Alexandra Palace

I have always had a soft spot for ‘Ally Pally’. I have visited it several times as an event venue (usually baby and child, or craft shows), and also had the opportunity – as part of Open House London four years ago - to see (usually unseen) parts of the building used in the early days of the BBC. It is a fascinating place and there are stunning 360 ⁰ views to be had once you’ve puffed your way up the hill – a week’s worth of aerobic exercise in one go!

 

The second Alexandra Palace

Built on what was originally Tottenham Wood Farm, Alexandra Park in Muswell Hill covered an area of 250 acres when it opened in 1863. The following year, work started on Alexandra Palace (named for Princess Alexandra of Denmark, later wife of Edward VII), using material from the 1862 International Exhibition in Kensington.

Fire of 1873 from the north (l) and south-west (r)

Lack of money slowed construction, so it wasn’t until 1873 that its doors finally opened.  Conceived as north London’s answer to Crystal Palace, it was the intention of its proprietors to provide “a Grand Institution of healthful recreation and elevating instruction, which will combine the solid advantages of the South Kensington Museums […] with the lighter pleasures and pastimes of the Crystal Palace, thus giving effect to the enlightened views of the late prince Consort”. Sixteen days later it burnt down.

 

Attractions on offer at the second Alexandra Palace

Such was the faith in this project however, that the Palace was immediately rebuilt, and re-opened in 1875 with a Great Hall (dominated by the mighty Willis Organ driven by two steam engines), a Palm Court, a 3,000-seat theatre (modelled on Drury Lane), a concert room (later to become an ice-rink), a reading room and offices - the whole covering a total of 7.5 acres.

The Grand Willis Organ

 

The park was also re-designed to include a cycle racing track (within the racecourse), a cricket ground, ornamental lakes, a Japanese village, tennis courts and an open-air pool.

 

 

 

But the spectre of financial problems raised its head again. The Palace closed for a few years from 1889, and part of the park was sold off. It re-opened in 1898 with balloon ascents, a firework spectacle entitled “The Last Days of Pompeii” and the opportunity to visit “Captain Dreyfus in his terrible cage prison on Devil’s Island. 

 

In WW1, Alexandra Palace took on a very different role, being used first as a transit camp for Belgian refugees, then later for German, Austrian and other prisoners-of-war who landscaped the grounds.


The 1920s saw a return to ‘normal operations’, with large Scout rallies involving tens of thousands of youngsters, but  the 1930s brought renewed financial problems. In 1934, part of the Palace was acquired by the BBC for TV studios and the world’s first TV transmitter was erected on the south-east tower. The first television transmission took place on 26 August 1936 - a variety show called “Here’s Looking at You”. In 1956 the Television Centre moved to Shepherd’s Bush, although Alexandra Palace continued to be used for recording Open University programmes.

 Known to locals by now as ‘Ally Pally’ (a nickname apparently coined originally by Gracie Fields), the building suffered bomb damage during WW2, and remained closed until 1957.

Main entrance today

In 1980, a massive fire destroyed much of the structure, with only the Palm Court and the area occupied by the BBC escaping damage. It re-opened in 1988 with a new Great Hall and West Hall, and the Palm Court fully restored to its former splendour. An ice-rink, built in what had been the east concert hall, opened in 1990 and is still London’s biggest and most popular rink.

Alexandra Park now features public gardens, a boating lake and playing fields. The racecourse, which had originally opened in 1868, closed in 1970.

The Palace was awarded Grade II-listed status in 1997.

 

 

References:

The London Encyclopedia ed. Ben Weinreb et al (2008)

Richard Baker’s London Richard Baker (1989)

Website: https://hornseyhistorical.org.uk/brief-history-alexandra-palace-park/