From the Chairman:

Recent press reports suggested that London bars and cafés do not have enough outside seating to take advantage of the warm weather. It doesn’t seem all that long ago that early air-conditioned cinemas were advertising that it was cooler to sit inside. One of the benefits of London is that there is always somewhere to go and something to do, whatever the weather. But I‘ve noticed that the attractive perspective drawings often attached to planning applications suggest that London is becoming the café society which seemed to be the character of many of the late Gordon Cullen’s illustrations of an ideal townscape. The American scholar Donald Olsen, in his comparison of Vienna, Paris and London in the 19th century, suggested that street life in Vienna and Paris was more lively than in London because domestic conditions in those cities were less attractive than the home comforts of the London house. He would not be able to make the same distinction now.

Let us hope that decent weather will be with us for 9 and 10 June, this year’s London Open Garden Squares Weekend. This is an increasingly popular event, now in many places linked with the opportunity for wine tasting. Many old favourites are there, plus many gardens which are not in London Squares, some not regularly open to the public such as Lambeth Palace, the kitchen garden at Chiswick House or the medical garden maintained by the Royal College of Physicians. I spotted two characteristics on this year’s list. First, there is an increasing number of gardens in the suburban parts of London, such as that of Myddelton House, Enfield (the headquarters of the Lea Valley Regional Park), or that of the Duke of Chandos’s demolished house of Cannons (now the North London Collegiate School). Second, there is a chance to see the prison gardens at Holloway and Wandsworth; if you want to take advantage of this latter unusual opportunity you have to apply in advance. Information is on the organisers’ website at www.opensquares-loirevalleywines.org .

Another innovation in this year’s seasonal London timetable is First Thursdays, a regular late night opening of many galleries and museums in East London on the first Thursday in each month, organised by Time Out magazine. This starts on Thursday 3 May. The Museum of London and the Museum in Docklands are joining in this event, with special celebrations at the new "London’s Burning The Great Fire of London Exhibition" at the Museum of London and at the "Story of Millwall Dock Exhibition" at the Museum in Docklands.

When late opening is proving so popular with visitors it is tragic that some of London’s local museums seem under threat. The London Society joined protests at the proposed closure of Wandsworth Museum, now averted by the offer of generous support from a charitable foundation, and we have noted that opening is to be restricted at the William Morris Gallery at Walthamstow. We shall be attending a meeting convened by the Museums Libraries and Archives Council for London to consider the threat to these vital local amenities, under pressure as local authorities seek to trim their council tax spending. On the wider scale we are concerned at the Olympic effect, especially as arts and heritage lottery funding is diverted to support London 2012.

Coming up also is London’s Architecture Week, 15-24 June, but not this year with the spectacular events of the London Biennale which will be next year. Putting green issues to the fore the highlight this year is an open air exhibition of lights at the South Bank Centre, all powered by mini-wind generators. For members to whom retail therapy is important New London Architecture at the Building Centre is holding an exhibition from 3 May to 23 June which will consider what sort of shopping we want to see in the future. The model of London showing new development, which is a feature of the permanent New London Architecture exhibition, has been extensively revised now that planning permission for the Olympic Development has gone through, and will have to be revised again following the recent decision to approve the extensive regeneration of the area behind King’s Cross.

This Newsletter brings with it our next visits list and the papers for our Annual General Meeting at St Mary Aldermary on Wednesday 4 July. Please do make an effort to come for what is usually a happy social occasion but also a chance for members to tell the committee of their interests, and all in a fine Wren building. This year we shall be putting to members some minor changes to our constitution to bring us into line with recent charity law.

In my last Newsletter I explained that we had been unable to find a suitable venue for our Banister Fletcher Lecture and I regret that this remains a problem; the lecture will have to be postponed until the autumn. Taking with this some difficulties over the Christmas Party (Burgh House last year was a very enjoyable but a very expensive venue) your committee has considered whether or not we should make some adjustments to our traditional timetable, perhaps abandoning the Christmas party in favour of a spring or early autumn social event and moving the Banister Fletcher Lecture permanently to a winter fixture. Views on this at the AGM would be welcome.

I hope to see many of you of 4 July. Our AGM is a free event and all members are encouraged to attend. But do please let us know if you propose to come so that we can make a reasonable prediction about catering.

With best wishes,
Frank Kelsall

TheLondonSociety

From the Chairman:

The
London
Society