Neasden
Neasden | |
---|---|
Messengers BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir is Europe's first traditional Hindu stone temple. | |
Location within Greater London | |
OS grid reference | TQ215855 |
London borough | |
Ceremonial county | Greater London |
Region | |
Country | England |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
Post town | LONDON |
Postcode district | NW2, NW10 |
Dialling code | 020 |
Police | Metropolitan |
Fire | London |
Ambulance | London |
Brent Central | |
London Assembly | |
Neasden
History
Name
The area was recorded as Neasdun in AD 939 and the name is derived from the Old English nēos = 'nose' and dūn = 'hill'. It means 'the nose-shaped hill', referring to a well-defined landmark of this area. In 1750, it was known as Needsden and the present spelling appeared at a later date.[2]
As a hamlet
Neasden was a countryside hamlet on the western end of the
In the 15th–17th centuries the Roberts family were the major landowners in the area. Thomas Roberts erected Neasden House (on the site of the modern Clifford Court) in the reign of Henry VIII.[3] In 1651 Sir
During the 18th century the Nicoll family replaced the Roberts as the dominant family in Neasden. In the 19th century these farmers and moneyers at the Royal Mint wholly owned Neasden House and much of the land in the area.
Neasden was no more than a "retired hamlet" when enclosure was completed in 1823. At this time there were six cottages, four larger houses or farms, a public house and a smithy, grouped around the green. The dwellings include The Grove, which had been bought by a London solicitor named James Hall, and its former outbuilding, which Hall had converted into a house that became known as The Grange.[4]
The Welsh Harp reservoir was completed in 1835 but breached in 1841 with fatalities. It had a dramatic effect on the landscape as the damming of the River Brent put many fields and meadows under water.
In the early 1850s, Neasden had a population of about 110. As London grew in the second half of the 19th century, the demand for horses for transport in London soared. Neasden farms concentrated on rearing and providing horses for the city. Town work was exhausting and unhealthy for the horses, and in 1886 the RSPCA formed a committee to set up the Home of Rest for Horses with grounds in Sudbury and Neasden, where for a small fee town horses were allowed to graze in the open for a few weeks.[2]
Urbanisation
The urbanisation of Neasden began with the arrival of the railway.[5] The first railway running through Neasden (Hendon–Acton and Bedford–St. Pancras) was opened for goods traffic in October 1868, with passenger services following soon. In 1875, Dudding Hill, the first station in the area, was opened, and the Metropolitan Railway was extended through Neasden shortly afterwards.[6] Neasden station was opened on Neasden Lane in 1880. New housing, initially for railway workers, was built in the village (particularly around Village Way) with all the streets named after Metropolitan Railway stations in Buckinghamshire. These survive today, and are called Quainton Street and Verney Street, followed by Aylesbury Street in the 1900s.[7]
In 1883, an Anglican mission chapel, St Saviour's, was set up in the village. Its priest, the Reverend James Mills, became an important and popular figure in late 19th century Neasden. In 1885 Mills took over St Andrew's, Kingsbury and became vicar of a new parish, Neasden-cum-Kingsbury, created because of the area's rising population.
Before Mills' arrival, the only sporting facilities in Neasden had been two packs of foxhounds, both of which had disbanded by 1857. Mills became founder president of Neasden Cricket Club and encouraged musical societies. In 1893 a golf club was founded at Neasden House; however only 10% of its members came from Neasden.
In the 1890s change led to a conscious effort to create a village atmosphere. At this time, the Spotted Dog became a social centre for local people. By 1891 Neasden had a population of 930, half of whom lived in the village. Despite the presence of the village in the west[clarification needed], it was the London end that grew fastest.
In 1893 the
Neasden Hospital was built in 1894 and closed in 1986.
Early 20th century
Apart from the railways, Neasden was dominated by agriculture until just before the First World War. In 1911, Neasden's population had swelled to 2,074. By 1913, light industry at Church End had spread up Neasden Lane as far as the station.
In the 1920s, the building of the
WW2 and post-war period
The Post Office Research Station was located nearby in Dollis Hill. There the Colossus computers, among the world's first, were built in 1943-1944 and underneath it the Paddock wartime cabinet rooms were constructed in 1939.
In 1945,
The post-war history of Neasden is one of steady decline; local traffic congestion problems necessitated the building of an underpass on the North Circular Road that effectively cut Neasden in half and had a disastrous effect on the shopping centre by making pedestrian access to it difficult. The decline in industry through the 1970s also contributed to the area's decline. But nonetheless Neasden has survived, largely due to a succession of vibrant immigrant communities keeping the local economy afloat. Neasden Depot continues to be the main storage and maintenance depot for the London Underground's Metropolitan line (and is also used by trains of the Jubilee line); it is London Underground's largest depot[9] and as such it is a major local employer.
Neasden Power Station, which was built to provide power for the Metropolitan Railway, was closed and demolished in 1968.[10]
After the war, a new housing estate called St Raphael's Estate was built west of the North Circular Road and to the east of the River Brent and Wembley.
In 1978, Tesco purchased a 43 acres (17 ha) site in Neasden's Brent Park retail area by the North Circular Road. The borough council objected against the building of a superstore due to threats against local merchants. The superstore was eventually opened in 1985, and Tesco called it London's largest food store.[11][12] It continues to operate today as Tesco Extra Wembley.
In 1988, IKEA opened its second UK store at the Brent Park retail area, at the site of the old Ascot Gas Water Heater factory.[13][14]
Contemporary history
The Grange Tavern (previously called The Old Spotted Dog) on Neasden Lane was closed in the 1990s and demolished to make way for a block of flats, bringing to an end the inn that had stood there for around two centuries. Another old pub, The Pantiles which stood on the North Circular Road was converted to another McDonald's restaurant. The Swedish furniture retailer, IKEA opened its second UK outlet in Neasden in 1988.
On 14 July 1993 in an
In 1995, Neasden became the home of the biggest Hindu temple outside India: the
The area around Neasden Lane North was for a while terrorised by a local gang called "Press Road Crew" who carried knives, dealt drugs and performed vandalism. In 2003, seven members were caught and were banned from the streets they were active in, including Chalkhill Estate in Wembley Park, in the then biggest (by area size) anti-social behaviour order in Britain.[16]
In 2004, the Shopping Centre area was partially redeveloped by the council in an effort to reverse its fortunes. The Grange, which had housed a community museum about the people of Brent was closed by the council in 2005. The building is now a restaurant with its namesake, located inside the Neasden roundabout.[17] The 2004 redevelopment proved to be unpopular with local businesses as it changed the layouts of parking, thus forcing customers and local trade to pass by due to the parking restrictions of the redevelopment.
In 2018 the writer Nicholas Lezard called Neasden a "prime example of what happens when a big road [North Circular] both carves up and strangles an area."[18]
Politics
Neasden is within the UK parliament constituency of Brent Central, currently represented by Dawn Butler MP (Lab). The part of Neasden north of the railway tracks is in the Welsh Harp ward, while the part to the south is in the Stonebridge ward.
Neasden in popular culture
- "The loneliest village in London"
Neasden was once nicknamed ‘the loneliest village in London’.[4]
- Private Eye
Neasden has achieved considerable notoriety thanks to the British
- Metro-land
Neasden was one of the locations in the TV documentary
- BBC Radiophonic Workshop
In a celebrated spoof of the
- Athletico Neasden
Athletico Neasden was an amateur football team of mostly Jewish players, which played in the
- Literature
David Sutherland's children's novel A Black Hole in Neasden reveals a gateway to another planet in a Neasden back garden. Diana Evans's 2006 novel, 26a, details the experiences of twin girls of Nigerian and British descent growing up in Neasden.
- Victorian Order medals
Willie Hamilton reported in 'My Queen and I' that the Victorian order medals were made on a production line in Neasden from used railway lines.[21]
- Dread Broadcasting Corporation
A pirate radio station, Dread Broadcasting Corporation, credited as Britain's first black music radio station,[22] was broadcast from a Neasden garden between 1981 and 1984.
- Dangermouse
In the episode "Planet of the Machines", Dangermouse and Penfold arrive back in Neasden from the planet in the Baron's space time machine
- BBC Your News
Transport and locale
Local attractions
- BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir London, South Neasden NW10
- Brent Reservoir
- Neasden Bunker, North Neasden, Brook Road NW2 - alternative Cabinet War Rooms .[24]
- Sufra & St. Raphael's Edible Garden
Nearest places
Tube
Neasden station is on the Jubilee line and is the only train station in a pretty wide geographic area, excluding Dollis Hill station which is close but on the same line. The southern end of St Raphael's Estate is close to Stonebridge Park station, while the northern end of Neasden (near Staples Corner) is pretty close to Hendon station. In the early 2020s, Brent Cross West station will be opened which would replace Hendon as the nearest Thameslink station for Neasden.
Notable Neasdonians
- Twiggy (model and actress)
- Gerry Anderson (producer, director and writer)
- Ginger Baker (musician)
- Bert Elkin (professional footballer)
- Diana Evans (Novelist)
- Mario Fabrizi (film, TV and radio personality)
- Vinny Feeney(boxer)
- Judy Grinham (Olympic swimmer)
- Charlie Kunz (musician)
- Arthur Ted Powell (artist)
- George the Poet (spoken-word artist)
- William Roberts (Member of Parliament)
- Jock Rutherford (footballer)
- Raheem Sterling (footballer)
- Gary Warren (actor)
- Graham Young ("The Teacup Poisoner")
- Mari Wilson (singer)
- Angelos Epithemiou (fictional character)
- Bob Marley (reggae singer)[1]
- Chunkz (social media personality and singer)
References
- ^ a b "Bob Marley's mark on Neasden honoured with a plaque". Mylondon.news. 19 September 2012.
- ^ a b "Neasden, area in the London Borough of Brent". Brent-heritage.co.uk. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 10 January 2008.
- ^ "Brent Archives" (PDF). 11 February 2012. Archived from the original on 11 February 2012. Retrieved 9 July 2022.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) - ^ a b "Neasden - Hidden London". Hidden-london.com.
- ^ "Planning and building control - Brent Council". Brent.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 5 September 2009. Retrieved 15 December 2007.
- ^ "Neasden Station". Archived from the original on 3 April 2008. Retrieved 10 January 2008.
- ^ "Diamond Geezer". Diamondgeezer.blogspot.com. Retrieved 9 July 2022.
- ^ "The Ascot Park and North Circular Road prefabs in Neasden, north-west London" (PDF). Prefabmuseum.uk. Archived (PDF) from the original on 10 May 2021. Retrieved 9 July 2021.
- ^ "Metronet Rail - Having Outstanding Brand". Metronet Rail. Archived from the original on 31 October 2006. Retrieved 7 January 2009.
- ^ [1] [dead link]
- ^ "Tesco Plc". Encyclopedia.com. Retrieved 9 July 2022.
- ^ Deborah Ross (13 April 2012). "Sainsbury's just couldn't win". Evening Standard. Retrieved 9 July 2022.
- ^ "Work | Ashford Place". Ashfordplace.org.uk. Retrieved 9 July 2022.
- ^ "Creative retailing at Ikea", Pinner Observer, p. 38, 7 April 1988
- ^ "IRA bombers foiled by MI5 · British Universities Film & Video Council". Bufvc.ac.uk.
- ^ Low, Valentine; Tahir, Tariq (13 October 2003). "Gang named and shamed". Evening Standard. London.
- ^ "The Grange | Neasden NW101QB". Archived from the original on 24 July 2015.
- ^ Lezard, Nicholas (29 August 2018). "Dreams don't come to Neasden to die: They could never have lived here in the first place". New Statesman. London.
- ^ "Music". 5 November 2001. Archived from the original on 5 November 2001. Retrieved 9 July 2022.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) - ^ "Temple Fortune Football Club". Tffc.co.uk.
- ^ Michael Dewe. "The Grange, Neasden" (PDF). Ads.ahds.ac.uk. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2 June 2009. Retrieved 9 July 2022.
- ^ "BBC - 1Xtra - Black History Month - 1980". Bbc.co.uk.
- ^ "Your News knees up in Neasden". News.bbc.co.uk. 29 September 2008. Retrieved 9 July 2022.
- ^ "Underground Bunker, Neasden | Open House London 2018". Openhouselondon.open-city.org.uk. Archived from the original on 11 November 2018. Retrieved 11 November 2018.