Fashionable Notting Hill was the latest London neighbourhood to be explored by members of the Society, on a tour led by Blue Badge Guide Caroline Piper on Friday 27th September.
Notting Hill as we know it today is a relatively new London neighbourhood, most of its elegant terraces being no more than 180 years old. In the 18th century it was nicknamed the “piggeries and potteries” after the extensive pig farms and brick fields that used to dominate the area. Little of this tough, filthy, hard working Notting Hill survives, except for a lone brick bottle kiln in a private garden on the edge of Avondale Park, and of course the London stock bricks which were made in the area and which built the Victorian villas that are so desirable today.
Notting Hill developed as a fashionable middle class residential area from the mid-19th century, but its fortunes since then have been a bit of a rollercoaster, as it declined to become cheap bedsit land in the 1940s, 50s and 60s. This was the era of unscrupulous landlords like Peter Rachman, the notorious serial killer John Christie, the exploitation of newly arrived West Indian immigrants and race riots. Hard work by the local housing association, the pioneers Claudia Jones and Rhuane Laslett who together created the Notting Hill carnival and the seemingly unstoppable influence of gentrification, have transformed the area. Gentrification was helped in no small part in recent decades by the eponymous Richard Curtis film, and our tour naturally included photo opportunities at some of the film’s most iconic locations.
Portobello Road and its antiques market give the neighbourhood a vibrant and cosmopolitan air and locals are fighting hard to preserve its individuality. Combined with the beautiful architecture, ice cream coloured houses and the fact that there are more squares and gardens in Notting Hill than anywhere else in London, it’s easy to see why Notting Hill is so popular with film makers. Tragedy, in the form of the burnt out shell of Grenfell Tower, overshadows the neighbourhood, but the green heart memorial symbol is seen on houses, shops and pubs along Portobello Road in touching tribute.
As ever, members of the Society retired for a relaxing and well earned drink to discuss the tour in a nearby pub!
Organised by Caroline Piper