Goodge Street

 

Here I am at Goodge Street station on the Northern Line. This is #207 out of 272 stations I have visited on the Underground. It was opened in 1907 as Tottenham Court Road station but this was changed the following year to Goodge Street. It is one of 8 stations that have a WW2 deep level air raid shelter underneath which was used by the Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force during the war. General Eisenhower, the Commander of the Allied Forces in Europe, broadcast the announcement of the invasion of France from here on 6th June 1944. Much of the BBC's Doctor Who series was filmed in the shelter in the 1960s.

The station is one of a few stations that have no escalators to take you to and from ground level. There are four lifts or if you are feeling very energetic there is always the staircase.

It is also one of the few stations that has kept the separate entrance and exit which used to be a common feature of tube stations. The ox-blood red tiles on the exterior tell us that this station was designed by Leslie Green.

Around the corner from the station is the Eisenhower Centre. This was the entrance to the underground headquarters of the Allied Army. The monument in front of the building pre dates this entrance. It is a memorial to The Rangers, a London regiment and was erected after WW1

Behind the Eisenhower Building is the semi circular Minerva House. Built in 1912 it was once home to the Minerva Motor Company, a Belgian firm that manufactured luxury cars. It started out at the turn of the 20th century producing safety bicycles and then branched out into light cars and motorized bicycles. By 1912 the company's luxury cars were being favoured by royalty but the timing wasn't great. The First World War and the depression in the 1930s saw the company struggle. It did go on to produce vehicles for the army but ceased trading in 1956. I think nowadays it is yet another office block.

Just across from the station is this mural. It is based on local life and people as well as things which have influenced the area.
                                                                                                                                                                        

On the opposite side of the road to the station is Heal's Department store. Although very familiar with the name, I can't remember ever visiting the store. 

     

It is a beautiful furniture store and was the first brand to introduce French style feather-filled mattresses. This store has been here since 1917 and is their flagship store. It is known for showcasing some of the best designs around. When war broke out Heal's workshops adapted so they could make parachutes to aid the war effort. The expertise gained, whilst doing this, was transferred to producing their own range of textiles after the war, Heal's Fabrics.

I did go in for a look round but quickly realised that the prices had at least 2 if not 3 digits too many for my pocket but I did enjoy looking at some amazing designs. This is the Cecil Brewer staircase with a Bocci chandelier cascading down the centre.

Also on the staircase is The Heal's Cat, considered to be the company's mascot. Sold by accident and returned to the shop at the request of Sir Ambrose Heal, the cat was described as ' the presiding deity of Heal's' by the author of 101 Dalmations, Dodie Smith and reportedly grants wishes if you touch its paws as you pass.

Further along Tottenham Court Road is a newish tourist attraction, Life Size Monopoly. It is an immersive experience with various challenges and escape rooms. Sounded interesting but at over £50 a person, I don't think I will be visiting anytime soon.

There are a number of underground stations in this area so I was trying to find places of interest I've not written about before. I left Tottenham Court Road to go down Torrington Place.

 The area is known as Bloomsbury and has lots of mansion blocks in this area.

This impressive building was designed by C. Fitzroy Dell, who also designed hotels and part of the interior of the Titanic. The building is described as Franco-Flemish Gothic. It started off as a row of shops with one being a bookshop. Waterstones bookshop has now taken over the whole building and must surely be one of the biggest bookshops in the country.

 

Around the corner is RADA, one of the oldest drama schools in the UK. Founded in 1904 it currently has five theatres. The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art has an impressive list of former pupils: Sir John Geilgud, Richard Attenborough, Anthony Hopkins, Glenda Jackson, Imelda Staunton and so on and so on.

London University is also based in this area. This building is called Senate House. It was the idea of Sir William Beveridge who wanted to provide a new cohesive home for London University. Since 1836 the university had been situated in a number of campuses across London. The original idea was to have one single structure with two towers, one being the Senate House with a smaller tower alongside. The architect was Charles Holden, who I have mentioned on numerous occasions as the architect of many art and craft underground stations. Construction began in 1932, however, due to lack of funds and the onset of WW2 only the Senate House and library were completed in 1937.

When war broke out in 1939 the building was taken over by The Ministry of Information which was responsible for subterfuge, censorship and propaganda during the war. The building managed to survive a number of bombings. It is now the administrative centre of the University of London.

I turned the corner into Keppel Street and came across the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. The school was founded in 1899 as the London School of Tropical medicine. By 1921 it was decided to create a London based  institution that would lead the world in the promotion of public health and tropical medicine.  The purchase of the site and the cost of a new building was made possible by a gift of $2m from the Rockefeller Foundation.. 

 The first floor balconies are decorated with gilded bronze insects and animals involved in transmitting disease

Although the facade of the building has remained unchanged since 1929 the inside has been completely transformed and modernised.

I walked back over Gower Street and Tottenham Court road into an area known as Fitzrovia. This is  Rathbone Street where I was attracted to this brightly painted red building, the Newman Arms.

I noticed an alleyway alongside the pub which I decided to see where it would take me.

 

The walkway took me on to a narrow passage which made me think of Dickens and his descriptions of Victorian London.

I walked back round to Charlotte Street.  It is said that the name Fitzrovia was first used to describe the area around the pub, the Fitzroy Tavern, during the 1920s.

The Fitzroy Tavern was named after Charles Fitzroy who developed this area in the 18th cent and is located on the corner of Charlotte Street and Windmill Street. This pub was once the meeting place for various writers and artists including Dylan Thomas, George Orwell and Augustus John.

Across the road from the Tavern is the Charlotte Street Hotel. On this site was once the Charlotte Street Chapel built in 1765. When it was demolished in 1867 a Victorian dental depot was built here. It was during this time that the number of dental products were increasing with the need for porcelain teeth and various dental instruments. After  the war there were 15 dental depots in this area serving all the dental practices around Harley Street and Wimpole Street. This building was eventually converted into a hotel that was opened in 2000. It is a boutique hotel with 52 individually designed rooms costing from £850 per night (without breakfast) if you are interested.

 
Walking a little further along Charlotte Street you come to Colville Place, one of London's oldest residential walkways. The residents have created quite a green oasis that all of us can enjoy as we walk through.

 

Not too far from the tube station in the middle of a new 2016 development of offices, houses and shops is the Victorian Fitzrovia Chapel. This Grade II listed chapel was built in 1890 for the staff and patients of the Middlesex hospital. When the hospital closed in 2005 and all services moved to the new University College Hospital the chapel remained due to its Grade II listing. Part of the development deal for the area was to pay for a £2m refurbishment to restore the chapel to its former glory. During Open House weekend I had the opportunity of visiting for the first time.

The first ever service was held here on Christmas day in 1891. Services were led by many different faith leaders as well as non-denominational services of Thanksgiving and reflection. The chapel was never fully consecrated and now hosts concerts, exhibitions and cultural events as well as having weekly open days when the public are welcomed. 

On my way back to the tube station I was hoping to make one more visit and that was to Pollocks Toy Museum but I was disappointed to see that it had closed. Information on the website tells me that is is temporary as they are looking for funding to open in another permanent site. In the mean time they are holding temporary exhibitions in other locations. One of which is not too far from where I now live. Hopefully I will manage a trip there before too long.