There is a living, if unfortunate, drama unfolding with links to our Victorian past. The splendid "Crystal Palace", which housed the Great Exhibiton of 1851 in Hyde Park in the centre of London,was one of the most remarkable constructions of the Victorian era. It can be considered as the culmination of the early development of metal construction and was one of the two largest places of entertainment in London, the other being Alexandra Palace built in 1873. After the 1851 exhibition, the entire building was dismantled and moved to a new permanent site on parkland at Sydenham in the south London suburbs. The area became known as Crystal Palace. The destruction of the building by fire in 1936 left a void in the park which has never been filled. Sixty years on, the site is now under threat by the local council of Bromley within whose borders it lies. Bromley is proposing a wholly inappropriate development for the site — a 20-screen cinema multiplex with restaurants, bars and rooftop parking for a thousand cars, housed in a building which has been described by a local newspaper as having the appearance of an aircraft terminal.
The Crystal Palace Campaign has been formed by local residents and businesses, angered by the monstrous edifice which Bromley wishes to impose on the landscape and the complete disregard for the site's history. There is virtually no local support for the development. The plans are being fought in the High Court in London where the Crystal Palace Campaign has already been given leave to seek judicial review of Bromley's outline planning permission. The legal objection turns on the question of style. The Crystal Palace Act of 1990 stated that any building on the Park site should be "in the style and spirit of the former Crystal Palace".
To find out more about the issues and the campaign go to the official web site for the Crystal Palace Campaign. [2001]
The above note refers to a time when the threat to our historic park was real and imminent. Today's prognosis looks much brighter.
The multiplex was cancelled. It was one of the most significant victories for people power in recent memory. The Crystal Palace Campaign, with help from other local groups, had defeated a powerful organisation backed by the local council.
It was not a victory about which we wished to get too euphoric for there was always a chance another developer would come along with another inappropriate scheme - what could we do to prevent that happening? Two things mainly: to try and promote a dialogue between the interested parties and to conduct a detailed survey of local opinion, the first since the Palace moved to Sydenham Hill in 1854. The latter confirmed quantitatively the views promoted by the Campaign and also pointed the way to the future with a good idea of what the public wanted or, in some cases, did not want. The dialogue is ongoing and about to bear fruit.
The confluence of a number of streams of activity now seem to be on the brink of delivering about £100 million of improvements to Crystal Palace Park. More than that, the ideas have developed in full consultation with local people and various authorities. In the coming years a large proportion of the money will be spent on providing a brand new sports facility which will probably host one of the Olympic countries participating in the games of 2012. There will also be improvements all round the park especially at the gates. Further, it may be possible, although it is a long way from being resolved, to retain the old National Sports Centre (NSC), since it is a Grade II listed building and considered an important example of 20th century architecture.
Exciting times, but what is left of the Victorian Heritage? We have an 80 hectare park (200 acres) which has retained the basic Paxton shape. It will have a restored central axis which he placed so positively to link the higher terraces with the lower parts of the park. The sphinxes are still present but almost none of the statuary. The dinosours, of course, stand proud in the greenery in and around the lakes. Much of the central part of the park, now part of the NSC, will be made accessible once again. In short the legacy left to us by the Victorians will get a new lease of life, will help regenerate the area and will play its part in lifting the spirit of London. [19 May 2006]
Last modified 29 May 2006