Mortlake Crematorium
| Mortlake Crematorium | |
|---|---|
 | |
 | |
| General information | |
| Type | Crematorium |
| Location | Kew Meadow Path Richmond TW9 4EN England United Kingdom Area: Kew, London Borough of Richmond upon Thames[1] |
| Construction started | 1936 |
| Completed | 1939 |
| Opening | 1939 |
| Cost | £27,000[2] |
| Owner | London boroughs of Ealing, Hammersmith & Fulham, Hounslow and Richmond upon Thames |
| Management | Mortlake Crematorium Board |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect(s) | Douglas Barton[2] |
| Developer | Hammersmith Metropolitan Borough Council |
| Website | |
| www | |
Listed Building – Grade II | |
| Official name | Mortlake Crematorium |
| Designated | 5 May 2011 |
| Reference no. | 1400834 |
Mortlake Crematorium is a crematorium in Kew,[1] near its boundary with Mortlake, in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. It opened in 1939, next to Mortlake Cemetery.
The crematorium serves the
councillors from each of these four boroughs.[2]
Citing it as "a rare example" of
Richmond upon Thames Council has described it as "a building of exceptional quality and character".[3] Environmentalist Colin Hines describes it as "probably the most undiscovered deco treasure in London".[4] Hilary Grainger, writing in Encyclopedia of Cremation, describes the architectural style as Italianate and the building as having "beautiful cloisters with discrete brick detailing".[5] It has been a Grade II listed building since 2011, being assessed by Historic England as having "a distinctive Art Deco design that survives little altered in a compact and practical composition".[6]
Location
The crematorium is on Kew Meadow Path, Townsmead Road,South Western Railway services).
History
Mortlake Crematorium was built on the site of Pink's Farm, which had belonged to Richard Atwood, whose family were prominent market gardeners in the area.[8]
| Mortlake Crematorium Act 1936 | |
|---|---|
| Act of Parliament | |
 26 Geo. 5. & 1 Edw. 8. c. xxi | |
| Dates | |
| Royal assent | 31 July 1936 |
It was licensed in 1936 under the Mortlake Crematorium Act 1936, thereby becoming the first to be established under its own
Physician to the King, he said: "You seem to have eliminated the sombreness of atmosphere which sometimes shrouds buildings such as these".[2][4] After that, there was very little change in Mortlake Crematorium's outward appearance until 1982, when Colin Gilbert, an architect from Ealing, designed additional gardens between the crematorium and the River Thames.[2] Since 2015 the crematorium has had a memorial garden dedicated to the memory of babies and children, based on Doris Stickley's story "Water Bugs and Dragonflies".[9][10]
Three new, larger cremators were installed in the crematory in 2012.[11]
Notable cremations
Among those cremated here were:
- wind-up radio that he had invented[12]
- Richard Beckinsale (1947–1979), actor[13]
- Tarka Cordell (1966–2008), musician[14]
- Tommy Cooper (1921–1984), comedian and magician[15]
- Sir Robin Day (1923–2000), political broadcaster and commentator[15]
- Roger Delgado (1918–1973), actor, most famous for playing The Master in Doctor Who[16]
- Kenny Everett (1944–1995), radio DJ and television entertainer[17]
- Edd Gould (1988–2012), animator, voice actor and creator of Eddsworld[18]
- Charles Hawtrey (1914–1988), comedy actor[19]
- Valerie Hobson (1917–1998), actress[20]
- John Hutchinson (1884–1972), botanist, taxonomist and author[21]
- Arthur Koestler (1905–1983), author[22]
- James Edgar Leach (1892–1958), Victoria Cross recipient, World War I[23]
- RMS Titanic[24]
- Lord Longford (Frank Pakenham) (1905–2001), politician and social reformer[25]
- Ernestine Mills (1871–1959), artist, writer and suffragette[26]
- Kirsty MacColl (1959–2000), singer-songwriter[27]
- Jimmy Perry (1923–2016), actor and scriptwriter, who devised and co-wrote the BBC television sitcom Dad's Army[28]
- Christopher Price (1967–2002), radio and television broadcaster[29]
- John Profumo (1915–2006), politician, Secretary of State for War[30]
- Sir Michael Redgrave (1908–1985), actor, author and director[15]
- Gordon Reid (1939–2003), Scottish actor[31]
- Prince Alexander Romanov (1929–2002), member of the Russian Imperial Family[25]
- Sir Denis Thatcher, Bt (1915–2003), businessman and husband of Margaret Thatcher[32]
- Margaret Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher (1925–2013), Prime Minister of the United Kingdom[32][33][34][35][36]
- Alexander Trocchi (1925–1984), Scottish novelist[37]
- Stephen Ward (1912–1963), osteopath and artist who was one of the central figures in the Profumo affair[38]
World War II memorial
Seventy-nine
References
- ^ a b c "Village Plan for the Kew area". London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. 12 July 2017. Retrieved 2 September 2017.
- ^ a b c d e f g "History and the Board". Mortlake Crematorium. Retrieved 27 April 2023.
- ^ "Cabinet Member for Environment and Planning. Report of: Assistant Director Environment Planning & Review. Subject: Buildings of Townscape Merit". London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. 9 February 2004. Retrieved 6 January 2017.
- ^ ISBN 0-9544751-0-0.
- ISBN 978-0-7546-3773-8.
- ^ a b c Historic England (5 May 2011). "Mortlake Crematorium (1400834)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 8 March 2023.
- ^ "Contact". Mortlake Crematorium. Retrieved 5 August 2015.
- ISBN 0-85033-923-5.
- ^ "West London Sands Receives Sizeable Donation From Mortlake Crematorium". ChiswickW4.com. 22 June 2016. Retrieved 2 September 2017.
- ^ Doris Stickley. "Water Bugs and Dragonfiles". BelovedHearts.com. Retrieved 3 September 2017.
- The Independent on Sunday. Retrieved 24 July 2017.
- ^ Lawrence Smith-Higgins (2 May 2018). "Trevor Graham Baylis CBE (13 May 1937 – 5 March 2018)". Intellectual Property Office Blog. Retrieved 30 November 2023.
- ISBN 978-0-7509-5061-9.
- ^ "Tarka Cordell's funeral". The Daily Telegraph. 9 May 2008. Retrieved 6 September 2015.
- ^ a b c Amy Dyduch (8 June 2014). "Mortlake Crematorium marks 75 years". Richmond and Twickenham Times. Retrieved 2 December 2023.
- ISBN 978-1-78196-300-5.
- ISSN 0001-8996.
- ^ Steve Dawson (2 January 2017). "What Happened to Edd Gould of Eddsworld? – A 2018 Update". Gazette Review. Retrieved 2 December 2023.
- ISBN 978-0571210893.
- ISBN 978-0-7864-7992-4.
- S2CID 85985378.
- ISBN 978-0434113057.
- ^ Iain Stewart. "Grave location for holders of the Victoria Cross in Surrey". www.victoriacross.org.uk. Retrieved 6 September 2015.
- ^ Steve Williams. "A Titanic Connection: Second Officer Charles Lightoller 1874–1952". Brindle Historical Society. Retrieved 8 August 2015.
- ^ Kew Society. Spring 2006. Archived from the original(PDF) on 12 December 2013. Retrieved 24 July 2017.
- ^ "Humanist Heritage: Ernestine Mills (1871-1959)". Humanist Heritage. Retrieved 4 December 2021.
- ISBN 978-1-61185-976-8. Retrieved 6 January 2018.
- ^ Mark Braxton (7 November 2016). "Friends, family and famous fans bid farewell to Dad's Army creator 'Gentleman Jim' Perry". Radio Times. Retrieved 2 December 2023.
- ^ "Poignant farewell to Price". BBC News. 8 May 2002. Retrieved 23 January 2014.
- ISBN 978-1-61185-976-8.
- The Free Library. Retrieved 23 January 2014.
- ^ a b Gordon Rayner & Andrew Hough (17 April 2013). "Baroness Thatcher: Tearful Sir Mark and Carol Thatcher say final farewell to their mother at cremation". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 12 February 2017.
- ^ Amy Dyduch (17 April 2013). "Margaret Thatcher supporters line streets of Mortlake". Richmond and Twickenham Times. London. Retrieved 17 April 2013.
- ^ Andrew Sparrow; Paul Owen (17 April 2013). "Margaret Thatcher's funeral – Tuesday 16 April". The Guardian. Retrieved 2 February 2018.
- ^ "Baroness Thatcher's funeral: Procession details". ITV. 17 April 2013. Retrieved 12 July 2022.
- ^ Prime Minister's Office, 10 Downing Street (16 April 2013). "Lady Thatcher's funeral – timings". gov.uk. Retrieved 12 February 2017.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ISBN 978-1-84921-072-0.
- ^ "Cremation Writes Finis To Dr. Ward's Sordid Career After Suicide Verdict". St. Petersburg Times. St. Petersburg, Florida. 9 August 1963. pp. 3–A. Retrieved 21 February 2017.
- ^ Ben Weich (30 April 2016). "Oscar-winning special effects guru and East Sheen native Kit West dies aged 80". Richmond and Twickenham Times. Retrieved 11 June 2016.
- ^ "Mortlake Crematorium". Commonwealth War Graves Commission. Retrieved 2 December 2023.
- ^ "Captain Vivian Gordon Davies". Casualty details. Commonwealth War Graves Commission. Retrieved 12 July 2022.
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Mortlake Crematorium.