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A new look at the Whittington

26/1/2021

The Whittington hospital has a new aspect - or an old aspect revealed. The demolition of an undistinguished building on the east side of Dartmouth Park Hill (I think a nurses' home) has revealed once again the full magnificence of the building at the heart of the Whittington estate.

So here in its majesty - well, it's a pity about the fire escape - is the west facing side of the Smallpox and Vaccination hospital. It's the oldest part of what is now the Whittington and was built over 1848-1850.

Grand as this Italianate facade is, this is not the front of the building. That's the south facing side, complete with portico, clock and inscription.

It is so much more stylish than modern hospitals, don't you think?

By the end of the nineteenth century, a new smallpox hospital has been built, and the old smallpox hospital became the administration block for the adjoining Islington workhouse infirmary (which is also part of the Whittington these days).

What is now the Whittington combines three former workhouse infirmaries. On the east side of Highgate Hill there's what the was the Holborn and Finsbury infirmary. And on the left side of Dartmouth Park Hill is the St Pancras infirmary, now a mental health centre, altogether more distinguished and dating from the late 1860s. Some clearing of trees and shrubs in Waterlow Park, plus the weight of the snow on the branches, offers just at the moment a marvellous view of what was the imposing administration block of St Pancras infirmary.

And below is what this western section of the Whittington once looked like - taken from the Camden History Society's excellent Streets of Highgate.

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The Lamb of God: the Moravians in Hornsey

17/1/2021

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Not one of the oldest churches in and around Hornsey - not one of the biggest - not one of the prettiest ... but there is a charm about Hornsey Moravian Church, don't you think?

The building dates back to 1908, and according to Pevsner it is 'distinguished by an attractive octagonal corner turret with a spire'. And this is certainly the stand-out aspect of the architecture.

The Moravians are one of the oldest Protestant churches, dating back to the fifteenth century, and perhaps best known for their symbol of the Lamb of God.

They are also one of the smaller churches with perhaps a million members worldwide, mainly in Africa, the Caribbean and Central America.

There are around 20,000 Moravians in Europe - and a thousand or more are in the UK in about thirty congregations (including the Chelsea church and burial ground which I have blogged about before).

The Hornsey church seems to house the headquarters of the church in Britain. The Hornsey Moravians have a good website, and have posted online a comprehensive history of their church, from which this photograph of its opening in 1908 is taken:

The Moravian Messenger reported the plans for the construction of the church as follows:

'Various sites in North London suburbs were examined by the Committee, and it was decided to recommend a plot of ground on Priory Road, Hornsey, at the foot of Muswell Hill. ... The district is a new one, few of the houses in it being more than ten years old. While to all intents and purposes the site is on the main road, it is separated from it by a public garden which runs along the Priory Road to Hornsey. This ensures a certain amount of privacy, and will also prevent the noise of the electric cars causing annoyance during services. ... Ours will be the first Free Church in the field. Trams to various parts pass the site, and several G.N.R. Stations are within a short distance. The people belong almost entirely to the middle class and the wish, so often expressed, that efforts be made to reach the middle classes, will have a chance of fulfilment.'

I feel an affinity with the Moravians because I am part of the 0.01% of the population - actually, that's probably on the high side - that went to a Moravian primary school ... at Fulneck outside Pudsey in West Yorkshire. A beautiful spot with wonderful eighteenth century architecture. My parents weren't Moravians (indeed they were, if anything, lapsed Baptists) - but they preferred me going to fee-paying Fulneck rather than the village primary.

So although I'm a non-believer, I'm pleased there is a flourishing Moravian church just down the road.

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The Dream Catcher of N19

9/1/2021

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Tucked away in the back streets of Upper Holloway in North London, there's a pedestrian and cycle bridge over rail lines which is decorated by two wonderful murals. It's close to Duncombe primary school and the school and its pupils seem to have had a hand in the artwork.

If you are local to the area, do seek out this spot - it's a pedestrianised section of Sussex Way just south of Fairbridge Road and only a few minutes' walk from Archway.

The bright winter sun caught one of the murals today, which is what captured my attention, Both are rail-themed and are bright and charming.

Looking more closely, you can see the name of the artist, Gail Astbury, and the designs on the black tiles which surround the murals are worth closer inspection.

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Why Miss World?

7/1/2021

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This pamphlet relates to one of the key events of the early women's liberation movement - the disruption of the Miss World contest in November 1970. The event at the Albert Hall was compered (badly) by Bob Hope and televised live to millions of homes across the country. When women protestors among the audience sprang up, threw small flour bombs, blew whistles and tried to clamber on the stage, the contest was interrupted - and the women's movement gained nationwide attention.

The historian Sally Alexander was one of the protestors and she spoke to me some years back for the BBC TV slot 'Witness' (there's audio of a longer interview and a transcript here):

The Why Miss World? pamphlet has no date or publication details - it seems to have been put together by the Women's Liberation Workshop probably a few weeks after the protest.

It has lots of cartoons and graphics, many apparently the work of Jenny Fortune. The wording of the pamphlet is also fairly uncompromising - the police are routinely called 'pigs' for example.

The pamphlet is a description of the protest and the trial that followed ... a justification of the disruption ... and a call to action.

On the back of the pamphlet is the slogan which women protestors chanted at the Albert Hall - quite a feminist mantra.

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'How do you do what you do to me?'

4/1/2021

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The first record I ever bought - a 45 rpm single - was 'How do you do it?' by Gerry and the Pacemakers. My parents tried to suggest other songs then in the charts but I was set on this one. I remember my mother remarking that it was top of the charts at the time - which dates my purchase to April 1963, when I was six.

The song wasn't Gerry Marsden's composition - and the Beatles recorded it first, though George Martin decided against releasing it.

I never became a Pacemakers' fan - never bought another record of theirs. But this number still has a place in my heart.

Gerry Marsden died at the weekend. Unlike the Beatles, his music never really advanced behind pop songs with a touch of ballad or skiffle to them. But he did those well.

And he was part of my life - and I imagine of many thousands of others. Walk on!

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Andrew Whitehead's
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A new look at the Whittington

The Lamb of God: the Moravians in Hornsey

The Dream Catcher of N19

Why Miss World?

'How do you do what you do to me?'

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A new look at the Whittington

The Lamb of God: the Moravians in Hornsey

The Dream Catcher of N19

Why Miss World?

'How do you do what you do to me?'

Andrew Whitehead's blog

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Andrew Whitehead's
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