Old Kent Road
Encyclopedia
South East (London sub region)
The South East is a sub-region of the London Plan corresponding to the London Boroughs of Bexley, Bromley, Greenwich, Lewisham and Southwark. The sub region was established in 2008. The south east has a population of 1,300,000 and is the location of 500,000 jobs...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
and forms part of Watling Street
Watling Street
Watling Street is the name given to an ancient trackway in England and Wales that was first used by the Britons mainly between the modern cities of Canterbury and St Albans. The Romans later paved the route, part of which is identified on the Antonine Itinerary as Iter III: "Item a Londinio ad...
, the Roman road
Roman road
The Roman roads were a vital part of the development of the Roman state, from about 500 BC through the expansion during the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire. Roman roads enabled the Romans to move armies and trade goods and to communicate. The Roman road system spanned more than 400,000 km...
which ran from Dover
Dover
Dover is a town and major ferry port in the home county of Kent, in South East England. It faces France across the narrowest part of the English Channel, and lies south-east of Canterbury; east of Kent's administrative capital Maidstone; and north-east along the coastline from Dungeness and Hastings...
to Holyhead
Holyhead
Holyhead is the largest town in the county of Anglesey in the North Wales. It is also a major port adjacent to the Irish Sea serving Ireland....
. The street is famous as the equal cheapest property on the London Monopoly
Monopoly (game)
Marvin Gardens, the leading yellow property on the board shown, is actually a misspelling of the original location name, Marven Gardens. The misspelling was said to be introduced by Charles Todd and passed on when his home-made Monopoly board was copied by Charles Darrow and thence to Parker...
board and as the only one in South London.
History
Chaucer'sGeoffrey Chaucer
Geoffrey Chaucer , known as the Father of English literature, is widely considered the greatest English poet of the Middle Ages and was the first poet to have been buried in Poet's Corner of Westminster Abbey...
pilgrims travelled along this route from London and Southwark on their way to Canterbury
Canterbury
Canterbury is a historic English cathedral city, which lies at the heart of the City of Canterbury, a district of Kent in South East England. It lies on the River Stour....
. At what is the junction with the presently named Shornecliff Road was the bridge crossing of 'St Thomas-a-Waterings', over a small brook, which marked a boundary in the Archbishop of Canterbury's authority of the nearby manors in Southwark and Walworth
Walworth
-Places:United Kingdom* Walworth, County DurhamUnited States* Walworth County, South Dakota* Walworth County, Wisconsin* Walworth, New York* Walworth, Wisconsin, a village* Walworth , Wisconsin, a town...
. The landmark pub, nearby, the 'Thomas a Becket', derives its name from this connection. As such it was a place of execution for criminals whose bodies were left in gibbet
Gibbet
A gibbet is a gallows-type structure from which the dead bodies of executed criminals were hung on public display to deter other existing or potential criminals. In earlier times, up to the late 17th century, live gibbeting also took place, in which the criminal was placed alive in a metal cage...
s at this spot, the principal route from the south-east to the City of London. The fate of burning to death or hanging, drawing and quartering of religious dissenters, both Catholic and Protestant, also occurred here. The Catholics John Jones in 1598 and John Rigby in 1600 met their end here.
The same point was regarded as the limit of the City of London's authority, from 1550, there being a boundary stone set into the wall of the old Fire Station there stating this.
Following from the sale of local monastic properties in the Reformation period the Crown let out many long-leases which were acquired by local people. Most prominently was those held by the Rolls family along the route from Bricklayers Arms to New Cross Road. With the urban expansion of the metropolis these holdings were in turn let out on building licences or shorter leases to others by the Rolls family at considerable profit to them, notably the desirable residencial development in the 1750s in the area of what is now Surrey Square and the Paragon
Paragon
A paragon is a large, flawless diamond. The title is now used figuratively to denote a model of excellence or perfection of any kind; one having no equal; a perfect embodiment of a concept.Paragon may also refer to:-Places:...
which were designed by their Surveyor John Searle (a road near this is named after him). Their family tomb is in the St Mary Magdalen Bermondsey
Bermondsey
Bermondsey is an area in London on the south bank of the river Thames, and is part of the London Borough of Southwark. To the west lies Southwark, to the east Rotherhithe, and to the south, Walworth and Peckham.-Toponomy:...
churchyard. By the third quarter of the Nineteenth Century they had accumulated so much wealth that they acquired a home at Hendre (another local street name to show their connection) and a castle at Llangattock in Wales and then through politics in Monmouth
Monmouth
Monmouth is a town in southeast Wales and traditional county town of the historic county of Monmouthshire. It is situated close to the border with England, where the River Monnow meets the River Wye with bridges over both....
as MPs and High Sheriff
High Sheriff
A high sheriff is, or was, a law enforcement officer in the United Kingdom, Canada and the United States.In England and Wales, the office is unpaid and partly ceremonial, appointed by the Crown through a warrant from the Privy Council. In Cornwall, the High Sheriff is appointed by the Duke of...
s for that county, acquired a Peerage
Peerage
The Peerage is a legal system of largely hereditary titles in the United Kingdom, which constitute the ranks of British nobility and is part of the British honours system...
of the same name. Locally. they started to support the local communities by letting or granting for free some of their lands for social purposes:- the Library at Wells Way Burgess Park
Burgess Park
Burgess Park is a public park situated in the London Borough of Southwark, in an area between Camberwell, Walworth and Peckham. At 46ha , it is one of the largest parks in South London....
now a youth club, the Peabody Estate (Dover Flats) and the St Saviour's Grammar School for Girls site being the most obvious. This is why the road parallel to the main route is named 'Rolls Road'. The last real local remnant of their involvement is the large detached 'White House' between the Peabody Estate buildings, of the 1750s which was their home, then Searle's and then the management office of their trust estates. These were vacated in 1990 and the building has seen use as a Pentecostalist Church centre since then. The last of the male Llangatocks was the Hon Charles Stewart Rolls who was the pioneer motorist and aviator who formed the partnership with Henry Royce
Henry Royce
Sir Frederick Henry Royce, 1st Baronet, OBE was a pioneering car manufacturer, who with Charles Stewart Rolls founded the Rolls-Royce company.-Early life:...
.
The London City Fire Brigade had its 'Thomas Street' fire station placed at the corner site. This was subsumed into the London Fire Brigade from its formation and in 1905 the LCC erected the present building. This was in turn replaced by the modern station on the corner of nearby Coopers Road.
The development of the coal gas utility services was undertaken at the Metropolitan Gas Works, the gasometers remain, principally by the Livesy family. Their local benefactions are Christchurch Church of England and the Livesey Museum for Children
Livesey Museum for Children
The Livesey Museum for Children was in the Old Kent Road, within the London Borough of Southwark, London, England.The Livesey Museum was one of very few children's museums in the United Kingdom, which used to show a completely new hands-on exhibition every year. Each exhibition was suitable for all...
, opposite the gas works.
The road once gave its name to a railway station Old Kent Road
Old Kent Road railway station
Old Kent Road railway station was a station in South London. It opened on 13 July 1866 on a viaduct and bridge crossing the road at a junction with a line to London Bridge and what became Surrey Quays tube station on the East London Line and Queen's Road Peckham railway station on the Inner South...
near New Cross
New Cross
New Cross is a district and ward of the London Borough of Lewisham, England. It is situated 4 miles south-east of Charing Cross. The ward covered by London post town and the SE 14 postcode district. New Cross is near St Johns, Telegraph Hill, Nunhead, Peckham, Brockley, Deptford and Greenwich...
which closed in 1917.
Geography
Although the name appears as simply "Old Kent Road" on maps, it is usually referred to by Londoners as "the Old Kent Road". The Old Kent Road runs from the Bricklayers' ArmsBricklayers' Arms
Bricklayers' Arms is a busy road intersection between A2 and the London Inner Ring Road in south London, England. It is the junction of Tower Bridge Road, Old Kent Road, New Kent Road and Great Dover Street; Old Kent Road and New Kent Road east-bound are connected by a flyover.The area is named...
roundabout, where it meets the New Kent Road
New Kent Road
New Kent Road is a road in the London Borough of Southwark. The road was created in 1751 when the Turnpike Trust upgraded a local footpath. This was done as part of the general road improvements associated with the creation of Westminster Bridge; in effect it was possible to travel from the West...
, Tower Bridge Road, and Great Dover Street
Great Dover Street
Great Dover Street is in Southwark, south London, England. At the northwest end it joins Marshalsea Road and Borough High Street and there is a junction with Long Lane; Borough tube station is at this location. At the southeast end is the Bricklayers' Arms roundabout and flyover...
, to New Cross
New Cross
New Cross is a district and ward of the London Borough of Lewisham, England. It is situated 4 miles south-east of Charing Cross. The ward covered by London post town and the SE 14 postcode district. New Cross is near St Johns, Telegraph Hill, Nunhead, Peckham, Brockley, Deptford and Greenwich...
Road, which begins a little to the east of the mainline railway bridge which is often mistaken as the point of the junction, and the change in street-name is coincident with the border with Lewisham
Lewisham
Lewisham is a district in South London, England, located in the London Borough of Lewisham. It is situated south-east of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London.-History:...
borough. It is regarded as forming the boundary between Walworth
Walworth, London
Walworth is an inner-city district in the London Borough of Southwark. Walworth probably derives its name from the Old English "Wealhworth" which meant Welsh farm. It is located south east of Charing Cross and near to Camberwell and Elephant and Castle.The major streets in Walworth are the Old...
, Camberwell
Camberwell
Camberwell is a district of south London, England, and forms part of the London Borough of Southwark. It is a built-up inner city district located southeast of Charing Cross. To the west it has a boundary with the London Borough of Lambeth.-Toponymy:...
and Peckham
Peckham
Peckham is a district in south London, England, located in the London Borough of Southwark. It is situated south-east of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London...
to the south and Bermondsey
Bermondsey
Bermondsey is an area in London on the south bank of the river Thames, and is part of the London Borough of Southwark. To the west lies Southwark, to the east Rotherhithe, and to the south, Walworth and Peckham.-Toponomy:...
to the north although the ancient parish and vestry boundaries of these do not in fact coincide with it, the Bermondsey boundary running along Rolls Road.
Urban Redevelopment
Apart from piecemeal residential schemes very little change along this route was made until the late 1960s with the London County CouncilLondon County Council
London County Council was the principal local government body for the County of London, throughout its 1889–1965 existence, and the first London-wide general municipal authority to be directly elected. It covered the area today known as Inner London and was replaced by the Greater London Council...
plan of 'Lungs for Londoners' led to the creation of new open spaces and public parks by demolition of heavily urbanised areas; the eastern entrance to one of these, Burgess Park
Burgess Park
Burgess Park is a public park situated in the London Borough of Southwark, in an area between Camberwell, Walworth and Peckham. At 46ha , it is one of the largest parks in South London....
, is also located here at the junction with Albany Road.
General population decline has led to almost all of the pubs being converted to other uses since the mid 80s: from west to east, 'The World Turned Upside Down' (flats), 'The Frog and Nightgown' (planning agreed for apartments and retail), 'The Dun Cow' (GP Surgery), 'The Green Man' (Restaurant), the 'Duke of Kent' (Mosque); the 'Henry Cooper' (derelict), the 'Drovers Arms' (flats) and the 'Canterbury Arms' (derelict). This leaves just the 'Lord Nelson' and 'Thomas a Becket' still trading along the entire length of route.
Since 1985 the planning regime has encouraged large retailers and retail parks to be developed over older properties which were classic examples of ribbon development
Ribbon development
Ribbon development means building houses along the routes of communications radiating from a human settlement. Such development generated great concern in the United Kingdom during the 1920s and the 1930s, as well as in numerous other countries....
whereby residential properties front gardens and/or ground floor areas took advantage of footfall
Churn rate
Churn rate , in its broadest sense, is a measure of the number of individuals or items moving into or out of a collective over a specific period of time...
and were converted to shop units. As of 2011 there are now many high street multiples and hyper markets joining these smaller units along its route including Asda
Asda
Asda Stores Ltd is a British supermarket chain which retails food, clothing, general merchandise, toys and financial services. It also has a mobile telephone network, , Asda Mobile...
, Argos
Argos
Argos is a city and a former municipality in Argolis, Peloponnese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Argos-Mykines, of which it is a municipal unit. It is 11 kilometres from Nafplion, which was its historic harbour...
, Halfords
Halfords
Halfords Group plc is a leading retailer of car parts, car enhancements and bicycles operating in the United Kingdom, Ireland, the Czech Republic and more recently in Poland, although it is currently pulling out of the latter two countries...
, Tesco
Tesco
Tesco plc is a global grocery and general merchandise retailer headquartered in Cheshunt, United Kingdom. It is the third-largest retailer in the world measured by revenues and the second-largest measured by profits...
, Comet
Comet
A comet is an icy small Solar System body that, when close enough to the Sun, displays a visible coma and sometimes also a tail. These phenomena are both due to the effects of solar radiation and the solar wind upon the nucleus of the comet...
, Currys
Currys
Currys is an electrical retailer in the United Kingdom and Ireland and is owned by Dixons Retail plc. It specialises in selling home electronics and household appliances, with 295 superstores and 73 high street stores...
/ PCWorld, B&Q
B&Q
B&Q plc is a multinational DIY and home improvement retailer headquartered in Eastleigh, United Kingdom. It was founded in 1969 and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Kingfisher plc, which is listed on the London Stock Exchange....
, Toys R Us, Aldi
ALDI
ALDI Einkauf GmbH & Co. oHG, doing business as ', short for "Albrecht Discount", is a discount supermarket chain based in Germany...
, Lidl
Lidl
Lidl is a discount supermarket chain based in Germany that operates over 7,200 stores across Europe. The company's full name is Lidl Stiftung & Co. KG...
and others.
Cultural references
- After suffering an attack of amnesiaAmnesiaAmnesia is a condition in which one's memory is lost. The causes of amnesia have traditionally been divided into categories. Memory appears to be stored in several parts of the limbic system of the brain, and any condition that interferes with the function of this system can cause amnesia...
, the main character of George OrwellGeorge OrwellEric Arthur Blair , better known by his pen name George Orwell, was an English author and journalist...
's A Clergyman's DaughterA Clergyman's DaughterA Clergyman's Daughter is a 1935 novel by English author George Orwell. It tells the story of Dorothy Hare, the clergyman's daughter of the title, whose life is turned upside-down when she suffers an attack of amnesia...
, Dorothy Hare, finds herself alone on Old Kent Road. - In A Little PrincessA Little Princess (1939 film)The Little Princess is a 1939 American drama film directed by Walter Lang. The screenplay by Ethel Hill and Walter Ferris is based on the novel A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett. The film was the first Shirley Temple movie to be filmed completely in Technicolor...
Shirley TempleShirley TempleShirley Temple Black , born Shirley Jane Temple, is an American film and television actress, singer, dancer, autobiographer, and former U.S. Ambassador to Ghana and Czechoslovakia...
sings a song titled "Knocked 'em in the Old Kent Road" by Albert ChevalierAlbert ChevalierAlbert Onesime Britannicus Gwathveoyd Louis Chevalier was an English comedian and actor.-Early life:Albert Chevalier was born in the Royal Crescent, in London's Notting Hill...
, of which the chorus gives a good idea of the sort of language that was used in the area: NB Albert Chevalier was the original performer of this song. Music and Lyrics are by Charles IngleCharles IngleCharles Ingle was an English composer. Ingle was the brother and manager of performer Albert Chevalier. Ingle was one of six children. He had two brothers, Albert and Bertram; and a sister, Adéle...
.
"Wot cher!" all the neighbours cried
"'Oo yer gonna meet, Bill
'Ave yer bought the street, Bill"?
Laugh? — I fort I should've died
Knocked 'em in the Old Kent Road!
- The street is juxtaposed against Park LanePark Lane (road)Park Lane is a major road in the City of Westminster, in Central London.-History:Originally a country lane running north-south along what is now the eastern boundary of Hyde Park, it became a fashionable residential address from the eighteenth century onwards, offering both views across Hyde Park...
as a potential place of reference in Nick HornbyNick HornbyNick Hornby is an English novelist, essayist and screenwriter. He is best known for the novels High Fidelity, About a Boy, and for the football memoir Fever Pitch. His work frequently touches upon music, sport, and the aimless and obsessive natures of his protagonists.-Life and career:Hornby was...
's book, High FidelityHigh Fidelity (novel)High Fidelity is a 1995 British novel by Nick Hornby. It was adapted into a 2000 film directed by Stephen Frears and starring John Cusack. It also served as the basis for a 2006 Broadway musical of the same name.-Plot summary:...
. - The street is mentioned multiple times in the MadnessMadness (band)In 1979, the band recorded the Lee Thompson composition "The Prince". The song, like the band's name, paid homage to their idol, Prince Buster. The song was released through 2 Tone Records, the label of The Specials founder Jerry Dammers. The song was a surprise hit, peaking in the UK music charts...
song "Calling Cards", a song about running an illegitimate business "in a sorting office in the Old Kent Road." - In 1985, the BBC's ArenaArena (TV series)Arena is a British television documentary series, made and broadcast by the BBC. It has run since 1 October 1975, and over five hundred episodes have been made. Arena covers all manner of subjects, from profiles of notable people such as Bob Dylan to the Ford Cortina car...
strand included a documentary about the Old Kent Road. It is available to watch on YouTubeYouTubeYouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
. - It's also mentioned in the Girls AloudGirls AloudGirls Aloud are a British and Irish pop girl group based in London. They were created through the ITV1 talent show Popstars The Rivals in 2002. The group consists of Cheryl Cole , Nadine Coyle, Sarah Harding, Nicola Roberts and Kimberley Walsh. They are signed to Fascination Records, a Polydor...
song "Long Hot Summer," in the line "running down that Old Kent Road" and the BananaramaBananaramaBananarama are an English female pop duo who have had success on the pop and dance charts since 1982. Rather than relying on a two part harmony, the duo generally sings in unison, as do their background vocalists. Although there have been line-up changes, the group enjoyed their most popular...
song "Middle of Nowhere," both written by production outfit XenomaniaXenomaniaXenomania is a British songwriting and production team founded by Brian Higgins and based in Kent, England. Formed after Higgins met Miranda Cooper, Xenomania has written and produced for renowned artists such as Cher, Kylie Minogue, Dannii Minogue, Pet Shop Boys, and Sugababes...
. - "Old Kent Road" is the title of a song by London-based indie popIndie popIndie pop is a genre of alternative rock music that originated in the United Kingdom in the mid 1980s, with its roots in the Scottish post-punk bands on the Postcard Records label in the early '80s, such as Orange Juice, Josef K and Aztec Camera, and the dominant UK independent band of the mid...
group Pipas. - Old Kent Road is the name of an Australia hardcore punkHardcore punkHardcore punk is an underground music genre that originated in the late 1970s, following the mainstream success of punk rock. Hardcore is generally faster, thicker, and heavier than earlier punk rock. The origin of the term "hardcore punk" is uncertain. The Vancouver-based band D.O.A...
band.