London Banter - View Single Post

Acrosticus · August 1st 03, 08:42 PM posted to uk.transport.london

From: (Keith Marshall)
Date: 01/08/2003 19:13 GMT Daylight Time

I'm not at all surprised Temple Bar is a bit fragile as its been sitting
totally neglected in those woods for ... oh, it had been there ages when
I was a kid round there 50 years ago! Good to see that it's going back
into central London; it was wasted in those woods.

I think its been there since the 1880s. Old photos of it from betweeen 1920 and
about 1960 show it to have been in pretty good condition. The rot set in in a
big way after that, not helped by vandalism aided by its isolation. Even a high
concrete fence didn't help.

I took some photos of it in the mid-eighties, and it was looking pretty down at
heel then. Things are even worse now, so the prospect of it in the middle of
Paternoster Square all spruced up and giving the place a bit of character can
only be welcomed.

One small problem though. Will the "Temple Bar" pub in Waltham Cross High
Street still keep its name? Or will that be moved too?!