Chapter / London Bridge

Work-in-progress on a 39-storey tower for student accommodation. Architects: Kohn Pedersen Fox, completion expected 2024. Concrete frame with attractive faceted windows, colonnaded at ground level on St Thomas Street. London Borough of Southwark. 

(CC BY-NC-ND - credit: Images George Rex)

Flickr Explored / 2023

1. Wood Wharf / 2023, 

2. The Clew / E14, 

3. Building B2 / 6a Architects, 

4. Greenland Dock / SE16, 

5. Tower Bridge / Night

'House of Invisible Hands' / W Bailey

"A shrine to those whose labours shaped the landscape of Surrey in the making of forest glass during mediaeval times" [source: www.surreyhillsarts.org]. 2019 sculpture by Walter Bailey. Farnham Heath, Surrey, UK. 

(CC BY-NC-ND - credit: Images George Rex)

Thamesmead Towers / Redux

2011 photo of twelve-storey residential blocks, concrete frame with pre-cast panels. Named, from right to left, Oakenholt House, Trewsbury House, Penton House and Osney House. Greater London Council Departments of Architecture & Planning, circa 1968. Thamesmead South, London Borough of Bexley.

(CC BY-NC-ND - credit: Images George Rex)

Binsey Walk / Redux

Greater London Council Departments of Architecture & Planning, circa 1968. Five-storey linear maisonette blocks, now demolished. Thamesmead South, London Borough of Bexley. 

(CC BY-NC-ND - credit: Images George Rex)

Spa Green / Redux

[from my archives of 2011] 

Architects: Berthold Lubetkin et al of Tecton. Design: 1935, construction: 1947. Spa Green Estate received Grade II* listing in 1998 for being "the most important post-war development by the most thoughtful and inventive pioneer of the modern movement in Britain." London Borough of Islington. 

(CC BY-NC-ND - credit: Images George Rex)

Chimney Stik / Redux

2011 photo of street artwork by STIK (British, b.1979). London Borough of Hackney.

(CC BY-NC-ND - credit: Images George Rex)

16 Wentland Close / (Gone)

2011 photo of a Uni-Seco prefab (now demolished) on Wentland Close in the Excalibur Estate. Typical of the many pre-fabricated bungalows built in the immediate post-WW2 period. London Borough of Lewisham. 

(CC BY-NC-ND - credit: Images George Rex)

28 Persant Rd / SE6

[From my archives of 2011] 

One of the surviving Uni-Seco prefabs on Persant Road in the Excalibur Estate. Typical of the many pre-fabricated bungalows built in the immediate post-WW2 period. London Borough of Lewisham. 

(CC BY-NC-ND - credit: Images George Rex)

3 Newham's Row / Detail

Facade detail of 3 Newham's Row where it overlooks St Mary Magdalen Churchyard. Formerly a warehouse known as 175 Bermondsey Street, redeveloped early 2000s (believed to be Glas Architects). London Borough of Southwark. 

(CC BY-NC-ND - credit: Images George Rex)

Newham's Yard / SE1

Residential-led development of 2021, refurbishing and extending existing buildings to include 86 flats, hotel, offices and gym (DLA Architecture Ltd). London Borough of Southwark.

(CC BY-NC-ND - credit: Images George Rex)

Meakin Estate / Arch

By Henry Tansley, Borough Architect of the Metropolitan Borough of Bermondsey, 1935-38. In an Art Deco style, comprising 82 flats. In 1965 Bermondsey was incorporated into the London Borough of Southwark. 

(CC BY-NC-ND - credit: Images George Rex)

Ceramic Building / SE

Architects: SPPARC, 2021. 20-storey tower over a 3-storey podium between Newington Causeway and Tiverton Street. Hotel rooms, apartments and ground-level retail. Here viewed from the southeast. London Borough of Southwark.

(CC BY-NC-ND - credit: Images George Rex)

Henry Wood Hall / Tower

Former Holy Trinity Church, designed by Francis Bedford, 1824. Tower with octagonal lantern to upper stage. Grade II listed. London Borough of Southwark. 

(CC BY-NC-ND - credit: Images George Rex)

Jim Vision / E1

Street art portrait by Jim Vision (b.1981, Wales). Seen in Whitby Street, London Borough of Tower Hamlets.

(CC BY-NC-ND - credit: Images George Rex)

Broadgate Tower / Principal Tower

Broadgate Tower (left) designed by SOM, 2008. Principal Tower designed by Fosters, 2019. Seen from Bethnal Green Road, London Borough of Hackney.

(CC BY-NC-ND - credit: Images George Rex)

Cannon Street / Station

Station of 1866 designed by Sir John Hawkshaw and John Wolfe-Barry, parts of which remain including the Grade II listed brick towers. The latest redevelopment by Foggo Associates, 2011. City of London.

(CC BY-NC-ND - credit: Images George Rex)

Bankside Pier / 2023

Commuter and pleasure boat stop on the south side of the Thames, near to the Globe Theatre and Tate Modern. London Borough of Southwark. 

(CC BY-NC-ND - credit: Images George Rex)

Millennium Bridge / 20231208

Architects: Foster and Partners. Sculptor: Anthony Caro. Engineers: Arup. 1998-2000. London Borough of Southwark.

(CC BY-NC-ND - credit: Images George Rex)

Tower 8 / Redux

Goddard Manton Architects, 2001. Tower element of residential development at Barrier Park. Now with problems caused by suspect cladding. London Borough of Newham. 

©2011 All Rights Reserved

Silo D / Redux

Modernist grain silo at Pontoon Dock in West Silvertown. Built of reinforced concrete in 1920 and restored 1999, Grade II listed. London Borough of Newham.

©2011 All Rights Reserved

Mitcham Obelisk / 2023

"Erected by the Reverend Richard Cranmer, Lord of the Manor of Mitcham Canons to commemorate the finding of an artesian spring there after the dry summers" [source PMSA]. Channelled render, approx. 6m high, inscribed 25 September 1822. Grade II listed 1954. Not particularly well restored in 2021. London Borough of Merton. 

(CC BY-NC-ND - credit: Images George Rex)

346-348 London Rd / 2023

Pair of Grade II listed cottages, now subdivided, described in the listing as mid to late C18, probably with earlier origins. The local authority appraisal says:

'Concealed behind the ”modernised” rendered Georgian facade ... is a much older building. The heavy timber framing of the interior, and the gabled rear elevation show this to be in fact, a Tudor building'.

Mitcham, London Borough of Merton. 

(CC BY-NC-ND - credit: Images George Rex)

The White Hart / 2023

Still empty after all these years (approaching 10). Mitcham's earliest recorded inn, rebuilt in 1749-50 after serious fire damage. The central porch, with frieze and balustrade, is supported by four Tuscan columns. Stagecoaches used to start from a yard at the rear. Grade II listed. London Road, opposite Cricket Green, London Borough of Merton.

(CC BY-NC-ND - credit: Images George Rex)

Mitcham Methodist Church / West

Architect: Edward Mills, 1959, in modern style. Showing the fully-glazed west end wall. Grade II listed 2010. London Borough of Merton. 

©2023 All Rights Reserved

Mitcham Methodist Church / SE

Mitcham Methodist Church seen from the park to southeast. Architect: Edward Mills (1915-1998), built 1958-9. Reinforced concrete frame with folded slab roof engineered by Ove Arup. Grade II listed 2010. London Borough of Merton. 

©2023 All Rights Reserved

Canons Leisure Centre / II

Architects: Building Design Partnership, 1984. London Borough of Merton.

(CC BY-NC-ND - credit: Images George Rex) 

Canons Dovecote / 2023

Early C16, possibly earlier. Chalk clunch construction with red-brick quoins and some knapped flint in the plinth. Hipped tile roof with timber louvre and metal weathervane. Thought to be the oldest building in Mitcham. Grade II listed. London Borough of Merton. 

©2023 All Rights Reserved

Canons House / 2023

Manor house built by John Odway, c.1680, brick, later stucco. Grade II* listed. Mitcham, London Borough of Merton. 

©2023 All Rights Reserved

Sporle Court / SW11

Architects: George, Trew & Dunn, c.1966, for Battersea Metropolitan Borough Council. Part of the Winstanley Estate. System built by Wates, providing 106 dwellings within 23 storeys. London Borough of Wandsworth.

©2023 All Rights Reserved

Chesterton House / SW11

Architects: Howes & Jackman, late 1960s, for Wandsworth Council. System-built by Bovis and local authority labour. 60 dwellings over 17 storeys. Early phase of the York Road estate, Ingrave Street, London Borough of Wandsworth. 

©2023 All Rights Reserved

20-22 York Road / SW11

Opened in May 1941 following many years' fund-raising by Rev J A Thompson and Dr Luke Wiseman. In addition to a central church, the mission building accommodates services and activities for the local population. When first under construction it provided air-raid shelters during WW2. London Borough of Wandsworth. 

(CC BY-NC-ND - credit: Images George Rex)

Battersea Methodist Mission / Church

Opened in May 1941 following many years' fund-raising by Rev J A Thompson and Dr Luke Wiseman. The church is the central part of a larger building serving various social needs locally. 20-22 York Road, London Borough of Wandsworth. 

(CC BY-NC-ND - credit: Images George Rex)

Battersea Park / 20231117

London Borough of Wandsworth 

(CC BY-NC-ND - credit: Images George Rex)

Boating Lake / Reflections

Spoilt view of Battersea Park's boating lake. Camellia House seems fair enough, but just look at Bowden House behind. London Borough of Wandsworth. 

©2023 All Rights Reserved

Castlemaine / SW11

Original architects: C.Culpin & Partners for Wandsworth London Borough Council, early-1970s, a 21-storey block containing 114 dwellings. Now with, I believe, a second safety-compliant overcladding along with other safety measures such as sprinkler systems (BPG Architects c.2019). Viewed from St James Grove, London Borough of Wandsworth. 

©2023 All Rights Reserved

6 More London / 2023

Architects: Foster + Partners. Upwards view from the entrance of 6 More London. London Borough of Southwark. 

©2023 All Rights Reserved

More London Place / Vista

London Bridge Shard designed by RPBW, 2012, seen from More London Place, Borough of Southwark.

©2023 All Rights Reserved

Square Mile / 20231115

View of London's 'Square Mile' financial district, seen from the south bank of the Thames near to Tower Bridge. London Borough of Southwark. 

©2023 All Rights Reserved

132 Weston St / II

Former Lord Wellington public house, "existed from at least 1825" [source: Bermondsey pub history]. Now mixed use, with a further residential dwelling adjoining at 134 Weston Street, c.2015. London Borough of Southwark. 

©2023 All Rights Reserved

Dorking House / SE1

Architects: Skinner, Bailey & Lubetkin, 1965, for London County Council. Entrance to Dorking House with projecting canopy and green mosaic wall cladding. One of two residential blocks either side of a small park forming the Tabard Gardens Estate. London Borough of Southwark. 

©2023 All Rights Reserved

Peveril House / Gardens

LCC residential tower block completed 1965. What was originally its car park and playground deck has been re-purposed by Sanchez Benton Architects, 2021, providing public gardens and artists' studios. London Borough of Southwark. 

©2023 All Rights Reserved

Spit & Sawdust / 2023

Formerly the Beehive, records go back to 1825. Unfortunately hit twice by bombs in WW2 and rebuilt. Renamed in 2016. 21 Bartholomew Street, London Borough of Southwark. 

©2023 All Rights Reserved

30 Ewell Road / Cheam

End of a mock Tudor terrace of shops built to the west of Cheam crossroads in the early 1930s. With vertical timbering at first-floor level, leaded windows, a dormer between high chimneys and timbered gable facing the street. Listed in the Conservation Area appraisal as a positive contribution to the townscape. London Borough of Sutton. 

©2023 All Rights Reserved

Cheam Park Lodge / 2023

Built c.1820, single-storey with portico, stucco finish, Grade II listed. Cheam, London Borough of Sutton.

(CC BY-NC-ND - credit: Images George Rex)

Eurostar / Bookcase

Eurostar arrival by the St Pancras 2023 Christmas tree. London Borough of Camden. 

(CC BY-NC-ND - credit: Images George Rex)

ELNO / Camden

Section of a mural by Elena Gonzalez Nieto (ELNO), a Spanish visual artist based in London since 2014. Hawley Mews, London Borough of Camden.

(CC BY-NC-ND - credit: Images George Rex)

176 Camden High St / NW1

Built c.1950 on a triangular site south of the tube station. Two storeys with curved stone facade, it is a landmark visible from far down the high street. Nationally unlisted, but mentioned in the Conservation Area appraisal as a positive and focal building. The appraisal says it was built on the site of a former dairy and that the friezes depict scientific and medical themes. London Borough of Camden.

©2023 All Rights Reserved

Regent's Canal / Reflections

Narrow boat moored alongside the old Western Coal Drops yard. Seen from Camley Street Natural Park, London Borough of Camden. 

(CC BY-NC-ND - credit: Images George Rex)

Vista / Somers Town Bridge

View from Somers Town Bridge over the Regent's Canal, including the Gasholders Building (Wilkinson Eyre Architects, 2017) and Tapestry Apartments (Niall McLaughlin Architects, 2016). St Pancras Basin, London Borough of Camden. 

©2023 All Rights Reserved