Comments on: The Facades Of Spitalfields

By: Alexandra Rook

Alexandra Rook — Tue, 09 Jul 2019 11:54:25 +0000

The ghost of Pindar’s house should haunt every planning consultant, officer & planning committee. Facadism sounds very close to Fascism & maybe is. When I first rounded the corner of Artillery Row & saw the facade held off the blandness of what lay behind I was literally staggered; I’ve always ‘felt’ the old East End in these narrow streets & now with the horror of Norton Folgate the wreckage has run riot. Thankfully Smithfield will be repurposed by the Museum of London… Facadism makes me feel physically & psychically sick
in the pit of my stomach; it is such an impoverished response & failure of imagination I’d rather not be left with the reminder of an intact building with all the meaning it held. It’s not as if a new facade of worth was erected over an older one as the graceful Georgians managed with Tudor buildings that you know & can see are still nestling behind.
I feel the same about the lopping of London plane trees back to stumps; it’s ignorant, banal, ugly, even cruel.

By: Ron Bunting

Ron Bunting — Sun, 07 Jul 2019 05:38:06 +0000

So BoJo was the mayor responsible for over riding local council decisions? What i can see happening is the Dubai-ing of London where massive loans are taken out to try and out do others in the race towards the bottom of the barrel of Taste.
Having seen plenty of examples of office development in my life time,I am surprised that alleged smart money people are still building offices .
This is the age of the connected “device’ ,So the use of an office is hardly warranted today except to massage the egos of the board members.
And as office development takes space originally used a dwellings,the numbers of folks inhabiting the area around the office diminishes so business fail and disappear leaving vast empty areas of City space,often only filled when the Drones(sorry,office workers) walk to the car park,bus stop,catch a taxi or the train either leaving the hives or going to their allotted cells in said hives.

By: Robin s Call

Robin s Call — Sun, 07 Jul 2019 01:24:55 +0000

Ghastly. I just don’t see the logic behind not refurbing those beautiful old beams and leaving the freakatecture for Berlin Germany or somewhere

By: Peter Holford

Peter Holford — Sat, 06 Jul 2019 17:31:28 +0000

Will we look back and wonder how our society ever let a venal charlatan like Boris Johnson near to any form of decision making that affects us all. And the process isn’t finished yet!

People I have spoken to from other countries are astounded that he is being allowed to wreak such damage on our country.

By: Malcolm

Malcolm — Sat, 06 Jul 2019 16:23:52 +0000

It takes a certain type of psychopath to come up with idea of destroying historically important buildings and then installing a carbuncle within the skin. This is akin to the actions of a parasite, a tapeworm or a parasitoid wasp that lays its eggs inside a caterpillar. But there are other wasps which are hyperparasitoid and these creatures will lay their eggs in parasitoid wasp lavae. Such should be the fate of developers, such as the pantomime Dame known as Lord Sugar and the gurning buffoon Boris Johnson who gave the go-ahead to the mass destruction of London’s history. British Land are beyond parody, they are simply greed incarnate and their seemingly unstoppable demolition machine is simply turning old buildings into gold – a strange, twisted version of alchemy. Sadiq Khan has done nothing to stop this vandalism, indeed he appears to promote and sanction just as much destruction by dint of the never ending construction of useless cycle lanes that drive traffic to a standstill, thereby aiding the fecundity of the very noxious fumes he dreams of eradicating. But then common sense and simple scientific fact are difficult concepts for self-interested idiots to comprehend.
There is still one more-or-less intact original medieval Bishopsgate mansion still standing, albeit no longer in Bishopsgate. This is Crosby Hall, built in 1466 and formally home to Richard III, Sir Thomas More and Sir Walter Raleigh, among others and after being threatened with demolition was dismantled and moved piece by piece to Cheyne Walk in 1910. It was once open to the public but is now a private mansion owned by Christopher Moran, who bought it when the GLC sold it off in 1986.

By: Eric Forward

Eric Forward — Sat, 06 Jul 2019 15:42:18 +0000

I agree with Laura’s comments that Boris Johnson’s decisions (as Mayor of London) are shameful and an indictment to his (in)ability to lead in any form. I did support the garden bridge but his implementation of the cycle lane network was ill thought out, which is incredible considering he is a keen cyclist. To override Tower Hamlets’ authority for various planning proposals also showed a lack of consideration and respect. Everything he does shows no thought. His success as Mayor can largely be put down to riding the crest of a wave into the Olympics. I’ve voted Tory most of my life, but this man can’t even put his socks on the right way. I’d say I hope we’re never given the option of having to vote for him, but the alternative is someone who wants to reinstate Fox hunting!

By: Laura Williamson

Laura Williamson — Sat, 06 Jul 2019 12:45:32 +0000

In a list of poor and highhanded decisions (unwanted garden bridges, illegal water cannon) the Norton Folgate situation is outstanding as a key part of Boris Johnson’s legacy as Mayor. It is shameful.

I also do not know why Norman Foster could possibly think that the conservation area around Commercial Street would be improved by a Borg cube hovering over it.

By: Helen Breen

Helen Breen — Sat, 06 Jul 2019 10:38:07 +0000

Greetings from Boston,

GA, best of luck in your quest to expose the insanity of facadism. That was an interesting tidbit about Spitalfields traditionally existing beyond the City’s wall to serve its needs. Well said:

“The bizarre and awkward appearance of these structures speaks of this discontinuity, reconciling elements that do not belong together. In short, the facades of Spitalfields are indicative of the corporate takeover of spaces forcibly imposed upon the neighbourhood while maintaining the superficial appearance of a continuum of use.”

By: Mathilde Grange

Mathilde Grange — Sat, 06 Jul 2019 08:59:27 +0000

I am totally appalled by the monstruosity suggested by Norman Foster. But the façade of Paul Pindar’s house is wonderful. Thank you.

By: P Johnson

P Johnson — Sat, 06 Jul 2019 07:28:26 +0000

British land? More like ‘British tossers’ ,how do they have so much power ,they just look at profits not ugly buildings,i hate architects , and greedy developers