(Visited as part of “Open House London.”)
The Roof Gardens are best known to older visitors as the former Derry & Toms roof gardens, but have since 1981 been leased by Sir Richard Branson’s Virgin Group and are known as the Roof Gardens and Babylon Restaurant.
The Gardens are spectacular, with three themed gardens, Moorish themed structures, a stream and ponds, and resident flamingoes and ducks.
The Gardens were listed as a Grade II site by English Heritage in 1978.
The Roof Gardens and Babylon Restaurant and nightclub has its own website with pictures.
The public can visit the Gardens free of charge when they are not required for a function. They are accessible from Derry Street, through a doorway marked “99 Kensington High Street”.
Day: 2 October 2013
Marlborough House, London
Private
(Visited as part of “Open House London.”)
A former royal residence hidden behind Pall Mall. It was originally designed by Sir Christopher Wren for the Duchess of Marlborough, who dismissed her architect in 1710 and supervised the work herself. It was finished in 1711. In the nineteenth century the house was substantially altered and extended, with added wings and two more floors. The Crown bought back the lease in 1817, and the last royal resident was Queen Mary (died 1954, widow of George V). It became a Commonwealth centre in 1962.
The double-height Blenheim Saloon has ceiling paintings originally made for the Queen’s House at Greenwich, wall paintings depicting the battle of Blenheim, and other art. Downstairs are a series of finely decorated staterooms, with art. There are two stairwells with wall-paintings.
There is a large and attractive garden at the rear, but as it is largely laid out as lawn you need not allow much time for looking around it. Keep off the grass!
Not normally open to the public (except by pre-booked group tour).
Exterior photos only.
Romanian Cultural Institute, London
Private
(Visited as part of “Open House London.”)
A mansion, speculatively built in the 1840’s and designed by George Basevi in a sort of classical-lite style. It’s in Belgrave Square, and I visited it because it was across the road from the Argentinian Embassy.
Contains a very English-looking fine panelled room downstairs and a suite of fine rooms with a French look, upstairs. I watched an interesting film about the Carpathian countryside, and saw a display about pioneer Rumanian aviator Aurel Vlaicu.
There are several other embassies nearby.
Click on images to enlarge)
