The 'African Village'

[Pyewipe Junction]

One of the odder features of the hodge-podge of buildings outside of King's Cross station must surely have been the 1920s style detached house.

I have read that it was built as a 'show house' to entice people to move to the outer suburbs. Can anyone confirm this? Also, was it ever occupied?

Sorry, I'm at work and can't provide a photo, but there must be plenty around.

[hq1hitchin]

One of the odder features of the hodge-podge of buildings outside of King's Cross station must surely have been the 1920s style semi-detached house.

I have read that it was built as a 'show house' to entice people to move to the outer suburbs. Can anyone confirm this? Also, was it ever occupied?

Sorry, I'm at work and can't provide a photo, but there must be plenty around.

Think it was built in the 1930s. I've never heard that anyone actually lived in it, just used as a show house (can you imagine the noise outside, even at night?) but it did see use in the war as a recreation centre or somesuch for members of H.M. Armed Forces

[manna]

G'Day Gents

Would be a good address, 1 St Pancras Rd, Kings Cross, also no transport worries !!!!!!!!

manna

[StevieG]

One of the odder features of the hodge-podge of buildings outside of King's Cross station must surely have been the 1920s style semi-detached house.

I have read that it was built as a 'show house' to entice people to move to the outer suburbs. Can anyone confirm this? Also, was it ever occupied?

Sorry, I'm at work and can't provide a photo, but there must be plenty around.

Think it was built in the 1930s. I've never heard that anyone actually lived in it, just used as a show house (can you imagine the noise outside, even at night?) but it did see use in the war as a recreation centre or somesuch for members of H.M. Armed Forces

Good pic hq1; one I'm not sure I've seen before, with the view right through to the porte-cochere outside the then, since the '70s not, but now once more (from March 2012), booking office. The 'p-c' would now be right in the middle of the 'new' Western Concourse's main circulating area.

I think I've read that the 'african village's show-house was for Laing-built houses(?).

[manna]

G'Day Gents

Sorry to be a pain, but what is/has happened to the that 70's (icon ) booking office, is it being turned into an open space !! or is something going to be built

Worried of Booborowie.

manna

[Andy W]

The 1970's concourse and travel centre is being demolished now. It is going to be open space in front of the train shed which will really set the station off nicely.

We had our Xmas lunch in the Parcels Yard pub at the Cross last night which is basically the 1st and 2nd floors of west side offices from where the wooden stairs used to be back as far as approximately where Rm 121 and the Gents was. They have opened up some of the offices and changed the partition arrangements around to suit but the corridor line is still there. The brown lino has gone and the walls are no longer faded green/cream or battleship grey and the place doesn't smell of dust and G.I.C. (BR General Interior Cleaner soap solution) any more! If you google it, you can actually wander round it, just like streetview, from the comfort of your own armchair.

It's very wierd having a jar or three in the place you used to work in!

[Mickey]

Deleted

[StevieG]

" The 1970's concourse and travel centre is being demolished now. It is going to be open space in front of the train shed which will really set the station off nicely. .... "

Judging by what could (/could not) be seen above some high surrounding hoardings four days' ago, I'd hazard a guess that about 2/3 of it has already gone, starting from the east (York Way) side.

[R. pike]

On the BBC this morning...

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-20771255

[manna]

G'Day Gents

Well the old (new) booking office looks to be gone now, remember it when it was brand new, handy when it was cold or raining, it was always warm in winter and cool in summer, and the big windows gave it an open airy feel.

I wonder if the archeologist's will have a chance to have a poke about for a day or so !!! never know what they might find, an A3 that went through the buffers

manna

[Andy W]

Well, up to a point. The public areas mostly were but our dear BR architects went and designed the back office to have all that south/south west facing glass which tended to cook the occupants in summer - the solar gain was terrific! In the TEB in the middle I was once faced with the sight of a bloke stripped down to his string vest in an effort to keep cool - not a pretty sight.

What they then did on these hot days was open all the doors to the concourse which was fatal as the air conditioning was then trying to air con all of north London whilst at the same time the air con filters were sucking in all the muck in the station air. The four chiller units on the roof of the travel centre then would trip out either on overheat thanks to the blocked filters or on overdrive, as they would literally freeze up trying to cope with the increased demand.

The reaction to that was to open all the doors going as, with no air con, the temperature would rapidly rise to the point where the whole office would have to cease work. When I or others used to appear from the ODM to sort it all out, we used to unfreeze the units, change the filters and then tell everyone to shut all the doors. That last bit never went down well but if they didn't we would be back to square one in no time at all.

All of this used to take its toll on the chiller units and pipe work. We were forever having to go up there and re-gas the system, replace the motors or deal with leaking refrigerant pipes.

[Mickey]

Deleted

[StevieG]

Went through King's Cross on 28/01/13.
The hoardings round the 'old' Southern concourse's demolition site(s) are quite high, but there appears now to be nothing left of the concourse/travel centre/ticket office/shops structure.
The stairway down to the UndergrounD, new only a few years ago and at the north side of the travel centre (just round the corner of the original main station frontage's brick wall facing the end of platform 8 [old No.10 until the 1970s]) is currently closed.
So access from the main 1852 station to 'the tube' is, at present, either via an open-air corridor between the hoardings, straight out to the entrance by the side of Euston Road, or by the escalators from the 'new' (10 months old already) Western concourse.

[52D]

If you ever travel by a lift in the west side offices remember 52D did all the testing of the lifting beams. It was good to see the bomb damage being repaired seventy years after the event and how the bricks had been specially made to match the originals. Readers of the forum may also be pleased to know that the first attempt at the repairs was unsatisfactory to the Architecht and was pulled down and redone.
Downside to that job is the entrance was marked by a plaque and a sign that is significant if you are a fan of the boy wizard, always Japanese youngsters asking you to take thier picture by the platform sign.

[Mr Bunt]

One of the odder features of the hodge-podge of buildings outside of King's Cross station must surely have been the 1920s style detached house.

I have read that it was built as a 'show house' to entice people to move to the outer suburbs. Can anyone confirm this? Also, was it ever occupied?

I remember reading something about this house in "Semi Detached London" by Alan A Jackson. I think he says it was built by New Ideal Homesteads Ltd as a show house. Maybe his book will answer your question.