Victoria Community Newsletter Autumn 2013

communit y Newsletter autumn 2013

autumn 2013

editor’s letter

welcome to victoria

W

elcome

to

the

But Victoria would guide

autumn edition of

Britain to unimagined

the Victoria community

heights. In recognition of

newsletter. It has been a

her iconic reign, there are

special year for the Royal

thousands of memorials

Family. In the summer we marked the 60th

in her honour. Perhaps the most significant of

anniversary of the Queen’s coronation, followed

these is an important area of London. Today,

by the celebrations as we welcomed the Duke

Victoria is looking forward to a vibrant future,

and Duchess of Cambridge’s son George to the

just as the queen it is named after did.

world. To continue the theme of royal tradition,

Opposite London Victoria Station, Land

this edition of the newsletter focuses on the

Securities has started work on the construction

pageantry of Victoria. We go behind the scenes

of Nova, Victoria. The name, of course, comes

of the Royal Mews and visit the Guards Chapel

from the Latin for ‘new’. It will be an inspiring

at Wellington Barracks.

place where businesses and their employees

It’s sometimes easy to forget the royal

will want to be based and locals and tourists

connections we have in Victoria. When we

alike will want to meet. A place to shop at

hear the name we think of a station or an

leisure or socialise with friends and colleagues

embankment, and yet Victoria was one of our

over lunch, dinner or drinks. A place enlivened

greatest-ever monarchs. When the young

with public art. Welcome to the new Victoria.

Queen Victoria came to the throne in 1837, we were at the dawn of the industrial age; no one could have known just how great the Empire would become under the then teenage queen.

Jonathan Alabaster jonathan.alabaster@landsecurities.com

autumn 2013

news

V ic t or ia ju s t got g r e ener Would you believe it? Yet more green space has been introduced to Victoria. To celebrate the 60th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II’s accession to the throne and Coronation, The Diamond Garden has taken up residence next to The Queen’s Gallery. The garden, designed by Chelsea Flower Show gold medal-winner Nigel Dunnett, is formed of a striking pattern of Portland Stone, interspersed with evergreen plants and flowers that are set to bloom throughout the summer.

The creation of the garden is part of Victoria BID’s ‘Clean and Green’ initiative to install new green spaces and enhance existing areas in Victoria – a project that Land Securities is keen to support.

T he new face of V ic t or ia Nova, Victoria is an architecturally daring urban campus that delivers a new, vibrant destination for London. The comprehensive transformation of this 5.5 acre island site opposite the mainline railway station is the defining moment in Land Securities’ £2.2 billion re-invention of Victoria. An 897,000 sq ft mixed-use scheme of five buildings, it will have 16,000 sq ft of community space and a new, 82,700 sq ft, landscaped public space, with two pedestrian routes linking Buckingham Palace and the Royal Parks to the capital’s busiest transport hub. Nova’s bold architecture is the result of a collaboration between several notable practices: Benson & Forsyth, Flanagan Lawrence, Lynch Architects and PLP Architecture, which has designed the masterplan.

Construction of the first phase – 480,000 sq ft of offices, 80,000 sq ft of retail and 170 luxury modern apartments within three landmark buildings – is due for completion in 2016. Nova will be an inspiring place where leading businesses will want to be based; a bustling quarter where locals will meet, shop, and enjoy a meal or drinks after work; a distinctive cultural space where ever-changing art works will be enjoyed by the public.

Sa fe cit y c ycl i n g Cycling is a great way to get around London, keep fit and do your bit for the environment. But it’s important to be safe so Land Securities was proud to support the inaugural ‘Cycle Safety in Victoria Day’ on 12 July. Cyclists converged on Cardinal Place for ‘Cycle Confident’ masterclasses; bike maintenance training; Met Police demonstrations on road positioning; and complimentary smoothies from a pedal-powered mixer!

autumn 2013

news

Helpi n g the homele s s

A summer to remember Where were you when Andy Murray won the Wimbledon men’s singles title? Many of us were on the edge of our deckchairs watching him on the big screen at the Cardinal Place roof garden. As part of the ‘Great British Summer’, Land Securities made Centre Court accessible for free to the people of Victoria and you came in droves to watch history made. To keep track of more events in the area, check out the ‘What’s On’ section of the Create Victoria website, where you can also sign up for updates. createvictoria.com

At Land Securities, we’re very aware of our responsibility to the communities in which we work. One of the local ventures we help is the Cardinal Hume Centre, which enables people to gain the skills to overcome poverty and homelessness.

On 26 June, the centre’s chairman, Paul Goggins MP, met staff and guests to celebrate the building of five new flats on Horseferry Road. Land Securities donated £20,000 and its volunteers transformed the courtyard, so it’s great to see them completed. They will offer young people the chance to build a stable employment history or attend college to improve their futures. To read about other community initiatives, visit landsecuritieslondon.com

T he Z i g Z a g a nd K i n g s G at e bu i ld i n g s There has been steady progress on the projects since work began. The basement and ground floors of the Patrick Lynchdesigned developments are underway and top-down construction will begin on Kings Gate in the next few months.

Our second significant residential contribution to Victoria, this very British collection of luxury apartments, studios and penthouses is well on course for the planned grand opening in 2015. For a bird’s eye view of the development via live webcam, visit landsecuritieslondon.com

Moder n a r t is th r iv i ng i n Victor ia Next time you walk down Victoria Street and come to the corner of Buckingham Gate, stop and look into number 62, where works to facilitate the arrival of the first tenants have begun. Suspended from the reception ceiling is one of the most striking chandeliers you’re ever likely to see. Created

by Stuart Haygarth, the 1.5m-diameter ‘Optical Chandelier’ is made of 70,000 recycled spectacle lenses. The result is a stunning light display, with the lenses lit up like jewels, perfectly complementing the external angled glass and reflective cladding, as well as the West Canopy – the stunning coloured-glass roof, designed

by Sophie Smallhorn, over the piazza between the building and Westminster City Hall. Another significant recent installation is a tapestry by Turner Prize-winning artist Grayson Perry. Called ‘The Annunciation of the Virgin Deal’, it is taken from the sequence The Vanity of Small Differences, inspired by Hogarth’s Rake’s Progress and the characters Perry met filming his TV series In the Best Possible Taste.

Watch our video of Grayson Perry at createvictoria.com

autumn 2013

news

W hat ha s ha pp ene d t o L it tle B en?

A treasured Victoria landmark has vanished. But don’t worry, our favourite meeting place hasn’t been stolen. Little Ben is safely stored while upgrades to Victoria Station that involve tunnelling around the miniature clock tower take place. Little Ben (named for its similarity to the larger bell tower at the other end of Victoria Street) stood in front of the Victoria Palace Theatre from 1892 till 1964, but wasn’t restored and re-erected till 1981. It won’t be away for that long this time and will return by 2016.

A bu zz a rou nd Victor ia In a city like London, every scrap of green space is precious. Land Securities is helping make Victoria a greener place by installing a green roof, with a ‘bee hotel’, atop 62 Buckingham Gate. Green roofs compensate for habitat loss when new buildings go up, encouraging biodiversity, reducing loss of rainwater and making the city a nicer place. Birds and bats will also benefit from nesting boxes. You’ll soon be able to watch our flying visitors via live webcam at landsecuritieslondon.com

W i n a d i n ner for t wo at the Rubens Hotel bba r

S cho ol t r ip t o K i n g s G at e At Land Securities, we’re always looking to inspire the next generation of architects and developers, so we recently invited nine design and technology students from Westminster City School to visit the Kings Gate site to learn more about the project. The students met with senior members of staff and listened to a presentation on the logistic intricacies of constructing a huge building in London.

In the time between now and completion, we hope the students will get to visit the site many more times.

Facing the Royal Mews of Buckingham Palace, bbar at the Rubens Hotel is a watering hole with a difference. Sporting vintage photographs of big game, and faux giraffe skins, this South Africanthemed bar is a funky mix of safari chic and colonial cool. And here’s your chance to win dinner for two with a bottle of South African wine at bbar. To enter the competition, all you have to do is answer the following question correctly – there’s a clue elsewhere in this newsletter…

On what vehicle in Victoria would you find the gilded statue of Neptune above?

E-mail your answer, name and postcode to the email address below. Entries close on 30 September. community. competition@landsecurites.com

autumn 2013

Pageantry

I n s i d e t h e R o ya l M e w s W ords & P hotography A l i s o n H i t c h

F

the better they are – they’re rom Royal Weddings to not museum pieces. But, as Royal Ascot, no one does the Glass Coach hasn’t been pageantry better than the A b ove: T he G o ld St ate C o ach , on d i s p l ay at t he Royal M ews , repainted since the Fifties, British. And, for the visitor i s u s e d for ceremon i al o cc a s ion s s uch a s Royal We dd in gs we’re doing a complete to Victoria, there is no finer restoration.’ opportunity to see how we Pride of place, though, put on a state ceremony than goes to the most dazzling of a trip to the Royal Mews at all coaches housed in the Buckingham Palace.

Royal Mews: the Gold State Behind the glamour of Coach, used at every horse-drawn carriages and coronation since that of Rolls-Royces, the organisation George IV in 1821. that looks after the Queen’s Andy Fitzgerald is a First Chauffeur, allowed to drive road transport is a hard-working environment in which dedication and expertise combine to produce pageantry that any of the State vehicles. He is highly trained in anti-hijack, off-road and other advanced driving techniques. has international tourists flocking to Victoria.

‘People often ask me what car I drive, but that purely For all the vehicles and horses, what makes the Mews so interesting is the team of highly skilled craftsmen practising depends on what car is needed. My favourite is a 1949 Rollstrades hundreds of years old. Most work is done by hand; Royce Phantom, but I also like the ceremonial Bentley – a gift for the Golden Jubilee.’ Andy says he sometimes gets there is hardly a computer to be found in the Mews.

‘There’s no such thing as a typical day in the workshop,’ a few nerves on big occasions, ‘but the people aren’t looking says Frances Kelly, Master Saddler. She continues, ‘Stitching at me. They’re looking at the person in the back. The job is the most time-consuming part of the job. But, if there is I enjoyed most was the Royal Wedding, where I was driving a full State Visit, we’ll follow behind the procession in a the Earl and Countess of Wessex in a Daimler.’

Frances, Andy and Martin are just three of the team minibus with a tool kit in case anything goes wrong!’

Martin Oates is the Senior Coach Restorer, with dedicated to keeping the Royal Household on the road. Next responsibility for all the coaches in the Royal Mews. He is time you walk past the Royal Mews, it’s worth remembering currently restoring the Glass Coach, part of the collection that, behind those imposing gates, there are people with since 1911. Martin explains that a century of use doesn’t some of the most fascinating jobs in Victoria. have quite the impact you’d expect: ‘The more they’re used, royalcollection.org.uk/visit/royalmews

autumn 2013

Pageantry

C L o c kw i s e f rom a b ove lef t : F irs t Ch auf fe ur A ndy F it z gerald; royal in s ig n i a on t he G l a s s C o ach ; M a s ter S addler France s Ke lly ; a hors e c alle d M e lb o ur ne

autumn 2013

History

autumn 2013

History

pl ac e o f r e m e m b r a n c e words N i c k S m i t h

S

are the spiritual embodiment unday, 18 June 1944, of any regiment or battalion. just after 11am. The Presented by the Sovereign, congregation was settled in they are consecrated in a the pews, the band of the religious ceremony and bear Coldstream Guards on duty the regiment’s distinctions in the music loft. But, as the O pp os ite an d a b ove: service was about to start, T he cenot ap h in s ide t he Royal M ilit ar y Ch ap e l , w it h it s ar ray of and battle honours. Wallis the Royal Military Chapel at re g iment al co lo urs; t he go ld-mos aic s anc t u ar y – t he only p ar t explains: ‘They represent all of t he ch ap e l to s ur v ive t he 19 4 4 b om b s t r ike those who have gone before, Wellington Barracks was hit and are treated with the by a V1 flying bomb that utmost respect. When they traced ‘a clinical line along are replaced, the old ones the altar rail and cut the are laid up in a chapel, where chapel literally in half.’

The congregational part of the chapel – the place of they remain until the colours fall from the pike, at which worship of the Household Division – was completely point they are cremated and the ashes put into a reliquary in flattened, leaving 121 dead, including most of the band. But the Guards Chapel garden.’

Next year will see the opening of a memorial garden the sumptuous Byzantine sanctuary was, by some miracle, saved. When the dust settled, the candles on the altar were commemorating the Great War – a gift paid for by the still alight. Andrew Wallis, curator of the Guards Museum, people of Belgium to thank the Guards for liberating their says, ‘It was as if God had said, “That far, but no further.”’ country. It’s been a long haul: it took five years to get the This extraordinary museum celebrates the history of the permissions in place for the £600,000 project. The garden monarch’s bodyguard and houses a collection of 30 Victoria will be planted in soil from every battlefield in Flanders where guardsmen of the Household Division fought and Cross medals.

When architect Bruce George was commissioned to died. That soil is being gathered by the Commonwealth War redesign the chapel, he enshrined the original sanctuary and Graves Commission, and will be brought to its final resting apse into a minimalist, austere Sixties design. Today, in the place in Victoria. The hope is that on 9 November 2014 – modern side chapels dedicated to the seven individual Remembrance Sunday – our Queen, along with members of regiments that form the Household Division, candles burn the Belgian royal family, will officially open the garden.

The chapel is open on weekdays only 10am–4pm (3pm on to honour soldiers currently on active service.

Apart from the golden mosaics, one of the most Fridays), except during services; army.mod.uk. The museum imposing features is the array of regimental colours, some of is open every day 10am–4pm; theguardsmuseum.com. which date back to before the Act of Union. These standards Wellington Barracks, Birdcage Walk, London SW1E 6HQ

autumn 2013

c u lt u r e

I

f it weren’t for a green circular plaque on the wall of the Grey Coat Hospital School in Victoria, one of the greatest names in exploration would probably be forgotten. That name belongs to David Thompson, the man who mapped North America. As the sign says, Thompson ‘studied at this school 1777-1784’, and among exploration aficionados, he’s one of the real heavyweights.

Back in the late 18th century, there was no such place as Victoria, but the hospital school had been around since 1698, providing education for the poor and disadvantaged. And it was at Grey Coats that the young explorer got his first taste of the big wide world, studying the navigational skills that would propel him to the top of the explorer’s tree. On leaving the school, he requested that instead of receiving the traditional gift of a fine outfit in which to dress to go into the world, he might have a set of surveying tools. Armed with these, he joined the Hudson’s Bay Company as a fur trader.

By the end of his career, Thompson was acclaimed as ‘the greatest land geographer who ever lived’. In an age of

wide-ranging exploration of all of the continents except Antarctica, this is quite an accolade, but one that was well deserved. During a series of expeditions in the Pacific Northwest of North America, he mapped nearly 4 million sq km (20 per cent of the continent) as well as the entire length of the Columbia River.

He is also misleadingly credited with discovering the earliest evidence of the sasquatch or ‘Bigfoot’ – the ape-like giant humanoid said to inhabit the North American wilderness. But Thompson was not a believer in the mythical creature. In his journals, he wrote that, while the footprint he discovered was undoubtedly large, it also contained indentations at the end of each toe closely resembling the claws of a bear.

History wasn’t kind to Thompson. After such a promising start to his career, a sequence of bad luck left him bankrupt and blind. He died in Montreal in 1857, his autobiography unfinished. But today, his star shines again and his name is mentioned in reverential tones in both the Royal Geographical Society and the Explorers Club.

alamy

V i c t o r i a’ s f o r g o t t e n explorer

autumn 2013

my victoria

Jac k M H a r g r e av e s

Th e c o a c h m a n

Working as Head Coachman in the Royal Mews means getting on with horses as well as people

y Victoria is the Royal Mews, Buckingham Palace where I’m the Head Coachman. I’ve been working here for seven years and my job is to manage the site on behalf of the Crown Equerry, who has overall responsibility.

This means supervising and instructing the staff, training horses and taking care of the

logistical plans behind the State occasions.

Normal preparation for a State visit involves making sure the equipment is all in good repair. This means that the women in the saddler’s workshop will be busy.

All of the horses are constantly being trained.

Not only are they being prepared to face the massed bands of the Guards, but also to put up with noise from building sites and bin lorries – we do a lot of work on sights and sounds. We also introduce them to things that aren’t natural to them to make sure they are comfortable before exposing them to something like Trooping the Colour, so we play music to them in the riding school and while they are in their stables. The Guards’ scarlet tunics and bearskins can be quite intimidating to horses, so there are times when the guys will work in the stable with a bearskin on, so the animals get used to them.

As a rule of thumb, there are around 30 horses on site.

That is enough for me to fulfil the commitment to occasions both in London or Windsor.

All the horses are named

by Her Majesty, often after venues of her official visits – for example, Perth, Sydney and Melbourne are named after the Royal visit to Australia in 2011.

autumn 2013

community

V i c t o r i a’ s C o m m u n i t y Let us know what you think about the changes in Victoria Email us at communityliaisonvictoria@landsecurities.com

you ca n Get i n volv ed Our community liaison meetings are a forum to discuss changes Victoria’s main contractor, we will host a residents’ event this in the area, and the next will be on 23 September. Also, following winter to mark the opening of the marketing suite, the Victoria the success of our Meet Mace evening, which introduced Nova Pavilion. Email communityliaisonvictoria@landsecurities.com

V ictor i a walk i ng tou rs ‘Great little tour today. Caroline was a brilliant guide and it is simply fascinating to see a work in progress and to be living so close. I think your tenants are going to be very pleased.’

Anon

We want to share our vision for Victoria and reveal some of the hidden history of this fascinating area. So, why not come on one of our walking tours? They’re full of surprises.

To reserve your place, email community liaisonvictoria@landsecurities.com

‘The tour was excellent. It gives a much better understanding of the impact of buildings and the factors taken into account when one is able to enter the “hallowed halls”.’

Patricia

Don’t ta ke o ur w o rd f or i t . Here’s some f e e d ba c k f r o m l o cal peo pl e who ha ve ta ke n a to u r…

‘Today’s tour far exceeded my expectations and I had a great time. I really, really enjoyed it and learned a lot. Caroline was an excellent guide!’

Naomi

Left: This statue of a Blewcoat scholar is one of the many hidden gems of ‘secret Victoria’ to be seen on one of our walking tours

Here at Land Securities, the safety of cyclists in Victoria is one of our key priorities. We are proud to have joined Victoria BID, Westminster Council, TfL and the Metropolitan and Transport Police, to support the first Exchanging Places Cycle

Safety Initiative in Victoria. Look out for further Cycle Safety events. The Mayor of London is investing in safer roads for cyclists, but there is a need for all road users in the capital to improve their awareness. For further details, visit: tfl.gov.uk

To find out more about the new Victoria, go to createvictoria.com Published for Land Securities by Show Media Ltd showmedia.net