Comments on: The Whitechapel Bell Foundry Is For Sale

By: Gregory Hubbard

Gregory Hubbard — Sat, 22 Oct 2022 03:07:09 +0000

I believe that Dave Phillips’ description of these gentlemen and ladies (I’ve taken some liberties with meaning of those words) as ‘a sad lot’ is tragically accurate. It is simply incomprehensible that they would conseign this cultural anchor to a scrap heap. The Whitechapel Foundry was intimately involved in history across the globe. Their very name conjured memories of the starting and ending of wars, celebrations and proclamations. They were a symbol of the United Kingdom and its world-wide cultural influence.

What is truly frightening is that these thugs are wandering free and unfettered, ready to visit their insanity on other cities and countries.

Now what happens? There were supporters ready to help before. If all of us chipped in, could we restart the process?

By: Richard Yoast

Richard Yoast — Mon, 10 Oct 2022 17:17:29 +0000

Perhaps what’s needed is crowd-sourced funding. There are numerous patriots and historic preservationists and philanthropists throughout the UK and US who would and do value the foundry and its key role in the histories of both nations. What’s needed is someone to organize this and give a stable ownership and funding to the foundry – and not simply throw it to the winds of capitalist whims.

By: Marcia Howard

Marcia Howard — Sun, 09 Oct 2022 18:55:26 +0000

Well done on you naming and shaming those that deserve it! May they hang their heads in shame, and be shamed enough to now help secure the Bell Foundry’s future! Wishing much good luck to the London Bell Foundry.

By: mlaiuppa

mlaiuppa — Sun, 09 Oct 2022 09:00:44 +0000

Yes, shame on them all.

However, this is also an opportunity. To buy the foundry, restore it to working and continue the history. This may be just a blip in the long life of this working foundry.

I hope the London Bell Foundry is successful and an Elizabeth II commemoration bell can quickly follow the End of Covid bell. But not so quickly that it isn’t cast in White Chapel.

By: Andy

Andy — Sun, 09 Oct 2022 06:09:12 +0000

Like most things and people I cherished in Whitechapel they are gone.

By: Adele Lester

Adele Lester — Fri, 07 Oct 2022 13:12:07 +0000

Well said and named GA. Whenever I return to East End the working Bell Foundry is the one I miss the most. Someone wrote earlier in these comments about appealing to King Charles, what a great idea. If I still lived in the UK I would be actively involved in saving this iconic building. So good luck to those who are fighting for the return of this sadly decaying mainstay of the Whitechapel I knew.

By: Ann Vosper

Ann Vosper — Thu, 06 Oct 2022 06:45:32 +0000

Well done GA for naming and shaming all those people who have treated our heritage in such a disrespectful way, all in the name of greed. Fingers crossed now for good things.

By: /saba

/saba — Wed, 05 Oct 2022 22:33:29 +0000

I am wearing a huge smile! So good to hear with all the bad stuff in the news. AND, the new hospital bell is gorgeous, a modern take on a classic form. Bravo!

By: Carla Stevens

Carla Stevens — Wed, 05 Oct 2022 22:12:25 +0000

What an absolute disgrace, and yet another example of our cultural heritage being trashed.

By: Jane Bx

Jane Bx — Wed, 05 Oct 2022 22:06:02 +0000

Gather round people, to protect our pen & pixel hero, who will no doubt be getting more than the usual from flack from vested interests, in response to today’s S-Life piece.

If only for completion and accuracy, someone really needs to name the property developer who, in the first place, offered the Hughes the sum of money that they believed they couldn’t refuse…

Vincent Daniel Goldstein, age 62; 224 companies to his name, so take your pick where the money and assets actually are 🙂 His VFund, for example, is an interesting place to start — not least as it will be looking for assets to ‘buy cheap’, and paying just a little bit more than all the others are willing and able to pay.

Objective reporting in the public interest; no libel, no slander; although GA might still wish that I hadn’t 🙂

And another GA Pen Portrait waiting to happen… It can be noted that Brick Lane-based architect, Tobias Jewson was persuaded to work up the plans, overseen by his directors at 31/44 Architects, William Burges and Stephen Davies. And there were of course other professionals who enabled the Planning Application etc, and therefore the US investment group Raycliff Capital to ‘take it from there’.

With exchange rates as they are and where they’re heading, this heritage asset has become far cheaper for anyone with reserves or access to funds in anything other than pounds sterling. So please let’s keep listening to the ‘alarm bell in our head’, and not be complacent 🙂

The current owners want to ring out the old and wring out what profit they can, and they can and will; the market has in fact moved in their favour. After all you only now need US1.08-1.13 to buy £1 of stirling-denominated Foundry…

Meanwhile, Factum + conservation group Re-Form Heritage have commissioned bells from Conrad Shawcross and Paula Crown. And Nigel Taylor, 40 years employed at WBF, is rumoured to be making a ‘bell-making’ film, and hopefully (not having strayed too far career-wise in the meantime!) a comeback bell-wise

GA, as ever, we are in your debt