Camden Town

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Ralph WJ Brown (talk | contribs) at 20:34, 27 November 2016 (→‎In music). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

For the greater region, see London Borough of Camden and Camden Town tube station.

Camden Town
Chalk Farm Road, near where it becomes Camden High Street
Population24,538 (Camden Town with Primrose Hill and Cantelowes wards 2011)[1]
OS grid referenceTQ295845
• Charing Cross2.4 mi (3.9 km) SSE
London borough
Ceremonial countyGreater London
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townLONDON
Postcode districtNW1
NW5
Dialling code020
PoliceMetropolitan
FireLondon
AmbulanceLondon
UK Parliament
London Assembly
List of places
UK
England
London

Camden Town (/ˈkæmdən/ ⓘ), often shortened to Camden (ambiguously also used for the much larger London Borough of Camden of which it is the central neighbourhood), is an inner city district of northwest London,[2] 2.4 miles (3.9 km) north of the centre of London. It is one of the 35 major centres identified in the London Plan.[3]

Laid out as a residential district from 1791 and originally part of the manor of Kentish Town and the parish of St Pancras, London, Camden Town became an important location during the early development of the railways, which reinforced its position on the London canal network. The area's industrial economic base has been replaced by service industries such as retail, tourism and entertainment. The area now hosts street markets and music venues which are strongly associated with alternative culture.

History

Toponymy

Camden Town is named after Charles Pratt, 1st Earl Camden. His earldom was styled after his estate, Camden Place near Chislehurst in Kent (now in the London Borough of Bromley), formerly owned by historian William Camden.[4] The name, which appears on the Ordnance Survey map of 1822,[5] was later applied to the early 20th century Camden Town Group of artists and the London Borough of Camden, created in 1965.[6]

Urban development

Camden Town stands on land which was once the manor of Kentish Town.[6] Sir Charles Pratt, a radical 18th century lawyer and politician, acquired the manor through marriage. In 1791, he started granting leases for houses to be built in the manor.[6] In 1816, the Regent's Canal was built through the area.[7] Up to at least the mid 20th century, Camden Town was considered an "unfashionable" locality.[8] The Camden markets, which started in 1973 and have grown since then, attract many visitors all week. Camden Lock Village, then known as Camden Lock market, suffered a major fire, but no injuries, on 9 February 2008.[9] It has since recovered.[10]

Governance

Camden Town, previously in the Metropolitan Borough of St Pancras, became part of the London Borough of Camden when it was created in 1965.

Political constituencies

Camden Town is contained in the following political constituencies for different purposes, listed with some incumbents as of 2012:

Geography

Camden Town is on relatively flat ground at 100 feet (30 m) above sea level, 2.4 miles (3.9 km) north-northwest of Charing Cross. To the north are the hills of Hampstead and Highgate. The culverted, subterranean River Fleet flows from its source on Hampstead Heath through Camden Town south to the Thames.[11] The Regent's Canal runs through the north of Camden Town.

Economy

Stables market horse sculptures

From the end of the twentieth century entertainment-related businesses and a Holiday Inn started moving into the area. A number of retail and food chain outlets replaced independent shops, driven out by high rents and redevelopment. Restaurants with a variety of culinary traditions thrived, many of them a little away from the markets, on Camden High Street and its side streets, Parkway, Chalk Farm Road, and Bayham Street. The plan to re-develop the historic Stables Market led to a steel and glass extension, built on the edges of the site in 2006, and increased the market's capacity.

Camden street markets

Main article: Camden Market

Camden is well known for its markets. These date from the 1970s or later, except for Inverness Street market, for over a century a small food market serving the local community,[12] though by 2013 all foodstuff and produce stalls had gone, leaving only touristy stalls. Camden Lock market proper started in a former timber-yard in 1973, and is now surrounded by five more markets: Buck Street market, Stables market, Camden Lock village, and an indoor market in the Electric Ballroom. The markets are a major tourist attraction at weekends, selling goods of all types, including fashion, lifestyle, books, food, junk/antiques and more bizarre items; they and the surrounding shops are popular with young people, in particular those searching for "alternative" clothing.

Transport

The Regent's Canal waterbus service

London Underground

Camden Town Tube station is near the markets and other attractions. It is a key interchange station for the Bank, Charing Cross, Edgware and High Barnet Northern line branches.[13] The station was not designed to cope with the volume of traffic it handles since the area increased in popularity. It is very crowded at weekends, and, as of 2011, is closed to outbound passengers on Sunday afternoons for safety reasons. London Underground has made many proposals to upgrade the station. In 2004 a proposal requiring the compulsory purchase and demolition of 'the Triangle'—land bordered by Kentish Town Road, Buck Street and Camden High Street—was rejected by Camden Council after opposition from local people; of 229 letters, only two supported the scheme. Template:LUL stations and Template:LUL stations tube stations also serve the area.

Camden Town tube station is exit-only at times when market-related traffic would cause dangerous overcrowding on the narrow platforms; as of 2014 on Sundays from 13:00 to 17:30. At these times, TfL advises tube users to use the nearest alternative station, Mornington Crescent, instead.

Rail

Camden Road is a London Overground station at the corner of Royal College Street and Camden Road. It is on the line from Richmond in the West to Stratford station on the Olympic site in the East. The nearest National Rail station is Template:LUL stations on the Thameslink route on the Midland Main Line. Template:LUL stations and Template:LUL stations terminals are both within 20 minutes walk of Camden Town.

Roads

The twin Camden Locks

The area is a major hub for London Buses.[14] Parts of the A503 (Camden Road) and A400 (Camden High Street and Camden Street) are designated as red routes on which vehicles may not stop for any reason, managed by Transport for London rather than the borough.[15] Black taxis ply for hire in the area and there are minicab offices.[16]

Regent's Canal

A warm summer day at the Camden Lock

The Regent's Canal runs through the north end of Camden Town. Canal boat trips along the canal from Camden Lock are popular, particularly in summer. Many of the handrails by the bridges show deep marks worn by the towropes by which horses pulled canal barges until the 1950s, and it is still possible to see ramps on the canal bank designed to assist horses which fell in the canal after being startled by the noise of a train. Camden Lock is a regularly used traditional manually operated double canal lock operating between widely separated levels. A large complex of weekend street markets operate around the Lock. The towpath is a pedestrian and cycle route which runs continuously from Little Venice through Camden Lock to the Islington Tunnel[17] A regular waterbus service operates along the Regent's Canal from Camden Lock. Boats depart every hour during the summer months, heading westwards around Regent's Park, calling at London Zoo and on towards Maida Vale. Sightseeing narrow-boat trips run from Camden Lock to Little Venice.

Landmarks

Street art close to the Camden Market
Punks close to the Electric Ballroom
Shops on Camden High Street

The Roundhouse Theatre

The Roundhouse is a locomotive engine roundhouse constructed in 1847 for the London & North Western Railway. It later had various uses and eventually became derelict. It was converted to a theatre, arts centre and music venue in the 1966, later closed, and re-opened in 2006 as a theatre and music venue.

Historic places

Notable people

  • Richard Ryan lived in Camden Town from 1819 until his death in 1849.
  • Charles Dickens's second London home was in Bayham Street, Camden in 1822.
  • Charles Dickens later moved to 112 College Place, Camden.[22] It was here in College Place (then known as Little College Street) that he boarded with Elizabeth Roylance, a family friend, whom Dickens later immortalised as "Mrs. Pipchin", in Dombey and Son.
  • Beryl Bainbridge lived in Albert Street from the 1960s until her death in 2010.[23]
  • Playwright Alan Bennett lived in Gloucester Crescent for many years.[24]
  • Physicist, mathematician, and engineer Oliver Heaviside was born in Camden Town.[25]
  • The author and journalist Bernard Levin grew up in Camden, in Plender Street.[26]
  • The boxer Tom Sayers lived in Camden, and died at No. 257 Camden High Street in 1865. The house now has a plaque.[27]
  • The painter Walter Sickert lived and worked as part of the Camden Town Group in Mornington Crescent.[28] In 1908 he painted a group of four paintings entitled collectively The Camden Town Murder, in reference to the notorious Camden Town Murder case of 1907.
  • Poet Dylan Thomas owned a house at 54 Delancey Street from 1951 until his death in 1953.[29] There is a plaque on the house today.
  • Julian Clary Comedian
  • Gruff Rhys of the Super Furry Animals used to live on Hawley Road.
  • Actress Gwyneth Paltrow and Coldplay singer Chris Martin have homes in Belsize Park Gardens and College Place in Camden.[30]
  • Gary Lightbody singer with Snow Patrol lives between Camden Town and Primrose Hill.
  • Singer Amy Winehouse lived in Camden Town, first on Prowse Place[31] and then on Camden Square where she was found dead in July 2011.[32]
  • Hip-hop trio N-Dubz are from and grew up in the area.
  • Music Band Madness are also from and grew up in the area and surrounding areas.
  • Actor Freddie Highmore was born in Camden Town in 1992.
  • Musician Graham Coxon lives in Camden Town where he was prominent fixture of the 90s britpop scene frequenting places such as The Good Mixer

Media

The former TV-am building, right

National

Main article: Breakfast Television Centre

To the north of Camden Town station and running along the canal is a modern pop art complex designed by Terry Farrell as the studios of the former TV-am, now used by MTV[7] but retaining TV-am's eggcup sculptures along the roof line. Associated Press Television News has its head office in a former gin warehouse near Camden Lock called "The Interchange".[33]

Local

The Camden New Journal is a free, independent weekly newspaper that cover the London Borough of Camden.

In popular culture

In literature

In film

In music

References

  1. ^ Census Information Scheme (2012). "2011 Census Ward Population figures for London". Greater London Authority. Retrieved 17 October 2023.
  2. ^ "London's Places" (PDF). London Plan. Greater London Authority. 2011. p. 46. Archived from the original (PDF) on 6 September 2015. Retrieved 27 May 2014. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  3. ^ Mayor of London (February 2008). "London Plan (Consolidated with Alterations since 2004)" (PDF). Greater London Authority. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 June 2010. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  4. ^ Walford, Edward (1878). "Camden Town and Kentish Town". British History Online. Retrieved 3 November 2009.
  5. ^ Mills 2001, p. 37
  6. ^ a b c Mills 2001, p. 38
  7. ^ a b Hibbert, Christopher (2008). London Encyclopaedia. Macmillan London Ltd. p. 123. ISBN 978-1-4050-4924-5.
  8. ^ Dunton, Larkin (1896). The World and Its People. Silver, Burdett. p. 29.
  9. ^ "Blaze ravages London market area". bbc.co.uk. BBC. 9 February 2008. Retrieved 2 January 2010.
  10. ^ "Camden Market continues strongly". www.minttwist.com. MintTwist. 22 February 2008. Retrieved 29 August 2014.
  11. ^ Walford, Edward (1878). "St Pancras". British History Online. Retrieved 4 November 2009.
  12. ^ Camden New Journal: Camden's oldest market in Inverness Street ‘could go under’, 11 February 2010
  13. ^ "Stations and interchanges: Camden Town". Transport for London. Archived from the original on 16 October 2009. Retrieved 2 November 2009. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  14. ^ "Night buses in north London" (PDF). Transport to London. Retrieved 2 November 2009.
  15. ^ "Red Routes: Central Area" (PDF). Transport for London. Retrieved 2 November 2009.
  16. ^ "Executive summary" (PDF). Greater London Authority. 2004. Retrieved 29 September 2015.
  17. ^ "Cycling along the Regent's Canal". British Waterways. Retrieved 2 November 2009.
  18. ^ Subterranean Britannica: Camden Catacombs
  19. ^ camdenguide.so.uk
  20. ^ locallocalhistory.co.uk: The Aerated Bread Company, and The New Sainsbury Building
  21. ^ "Chasing Rimbaud through our streets". Camden New Journal. Retrieved 21 April 2013.
  22. ^ Jolly, Emma. "Charles Dickens in Camden". Retrieved 20 April 2013.
  23. ^ Kellaway, Kate (15 May 2011). "The secret art of Beryl Bainbridge". The Guardian. Retrieved 7 December 2011.
  24. ^ Greenstreet, Rosanna (24 October 2001). "My first home: Freya North". The Telegraph. Retrieved 7 December 2011.
  25. ^ "Archives biographies: Oliver Heaviside 1850–1925". The Institution of Engineering and Technology. Retrieved 7 December 2011.
  26. ^ Levin, Bernard. Enthusiasms. Coronet. pp. 80–82. ISBN 0-340-36927-2. Retrieved 14 December 2013.
  27. ^ "Tom Sayers – Blue Plaque". openplaques.org. Retrieved 14 December 2013. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  28. ^ "Walter Sickert Nudes: An underworld stripped bare". The Telegraph. 6 November 2007. Retrieved 7 December 2011.
  29. ^ "1950s to Dylan's death". City and County of Swansea. Retrieved 7 December 2011.
  30. ^ "Chris Martin and Gwyneth Paltrow's home in London". Retrieved 13 July 2013.
  31. ^ "Police could step in to disband Amy's paparazzi army". Ham & High. 22 August 2008. Retrieved 1 July 2014.
  32. ^ Wilson, Cherry (23 July 2011). "Amy Winehouse found dead aged 27 in London home". The Guardian. Retrieved 7 December 2011.
  33. ^ "Head Office Map" (PDF). Associated Press. Retrieved 6 November 2009.
  34. ^ Pope-Hennessy, Una (1945). "The Family Background". Charles Dickens 1812–1870. London: Chatto and Windus. p. 11.
  35. ^ "Camden's famous faces". Camden New Journal. 23 April 2009. Retrieved 6 November 2009.
  36. ^ John Betjeman, Business Girls at poetryconnection.net, accessed 25 April 2015
  37. ^ Paula Span, TINKER, TAILOR, SOLDIER... TOURIST, The Washington Post, accessed 27 January 2016
  38. ^ Catterall, Ali. "Withnal And I (1987)". Film4. Retrieved 1 December 2011.
  39. ^ Phillip French (20 April 2008). "Film of the week: Happy-Go-Lucky". The Observer. Retrieved 21 February 2009.
  40. ^ Calhoun, Dave. "Mike Leigh's London locations". Time Out. Retrieved 21 February 2009.
  41. ^ Camden Town by Suggs in Camden, North London, England

Bibliography

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Camden Town.

London/Camden travel guide from Wikivoyage

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Camden_Town&oldid=751781907"