please empty your brain below
Shouldn't it read 'Battersea/Wandsworth', DG?

dg writes: Yeah, sorry, accident, meh.

Burntweenie | 25.01.17 - 7:02 a.m. | #

Wandsworth (part). More in KC. Woolwich was 7C.

No mention of the Herbert Dip (I see the link in the heading to the first page still filed under "DIg DeaL").

dg writes: My apologies if this feature isn't panning out the way you were expecting.

Andrew | 25.01.17 - 7:49 a.m. | #

The writing style seems different, has a new writer been recruited to the DG team...

Waterhouse | 25.01.17 - 7:53 a.m. | #

My old work stomping ground for 5 years [98-03].

Nowhere in Zone 2 felt as remote as the north bank of the Thames at Battersea. Before I took to biking getting there was a glacial crawl down the King's Road on the 19 or a brisk twenty minutes hike from Sloane Sq (albeit through the really nice part of Chelsea.)

The park is generally lovely and wonderful in summer, Albert Bridge is very pretty and there were a couple of nice pubs and eateries. Otherwise it was a right old mix of quite big estates vs. speculative investment dribbling over from SW3, it still seems to be much the same in 2017 !

Kevin | 25.01.17 - 8:32 a.m. | #

Many moons ago North Woolwich was part of Kent. Something to do with the local Noble being able to collect ferry fares on both sides of the river. Don't think his grip of the ferry trade stretched as far upstream as Wandsworth.

scrumpy | 25.01.17 - 9:11 a.m. | #

I pass through Battersea every now and then and every time I'm reminded of a pub that - in the 80s (?) used to have a model helicopter mounted above the entrance. It wasn't small - I'm guessing about 1/3 scale - and it was blue.
I think the pub was somewhere near the heliport by the river and may actually have been called "The Helicopter" [or even "The Chopper"!?] but I've long since forgotten where exactly it was.
Your photo today of the now defunct Battersea Bar is the nearest thing I've seen in a while to make me say 'Hey, I think that might it!'
It'd be great, after all of these years, if someone could confirm this.

RogerW | 25.01.17 - 9:19 a.m. | #

Lived in London for 66 years and never been there.

Boxer | 25.01.17 - 9:26 a.m. | #

I too, like RogerW, remember the pub with the helicopter and it certainly looked like the Battersea Bar. Everything else seems to have been swept away in that area.

MikeH | 25.01.17 - 10:12 a.m. | #

I remember being taken to a funfair at Battersea in 1959, it had a wooden roller coaster if I remember right.

Michael | 25.01.17 - 10:27 a.m. | #

The wooden roller coaster was the Big Dipper, opened in 1951 and one of the biggest attractions at Battersea Park Funfair, opened as part of the Festival of Britain. It closed and was dismantled in 1972 after an accident killed five passengers. A train being hoisted up to the start of the ride broke loose from its haulage rope, rolled backwards towards the station and the back carriage jumped the rails. With the lack of a main attraction at the funfair its popularity quickly declined. The rest of the fair was closed two years later in 1974.

Timbo | 25.01.17 - 10:38 a.m. | #

The pub thingy page says that the 'Battersea Bar' used to be 'The Chopper' (and before that?, it must have replaced an existing pub).

http://www.closedpubs.co.uk/london/sw11_battersea_chopper.html

The 60s/70s rebuild which was the Prince's Head nearby in Falcon Road has now been demolished.

Still anon | 25.01.17 - 11:18 a.m. | #

DG: gosh, no need to apologise! This feature is panning out in exactly the way I was expecting, which is a good thing, of course.

I just thought you were going to brand the whole thing as the "Herbert Dip". But your blog, your rules, of course.

dg writes: I can't change the URL of the original post.

Andrew | 25.01.17 - 11:20 a.m. | #

DG you should have stopped at Caius House Battersea while you were in the area. It's a great charity and would have allowed you to write this post in a slightly more optimistic tone.

http://www.caiushouse.org/

Baron Ochs | 25.01.17 - 11:32 a.m. | #

You missed the best thing in Battersea - Sambrook's Brewery!

dg writes: Didn't. See end of 2nd paragraph :)

daveid76 | 25.01.17 - 12:57 p.m. | #

My appelogies. I was blind but now I can see !

daveid76 | 25.01.17 - 2:11 p.m. | #

Thanks for that, Still Anon

One of the minor surprises to me about Battersea is how little mention ever gets given to the building between Hester Road and the river. The big ovoid thing.
I always assumed it would be 'attention-worthy' but I've actually never heard a single person say "I've just been to Battersea: you'll never believe what I saw!"

RogerW | 25.01.17 - 2:38 p.m. | #

I used to enjoy going to the fun fair at Battersea Park. It was 6 pence to get in via a turnstile. The wooden roller coaster was I believe run by John Collins, I rode it several times. The Rotor was also popular.
I enjoyed watching the parks Guinness clock too. If you want to see the fair it appears in the film "The Day the Earth Caught Fire".
I also remember a candle factory in Battersea and a pie and mash shop.

John | 25.01.17 - 3:11 p.m. | #

I didn't know the Battersea Park funfair was a permanent thing!
I remember seeing a picture of my brother & I aged about 3 & 5, (so about 1968) holding balloons bought for us after a visit to it.
As we lived nowhere near it (not even a convenient tube journey) I always figured it must have been something special we visited because it wasn't going to be there for long!

Cornish Cockney | 25.01.17 - 3:54 p.m. | #

Roger W - I assume the reason why the ovoid thing near the river isn't mentioned is because it looks 'normal' as you cross Battersea Bridge, at the other end it can only be glimpsed from Battersea Bridge Road as its hidden behind other buildings.

Glimpse view here: [streetview]
Bridge view here: [streetview]

Still anon | 25.01.17 - 6:56 p.m. | #

The ovoid thing is Albion Riverside by Foster + Partners. I suppose it doesn't get huge attention because of what Still anon said, and there are quite a few other, more prominent and/or 'wow' Fosters in London (City Hall, Gherkin, Canary Wharf tube etc)

stevekeiretsu | Homepage | 25.01.17 - 9:00 p.m. | #

It is an odd area, always feels abandoned and on the periphery. I often drive the 19 and 170 buses through here and there is an eerie feeling in the locale

Maz | 26.01.17 - 7:50 p.m. | #











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