please empty your brain below
There is plenty of information about the State Kilburn on the internet for anyone interested.
I have been in the building several times over 60 years from its cinema, stage show, bingo and now church use. It still has its theatre organ.
Further up the on the opposite side at 234 Kilburn High Road stands another ex-cinema which is also now a church. The Grange Kilburn over 2000 seats and Grade 2 listed.
The State Kilburn is Grade 2*

John | 17.05.17 - 7:19 a.m. | #

Well DG,back to an interesting post today about Willesden. A good travelogue of an area I don't know a lot about. Thank you.
A pity then,that there was very little mention of the area of Bermondsey and Southwark on Saturday other than a count up of election posters! ☹️

Jo W | 17.05.17 - 7:22 a.m. | #

Hate to quibble, but is that the correct church in Willesden? http://www.stmarywillesden.org.uk/

Tony Martin | 17.05.17 - 8:01 a.m. | #

Let us not forget the late Morgan Studios (corner of Maybury Gardens/Willesden High Road), where for three decades some of the biggest names in rock and pop recorded.

Also, the infamous Biddy Mulligans pub (corner of Willesden Lane/Kilburn High Road), bombed by the UDA in Dec 1975.

Ironic Steve | 17.05.17 - 8:10 a.m. | #

Great read so far and yet another awesome musician's Blue Plaque on a suburban house.

Kevin | 17.05.17 - 8:18 a.m. | #

Tony Martin: see what you mean!

David | 17.05.17 - 9:01 a.m. | #

Wasn't the original Mean Fiddler venue in Harlesden?

Still anon | 17.05.17 - 9:55 a.m. | #

When I was a nipper, we often used to visit my father's (late) best friend, a fellow driver on the Metropolitan line, who lived on Quainton Street. I remember those houses well. And, as a Catholic child, I had a medal of Our Lady of Willesden, but never learned the significance until just now! Thanks DG.

THC | 17.05.17 - 10:25 a.m. | #

Great post DG. Brought back a lot of memories. I used to live in Southview Avenue in Neasden and every morning went for a run in Gladstone Park which borders the Post Office Research Station. This was featured in Metroland on the BBC by John Betjeman where Eric Sims goes on the Neadsen Nature Trail. I remember the Grunwick dispute. Driving past Willesden High Road was a nightmare. Police vans, dogs and hundreds of protesters every day. Always knew when McVities were baking Ginger Nuts. A lovely smell. Great memories.

Bernie | 17.05.17 - 10:50 a.m. | #

Tony Martin: Yes, that is the correct church. It's clearly explained; it's not the original church, but it's the church where there is a national shrine now.

dg writes: It wasn't clearly explained when Tony left his comment, I hadn't got round to writing that bit yet.

Andrew M | 17.05.17 - 10:53 a.m. | #

@Still anon

You are correct, I spent many memorable nights at the Mean Fiddler on Harlesden High Street in the late 80's.

ap | 17.05.17 - 11:56 a.m. | #

Oh, I think it is OK to put a picture of the Catholic church of Our Lady of Willesden, in Harlesden, under a heading that says "Our Lady of Willesden, Harlesden".

Given that Harlesden was in the borough of Willesden, that seems fair enough.

You would not expect to see a picture there of the Anglican church of St Mary's, Willesden (or indeed as it was sometimes more sensibly spelled "Wilsdon").

dg writes: My choice of photo wasn't clearly explained when Tony left his comment, I hadn't got round to writing that bit yet.

But now the infrequent journey to IKEA can be enlivened by memories of Bob Marley. Thanks, DG.

Andrew | 17.05.17 - 12:16 p.m. | #

Thank you - the name and activities of Jayaben Desai deserve to be recognised and remembered by women workers, immigrant workers, and everyone that believes in the improvement of worker's rights.

Frank F | 17.05.17 - 12:56 p.m. | #

Pedant's Corner here. It's Ramsay MacDonald who was Prime Minister in 1925, not Ramsey McDonald.

dg writes: Fixed, thanks.

Charles | 17.05.17 - 1:12 p.m. | #

>I love the idea of a street called A and a street called B

I was on the San Juan Island of Orcas this weekend, charmed by the small town of Eastsound. They have an A Street, but no sign of a B or any other letter. There may well be a fascinating story about that, but I don't know it.

https://goo.gl/maps/kLHPJjBDGU82

Wayne | 17.05.17 - 5:50 p.m. | #

Tangent to Streets A and B - Bush Hill Park (Enfield) has a First Avenue, a Second Avenue, a Third Avenue and a Main Avenue.

Frank F | 18.05.17 - 6:37 a.m. | #

In the photographs of the State Kilburn auditorium and stage there are some changes that were made for bingo that slightly spoil the original scheme.
The floor in the stalls had its rake removed so that it was flat and people could sit around bingo tables. This was achieved by levelling the floor from the back to stage level at the front. So the stage is no longer raised and is just a continuation of the stall floor. The orchestra pit is covered over and the proscenium arch now looks shorter. If you look at the exit doors at the sides of the front stalls you will see that they are below floor level which shows how much the floor was raised.
Stairs were added at either side of the circle to stall level. The church has left these un-original features in place.
Nice to see the building full, I think the church even plan or have brought the cinemas cafe area back into use. There is room for several hundred more people in there.

John | 18.05.17 - 7:01 a.m. | #

I lived in this area for a few years in the mid70s, and remember most of the places listed here. The Grunwick dispute caused major traffic problems in the Dollis Hill area, I had a choice of stations for commuting into the West End and avoided Dollis Hill, which was normally a very quiet station, for weeks. And @Frank F, there are quite a few sets of such numerical-named Avenues in London, eg Acton, Walthamstow and others, but for some reason no such groups of Streets or Roads.

amber | 18.05.17 - 7:20 a.m. | #

Thank you for all this, especially Willesden places connected to heroes Tommy Flowers, Bob Marley and Jayaben Desai.

Bob L-S | 18.05.17 - 11:59 a.m. | #

@ Frank F: That's nothing!
Here in South East Essex we have:-
a) First & Second Avenues in Hullbridge, and Westcliff-on-Sea, and on Canvey Island.

b) First - Fourth Avenues in Langdon Hills (Plotlands), and in Stanford-le-Hope (along with Central Avenue).

c) First - Fifth Avenues in Shotgate.

and even
d) First - Sixth Avenues in Thundersley!

And there may well be more that I haven't spotted.

John Simmons | 18.05.17 - 3:03 p.m. | #

If you like cryptic street names come to Washington DC. Running West and East there are A streets in NE and SE, C thru W streets (but no J streets)in NE, SE, NW and SW. And there are numbered streets from 1 to as much as 53,in all four quadrants. These run North and South

Colesville Garth | 18.05.17 - 4:33 p.m. | #

Thanks for, as usual, a very enlightening post. I can't resist chipping in on the A Street / B Street theme. I used to live in First Avenue in Queens Park, down the road from Willesden, and I noticed in the London A-Z it was one of 14 First Avenues. The numbering seems to copy the New York planned Avenue numbering idea (or wherever it originated). Streets seem to have letters, as in Queens Park where they were originally named A to P (I think). They were subsequently renamed to names that started with the letters, and related to people involved in the development (London Artizans Company), e.g. Alperton, Barfett, Caird, etc. One of the lettered streets (F?) was obliterated by a parachuted mine in the war, which (I'm guessing) we have to "thank" for the little open space/park/square where it used to be.

Steve | Homepage | 19.05.17 - 12:02 p.m. | #

In Manor Park, East London we have First Avenue to Eighth Avenue. Jack Cohen, founder of the Tesco supermarket chain is supposed to have lived here somewhere

Jon Newman | 19.05.17 - 4:04 p.m. | #











TridentScan v2.10.0 | Privacy Policy