THE BEDFORD PARK JOURNAL · multi-million pound operations. ... the garden suburb concept became...

THE BEDFORD PARK JOURNAL

For members of the Bedford Park Society Autumn/Winter 2017

Celebrating the architecture, people and history of the suburb

2 Bedford Park Journal Autumn/Winter 2017

A few years ago my wife and I bid for a charming old blackand white photograph of Priory Road (later renamed PrioryAvenue) on an internet auction site. When it arrived I wassurprised to find that it was a postcard with a message inFrench from a boy to his father and mother. Handwritten onthe photograph was the date, le 17 Juillet 1912, and a crosson what looked like our front door!

Using a magnifying glass and with the help of a lovely friend(fluent in French) we finally managed to decipher the textaddressed to Mr and Mrs L Arnoult in Rouen, France:

I realised that George Derville Rowlandson was a well-knownpainter who lived in the house next door to ours in 1912 sothe cross had been drawn to show his house rather thanours. George had two sons, one of whom was called Paulin,and who would at that time have been eight years old.

Researchpays off

Local resident Ralph Palmer Gilhooly’s

and his wife GeorginaMitford’s keen interest inBedford Park history led

to his discovery of anintriguing link between

Priory Avenue and a1920s’ Tour de France

cyclist.

Dear Parents

I am writing this card mostly to announce the arrival of mybicycle. This morning I made it into London by bike and ittook me a long time. I hope you are all well. I am in perfecthealth and I’m occupying myself a lot with food, which isgood for me. I understand a fair amount when peopleaddress me at the table and I speak as well. At mealtimeswe have whisky and water – it’s really good. I’ve been toLondon with Mr Rowlandson and his son Paulin, who issmall for his age. When we came back we took the tube,which was really good. In London your money gets used uppretty quickly and I only have half a pound and 21 and ahalf pennies left.

See you soon dear parents. Your son loves you lots,Maurice.

Bedford Park Journal Autumn/Winter 2017 3

Link to Tour de France

As I researched further, I found myself typing “MauriceArnoult Cycling” onto the internet and was astonished to see“Tour de France entrant 1923–1930.” Could this be the sameperson? I emailed the Official Tour de France website andreceived an email within minutes, requesting a highdefinition scan of the postcard text, which I duly supplied.The reply was from a very excited cycling historian whoconfirmed that the Bedford Park Maurice Arnoult was indeedthe Tour de France racer.

Maurice was born in Rouen in 1897 and was 15 years oldwhen he visited London. The Tour de France office wasastonished that he had requested his own bike be sent fromFrance while he was on holiday. A considerable feat in thosedays and evidence of how seriously this rider took hiscycling and training while on holiday in another country!

Maurice was an entrant in the Tour de France from 1923–1930 as a private competitor (Touriste-Routier), racingagainst teams by himself. Just one man, one bike, a couple ofspare tyres over his shoulder and 5,400 kilometre of racing,often on poorly maintained roads. A far cry from today’smulti-million pound operations.

Maurice finished a very respectable 26th in 1924 and in the3rd stage of the 1927 race he finished 3rd behind theoverall winner. After his racing career he ran his own cyclingshop in Evreux until his death in 1959.

It’s nice to think that somewhere in the official Tour deFrance archives is a photograph showing a Bedford Parkscene and that intriguing cross.

For tips on researching the history of your home, check theSociety’s website www.bedfordpark.org.uk under “BedfordPark.” If you have any interesting stories about past residents,we would be delighted to hear from you. Please contact us [email protected].

Facing page: Maurice Arnoult as a competitor in the Tour de FranceBelow left: Maurice’s cross on the right hand side of the photograph of thePriory Road postcard. Below right: his message to his parents in France

Garden suburbparadiseBedford Park features in an impressively researched book,which is the first major attempt to provide a worldwidehistory and analysis of the garden suburb. At some 1,072pages and weighing five kilos, the sheer size of “ParadisePlanned: The Garden Suburb and the Modern City” is areflection of the 1,000 garden suburbs the authors havediscovered. Many are in Britain, the USA and Europe butMoscow, Cairo and Sao Paulo, for instance, also boastgarden suburbs.

The four pages on Bedford Park do not add greatly towhat we already know but it is interesting to see its placein this story, marking the moment when “the plannedgarden village comes into its full maturity.” AuthorsRobert A M Stern, David Fisman and Jacob Tilove note thatthe garden suburb concept became discredited when“suburb” was associated with the unplanned sprawlcharacteristic of the motorised era and with debasedarchitectural values.

They contend that on the contrary the history of theplanned garden suburb demonstrates that it has been “anincomparable work of environmental art combiningenlightened land planning, landscape and architecture toshape neighbourhoods and foster a sense of community.”The authors support a reassessment by planners of thegarden suburb which they suggest offers the opportunityto face up to the need for “walkable” neighbourhoods,access to public transport and reduced car use, while alsore-establishing a lost sense of “community.”


Our urban forestIn 1875 when Jonathan T Carr bought24 acres of land just north of TurnhamGreen Station for the development ofBedford Park, he inherited a site withmany fine trees. The estate was built onorchards and an arboretum with someof these trees incorporated into theoriginal layout. Jonathan Carr and hisarchitects’ design ensured that treesbecame an integral part of BedfordPark’s enduring appeal. Roads were laidout to preserve existing trees and manyadditional ones planted, creating avillage atmosphere for the “first gardensuburb” that blended urban and ruralfeatures. Original plans for the estateshow avenues of young trees lining thepavements, along with chestnuts andplanes.

Over the years, disease, age and stormshave taken their toll and a replacementprogramme for the suburb’s street treeshas been vital. Not only would ourstreets look stark and empty withoutany trees but their shapes and colourssoften the urban brick and concrete, aswell as providing a range ofenvironmental benefits, which areoften underestimated. Trees play amajor part in the ecosystem; contribute

to the prevention of ozone layerdepletion and excessive heatamelioration; provide habitats forwildlife; food and materials for us andhelp improve the quality of the air.Research has shown significant healthbenefits for people living in tree-linedstreets in addition to improved housevalues.

Tree management

Street trees are the responsibility of therelevant borough but the Society hasnow established an effective dialoguewith both councils and we areincreasingly developing our influenceon the plans for tree management.Keeping forest trees to a reasonablesize in an urban environment requirespruning, at least every three years, butthe squeeze on budgets has led to lessfrequent pruning over recent years sothat a number of Lime, Chestnut andLondon Plane trees have become toolarge. This can lead to roots damagingpavements, drains and services and cancause subsidence. Excessive leaf fallblocks gutters and drains and over-sized trees throw shadow over houses.

Thanks to the Society’s regular dialoguewith the councils, there is now a three-year inspection programme in place forboth boroughs following which treeswill be pruned or replaced, asnecessary. Ealing carried out theirsurvey in Autumn 2016, replaced felledtrees and pruned others, while somework to reinstate some of the tree pitsis ongoing. The next pruning isscheduled for Autumn/Winter 2019.Hounslow commissioned a new surveythis summer and pruning is nowexpected in response to this. Whereverpossible, felling of trees should beavoided since it takes many years for anew sapling tree to replace the benefitsof a mature tree.

Correct species is key

The main species currently planted inthe suburb are Lime, Acer, Prunus, Ash,Silver Birch, Hazel and Chestnut butdisease of the latter from the leaf-mining moth has caused early leaf loss,

and Ash dieback is a continuingproblem. The Society is in discussionwith both councils about suitablespecies for future planting, recognisingthat size is dependent on the quality oftree pits and surrounding earth, as wellas overall space. If the right species isselected, tree growth and maintenanceof pavements can be managed.

Forest trees will now only be plantedwhere there is suitable space, forexample in Bath Road, and rather thanone species in a street, Ealing favours amix of approximately six speciesoffering colour, quality, flower, fruit,disease resistance and the optimumcanopy for the location. For lowermaintenance, there is a preference fortrees with pyramidal growth that do notrequire crown reduction. In fact,Ealing’s strategy is to plant trees thatcan be allowed to grow to their fullheight and then be felled and replacedover a 50-year cycle. Hounslow isreviewing Ealing’s preferred tree listand has advised that they will show ustheir revised list of species once it isready.

The Society is committed to continuingto work closely with both councils toensure trees are well maintained andthe right species selected to enhanceour streets and open spaces. We arekeen to encourage everyone to valuethe contribution our trees make to ourenvironment. After all, a research studyin 2015 claimed that amongst manyhealth benefits for people who live ontree-lined streets is the effect of feelingseven years younger!

The council tree strategies can be foundon their respective websites.

Betula (Silver Birch)

Tillia


Vive la différenceAround 30 prototypes of house designswere originally developed for BedfordPark and the suburb’s differentarchitects produced a variety ofdecorative features as well as housestyles. Set off against the red brick andtile of our homes, the manyarchitectural details such as fencing,balcony balustrades, chimneys andornamental brickwork, stained glass,door hoods and rustic porchescontribute to a wonderful diversity.

A walk round Bedford Park reveals astunning selection of front porches andhoods. From the simpler wooden hoodsto the more elaborate porches withmouldings, mullioned or stained glasswindows, there is much to celebrate.

Most of the examples illustrated areattributed to R N Shaw, while theporches top right and far right (secondrow) are thought to be by E J May whohad worked in Shaw's studio/officeprior to becoming the Estate architect.


By the middle of 1879, enough houses had been built andoccupied in Bedford Park for a community to develop andindeed its first communal facility, the Club, was opened inApril of that year. It was still, however, a very isolated“colony”, to use the description favoured by the earlyinhabitants, with the only real access being by road fromChiswick High Road via Turnham Green Terrace or by rail viaTurnham Green Station. There were both a need and asufficiently large market to make the provision of The Storesa reasonable business proposition.

The early days of The Stores

The building constructed to house The Stores was part of aseven-gabled range at the west end of Bath Road, which alsocontained The Tabard hotel-cum-public house and a house,2 Bath Road, for the manager of The Stores. The publisheddesign shows only the façade of The Stores, still much thesame today, and does not show that, from the first, it had asubstantial single-storey rear wing. Built by Jonathan ThomasCarr, the founder of Bedford Park, the leases for the Storesbuilding and 2 Bath Road were assigned on 29 September1880 to his youngest brother, Richardson Carr. It appearsthat it was under his nominal ownership that The Storescommenced operations, although a manager was employedto supervise the business day-by-day.

Apparently open by early May 1880, The Stores began toadvertise weekly from 23 October in the Acton Gazette. It isdescribed as having nine departments, selling fresh meat,fish and milk; groceries, fruit, vegetables and ale; tobaccoproducts; wines and spirits; a coal order office; ironmongery;stationery and books; drugs; china and glass; and furniture,upholstery, and drapery.

The Stores developed steadily for its first few years and frommid-February 1881 its advertisements assured customersthat an asphalt path had now been laid from Turnham Greenstation, a development which throws an interesting light onthe state of the footpaths in Bedford Park at the time. By themiddle of the year, The Stores advertised that its newextension was now complete, extending along theboundaries of the site, which stretched from the back of the

Bath Road building to the land reserved for the railway andpart-way round the bend in Flanders Road. A new dispatchroom was included and there was also mention of liverystables offering a selection of cabs and other horse-drawnvehicles.

Ordnance Survey Map based on 1893 data, showing The Stores afterthe 1881 expansion. Reproduced with kind permission of the OrdnanceSurvey

By late 1882, the weekly advertisements included theinformation that delivery was free, and listed housedecorating as one of the services available. By April 1884,they stated that deliveries were being made daily as faraway as Acton, Kew, Hammersmith, and Kensington.

The Stores under Mary Eliza Richardson

Mary Eliza Richardson (1847-1937) a prominent earlyresident of Bedford Park who seems to have been verycapable but somewhat impetuous and headstrong, probablybecame associated with The Stores as early as 1881, whenshe acquired the first lease of what is now 10 South Paradeand its extensive stables (now 37 The Orchard), collectivelyknown as The Canaries. The Canaries Livery and Bait Stables,as it was known, undoubtedly operated as part of The Stores.In February 1886 she became the licence holder.

Bedford Park’s department store

Opened in 1880 with nine different departments, The Storessurvived until competition forced closure in 1899


A description of how The Stores operated at this time isprovided by an 1885 court case in which one Walter Ashford,foreman of the grocery department, was found guilty ofattempting to steal a tin of peaches and a bottle of syrup. Itwas explained in court that the defendant had bought twopennyworth of sand for which he had paid and for which hehad received “a sort of delivery note or receipt. ” The cashierhad kept a copy, without which he could not obtain delivery

The Stores building today

of the goods purchased. Mr Slater, the Manager, had becomesuspicious of a parcel addressed to the defendant at hishome address, and ordered it to be examined, whereupon itwas found to contain the extra items, which had been addedto the delivery note. Apart from describing the purchasingprocedure, this story indicates that even small purchaseswere delivered to customers.

Competition and closure

By late 1888, the street directories of the time show thatrival shops had opened up in Turnham Green Terrace,originally a residential street, and nearby on Chiswick HighRoad. Possibly prompted by this development but probably

also influenced by her forthcoming purchase of a house inCornwall, Mary Eliza Richardson decided to attract newcapital by forming a limited company.

In June 1891 Miss Richardson sold her business to TheBedford Park Stores Limited for £18,000, of which £3,000was in cash and the rest in shares, making her, in practice,the major shareholder. She continued to act as ManagingDirector, albeit somewhat at arm’s length. Then, in 19 June1893, the company passed a Special Resolution, confirmedon 5 July 1893, to wind itself up voluntarily.

In December 1893, the liquidators reported that, despite theheavy losses sustained by the old company, the businesshad been operating at a profit under their stewardship, andthat there seemed to be the basis of a viable business. Manyof the creditors and shareholders of the existing companysupported the proposal, and the Court approved the petitionto transfer the assets and liabilities to a new company.

Retaining the name The Bedford Park Stores Limited, thecompany lasted somewhat longer than the first one haddone, but ultimately proved to be no more successful. On 24November 1899 the company resolved that its liabilitieswere such that it could not continue in business, and shouldbe wound up. The Stores disappeared ignominiously leavingthe premises empty.

Despite its financial troubles, The Stores had a sufficientlygood reputation for one of its former employees, theupholsterer Frank Ravilious, to advertise his connection withit when he set up in business on his own in 1893. FrankRavilious was the father of the artist Eric Ravilious and amember of the Ravilious family which ran a clothing store inActon well into the twentieth century.

The full version of this article by David Budworth, HistoricalAdviser to the Society, appeared in the Brentford & ChiswickLocal History Journal No 25, available for purchase fromChiswick Public Library, price £5. A fuller account of the historyof The Stores, with detailed references, is given in DWB Noteson Bedford Park History No.124, of which copies have beendeposited in Chiswick and Ealing Libraries.

The Stores and the Tabard, from the Building News of 2 January 1880.Local Studies Collection, Chiswick Library


New planning expertise on boardThis year the Society’s expertise in planning has beenfurther boosted with two highly regarded architecturalexperts joining Chair, Carol Woolner, as members of thePlanning Committee. We are delighted to be able tobenefit from their extensive experience and knowledgeof architecture, planning and historic buildings.

CharlesWagnerBSc DipTP, MA,IHBC, MRTPI, FSA,FRSA

Charles has 38 years’

experience in heritage and planning.From 1986 to 2015 his roles at EnglishHeritage included developing historicareas work and the public realm advicein London, and Head of Planning andUrban Advice. During this time hehelped draft parts of the NationalPlanning Policy Framework and itsPlanning Practice Guidance, as well asthe recent Historic England GoodPractice Advice Notes on setting andheritage in local plans. Charles has alsoproduced or contributed to advicecovering conservation areas.

As part of a wide portfolio, Charles iscurrently a Design Council Commissionfor Architecture and the BuiltEnvironment (CABE) Built EnvironmentExpert; on the Design South East Panel;the Hammersmith & Fulham DesignPanel and the Place Alliance. He isPresident of the Association for Studiesin the Conservation of HistoricBuildings, a Trustee of the Society forProtection of Ancient Buildings and Co-Chair of the Heritage Alliance’s SpatialPlanning Group. He has his ownconsultancy and works for another. Hechairs his local cemetery’s “Friends of”group, and is helping to establishNeighbourhood Planning in WestLondon.

Commenting on joining the Society’sPlanning Committee, Charles said:“Living in a ‘sub-Queen-Anne-Revival’house in Barons Court, I am aware ofthe importance of Bedford Park in thehistory of the ‘domestic revival’ and thecreation of garden suburbs. I hope I canhelp make a contribution to helpingensure Bedford Park and its buildingsare conserved, by advising on planningand listed building consentapplications.”

WilliamTaylorDipArch, MA,RIBA, FRSA

Bill has beenresponsible for awide range of

award-winning projects that havereceived national and internationalrecognition. His large projects includethe Inland Revenue Centre inNottingham and the National TennisCentre for the LTA in Roehampton. Hehas also worked in highly sensitiveheritage settings and with listedbuildings, including the restoration andextension of Charles Barry’s Grade 1Manchester Gallery.

After graduating from the University ofSheffield, Bill joined the practice ofMichael and Patty Hopkins, becoming apartner in 1988 after his first “start tofinish” building, the Mound Stand atLord’s Cricket Ground. In 2011 heestablished a small practice with hispartner Robin Snell. Projects include the

new Opera Pavilion at Wormsley for theGarsington Opera, the Island Pavilion atWormsley, new front-of-house facilitiesat the London Coliseum for ENO and,latterly, some new almshouses for thecharity of St Martin-in-the-Fields.

He has taught and lectured widely atschools of architecture in the UK,Europe, North America and Japan, andhis work has been published in the UKand overseas. An avid cricket lover, he isan active member of the MCC EstatesCommittee at Lord’s, involved in acomprehensive programme ofdevelopment in order to maintain itsstatus as the ‘number one cricketground in the world.’

Explaining his decision to become amember of the Society’s PlanningCommittee, Bill said: “I have lived in aConservation Area in Acton for over 30years. As a ‘modern’ architect, myinterest lies in how the requirements ofcontemporary living and contemporaryarchitecture can be successfullyintegrated into and actually enhanceattractive, historic and culturallysignificant environments such asBedford Park.’’

Long-serving members of the PlanningCommittee, George Butlin and CharlesLawrence, retired this year havingcontributed much time and expertiseover very many years. We areenormously grateful for theircontribution and delighted that GeorgeButlin has agreed to continue to serveon the Ealing Advisory Panel forBedford Park.

The Society is invited to comment onnew planning applications in theConservation Area but all decisions togrant or refuse a planning applicationare taken by the relevant local authority.

The committee’s help is available tomembers who live within theconservation area and members areencouraged to contact the Society priorto making planning applications. Tocontact the Society email:[email protected].


Our Member E-news and new websitenow provide regular updates coveringour work on street and infrastructureissues and have replaced the printedinformation previously distributed.

As a reminder, a brief summary ofsome of the main areas tackled by theSociety over the last six months islisted below. You can find the latestinformation about these issues on ourwebsite: www.bedfordpark.org.uk.

Heritage lighting – working to resolvethe issue of incorrect height streetlighting columns installed byHounslow Highways

German Bierfest on Acton Green –monitoring the proposals andproviding the only localrepresentation at a meeting with theorganiser

Hounslow new Resident Parkingtariffs – responding to consultationon charges for electric and diesel carsand households with more than onecar

Street trees – monitoring tree pruningand planting through regular dialoguewith both councils, and agreeing a listof suitable replacement street trees

Replacement paving – requestingHounslow Highways improve thequality of new paving and minimisethe use of tarmac

RingGo for visitor parking in Ealing –carrying out a members’ survey togauge the level of opinion

BT cabinet by St Michaels – alertingthe Hounslow Conservation Officer toresolve the issue of the new cabinetinstalled without planning permission

Heathrow Third Runway – providing asummary to help members submitresponses to the Consultation andsubmitting a full response from theSociety

Proposed Cycle Superhighway 9 –alerting members to TfL’sconsultation, submitting questionsabout traffic modelling and a formalsubmission

RECENT ACTIVITIES

Carr family album Until very recently, the only known image of Jonathan Thomas Carr (1845-1915),the founder of Bedford Park, has been the relief portrait on the memorial to himattached to St Michael and All Angels. The source of this may have been an oilportrait by Lance Calkin, which was one of the items sold in the auction of thecontents of the Bedford Park Club (now the Buddhist Vihara) after its closure in1939, and whose present whereabouts are unknown. This portrait appears invery small size and poor resolution in the background of a 1933 black and white photograph of the interior of the Club.

However, in May this year a member of the Carr family who contacted theBedford Park Society to purchasesome publications, provided a copy ofa photograph of Jonathan Thomas at the age of 19 taken in 1865 (shownabove right).

Photographs of Carr’s mother and hissiblings dating back to the 1860s weregiven to the Society’s co-founder, TomGreeves, by another family member and perfectly capture the setting of aVictorian portrait studio. Shown rightis Catherine Grace Carr (née Comyns),wife of Jonathan Carr and mother ofJonathan Thomas Carr. The children(far right) are Sarah and Richardson,then aged around ten and fiverespectively.


50th anniversaryof listing

This year marked the 50th anniversary of thelisting of 356 buildings in Bedford Park – the

decision that led to the preservation of ourbeautiful garden suburb and ensured its

continuing appeal today.In the early 1960s the architecturallegacy of Jonathan Carr and hisarchitects appeared gravely threatenedby demolitions and general decay;some two thirds of the houses were byone calculation in multiple occupation.The demolition of a Norman Shawhouse at 13 Bedford Road and theconstruction of a flat roof, yellow brickold people’s home, the antithesis of thesuburb’s steep roofs, red tiles andgables, prompted the formation of theBedford Park Society.

The Society was formed in 1963 by twolocal residents: Harry Taylor, acommunity activist, and Tom Greeves,conservationist and architect, with JohnBetjeman agreeing to become the

Society’s first patron. Although theSociety grew to 200 members in its firstyear and lobbied hard, Greeves wasaware that the only real protection forBedford Park lay in statutory listing forthe buildings.

As part of the Society’s campaignduring 1966 to save one of the finesthouses, No 1 Marlborough Crescent,Greeves showed Arthur Grogan of theGreater London Historical BuildingsDivision around the area. Grogan was apassionate lover of late 19th centuryarchitecture and works of art, andalthough he was unable to save No 1Marlborough Crescent, the visit sparkedhis interest in Bedford Park.

The breakthrough came in 1967, when,as part of the first Bedford Park Festival,the Society mounted anexhibition: “The Art and Architecture ofBedford Park, 1875-1900.” Greeves hadbeen co-opted onto the festivalcommittee and, realising the eventcould provide an opportunity topromote the campaign for listing,organised the exhibition based on hisphotographs of Bedford Park.These captured the empty site for No 1Marlborough Crescent anddemonstrated both the quality and theplight of other buildings. Arthur Grogan,now an inspector with the HistoricBuildings Council (the predecessor of

English Heritage), was persuaded byGreeves to come and see the exhibitionand left promising to do what he couldto secure listing.

In July 1967, Grogan’s recommendationfor the statutory Grade II listing of 356buildings in Bedford Park was approvedby the Ministry, leading to the suburbbeing made a conservation area byEaling and Hounslow councils in 1969and 1970 respectively. This marked theend of the period of gradualdilapidation of the area as new ownersattracted by the heritage and sense ofcommunity of the area began moving inand to restore the houses, with theBedford Park Society providingguidance through their publicationsand their comments on planningapplications.

In June this year, the Society mounted acommemorative exhibition curated byDr David Budworth MBE, the Society’sHistorical Adviser, as part of the 2017Golden Jubilee Bedford Park Festival.Many visitors were able to enjoy theexhibition in St Michael and All Angelsand at the Jubilee Garden Party.

A digital record of the 2017 exhibitioncan be found on the Society’s websitewww.bedfordpark.org.uk under “BedfordPark.”

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Not a member?We work for everyone in the BedfordPark community, whether you live ina listed building, the conservationarea or any of the adjoining roads.Join the Society and help usconserve our wonderful architecturalheritage, improve our amenities andenvironment, and representresidents’ interests. Details from:www.bedfordpark.org.uk;[email protected] orMembership Secretary, 23 BlenheimRoad, W4 1UB.


Arts and Crafts tilesThe “Bedford Park Daisy” tile can be

seen in a new gallery showcasing thebeautiful ceramics and paintings of

leading Arts and Crafts couple Williamand Evelyn De Morgan.

The National Trust rescued the DeMorgan collection, which was without apermanent exhibition space, housing itat Wightwick Manor just outsideWolverhampton, from May this year.

The De Morgan Foundation holds themost extensive collection of workscreated by William De Morgan,renowned for his lustre glazes andIslamic influenced decoration, togetherwith paintings by his wife, Evelyn.

William De Morgan, a friend of William Morris, suppliedtiles to many properties in Bedford Park including theBedford Park Daisy (produced in 1898) and BedfordPark Anemone patterns, which were specially designedfor the suburb.

The tile patterns were very popular and were producedfor a period of 35 years in different colourways withthe daisy pattern made in yellow, blue and manganese,as well as ruby lustre.

Most Bedford Park houses originally featured interiortiles – usually around the fireplace – with verydistinctive, colourful designs. Sadly, many of the tileswere removed in the years before properties werelisted but a number of specialist companies continue tomake them and some will even hand paint commissionsto reproduce classic Arts and Crafts designs that are nolonger in regular production.

Photographs supplied by Victorian Ceramics. www.victorianceramics.com


Spotlight on a localresidentCecilia McDowall Long-standing resident, Cecilia McDowall, is a renownedcomposer. She has won many awards and been short-listedeight times for the British Composer Awards.

In 2014 Cecilia won the Choralcategory of the British ComposerAwards for her haunting work, “NightFlight,” which celebrates thepioneering flight of the Americanaviatrix, Harriet Quimby, across theEnglish Channel. Her distinctive stylespeaks directly to listeners,instrumentalists and singers alike. Hermost characteristic works fuse fluentmelodic lines with occasional dissonantharmonies and rhythmic exuberance.Her music has been commissioned andperformed by leading choirs, includingthe BBC Singers, The Sixteen,ensembles, and at festivals worldwide.“Three Latin Motets” were recorded byrenowned American choir, PhoenixChorale, winning a Grammy award fortheir Chandos recording.

Upcoming commissions include worksfor the National Children’s Choir ofGreat Britain, King’s College and StJohn’s College, Cambridge, Kansas CityChorale and a Requiem for theWimbledon Choral Society. Cecilia iscurrently ‘composer-in-residence’ atDulwich College, London. In 2013 shereceived an Honorary Doctorate inMusic from the University ofPortsmouth and earlier this year Ceciliawas selected for an Honorary Fellowaward by the Royal School of ChurchMusic.

When did you move to Bedford Park andwhat brought you here?

I “married” into Bedford Park. Myhusband was already living inWoodstock Road when we met, a verylong time ago now, forty-one years.

Seven years later, when our son was 11months old, we moved just around thecorner into our present home.

Have you done much work on yourhouse and garden over the years?

We bought our house from aformidable landlady who had beenrunning three bedsits, all showingalarming signs of disintegration. Shehad stripped out all the originalfeatures; fireplaces, coving, doors, thelot, and given her house that “fifties”featureless look. So we put all the“original” fittings back in again, re-wiring and re-plumbing as we went. Ireally love gardening (especially when Ihave a deadline to finish) and thoughthe garden is not large I like to squeezeas much as I can into it; clematis, rosesand geraniums all tumble together(along with the bindweed!).

How important is your environment toyou when you’re composing? Do youwork from home?

Yes, I do work at home and have suchlovely, long-suffering neighbours whohave offered no grumbles about thenoise I inevitably make whencomposing.

What do you like most about living inBedford Park?

I love the Bedford Park architecture andits history, the trees, especially turninggold in the autumn, and the warmfriendships I have made through ourchildren and music. I love the strongsense of community here, especiallyaround the time of the Bedford ParkFestival and the excellent ChiswickBook Festival.

Do you have any spare time to becomeinvolved in any local communityactivities?

Although it is such a long time ago, Igreatly enjoyed my time on the BedfordPark Festival committee; it was all verydifferent then in the late seventies,early eighties! But now, withgrandchildren and a 98 year-oldmother, the balance between work andfamily offers challenges, albeit reallyenjoyable ones.

Written and published by The Bedford ParkSociety, 10 Blenheim Road, London W4 1UA

Registered charity no 288204

© Bedford Park Society 2017 No materialmay be reproduced without priorpermission from the Society

Designed and produced by olleydesign.com

Cover photograph by Ellen Rooney.www.ellenrooney.com

www.bedfordpark.org.uk

THE BEDFORD PARK JOURNAL · multi-million pound operations. ... the garden suburb concept became...

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