Leith Mansions

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History

In 1901 Miss Florence Almond of 8 Leith Mansions advertised in The Times that she was holding a 'dramatic and musical recital' at 'Steinway Hall'. She was obviously well connected as she was 'under the immediate patronage' of the duchess of Abercorn and a good number of other titled patrons.

Late on Lewis Leon Meredith of 44 Leith Mansions advertised the Cricklewood Dance Hall and Skating Rink that he ran.

Perhaps Leith Mansions most famous Resident was the British Comedy actress and novelist, Irene Handl (1901-1987) who was born and brought up in 13 Leith Mansions overlooking the recreation ground. Coming up late to the entertainment world in her mid thirties she was immediate success in the 1940 film 'George and Margaret' a role that set her up for a film career of mothers, cooks and landladies, to all of which she lent her own touch of eccentricity.

Irene Handl was never out of work, appearing in no less than 150 films, TV series and shows. After appearing with a number of top comedians, she became a star in her own right in a TV series of the 1960's. She also wrote two popular novels.

In her later years Irene Hadl reflected on her childhood in the 'new' style of living in mansion blocks. 'These mansion flats were some of the first flats and respectable people in those days didn't live in flats. A lot of them were occupied by what they used to call actresses but were really tarts, ladies who'd been what they call 'installed'. But of course my parents weren't English and they didn't think about houses in the way they did over here'. Irene was the second daughter of Frederick and Maria Handl who both came from Austria.

The Script writer and comic actort, Dennis Goodwin- well known in the 1950's and 1960's lived at Leith Mansions in the 1960's.

Throughout the 1970s various articles were printed in the Paddington Mercury concerning tenants of Leith Mansions waging a rent war with the then Landlords (Freshwaters) who were trying to double the rent from £750 to £1,500. The rent tribunal inspected each flat but the outcome of the appeals were not reported.

The general increase in car ownership from the 1950's is reflected in the building of new lock up garages at Leith Mansions in 1960.

We Know Mansion Blocks

The first mansion blocks were built in the early 19th Century, providing luxurious residences for the growing urban upper middle classes. As the Industrial Revolution spread throughout Europe it brought about a population boom in the major cities, and mansion blocks were devised to provide luxurious housing for wealthy white collar workers. As the centre of the cities became increasingly crowded the blocks provided this growing class with housing that boasted impressive entrances, generous elevations and balconies reminiscent of mansions. They were a particularly popular innovation in polite Parisian society.

In spite of their popularity on the continent, Londoners were initially sceptical about this new style of accommodation.

In the 1850s a spacious mansion flat would set back the buyer somewhere in the order of £50-200 per annum, but the idea of living in such a communal manner was entirely contradictory to the dominant Victorian social ideals of the age.

Firstly, and most importantly, apartment dwellings were simply not considered ‘proper’, but it was not just a case of old English snobbery; there was also widely held fear that this new type of residence would increase the risk of burglary and the spread of infection and disease.

By the 1880s London society had gradually warmed to the idea and the decade was marked by a flurry of mansion block construction across the city.

We Know Maida Vale

Starting life as an indistinguishable section of the Middlesex Forest in 1086, Maida Vale has certainly developed from the small hamlet, which in those days was not even significant enough to merit a mention.

The name Maida Vale can be traced back to an impressive military victory against the French army in Sicily in 1806. In recognition of his role in the attack General John Stuart, commander of the British forces, was ennobled Count of Maida. Three years later a tavern on the Edgware Road was named the Hero of Maida tavern and by 1810 maps designated the area surrounding the tavern as Maida.

The canal system linking Maida Vale to the Thames was completed in the early 19th Century and in 1827 plans requested by the Bishop of London were designed for the layout of roads now recognised as Maida Vale. As the centre of the city became overcrowded with an ever increasing population and new roadways developed, improvements to public transport enabled the middle classes to move outwards to new suburbs. By 1832 ninety buses were operating on route between Paddington Green and the Bank, each carrying up to twelve passengers inside and three outside. By 1839 thirteen omnibuses were licensed to carry passengers from Maida Hill into London, dramatically speeding up the pace of building in the district.

Today Maida Vale offers an enormous range of vistas, from the canal and the predominantly stuccoed houses in the south to the park and the predominantly red brick flats in the north. As stated by John Julius Norwich, Writer, Broadcaster and Resident of Maida Vale, “though obviously changed beyond recognition, it remains, in all London, the most agreeable place to live”.