ‘The Blood Bucket’

 

Examples of the bareknuckle boxing memorabilia inside the ‘Lamb & Flag’ pub-Covent Garden

 

Another example of the bareknuckle boxing memorabilia inside the ‘Lamb & Flag’ pub-Covent Garden

 

The National Sporting Club in Kings Street-Covent Garden was founded in 1891 as an exclusive private members club – and it became pivotal in establishing and regulating the sport of boxing in Great Britain.

 

Me & me old workmate Les, my accomplice for the day – outside the old HQ of the renowned ‘National Sporting Club’-King St-Covent Garden

 

‘The Ring’ pub situated directly opposite Southwark tube station It was originally called the ‘Surrey Chapel’. In 1910 it was bought by the British Lightweight champion ‘Dick Burge’ and his American music hall star wife Bella Burge’. The pub started to stage boxing bouts and it soon became an extremely popular London sporting venue

 

Examples of the boxing related memorabilia that covers, floor to ceiling of the inside of ‘The Ring’ pub in Southwark

 

The interior of ‘The Ring’ pub-Southwark

 

Me – grabbing a quick one ‘in my corner’ of ‘The Ring’ pub-Southwark

 

A mosaic of ‘Bella Burge’ – the landlady of ‘The Ring’ pub and the first ever female boxing promoter – This mosaic can be found on a pavement down at the South Bank

 

Bella Burge become so famous as the very first female boxing promoter, that there were even books written about her.

 

The legendary ‘Thomas A Becket’ pub in the Old Kent Road-Sarf London

 

The ‘Thomas A Becket’ pub as it is today, dates back to 1894 – but its origins as a tavern site go all the way back to 1393, when its tavern was referenced in Chaucer’s ‘Canterbury Tales’

 

The ‘Thomas A Becket’ pub’s connections to boxing are now legendary, mainly due to the fact that from 1956, the great ‘Sir Henry Cooper’ used the upstairs gym as his main base for 14 years of his magnificent box career. Also – the likes of all time boxing legends Mohammed Ali – Joe Frazier – Sugar Ray Leonard, always used the Thomas A Becket as their training base whenever they were fighting in London.

 

Today, the ground floor of the iconic Thomas A Becket pub is a Thai restaurant – but there is a blue plaque tucked away in an unused door way, that commemorates the fact that the late great ‘Our ‘Enry used the pub as his training base.

 

Me – down the Old Kent Road-Sarf London – with the famous ‘Thomas A Becket’ pub in the background

 

When bareknuckle prize fighting champion ‘Tom Cribb’ retired from boxing in 1812, he went on to became a publican and owner of ‘The Union Arms’ pub in Panton Street-Covent Garden – which later became the ‘Tom Cribb’ pub.

 

The ‘Tom Cribb’ pub Panton St-Covent Garden. Records show that there has been a tavern on this Panton Street site since the mid 1600’s. The pub was rebuilt in 1878, and in 1960 the name of the pub was changed to ‘Tom Cribb’ in commemoration to the champion bareknuckle prize fighter who was the pubs landlord between the years 1820 to 1835

 

Me – outside the ‘Tom Cribb’ pub – Panton St-Covent Garden

 

There are plenty of references inside & outside the ‘Tom Cribb’ pub – that refer to it’s historic connections to bareknuckle champion ‘Tom Cribb’

 

There are plenty of references inside & outside the ‘Tom Cribb’ pub – that refer to it’s historic connections to bareknuckle champion ‘Tom Cribb’

 

An early image of bareknuckle champion ‘Tom Cribb’ inside the pub that bears his name

 

Examples of boxing commemorative memorabilia in the ‘Tom Cribb’ pub

 

 

A couple of old ‘ring-weary’ pugilists – not quite ‘punch-drunk’ but getting there – Inside the ‘Tom Cribb’ pub-Panton St-Covent Garden

 

Another ‘cheeky’ one in my ‘corner’ of the ‘Tom Cribb’ pub – before ‘throwing-in-the-towel’ and heading off home 

*The quirky “Thames Tide Recorder” & a beer in “The Two Chairman”

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

There are many categories listed within the London Shoes website, all of which  accommodate the many different aspects of the more ‘unusual’ stuff that London Shoes blogs.

One such ‘Shoes’ category is entitled ‘Quirky’ and contains all the ‘off-the-wall’ and away from the ‘norm’ topics, published.

The subject matter for this week’s venture down to the ‘Smoke’, most definitely fits within the ‘Quirky’ category – and yet again, like so many other lesser known landmarks scattered across the metropolis, it is something that I have seen and walked past so many times throughout my life, and not even noticed it or given it a second-glance – and I’m guessing that many others wouldn’t have either……until now, that is !!!

So – the topic for this week’s London Shoes publication is the little known and most certainly unusual “Thames Tide Recorder” situated next to Westminster Bridge.

On the north side of the River Thames, right next to Westminster Bridge, down the steps leading from Victoria Embankment to Westminster Pier – there stands a strange green turret/mini-tower type circular ‘hut’ – which is the said ‘Thames Tide Recorder’.

This very odd and totally out of character landmark, actually has done and still does, play a significant part in the operation of River activities in and around Westminster Pier.

The purpose of the ‘Thames Tide Recorder’ is to record and measure the depth of, and the tidal flow of the River Thames at that particular spot – which is one of the busiest sections of the Thames for riverboat and other Thames excursions.

Now – the trouble is, no one seems to know when this ‘Thames Tide Recorder’ was actually built and erected. There is certainly very little info about it on the Internet – but from the limited research I was able to do on this topic, I am of the opinion that it is probably a pre-WW2 fixture.

Although today, the exterior of this strange little obelisk is completely neglected, filthy and covered head to foot in ‘stickers’ (some advertising  certain ‘dubious’ services) – it apparently still fulfills its purpose.

On its exterior are a few iron ladder rungs that lead up to two small windows – and if you climb them and take a look inside, you will see various items of electrical and computerised equipment, plus a screen displaying a reading, which presumably represents the current depth of the Thames at that point.

Now – I didn’t actually get to climb these few steps and look inside, because when I went to, there were loads of tourists hanging around next to the ‘Recorder’, and it was quite evident that my attempt to climb the steps were causing some concern amongst them, as I think they must have thought that I was about to ‘end-it-all’ by jumping into the murky waters of the River Thames directly below – so I took the view that it probably wasn’t worth all the potential hassle and drama.

However, to provide an idea of what the inside of this ‘Thames Time Recorder’ looks like, I have downloaded a photo that was taken and published by ‘Jennie’s Jaunts’ another London Blogger – far better than me at all this blogging malarkey – who did actually scale the ladder rungs to peep inside, when publishing her blog material.

So – there you have it – the next time you exit Westminster tube station, or happen to be walking across Westminster Bridge, then take a look around to see if you spot the weird little historic landmark that is the ‘Thames Tide Recorder’.

 

Anyway – the second part of this particular blog (the mandatory ‘pub’ bit) was another very interesting one, as I discovered a lovely little boozer tucked away in a side street just off of Birdcage Walk – and not only was this pub an unknown treasure for me, it sort of has a tenuous link to a blog I conducted some while back, that was all about London’s ‘Lost Cockfighting Pits‘!!!

 

The pub in question is “The Two Chairmen” located in Dartmouth Street-Westminster, and its the oldest pub in the Westminster district – and as a result, it has a fascinating history behind it.

The origins of this pub can be traced right back to 1729 and its ‘The Two Chairmen’ name has absolutely nothing to do with any stuffy, boring corporate reference – it actually relates to the blokes who used to carry wealthy passengers around the streets of London in ‘Sedan Chairs’.

Back in the 1600’s & 1700’s  Sedan Chairs were the main form of public transport in London especially for the well to do and wealthy – because by being ‘carried’ about in a ‘Chair’ from place to place, meant that they didn’t get wet, and their shoes didn’t get dirty.

Sedan Chairs were the black cabs of their time. Carriage Company’s sprung up all over London, and they employed strong ‘Chairmen’ to lift and carry these ‘chairs’ all over the ‘smoke’ – and it is believed that the common saying of ‘Cheerio’ derives from when Sedan Chairs were hailed and bid farewell with a cry of ‘Chair Ho’.

‘Chairmen’ had to hold a licence and be officially registered in order to operate a ‘chair’.

However, unlike cabbies of today, these Chairmen didn’t have to pass the ‘Knowledge’ – they relied totally on ‘Link Boys’ with their flaming torches, to lead them through the darkened streets of London (in fact ‘Link Boys & Snuffers’ is another of my past blogs published on the London Shoes website)

Sedan Chair ‘ranks’ were situated all across London, mainly outside the most popular hotels, streets, houses and pubs.

‘The Two Chairmen’ pub was one of London’s popular and busiest ‘pick-up’ points, as it was situated directly opposite the ‘Royal Cockfighting Pit’ just off Birdcage Walk – and so the ‘Chairmen’ would congregate in the pub whilst waiting to pick-up punters going to, or coming from the famous Cock Fighting venue.

It really is a charming little pub – and the 18th Century mural across its back wall, that depicts references to Sedan Chairs and their Chairman – really gives the place a lovely little vibe – well worth a visit if you ever find yourself in the Westminster area.

 

 

 

 

So – what started off as being just a short trek out to view a quirky little topic – ended up being a really interesting days adventure, which I hope you enjoyed reading about.

See below for a more detailed summary of the photos relating to this blog

The ‘Thames Tide Recorder’ standing proudly to the right, next to London’s iconic Westminster Bridge

 

The ‘Thames Tide Recorder’ in the centre of the picture – taken from a vantage point on Westminster Bridge

 

A closer view of the ‘Thames Tide Recorder’ and its location outside the entrance to the extremely busy ‘Westminster Pier’

 

another close-up of the ‘Thames Tide Recorder’ – from Westminster Bridge

 

The ‘Thames Tide Recorder’ at street level, with the London Eye in the background, on the other side of the Thames

 

Me alongside the ‘Thames Tide Recorder’, which as you can see, has been completely defaced with ‘stickers’ 🙁

 

Another view of the ‘Thames Tide Recorder’ with the River Thames flowing away merrily in the background

 

Another photo of me alongside the ‘Thames Tide Recorder’ down at street level.

 

The 2 small windows situated half way up the ‘Thames Tide Recorder’, which are reached by climbing a few small rungs up a ladder, on the exterior of this landmark.

 

A brief glimpse inside the ‘Thames Tide Recorder’ at all its computerised kit, recording and logging the activity of the River Thames. (Image courtesy of ‘Jennie’s Jaunts’ website)

 

A final view of the ‘Thames Tide Recorder’ before heading off for the mandatory ‘cheeky’ beer 🙂

 

 

‘Birdcage Walk’ Westminster – looking particularly splendid at this time of year.

 

The historic ‘Cockpit Steps’-Westminster, that used to lead down to the infamous and extremely popular ‘Royal Cockfighting Pit’. The Two Chairmen pub is located directly opposite this old historic location

 

The sign of The Two Chairman’ pub – depicting its past historic connections with Sedan Chair ‘Chairmen’

 

‘The Two Chairmen’ pub-Westminster

 

References to the old Sedan Chair business, can be found throughout the pub.

 

Me – outside The Two Chairmen pub in Dorset Street-Westminster

 

The 18th Century mural covering the back wall of The Two Chairmen pub – that depicts the use of Sedan Chairs as a main form of public transport throughout London

 

Me – necking down a refreshing ‘cheeky’ one inside The Two Chairnen pub-Westminster

A closer view of the 18th Century mural on display inside The Two Chairmen pub

 

Another scene from the 18th Century mural on the walls inside The Two Chairmen pub

Me – knocking back another ‘cheeky’ one before saying goodbye to the excellent ‘The Two Chairmen’ pub in Westminster 🙂

 

*the epitome of being “Up to your ears in work”

Posted on by Posted in Quirky Topics .

Saw this ‘quirky’ one the other day whilst visiting Kensington Palace, and it made me larf 😆

Have you ever felt like your job is getting on top of you – you’re surrounded by ‘work’ and cant see a way out of it – then spare a thought for this poor fella 😂

In the first photo, you can just about see his ‘filbert’ in the middle of the ornamental hedge – and the second photo is a close-up of the poor old boy, literally up-to-his-ears in his work!!!

The obvious question has to be – how the hell did he get in there, and how does he get out?

 

*The unique “Elms Lesters Painting Rooms” building & it’s big front door-WC2

Posted on by Posted in Art, Quirky Topics .

Even though this week’s London Shoes trek out to the ‘Smoke’ was only a short & sweet quickie, the subject matter was nonetheless an interesting one, as it perfectly epitomises the ‘Shoes’ doctrine of being a ‘lesser known & more unusual’ aspect of London’s history.

In fact, ‘Shoes’ only recently became aware of the existence of this place, even though I had worked only a few streets away from it, back in the 70’s when I was at Barclays Bank in Wardour St – and probably walked past it many times without taking a blind bit of notice.

It wasn’t until my old ‘pencil squeezer’ mate Professor Mick pointed the place out to me the other week that I decided that the topic was certainly worthy of a London Shoes visit.

So – the topic in question is the unique “Elms Lesters Painting Rooms” building situated in Flitcroft Street, just a couple of minutes’ walk from Tottenham Court Road tube station.

Not only does this building itself tell an interesting story, it probably has the tallest front door of any building in London!!!

The ‘Elms Lesters Painting Rooms’ are tucked away down an old narrow alley situated at the side of the historically iconic St. Giles Church.

The ‘Painting Rooms’ building was built and opened in 1903/04, and was designed specifically to house the production of, and the storage of, stage scenery and the huge theatrical backdrops of London’s thriving theatreland.

 

 

 

This narrow 3 storey building was designed to a unique specification so that these massive scenery backdrops, an integral part of any stage production – could be created, worked on, stored and then transported safely off to the many theatres of London’s west-end.

Scenery and picture frames in excess of 50’x30’ could easily be accommodated in the Painting Rooms, and the material was moved about, raised & lowered by a system of electric winches, so that they could be worked on, or moved out to the theatres via a huge ‘front-door’, probably the tallest of its kind in London and beyond.

Another advantage of the ‘Elms Lesters Painting Rooms’ back in the day, was that it had a massive glass ceiling, creating natural light for the artists to work in.

The building itself retains some of its lovely original 1904 architectural features and touches – and it is no surprise that it today has a Grade II Listed status.

With the advent of TV and cinema, the reliance on facilities such as those created in the ‘Elms Lesters Painting Room’; slowly fell into decline, as new production technologies evolved.

 

However, because of the way in which it was built and the facilities it offered, the ‘Elms Lesters Painting Rooms’ enjoyed a new lease of life as an artist’s workshop and a gallery – as it was the ideal working environment for artists producing massively large pieces of work.

Sadly in 2017 the ‘Elms Lesters Painting Rooms’ were no longer used for what they had been created for, and were sold-off – and now its interior has been converted into corporate offices, so unfortunately I couldn’t take any photos inside – but fortunately, because of its Listed status, the original exterior of the building with its unique architectural features, will remain intact and unaltered, so that it lives on to tell the tale.

So – having sought out the ‘Elms Lester Painting Rooms’, it was ‘cheeky one-a-clock’ and so I popped in to ‘The Angel’ pub, just round the corner, and right next door to the famous St. Giles Church – (one of the most historic and infamous churches in London-and a blog topic in its own right).

Records show that there has been a ‘tavern’ on the site of ‘The Angel’ pub, since the 16th Century – and this boozer has its own unique little vibe going on, as it was one of the main ‘stopping-off’ pubs where condemned criminals were allowed to have just one last beer, on their way to their execution at the gallows at Tyburn.

The current pub building was built in 1834 and still retains some of the original fixtures & fittings from that time – such as a lovely little decorative glazed tiled entrance to where the carriages would park-up – its large Georgian windows – ornate ceiling roses – chandeliers – old leather bound chairs and bar stools & wooden wall paneling, all of which is on view in the pubs 3 cosy drinking bars.

These sort of features make the place extremely popular with tourists especially those visiting the famous St. Giles Church next door – and of course, the ideal place for me to sink a couple of ‘cheeky’ ones (‘organic’ lager this time), before heading back out into the pouring rain to make my way back home.

Hope you enjoyed this little insight into one of the more unusual and certainly lesser known London buildings – and that the photos, albeit with a rainy backdrop, do the place justice.

 

 

See below for a more detailed summary of photos from this ‘Elms Lesters Painting Rooms’ blog

Flitcroft Street – just a couple of minutes walk from Tottenham Court Road tube station – and the location of the iconic ‘Elms Lesters Painting Rooms’ building

The ‘Elms Lesters Painting Rooms’ building, with its huge green front door – in Flitcroft Street

Another view of the ‘Elms Lesters Painting Rooms’ building – in Flitcroft Street

 

A different view of the ‘Elms Lesters Painting Rooms’ building – in Flitcroft Street

 

A side view of the ‘Elms Lesters Painting Rooms’ – built in 1903/04 – with the historically iconic St. Giles Church towering over it in the background.

 

Me – & possibly one of London’s tallest front door entrances – The ‘Elms Lesters Painting Rooms’ – Flitcroft Street

 

The building itself retains some of its lovely original 1904 architectural features and touches – and it is no surprise that it today has a Grade II Listed status.

 

Scenery and picture frames in excess of 50’x30’ could easily be accommodated in the Painting Rooms, and the material was moved about, raised & lowered by a system of electric winches, so that they could be worked on, or moved out to the theatres via a huge ‘front-door’, probably the tallest of its kind in London and beyond.

 

Another different view of the ‘Elms Lesters Painting Rooms’ building – in Flitcroft Street

 

This narrow 3 storey building was designed to a unique specification so that these massive scenery backdrops, an integral part of any stage production – could be created, worked on, stored and then transported safely off to the many theatres of London’s west-end.

 

Scenery material was moved about, raised & lowered by a system of electric winches, so that they could be worked on, or moved out to the theatres via a huge ‘front-door’, probably the tallest of its kind in London and beyond.

 

The only bit of graffiti on the huge green doors of the ‘Elms Lesters ‘Painting Rooms’ building – relates to my beloved ‘West Ham Utd’ football team….”Come on you Hammers…Over Land & Sea” 🙂

 

With the advent of TV and cinema, the reliance on facilities such as those created in the ‘Elms Lester Painting Room’; slowly fell into decline, as new production technologies evolved. However, because of the way in which it was built and the facilities it offered, the ‘Elms Lester Painting Rooms’ enjoyed a new lease of life as an artist’s workshop and a gallery – as it was the ideal working environment for artists producing massively large pieces of work.

 

Me – down by the side of the Elms Lesters Painting Rooms building in Flitcroft Street

 

The west-end’s famous ‘Phoenix Theatre’ in the Charing Cross Road – just at the back of the ‘Elms Lesters Painting Rooms’ – Built in 1930, the ‘Phoenix’ would have been one of the many west-end theatres that used the Elms Lesters Painting Room facilities

 

Some old stage-door Johnny outside the Phoenix Theatre

The ‘Palace Theatre’ in Shaftesbury Avenue – just a couple of minutes walk from the ‘Elms Lesters Painting Rooms’. This 1892 built Theatre would have used the ‘Painting Rooms facilities for its scenery nd backdrops

 

‘The Angel’ pub – St. Giles – right next door to the famous church of the same name. Records show that there has been a pub on this site since the 16th Century

 

‘The Angel’ was a well known stopping off place for criminals on their way to the Tyburn gallows – so that they could have one last ‘cheeky one’ before being executed

 

Inside ‘The Angel’ pub – St.Giles

 

A barrel table top inside The Angel pub

 

Inside ‘The Angel’ pub – St.Giles

 

Me – neckin’ down an organic ‘cheeky’ one inside The Angel pub – St. Giles

 

Neckin down another organic ‘cheeky’ in “The Angel” pub, right next door to St. Giles Church, and just around the corner from the ‘Elms Lesters Painting Rooms building in Flitcroft Street-W2

*The history of “Kensington Palace” – one of London’s most magnificent Royal residencies

Posted on by Posted in Historic Buildings, People, Stately Homes .

Those that follow London Shoes will be aware that they rarely walk the more popular touristy type attractions of this wonderful City – but last week an exception was made – mainly because I had the rare but absolute pleasure of having 2 accomplices for the day, namely the good lady wife Angela and my ex-Canary Wharf work colleague Jackie – both of whom had expressed a desire for a ‘nice day-out’ in town and who both suggested that we spend it at this particular place.

So – the topic in question, published on the London Shoes website, FB page and Twitter feed, is all about the magnificent London royal abode of “Kensington Palace” – and I have to say that I found the visit there to be far more interesting and enjoyable than I thought it would be.

Kensington Palace is one of the most iconic royal palaces in London – and from the very first day it was built, it has had royal connections – connections which have continued over the centuries, right up to the present day.

It is a building that is steeped in history and has certainly seen a bit of life within its 4 walls – some good, and some downright tragic – but it still lives on today, to tell the tale.

 

The Palace’s origins date back to the early 1600’s when Kensington was just a quiet sleepy little village on the outskirts of the bustling City of London.

It was an ideal location for a quiet country retreat, where you could get the best of both worlds, as it wasn’t that far away from where the ‘action’ was.

The first building to be constructed on the site of where Kensington Palace is today, was built in 1605, and consisted of a very large 2 storey house.

In 1619 it was bought by the Earl of Nottingham and re-named ‘Nottingham House’.

In 1689 it was purchased by the reigning Monarchs of the time William III & his consort Queen Mary – who very much saw it as an alternative to the royal palace of that time, which was situated in Whitehall.

Upon moving in to Nottingham House, William & Mary immediately called upon the services of Sir Christopher Wren to transform the property into a Royal residence – and they renamed the property ‘Kensington Palace’.

Sir Christopher Wren made significant structural changes to the residence, adding a chapel, large kitchens, stables, a military barracks and accommodation for servants and courtiers – but the biggest alteration he made was the construction of numerous ‘state rooms’ and ‘apartments’.

King William & Queen Mary were very much party animals, and wanted a palace where they could wine, dine and entertain the ‘in-crowd’ from not only Britain but from all over Europe – all in separate halls, drawing rooms and galleries throughout the building.

By 1692 Wren’s extensive renovation work was fully completed – but the first of what was to become a whole series of serious tragedies, struck the palace, when poor old Queen Mary suddenly contracted the disease smallpox and died shortly after in her bed chamber at the palace.

 

Following his wife’s sudden death poor old William III quite naturally lost interest in living the high-life at the palace as he had previously – but he did continue to oversee the addition of a separate Gallery room – which doubled up as a top-secret meeting room for the many ‘spies’ that he had scattered about town and beyond.

William III’s successor ‘Queen Anne’ (who only reigned from 1702 to 1714) didn’t have anything against Kensington Palace, but she much preferred Hampton Court further on down the River Thames, because of the hunting activities carried out there – and she loved hunting.

Sadly, the 2nd major tragedy fell upon a ‘royal’ at Kensington Palace when, in 1714, Queen Anne at the age of 49, suffered a stroke whilst staying at the palace – and died as a result.

However, she did leave her own footprint by having a huge ‘Orangery’ built alongside the palace building – where plants, trees and shrubs from around the globe were grown. She also used the Orangery as a venue to hold lavish parties, banquets and ceremonies.

As Queen Anne left no heirs, on her death the British Monarchy passed to one of her distant relatives ‘George of Hanover’, who became George I.

Like some of his predecessors King George I loved Kensington Palace, but he felt that the place had become a bit worn and shabby, and so he commissioned a complete overhaul of the existing State Rooms plus adding a few more. He then went about filling the place with art and expensive bespoke furniture, much of which remains on display to the public today.

Following George I death in 1727, the monarchy was handed over to his son George II & his consort wife Queen Caroline – and they too, had a massive influence on the Kensington Palace that we know today.

They both really loved living at Kensington Palace, and regularly held big parties and events there, filling the place with all the big celebs of the time.

One of the main things they did structurally to the palace was to commission one of Britain’s most up and coming artists of the day, William Kent, to cover the walls, ceilings and staircases with life size murals – and they also filled the palace with the top furniture designs of the period.

However, when Queen Caroline died suddenly of a bowel blockage in 1737 – King George II completely lost the plot, and as a result, the palace fell into a bit of disrepair.

In 1760 King George II dropped dead of a heart attack in his private apartment at Kensington Palace.

His son George III succeeded his father to the throne – but he couldn’t really care less about Kensington Palace – he had no enthusiasm for the place at all.

However – what George III did do, which in a way set the precedent for Kensington Palace from then on and right up to this very day – was to let his son’s take up residence in a couple of the Palaces private apartments.

He also granted permission for lesser members of the extended Royal Family to take up residence in the Palaces other apartments. As a result, Kensington Palace came to be known affectionately among the masses as the royal ‘Aunt Heap’.

George III’s sons were Prince Augustus-the Duke of Sussex and Prince Edward-the Duke of Kent.

On May 24th 1819 Edward-the Duke of Kent’s German wife gave birth to their first child at Kensington Palace – a daughter who they named ‘Alexandrina Victoria’ (who was always commonly known as ‘Victoria’)…….and the rest, as they say–is history.

At just 8 months old, Victoria’s father died of a heart attack – leaving the young princess to be brought up by her widowed mother.

 

 

Victoria’s mother completely controlled and dominated every aspect of her daughters early life, at Kensington Palace.

During her childhood and early teenage years, Victoria was very rarely allowed to leave the confines of Kensington Palace – she was even schooled there by private tutors, and she was never allowed to mix with other children.

The strict code of discipline applied by her mother to bring-up and educate the young Victoria within the confines of Palace became known as the ‘Kensington System’.

On the morning of 20th June 1837, the 18 year old Victoria was woken-up to be told that her monarch Uncle has died suddenly, and that she was now England’s new ‘Queen’.

The very next day ‘Queen Victoria’ called for a meeting to be held at Kensington Palace with all of her now Government, military officials and advisors – to make it quite clear to them as to how she intended to rule the country, and that she would be no push-over.

The following day, Queen Victoria reluctantly said her goodbyes to Kensington Palace to take up royal residency in the nearby Buckingham Palace.

Kensington Palace continued to be occupied by members of the extended royal family, but the building became a bit neglected and dilapidated.

In 1898 Queen Victoria ordered that the entire building inside & outside, be given a through face-life and in 1899 upon her Golden Jubilee year, she gave the order for the Palaces ‘State Rooms’ to be opened up to the public – leaving one side of the building ‘public’ and the other side of the building ‘private’.

Throughout the following century and a half, leading right up to today – Kensington Palace has continued to be the ‘home’ of generations of royal family members.

Many of Queen Victoria’s children and subsequent grandchildren have lived there, including her daughter Princess Louise, who was a top sculptor in her time, and produced the iconic statue of her grandmother that stands proudly at the entrance to the Palace.

In more modern times Kensington Palace has been the home of royals such as the Queens sister Princess Margaret and her husband Lord Snowden, whose children David & Sarah were brought up there – Prince Michael of Kent and his life live there – Charles & Diana lived there – their sons William & Harry grew up there – Prince William & Kate and their 3 children live there – and Prince Harry & Megan lived there briefly following their marriage.

So – Kensington Palace – a building that started its life as just a simple country retreat, but went on to be the ‘hub’ of Royal family life and history – and continues to do so to this very day.

Although it costs ’21 notes’ to get in, Kensington Palace is definitely well worth a visit – you certainly won’t be disappointed.

Following hours of poking our noses every nook & cranny of Kensington Palace, London Shoes and its 2 female accomplices for the day, headed off to the nearby ‘Churchill Arms’ pub in Kensington, very close to Notting Hill Gate tube station.

The ‘Churchill Arms’ is probably without doubt, the most visually attractive pub in the whole of London – and the ideal venue to sink a couple of ‘cheeky’ beers before the trek home.

 

Hope you enjoy this brief history of the Palace and that the accompanying photos bring the place to life a bit.

See below for more detailed photographic coverage of this ‘Kensington Palace’ blog

Kensington Palace – with the magnificent statue of one of its longest residents – Queen Victoria

 

Just one area of the Royal Gardens at the public entrance to Kensington Palace

 

The ‘private’ entrance to Kensington Palace

 

Me – at the approach to the public entrance in to Kensington Palace

 

In the early 1700’s George II & his consort wife Queen Caroline, commissioned William Kent, an up and coming celeb artist of the day, to cover the walls, ceilings and staircases with life size murals.

 

Just one of the many reception rooms at the Palace, where Kings & Queens would ‘receive’ (and vet) their guests

Inside the Cupola Room

Inside the Cupola Room

 

Me – alongside some ‘threads’ in the Cupola Room – Kensington Palace

 

London Shoes’ 2 accomplices for the day – admiring the ornate ceiling of the Cupola Room in Kensington Palace

 

The magnificent ceiling of the Cupola Room in Kensington Palace

 

 

The Kings Gallery – Kensington Palace

 

The Queens Gallery – Kensington Palace

 

Me – and my ‘secret’ threads – in the Queens Gallery – Kensington Palace

 

Poor old Queen Mary’s dining room – Kensington Palace

 

The Queens bedroom – Kensington Palace

 

Entrance to the brilliant Queen Victoria exhibition within Kensington Palace

 

The room in Kensington Palace where Queen Victoria was born

 

A portrait of a young Queen Victoria – who spent all of her formative years inside the confines of Kensington Palace

 

Victoria’s comments to her advisors & the public – upon becoming Queen

 

One of the young Princess Vitoria’s many items of clothing that are on display at Kensington Palace

 

A lovely portrait of Queen Victoria – that hangs in Kensington Palace

 

A portrait of Victoria’s beloved husband and consort Prince Albert

 

Examples of Queen Victoria’s dresses – on display at Kensington Palace

 

Queen Victoria’s favorite jewels on display at Kensington Palace – that were given to her by her husband Prince Albert

 

Examples of some of Queen Victoria’s dresses – on display at Kensington Palace

 

Another of Queen Victoria’s famous quotes – this time its her views on being a mum

 

Victoria & her beloved husband and consort Prince Albert

 

A image of Queen Victoria in later life – that is beamed onto a wall of Kensington Palace

 

One of the many ‘mourning’ dresses that Queen Victoria would wear following her beloved Albert’s death

 

A wonderfully detailed portrait of an ageing Queen Victoria – one of many on display at Kensington Palace

 

A very effective young actress playing the part of newly appointed Queen Victoria – welcoming visitors to her Kensington Palace

 

The actress playing the part of the young  Queen Victoria – in the room within Kensington Palace, where she summoned all the Government & military ministers and officials, plus her advisors to a meeting, the day after she became Queen. This young actress played her part so well – answering all the visitors and children’s questions, in an amusing ‘We are not amused’ manner

 

Some of the more recent royal residents of Kensington Palace

 

Some more of the more recent royal residents of Kensington Palace

 

The stunning ‘Sunken Garden’ at Kensington Palace

 

More of the stunning ‘Sunken Garden’ at Kensington Palace

 

A view of Hyde Park from Kensington Palace’s ‘Sunken Garden’

 

Me – ‘soakin up the rays’ in the ‘Sunken Garden’

 

The extremely popular ‘Churchill Arms’ pub just down the road from Kensington Palace – probably the most visually decorative pub in London

 

Another view of the ‘Churchill Arms’ from a side street

 

Me – outside the ‘Churchill Arms’ pub – gagging for a ‘cheeky’ one, having spent hours mooching around Kensington Palace 🙂

 

The quirky interior of the ‘Churchill Arms’ pub – Kensington

 

Cheers – from the Churchill Arms 🙂