Streets of London – Page 3

What Do Runners Need?

CLICK ON IMAGES TO ENLARGE. REPEAT IF REQUIRED

This morning I added some more content to ‘A Knight’s Tale’. This was mostly new material. To give an idea of the point I have reached in my autobiography, there follows a sample of it. ‘Although I was to make up for it later, I was rather late in waking up to girls. When I was about fifteen, and working in my school holidays in the Despatch Department of Cawdell’s, formerly Kennard’s, store in Wimbledon Broadway, Dad cajoled me into my first foray into the unknown.

The Despatch Department, at the back of the building, was where suppliers made their deliveries. We would then carry the goods up to the various departments. Dad drove a van that took parcels out to buyers.

That summer, a young lady whose name I have conveniently forgotten, made frequent visits to my workplace from the perfume counter. “You know what she wants, don’t you?”, asked my father. “No”, said I, somewhat bemused. “She wants you to take her out”, was the frightening reply.

Plucking up courage, I made a date. On the appointed day I waited outside Wimbledon Town Hall for an hour. She didn’t turn up. I felt both chastened and relieved.

Her story the next day was that her grandmother was ill. I didn’t really buy that, and didn’t repeat the exercise.’

A small section from ‘No-one Forgets A Good Teacher’ has also been included.

On a dull afternoon I scanned the next dozen colour slides from my Streets of London Series. These were all produced in May 2005, and feature part of a regular walk from my Little Venice counselling room to Parents for Children in Islington where I conducted some consultancy.

Although their telephone number has changed, I think the van disappearing along Lyons Place NW8 is from the London Borough of Camden’s Home Library Service. Details from camden.gov.uk are

‘If you, or someone you know, can’t get out and about, you may be eligible for a home library service delivered direct to your door.

Who is eligible?

The home library service is for Camden residents who are confined to their home due to:

a disability
limited mobility
mental health issues
illness including need of short term help (e.g. following an operation or accident
isolated, frail or vulnerable
no-one available to visit the library for you

What is offered?

After a request, a member of the home library service staff will arrange to visit you at home to assess whether you are eligible.

The service includes:

a regular visit to your home, every four weeks
our staff will ask you what kind of reading, music and films you like and then
suggest and bring suitable material.
you can request specific titles
an information service is available
there is no charge’

You would need close on £2,000,000 to buy a mews house in either Northwick Close

or Hamilton Close in St John’s Wood.

Prince Albert Road NW1 runs along the north side of Regents Park.

At the eastern end is found Park Village East,

and Delancey Street, at right angles to which is Parkway.

No. 55 is the Hog’s Head pub at the corner of Albert Street, NW1.

Across the road, the juxtaposition of two signs

amused me more than somewhat.

I can’t tell you anything about the hair stylist, but the Runners Need website tells us

‘In the heart of Camden, we opened our first Runners Need store over 30 years ago. Quickly becoming a fixture in the local community, the small team of passionate, enthusiastic, and expert runners are quick to offer help and advice whatever your level.’ They now have 27 outlets in the UK and Ireland.

The far end of Parkway forms a junction with Arlington Road, where the Rat and Parrot pub is now

a Masala Zone restaurant. There are more photographs on Google, but I was unable to download them. Information on the upmarket chain can be found on http://www.masalazone.com/locations/camden/

Happily, the Prince Albert in Lyme Street NW1 continues to thrive. london town.com has this to say about it: ‘A decent gastropub that retains enough of the ‘pub’ aspect to ensure a relaxed, comfortable atmosphere. Leather sofas are well worn, despite a recent change of ownership in 2007. Food in the dining room upstairs is top quality and surprisingly reasonable with lighter options in the bar downstairs. The main man in the kitchen is David Gill has worked with Marco Pierre White at the Michelin-starred Canteen in Chelsea harbour and for Terrence Conran at the Butlers Wharf Chophouse. Ingredients include non-farmed, sustainably sourced fish, meat sourced only from British farms and producers and cheese from La Fromagerie. Just what a good gastro pub should be; many others could take a lesson from The Prince Albert.

Whatever your views on The Prince Albert’s foray into what its detractors say is overly complicated gastropub cooking, there can be no denying that the delightful adjoining beer garden, although small, is one of North London’s most appealing – and just about secures the historic Camden establishment’s ‘pub’ status. In fact, it’s best to see the upstairs restaurant and the ground level’s Boho-style drinking den as two entirely distinct ventures. Separated from the pavement by an iron fence and a sparse bush, the decked outside area is a favourite with the local cool Camdenite crowd, who come in their swathes, skinny jeans and all, to drink Bulmers and smoke rollies.’

My journey back took me past Sheldon Square W2, and its sculptures, one of which, striding into the picture on the right, is destined to walk in short shirt sleeves, whatever the weather.

This evening we dined on a fine array of Hordle Chinese Take Away fare with which Jackie drank sparkling water and I drank Mendoza Parra Alta malbec 2016.

Ne’er Cast A Clout……

CLICK ON IMAGES TO ENLARGE. REPEAT IF REQUIRED.

Today was rainy enough to warrant another trip back to the Streets of London colour slides from May 2005.

Hadrian Mews, N7 is a gated street in Holloway, off Islington’s Roman Way. It probably pays to be security conscious here.

Epping Place and Granary Square, N1 are off Liverpool Road. The Lighterman bar at 3, Granary Square has mixed reviews.

Sheldon Square, W2, in the Paddington Basin development has featured a couple of times before. By May 2005 it was a popular venue for walkers, both real and artificial. The gentleman in the right foreground is destined to stride towards another out of shot, forever sporting his short-sleeved shirt, whatever the weather.

Over at Paddington Green, Sarah Siddons dominates the scene.

Two years ago her nose had not looked as complete as this.

It is to be hoped that, from the relaxed attitude of this motorcyclist that the policeman was helping him with directions. Mrs Siddons can be seen to our left of the Telephone Boxes.

The Britannica website has this entry on her:

‘Sarah Siddons, née Kemble (born July 5, 1755, Brecon, Brecknockshire, Wales—died June 8, 1831, London, Eng.), one of the greatest English tragic actresses.

She was the eldest of 12 children of Roger and Sarah Kemble, who led a troupe of traveling actors (and were progenitors of a noted family of actors to a third generation, including a famous granddaughter, Fanny Kemble). Through the special care of her mother in sending her to the schools in the towns where the company played, Sarah received a remarkably good education, even though she was accustomed to making appearances on the stage while still a child. While still in her teens, she became infatuated with William Siddons, a handsome but somewhat insipid actor in her father’s company; such an attachment, though, had the disapproval of her parents, who wished her to accept the offer of a squire. Sarah was sent to work as a lady’s maid at Guy’s Cliff in Warwickshire. There she recited the poetry of Shakespeare, Milton, and Nicholas Rowe in the servants’ hall and occasionally before aristocratic company, and there also she began to exhibit a talent for sculpture (which was subsequently developed, especially between 1789 and 1790, and of which she later provided samples in busts of herself). The necessary consent to her marriage to Siddons was at last obtained, and the marriage took place in Trinity Church, Coventry, in November 1773.

Sarah Siddons.

© Photos.com/Thinkstock

The new Mrs. Siddons, aged 18, then joined a new acting company. It was while playing at Cheltenham in 1774 that she met with the earliest recognition of her powers as an actress, when by her portrayal of Belvidera in Thomas Otway’s Venice Preserv’d she won the appreciation of a party of “people of quality” who had come to scoff. When the theatrical producer David Garrick was told of her acting prowess, he sent a representative to see her. At the time, she was playing Rosalind in As You Like It in a barn in Worcestershire. Garrick offered her an engagement, but when she appeared with him at Drury Lane, London, in 1775, she was a failure. She then went back on tour in the country, where she earned a reputation as the queen of tragedy on the English stage.

In 1782, at the request of Richard Brinsley Sheridan, who had succeeded Garrick, she consented reluctantly to appear again at Drury Lane as Isabella in Thomas Southerne’s Fatal Marriage. This time her success was phenomenal. From then on she reigned as queen at Drury Lane until, in 1803, she and her brother John Philip Kemble went to Covent Garden. In 1783 she was appointed to teach elocution to the royal children. She retired from the regular stage on June 29, 1812, with a farewell performance as Lady Macbeth in Macbeth. On this occasion the audience would not allow the play to proceed beyond the sleepwalking scene, which Siddons was said to have performed to perfection.

Gainsborough Flowers of 43 Marylebone High Street offer same day delivery to anywhere in Australia for orders placed before 4.00 p.m.

The gentleman using his mobile phone in this shot of Ashland Place, W1 is walking past a small public park in which I sometimes sat, although I never tried the Rajdoot

in Paddington Street, which has many excellent reviews.

In 1961 the old Marylebone Police Court moved from Seymour Place into a former swimming baths at 181 Marylebone Road. Marylebone Magistrates Court was closed and transferred to City of Westminster Magistrates Court in March 2007. (https://search.lma.gov.uk/scripts/mwimain.dll/144/LMA_OPAC/web_detail/REFD+PS~2FMAR?SESSIONSEARCH)

We in the UK will never agree on the meaning of ‘ne’er cast a clout until May is out. Clout is an archaic word for an article of clothing. May is both the fifth month and the May or hawthorn tree which blooms in that month. The controversy focusses on whether the aphorism refers to the blossom being out or the month being over. The two people here leaving Lisson Grove appear to be hedging their bets. The tree is in blossom, but the month was not over.

Late this afternoon we drove to Lymington postal sorting office to collect a letter that required a signature. When I eventually name and shame the culprits in the remortgage fiasco, this will be explained.

This evening we dined on Jackie’s marvellous beef and mushroom collage; toothsome carrots, Brussels sprouts, runner beans, and new potatoes. The Culinary Queen drank Hoegaarden and I drank more of the cabernet sauvignon.

P.S. See Becky’s comment below for important additional information on the mural. I should have remembered this was the old Woolworth’s head office because that is where George Onley, my club cricket captain from the 1950s and ’60s once worked.

The Red Lion’s Replacement

CLICK ON IMAGES TO ENLARGE. REPEAT IF REQUIRED.

I believe I could be forgiven for thinking that we had dug out all the buried concrete blocks from the garden. Jackie, on continuing with her splendid end of summer planting, weeding, and tidying, discovered that this was not so. In particular she is redesigning the area between the greenhouse and the Dragon Bed. This is where she came across one. I rendered a modicum of assistance in its removal.

Also extracted was a large clump of ornamental grass from which we removed stubborn lumps of earth which Jackie returned to the hole whilst I carted the unwanted plant to an orange bag of garden refuse.

I then scanned the next dozen of my Streets of London series of colour slides, produced from November 2004 to April 2005

We learn from https://www.greeneking-pubs.co.uk/pub/audley-mayfair/c3003/ that ‘The Audley was established in 1730 as The Bricklayers Arms and was rebuilt in 1888 on the instructions of the Duke of Westminster, who oversaw the redevelopment and transformation of Mount Street. The Duke allowed the landlord to retain the license for the establishment but they had to change the name to the more courteous ‘Audley Hotel’.

Thomas Verity was chosen as the architect for the development, he was the architect for the Criterion Theatre and the Pavilion at Lord’s Cricket Ground. The Audley’s superb striped façade and decorative wrought ironwork was completed in 1889. Many characteristics of Thomas Verity’s original design are still present today, including some late-Victorian woodwork and a clock situated in the main bar.

Original crystal chandeliers and its ornate interior give it a sense of old-world greatness that is in keeping with its prestigious location. At The Audley you’ll find a welcoming atmosphere, an excellent range of cask ales and delicious food.’

It stands on the corner of Mount Street and

South Audley Street W1. One of Mayfair’s major shopping streets it runs north to south from the southwest corner of Grosvenor Square to

Curzon Street seen here sharing a corner with Clarges Street. Tesco’s Metro, housed in this building is one of that supermarket’s chain of small outlets largely designed for young people who are wealthy and busy enough not to do their own cooking. Ready prepared microwaveable meals and snacks are their speciality.

Hill Street, Wikipedia tells us ‘is a street in the central Mayfair district of London which runs southwest from Berkeley Square towards Park Lane. It was developed from farmland in the 18th century^[3] and was named after a small hill there. It became a fashionable street in the 18th century and was home to a number of lords. The street contains several Grade I and Grade II listed buildings.’

The side of this pictured building stands on Waverton Street, in late 2004 the home of The Red Lion pub. Since I passed this way the pub has been demolished and been replaced by a residential property http://wetherell.co.uk/wetherell-blog/red-lion-house-waverton-street/ informs us is valued at £25,000,000 (yes, six noughts).

‘A former Public House, [we are told] Red Lion House was recently featured in The Mail Online. With interior design by Bill Bennette, this beautiful newly built virtually detached house covers seven floors and boasts fantastic entertaining space, a swimming pool, cinema, two roof terraces and a master bedroom suite that occupies the entire first floor.

The elegant reception room on the ground floor opens onto to a 216 sq ft patio and the reception room on the lower ground floor leads on to an exquisite double height dining room and bespoke marble kitchen.

Three guest bedroom suites are situated on the second floor whilst the master suite with dressing areas, morning room and his & her bathrooms occupies the entire first floor.

The lower part of the house offers a swimming pool complex with steam room, gym with shower room and a media room. There is also a maid’s bedroom with shower room on the ground floor with its own side entrance to the house.’

Wetherell’s site includes a great number of photographs. Readers may, or may not, think this is an improvement.

Hill Street meets Farm Street at another corner. http://www.jesuit.org.uk/church-immaculate-conception tells us that ‘The Jesuit Church of the Immaculate Conception – familiarly known as Farm Street Church – is situated in the Mayfair area of central London. From 1849 (when it was opened) until 1966, it was simply a Jesuit church, open to the public but not the centre of worship for a parish. Its reputation rested on the pulpit and the confessionals and it became famous for the preaching and spiritual guidance of the Jesuit community. Since 1966, the church has been at the heart of a parish in the centre of Mayfair in the Archdiocese of Westminster. Its Jesuit community of priests and brothers are either attached specifically to the church, work in other apostolates or are retired. The parish attracts its congregation not only from all over London and the surrounding area but also visitors from all over the world. The church remains a haven of peace and beauty in a very busy part of the capital.’

‘The Coach and Horses is one of the best-known British pub names. In London alone there are still over fifty Coach and Horses pubs. For many centuries, prior to the invention of the railway systems, horse drawn carriages were the only means of travelling between towns and cities. Most famously in London, hackney carriages became an essential part of life. These consisted of a horse and carriage and licensed for hire since 1662, their job was to whisk city folk about their business both day and night before they were succeeded by the Hansom Cab. The Hansom cab was a variant of horse-drawn carriage designed and patented in 1834 by York born architect Joseph Hansom.’ So says https://www.greeneking-pubs.co.uk/pub/coach-and-horses-mayfair/s5155/

This one is actually in Bruton Street, on the corner of Hay’s Mews.

Splendidly elegant railings protect the staircase down to the basement of this property in Charles Street, once the home of

https://www.londonremembers.com/memorials/spirit-of-soho-mural tells us that ‘The Spirit of Soho mural [in Broadwick Street] was created by the Soho community and completed in 1991. It shows Soho life and is dedicated to the people of Soho. The mural depicts St Anne presiding over local notables; her skirt and petticoats show the map of Soho, craftsmen and London landmarks. Framed underneath are the portraits of Soho’s many famous figures. Dogs and hares are interspersed which represent a time when Soho was a Royal hunting ground.

Restored in 2006 by Shaftesbury PLC and The Soho Society, the clock was re-activated by The Lord Mayor of Westminster 19th October 2006. Don’t miss: When the clock strikes on the hour: watch actress and opera singer Theresa Cornelys winks at Casanova, Casanova blows a series of kisses to Cornelys and Karl Marx takes a sip of Coca Cola.’

The Kingly Court Showroom at No 1 Kingly Street is in the fashionable Carnaby area parallel with Regent Street.

Kingly Street forms a T junction with Beak Street which according to Wikipedia

‘is named after Thomas Beake, later one of the Queen’s messengers, who, in the late 17th century, obtained the land on the north side, between Regent and Kingly streets. The name Beak Street first appeared in the ratebooks for 1689, and in 1691 it was ordered that the street be paved with stone.

^‘St Christopher’s Place, W1, a short popular pedestrianised shopping street between Oxford Street and Wigmore Street, was decorated with wrapped gift parcels on my visit.

This evening we dined on Jackie’s superb sausages in red wine; crisp cauliflower and carrots; and creamy mashed potato. I drank Louis Chamandiet Cairanne 2015.

Remembering Hyde Park Square.

CLICK ON IMAGES TO ENLARGE. REPEAT IF REQUIRED.

My post AAARGH recounts the tale of three disastrous weeks as a tenant in Hyde Park Square, part of the prestigious Hyde Park Estate. According to Wikipedia ‘it is an affluent area, characterised by a layout of squares and crescents, and is home to several embassies, prestigious businesses and celebrities’ of which I was not destined to become a member. It ‘was developed in the nineteenth century on land owned by the Bishop of London and was originally known as the Paddington Estate. Ownership then passed to the Church Commissioners who remain the primary freeholders of the estate.

^‘These Streets of London colour slides made in November 2004 portray the neighbourhood in which I had hoped to settle. I scanned them today.

Norfolk Square W2 lies between Praed Street and Sussex Gardens. Hertha Ayrton, Physicist lived there at the turn of the twentieth century. There would have been no plastic bags hanging from trees in her day.

Sussex Place lies at the end of Bathurst Mews running alongside Sussex Gardens.

Two bedroomed houses here are priced at one and three quarter million pounds sterling. There are, of course no gardens. The only Mews still operating as a working stables, this street is unique due to its continuing equine usage in the form of Hyde Park Stables at number 63.

Lady Violet Bonham-Carter, Politician & Writer; and the engineer, Robert Stephenson, were both past residents of Gloucester Square, on a bench in which this small family took their rest after wandering up

Hyde Park Garden Mews through the entrance arch of which a horse and rider had apparently previously passed. It seems as if the person responsible for the signage was short of an S as displayed in this second picture. This street was home to Quentin Wilson, Top Gear motoring journalist.

Strathearn Place joins one end of Hyde Park Square. The Victoria was my local pub for the very brief period mentioned above. I think I enjoyed a Thai meal there one Sunday lunchtime.

In March 2015 The Daily Mail reported that ‘a conwoman has admitted trying to sell a mews house in an exclusive area of London for £1 million – right under its real owner’s nose. Monika Brzezinska, 28, used false identity documents to pretend to be the lawful owner of a home in Clarendon Mews, in Bayswater, west London, in November last year.’ The address was in Clarendon Mews.

It was Sir Giles Gilbert Scott, whose plaque, appears on this house on the corner of Clarendon Close, who designed the dying iconic red telephone box that has often featured in my posts.

Wikipedia tells us that ‘Marble Arch is a 19th-century white marble faced triumphal arch and London landmark. The structure was designed by John Nash in 1827 to be the state entrance to the cour d’honneur of Buckingham Palace; it stood near the site of what is today the three-bayed, central projection of the palace containing the well known balcony.^[1] In 1851 it was relocated and following the widening of Park Lane in the early 1960s is now sited, incongruently isolated, on a large traffic island at the junction of Oxford Street, Park Lane and Edgware Road.’ Here it is alongside Cumberland Gate W1, on the corner of Hyde Park.

Off Park Lane lies Culross Street,

almost opposite Brook Gate, location of

“The Animals in War Memorial, located outside Hyde Park near Brook Gate, commemorates animals that died in wars and conflicts. The creatures ranged from mules which were silenced in the Burmese jungle in World War 2 by having their vocal cords cut to glow worms, used by soldiers as a source of light to read maps in World War 1.

The memorial was unveiled by the Princess Royal in November 2004, on the 90th anniversary of the start of World War 1. It was inspired by Animals in War, a book by Jilly Cooper. A national appeal raised the £2 million cost of the memorial.

The memorial was designed by David Backhouse and consists of a 58ft curved Portland stone wall displaying carvings of animals. Two heavily-laden bronze mules struggle through a gap in the wall and ahead of them a horse and dog head off into the distance.

A wall depicts silhouettes of carved animals, along with an inscription detailing the numbers of animals lost. Beneath the main heading “Animals in War”, the memorial has two inscriptions:

“This monument is dedicated to all the animals that served and died alongside British and Allied forces in wars and campaigns throughout time.”

The second, smaller inscription simply reads: “They had no choice.”

The Animals in War Memorial is not managed by The Royal Parks. For more information about the Animals in War Memorial visit the Animals in War Memorial Fund.” (https://www.royalparks.org.uk/parks/hyde-park/things-to-see-and-do/memorials,-fountains-and-statues/animals-in-war-memorial) The images above are from this website.

Streets Of London With Diversions

CLICK ON IMAGES TO ENLARGE. REPEAT IF REQUIRED.

Torrential rain and gale-force winds were again the order of the day. Soon after noon, the French windows onto the patio

and the view from the kitchen were like this.

Naturally I took a trip back to my photographic archives from October 2004. The colour slides were primarily the next batch of the Streets of London series.

The 2011 census informs us that there are 175 purpose built flats in Culworth Street NW8 which runs into Prince Albert Road and is therefore a stone’s throw from Regent’s Park. A fair number of them must be in this block.

Lodge Road NW8 lies parallel to St John’s Wood Road which houses Lord’s Cricket ground, the world famous test venue and headquarters of Middlesex County Cricket Club. Across the Lord’s roundabout, stands St John’s Wood Church, of which Wikipedia tells us

‘St John’s Wood Church started life as a chapel of ease to St Marylebone Parish Church, and was constructed in 1814 by Thomas Hardwick, who was simultaneously constructing the current St Marylebone Church.^[2] Although the church originally had extensive burial grounds, these were closed in 1855 and opened as a public garden, St. John’s Wood Church Grounds, in 1886.^[3] In 1898 the building became a chapel of ease to Christ Church on Cosway Street, and increasingly became the centre of administration for the parish.^[4]

After bomb damage during the Second World War rendered St Stephen’s, Avenue Road unusable, St John’s Wood Church became a parish church in its own right in 1952.^[5] As well as holding regular services for the community, the church has hosted the wedding of Peggy Cripps to Joe Appiah in June 1953,^[6] the blessing of the marriage of Paul and Linda McCartney in 1969,^[7] and the funeral of Ursula Vaughan Williams in 2007.^[8]

A Church Hall complex was constructed in the 1970s, the completion of which was marked with the erection of a statue of the church’s patron, John the Baptist, by Hans Feibusch.^[9] Restoration of the church interior took place in 1991 under the supervision of Michael Reardon, when the chancel pavement was relaid in limestone and the present central altar replaced the high altar at the east end of the church.^‘

Canon Reverend Francis Holland, an Anglican clergyman, who was keen to advance and extend the provision of single-sex education for girls established his eponymous Trust in 1881. The Francis Holland school in Ivor Place NW1 is one of two managed by the trust. Ivor Place runs from Park Road to

Boston Place NW1, lying alongside the platforms of Marylebone Station.

From St John’s Wood and Marylebone I walked on to Camden Town through Greenland Road

and Georgiana Street NW1.

These family groups were, on this day, the first of my diversions from the theme of including street names in the images. The bench offers a view of the Little Venice canal basin, on the other side of which stand the erstwhile Council blocks of Warwick Crescent which were largely sold off to tenants in the ’80s and ’90s, and on further to others during the next decades.

Narrow boats travelling along the canal surface at a maximum speed of four miles an hour glide past the park. I forget the name of the man who lovingly tended these gardens for 25 years. Upon his retirement he was replaced by sessional, irregular, maintenance staff seconded from other Council gardens.

The other diversion that attracted my camera lens was a double rainbow over the Paddington Basin development. The wrapping on the buildings in progress reflected the colours of the meteorological phenomenon.

This evening we dined on Jackie’s sumptuous sausage casserole, crunchy carrots, crisp cauliflower, and boiled potatoes. The Culinary Queen drank Hoegaarden, and I drank Parra Alta malbec 2016.

North Of Regent’s Park

CLICK ON IMAGES TO ENLARGE. REPEAT IF REQUIRED.

Today I scanned the next dozen of my Streets of London colour slides from October 2004.

Tasteful washes decorate the facades of these houses in Regents Park Road NW1. This street in the Primrose Hill area of London is stocked with a multitude of long established independent shops of all kinds.

One such establishment is Fonthill Pottery at 38 Chalcot Road on the corner of Fitzroy Road NW1.

Between Chalk Farm and Gospel Oak lies Gilden Crescent NW5, in Kentish Town. This wall on the corner of Queen’s Crescent features local children’s mural of the eponymous Post Office.

British pubs are being closed at an alarming rate in the 21st century. The Newberry Arms on the corner of Marsden Street and Malden Road NW5 is just one example. Soon after I took this photograph, the boarded up building was demolished, and by 2010

had been replaced by this block of flats.

St Leonard’s Square, NW5 is on the other side of Malden Road. Graffiti covers this dirty grey wall, rubbish lies on the pavement, scaffolding runs up the side of the building, the entrance to number 22 is narrow and lead directly onto the pavement, and someone has to live there.

It was quite early in the morning that I crossed Chalk Farm Road NW1, yet these two building workers had already earned a break.

This Bridge Approach NW1 is to the railway bridge at Chalk Farm.

The Queen’s Pub on the corner of St George’s Terrace, NW1 and Regent’s Park Road is just yards from the Primrose Hill open space. The area must be considered a reasonably safe one in which to leave such a bicycle chained to railings.

Prince Albert Road, NW8 houses rows of apartment blocks like these on the corners of Townshend Road,

and Eamont Street. They all provide views over Regent’s Park on the opposite side of the road. It was when walking along that street on my birthday, 2005, that I met a woman waiting at a bus stop. I had to work very hard to convince her that, two or three hours after the London suicide bombings, it was not unreasonable that the bus services had been suspended.

It had not been our intention to dine on Hordle Chinese Take Away fare this evening, but our electricity supplier had other ideas. There is no gas supplied to our hamlet. We experienced a complete power cut for three hours, at the point when Jackie was in the midst of cooking a chicken dish. She has just abandoned that project and gone out to hunt down one of Mr Chan’s excellent meals.

How Did This One Get In Here?

CLICK ON IMAGES TO ENLARGE. REPEAT IF REQUIRED.

Here, at last, are the Streets of London colour slides from October 2004 that I scanned a couple of days ago.

Bravington Road, W9, in the heart of my Social Services patch, runs north from Harrow Road towards Queens Park. Here it is receiving the attentions of workers of the ubiquitous Clancy Group plc, described thus by Wikipedia:

‘Clancy Docwra is a large construction firm in the United Kingdom founded in Wembley in 1958 by Michael Clancy as M.J. Clancy & Sons Limited. In 1974 the firm bought water and gas public works contractor R.E. Docwra Limited and in 2001, following other acquisitions, all were merged to form Clancy Docwra Limited. Today the firm trades as The Clancy Group plc. The firm carries out work for several national utilities including Scottish Water and Scottish Power.^[1] The firm has also carried out work for London Underground.’

Here, in Lancefield Street W10, are a pair of houses with gardens that, during my time there, were gradually built as part of a refurbishment of the notorious, prize-winning, Mozart Estate. Undoubtedly attractive in conception and design, the fatal flaw in these rabbit warrens was the number of convenient hiding places for muggers, and the lack of gardens in which residents could take pride. It was into the estate that two young men fled following their failed attempt to mug me a few years before.

Next door in Caird Street stands the Jubilee Sport Centre in which I spent many hours playing badminton and otherwise keeping fit, or knackering my knees, whichever way you look at it.

This corner of Enbrook Street, W10, shows one of the several rows of little Victorian terraced houses that had been demolished to make room for the Mozart Estate. Avenues numbered First to Sixth still contained these gems still being maintained.

When my friend, Norman, still lived in Harlesden, I would regularly walk along the streets mentioned above for one of our fortnightly lunches. I would vary my routes which could take me past The Roundwood Gospel Assembly building in Longstone Avenue NW10. On the other side of this road lies Roundwood Park, according to Wikipedia: ‘a public park in Willesden, London, measuring a total of 26.5 acres,^[1] or approximately 10.27 hectares.^[2] It was originally known in the 19th century as Knowles Hill (its name coming from the Knowles Tower nearby),^[3]^[4] or Hunger Hill Common Field,^[3]^[4] and after much work by Oliver Claude Robson, became the Roundwood Park known to the public today (its name coming from the Roundwood House originally beside it)’.

Following a dog-leg angle, the thoroghfare becomes Roundwood Road, on the corner of which this building is being adapted for more multiple occupation than the family home for which it was originally intended.

Oldfield Road, where Norman lived, received more than its share of graffiti.

At the time of these photographs, King’s Cross Bridge N1 was yet to form part of the extensive redevelopment of the area;

and Sheldon Square W2, was part of the Paddington Basin development nearing completion.

Now, what has caught the eye of this woman in Leighton Road, NW5?

Ah! I see.

Hang on a minute.

How did this one get in here?

The shadows must have attracted my attention while I was seeking street scenes. Let it stand. I think the lawn is in Rembrandt Gardens, Warwick Avenue, Little Venice.

This evening we dined on Jackie’s luscious lamb jafrezi with her perfect pilau rice. To accompany this, Jackie drank Hoegaarden, and I enjoyed a really marvellous Finca Flichman reserve malbec 2015 given to me for my birthday by Helen and Bill.

Questions

CLICK ON IMAGES TO ENLARGE. REPEAT IF REQUIRED.

Today I scanned the next batch of colour slides from my Streets of London Series. These were all produced in September 2004.

When, in ‘Meandering Through Soho’, I stated that the musical had opened when we were living in Horse and Dolphin Yard, my memory was playing tricks with me. Les Misérables has enjoyed so long a presence in Shaftesbury Avenue W1 that I thought it had been in residence at Queens Theatre during our time there. In fact we left in 1980 and the production began in 1985. Here is an extract from the official website:

‘CAMERON MACKINTOSH’S LEGENDARY PRODUCTION OF BOUBLIL AND SCHÖNBERG’S LES MISÉRABLES IS A GLOBAL STAGE SENSATION.

Seen by more than 70 million people in 44 countries and in 22 languages around the globe, it is still breaking box-office records everywhere. The original London production celebrated its 30th anniversary on 8 October 2015.

Set against the backdrop of 19th-century France, Les Misérables tells an enthralling story of broken dreams and unrequited love, passion, sacrifice and redemption – a timeless testament to the survival of the human spirit.

Ex-convict Jean Valjean is hunted for decades by the ruthless policeman Javert after he breaks parole. When Valjean agrees to care for factory worker Fantine’s young daughter, Cosette, their lives change forever.

Featuring the songs “I Dreamed A Dream”, “Bring Him Home”, “One Day More” and “On My Own” – Les Misérables is the show of shows.’

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3uFww9a3D4E&w=560&h=315]

My memory also fails me in attempting to recollect the name of the kindly gentleman who was my boss during my brief employment at the Yorkshire Insurance company in Leadenhall Street in about 1962/3. I do, however remember that he bought all his staff ties or other similar birthday gifts from Austin Reed, the upmarket outfitters on Regent Street,

visible from this corner of Brewer Street. I took this practice to heart, and, when I became a Social Services manager myself, gave everyone a birthday card. Since the staff numbers ran closer to three figures, that’s all I could afford.

Both Essendine Road W9

and its neighbour Morshead Road were in the patch for which I was responsible.

Church Street, forming this junction with Edgware Road remains the location of a thriving multicultural general market. The far end of Church Street is home to a number of antique shops.

I wonder if anyone has yet built on this corner plot in Ham Yard W1, a very short walk from Piccadilly Circus, or whether acrobats have continued to cover the beams and walls with graffiti;

why was this gentleman standing guard over the entrance to Bridle Lane;

does this gentleman passing Devonshire Place Mews still smoke;

is the baby in the buggy being pushed along Sutherland Avenue W9, like Sue Townsend’s Adrian Mole now aged thirteen and three quarters, and about to publish a best-selling diary;

and were this couple resting the bench visitors to or residents of Elgin Avenue W9.

This series does often raise a series of questions on which to speculate.

This evening we dined, with usual excellent, friendly, service at Lal Quilla in Lymington. Jackie enjoyed her Lal Quilla special, as did I my chicken jalfrezi. We shared special fried rice and a garlic naan. We both drank Kingfisher.

Floating Leaves

CLICK ON IMAGES TO ENLARGE. REPEAT IF REQUIRED

Today the skies were overcast and leaking drizzle. Jackie continued planting and weeding this morning, and I transported compost to fill the hole left by the ficus Aaron had removed yesterday.

This afternoon I scanned the next dozen colour slides from my Streets of London series, produced in September 2004.

‘There is something timeless about the appeal of an authentic rock and roll pub, where the floor sticks to one’s battered old boots and the whiskey-flavoured tang of a hundred past nights of recklessness is tangible in the air. Such places are hard to come by, for the swagger of tarnished glamour is not something that can be easily imitated. Filthy MacNasty’s on the corner of Amwell Street near Angel is one such place. Attracting weekend rock stars from all walks of life, with the lingering aura of countless cigarette breaths, Filthy’s was once home to a mad, mixed bunch of poets and dustmen, philosophers and gardeners. Its gritty credentials include a delightfully dishevelled list of clientele, including Shane McGowan, Irvine Welsh, Johnny Depp and of course Peter Doherty, who tended the bar here in the early days of The Libertines.

Known for serving ‘the second best Guinness in London’, Filthy’s is something of a cultural landmark. Its cracked leather seats and low-lit tables have played host to photography exhibitions and to impromptu Pete and Carl sing-alongs. Former NME journalist and author Paolo Hewitt used to organise literary nights under the title ‘The Sharper Word’, which saw the likes of Chris Difford of Squeeze and Ian McLagan of Small Faces, as well as political poet John Sinclair dropping by to do readings and play a few songs to the unsuspecting crowd, securing the pub’s spot in musical and literary history.

The pub is certainly ingrained in the blood stained pages of Doherty’s infamous Books of Albion, and The Libertines played many characteristic guerrilla-style gigs here, as well as serving as a place for Pete to sleep when he had nowhere else to go. In the height of Libertines furor, Filthy’s hosted an exhibition of the band’s gig posters, and girls would flock to the bar asking to see the walls of Doherty’s old bedroom upstairs.’

So wrote Jessica Andrews on the londonist in June 2013 when this establishment on the corner of Inglebert Street, EC1 was about to be closed and replaced by a gastropub.

Contemporary with Doherty’s band, Oasis advertises on the boarded up window of the empty Village Buttery on nearby River Street.

Crossing Amwell Street from there we come to Lloyd Baker Street, where Jessica, Michael, and I lived in 1974/5. This street,

Lloyd Square,

and Granville Street are all parts of the listed Lloyd Baker Estate. The latter is now overshadowed by developments in

Kings Cross Road, opposite The Union Tavern, a splendid Victorian pub on the corner shared with Lloyd Baker Street.

Crossing Kings Cross Road at this point we reach Calthorpe Street WC.

From Lloyd Baker Street we had moved on to live in Horse and Dolphin Yard in Soho. Neal’s Yard, then just forming part of the Covent Garden developments, is, according to Wikipedia, ‘a small alley in London’s Covent Garden between Shorts Gardens and Monmouth Street which opens into a courtyard. It is named after the 17th century developer, Thomas Neale.^[1] It now contains several health food cafes and values driven retailers such as Neal’s Yard Remedies, Neal’s Yard Dairy, Casanova & daughters and Wild Food Cafe.^[2]^[3]‘

Horse and Dolphin Yard was a tiny mews off Macclesfield Street which linked Gerard Street and

Shaftesbury Avenue. The eponymous theatre is shown in this shot. The car driver didn’t comment on my activity.

Regent’s Canal is not exactly a street of London, but I have run or walked many miles along this stretch, so it seems appropriate that a couple of slides of this slipped into the collection.

This evening we dined at Lal Quilla, where food and service was as excellent and friendly as ever. My choice was lamb achari and special fried rice; Jackie’s was chicken shashlick, salad, and vegetable curry. We both drank Kingfisher. The restaurant took delivery of a new range of food heaters yesterday, and presented us with two of the older ones which will come in very useful.

Mostly North London

CLICK ON IMAGES TO ENLARGE.

Today I returned to the Streets of London series and scanned the next dozen slides from September 2004.

The Sheldon Square development in the old Paddington Basin of the Regents Canal was still being built in the years immediately after the millennium. It probably sports an official road name now.

Wikipedia has a lengthy feature on Marwan Barghouti. This is the introductory paragraph:

‘Marwan Hasib Ibrahim Barghouti (also transliterated al-Barghuthi; Arabic: مروان حسيب ابراهيم البرغوثي‎‎; born 6 June 1959) is a Palestinian political figure convicted and imprisoned for murder by an Israeli court.^[1] He is regarded as a leader of the First and Second Intifadas. Barghouti at one time supported the peace process, but later became disillusioned, and after 2000 went on to become a leader of the Al-Aqsa Intifada in the West Bank.^[1]^[2] Barghouti was a leader of Tanzim, a paramilitary offshoot of Fatah.^[3]

Israeli authorities have called Barghouti a terrorist, accusing him of directing numerous attacks, including suicide bombings, against civilian and military targets alike.^[4] Barghouti was arrested by Israel Defense Forces in 2002 in Ramallah.^[1] He was tried and convicted on charges of murder, and sentenced to five life sentences. Marwan Barghouti refused to present a defense to the charges brought against him, maintaining throughout that the trial was illegal and illegitimate. The Inter-Parliamentary Unionreviewed the case and said that Barghouti had been denied a fair trial.

Barghouti still exerts great influence in Fatah from within prison.^[5] With popularity reaching further than that, there has been some speculation whether he could be a unifying candidate in a bid to succeed Mahmud Abbas.^[6]

In the negotiations over the exchange of Palestinian prisoners for the captured Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, Hamas insisted on including Barghouti in the deal with Israel.^[7]^[8] However, Israel was unwilling to concede to that demand and despite initial reports that he indeed was to be released in the 11 October 2011 deal between Israel and Hamas, it was soon denied by Israeli sources.^[9]^[10]

In November 2014, Barghouti urged the Palestinian Authority to immediately end security cooperation with Israel and called for a Third Intifada against Israel.^[11]‘

In September 2004 this tent in Newcastle Place W2 provided a base for his supporters.

This corner of Praed Street stands opposite a side entrance to Paddington Station.

Over at Highbury Grove N1 in Islington, we see the common juxtaposition of different eating places, so common in London.

Linda Tyrie grew up in Baalbec Road N5. This is the opening paragraph of her article in the Journal of the Islington Archaeology and History Society of Summer 2013:

‘I grew up from 1944 to 1962 in the ground floor of a house in Baalbec Road, backing on to Highbury Fields. The fields and the beautiful avenues of trees formed a backdrop to my life – walking up Baalbec Road to the food office in Highbury Crescent/ Ronalds Road when I was very young with my mother’s coupon book to collect orange juice, and later walking through the Fields to Drayton Park school in Arvon Road and along Church Path through the fields to Brownies, Guides, church and Sunday school.’ (http://www.clcomms.com/iahs/201113/IAHS-summer-2013-web.pdf)

Highbury Terrace Mews

and Horsell Road N5, are both nearby.

The latter being just off Holloway Road, another demonstrating the cosmopolitan nature of London’s cafés, and the proliferation of graffiti. This brief history is from the Hidden London website:

‘The Holloway district takes its name from the road, which was known as the ‘hollow way’ (the road in a hollow) by the early 14th century, when it had become the City’s main route to the north. The hamlet of Ring Cross had grown up around the junction with Hornsey Road by 1494.

By the 17th century Holloway Road was notorious for its highwaymen but it became safer as houses began to connect Ring Cross with Lower Holloway, at the north end of Caledonian Road.

The construction of Archway Road brought an end to the area’s rural character in the 1820s. Holloway Road tube station opened in 1906, where Ring Cross had been. This section of underground line was constructed in tandem with the overhead railway running from King’s Cross to Finsbury Park – hence the station’s location, some distance from the more focal Nag’s Head locality. A prototype spiral escalator was installed at the station but never entered service.

Supermarkets have changed the face of Holloway Road over the last few decades. Sainsbury’s demolished a ravishing Victorian block of shops on their arrival in 1970. A Waitrose supermarket replaced Jones Brothers’ department store in 1993. This and the opening of a Safeway at Nag’s Head prompted Sainsbury to sell out to Kwiksave (who subsequently retreated in favour of an Argos superstore).

Generally, the road’s mix of retailers is typical of inner (as opposed to central) London high streets, with the colourful exception of a cluster of fetish fashion shops near the junction with Liverpool Road. Secondhand shops of all kinds are also in abundance.

The London Metropolitan University (formerly the University of North London) gained an iconic landmark in 2004 with the opening of its graduate school, the capital’s first building by the architect Daniel Libeskind; supplementing Rick Mather’s curved white block of 2000 and a brutalist concrete tower from its earlier days as a polytechnic.’

Hides Street

and Westbourne Road N7 are both within a stone’s throw of Islington’s Paradise Park. The latter is perhaps an appropriate location for the St Giles Christian Mission.

The barriers surrounding many of the capital’s roadworks, like these in Leverton Street NW5 in Kentish Town, bear the name Murphy.

This evening we dined on Jackie’s super spicy lemon chicken and crunchy vegetable rice. Neither of us imbibed.