172 Spring 2020
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BE R RY W A H I R L T L S POLE’S E WAL RAC HO VILLA RESID E NTS’ ASSOCIA TION A newsletter for all residents of Strawberry Hill No.172 Spring 2020 Comings and goings Wilde Brunch We have said farewell to nick dolan recently who has, for four and Café a half years, been the hard-working director of Strawberry Hill House; he has moved on to pastures new and we wish him well. at radnor We welcome gardens Paul Finucane notice of SHra annual who is currently SHRA has long been a supporter of the serving as general Meeting community café at Radnor Gardens, as both a local meeting point and a source interim director The AGM will be held at Strawberry of toilet facilities for all. We supported and who will Hill Golf Club on Wednesday 22nd April the £20,000 grant for the extension that speak at the at 7.30pm. Everyone who lives in held the promise of all-weather opening. SHra agM on Strawberry Hill is automatically a Wednesday 22nd member, so do come along and tell us Like many local residents, we were april. what you think. It’s a good chance to disappointed that the café was often (See Paul’s article meet the neighbours. You are invited closed, when the expectation was that on page 2). to have a glass or wine after the it would be open. Then, following bad meeting, so please stay and chat. publicity and several acts of vandalism Francis Campbell, Vice Chancellor of the decision was made to close for St Mary’s University has also moved We would very much like to recruit the winter. more committee members, especially on. He has taken up the post of Vice some with good IT skills. If you Chancellor of The University of Notre We are pleased to see that the Wilde would like to become a committee Dame, Australia, based in Fremantle. Brunch Café reopened during the Whilst we have not seen eye to eye with member, please email for details from: [email protected], February half-term school holidays. Francis on his plans for the development of by 17th April 2020. The new opening hours are Friday to the campus, we have worked harmoniously Monday from 9.00am to 16.00pm, with him on other matters and we wish given the current situation, please however, this is still ‘weather dependent’. him well in his new role. check on Facebook and the SHa These times and days will be extended noticeboard in case of a change during the summer months. If you His successor, anthony McClaran, is of date or cancellation. returning from Australia where he was value the café, then please start to responsible for Quality Assurance in the Follow us on Twitter: @SHresidents patronise it by sampling the food and tertiary sector. Until 2015, he was Chief and join our Facebook group: drink on offer – only then will it become Executive of the Quality Assurance Strawberry Hill residents association profitable and sustainable. Agency in this country. SHRA will look forward to meeting him in due course. Carol Singing in WelleSley Parade The carol singing and tree decoration took place on Friday 13th December 2019, in Wellesley Parade and the date did not bring any bad luck. The weather stayed fine and about 50 residents with children attended and joined in the singing. We were grateful to our three councillors (Katie Mansfield, Michael Butlin and Richard Bennett) who all attended, and also to Tony from the café who heated up the wine for us. We were especially pleased to welcome an ensemble from Richmond Brass band which once again supported the singing. Adults were offered the usual mulled wine and mince pies, while children enjoyed juice and sweet treats. The tree was duly Carol singing in Wellesley Parade, decorated by the children and a very Christmas 2019 ‘Christmassy’ atmosphere was achieved. The Bulletin No.172 Spring 2020 architecture : wk ltd news from Strawberry Hill House i am delighted to join Strawberry Hill House & garden as interim director for the next four months. i come from a strong retail background having worked at Harvey nichols’ for over 15 years. Below i detail some of the changes that we are l Commercial Design bringing to the House in our quest to continually innovate and l Full Refurbishment improve our stewardship of this special site. l Kitchen Extensions l Loft Conversions We are very excited to be embarking new Hill House opening Times l New Build 10 February - 30 April, 2020 upon a trial period of extended www.architecturewk.com The Powder Rooms opening hours over the next few House & Shop 69-71 Broad Street Sunday to Wednesday & Friday: 020 8977 6999 months, allowing our visitors Teddington, London 11.00am - 4.00pm TW11 8QZ additional time to explore the [email protected] Final Entry - one hour before closing. House and enjoy the magic of Thursday Lates: from 7.00pm. Horace Walpole’s creation. It also enables us to welcome more people The garden Café through our doors. Sunday to Wednesday & Friday: 9.00am - 5.00pm We are also very much looking Garden - Free entry daily forward to establishing our Thursday evening late opening as a message from a regular fixture this season, the SHra Chairman kicking off with curated evening regular readers of the Bulletin will tours ‘Gothic Romance’, where remember that in the Summer visitors can see the transformation edition of 2018, we made a plea for the house takes on at night. more residents to make a regular contribution towards the costs of In the Garden Café we have recently running the association. welcomed a new manager and chef This was initially successful but the Vincenzo Russo, who will be bringing Committee has now decided that it is his own daily specials to the menu appropriate to raise the minimum along with the lunchtime favourites recommended subscription from the £5, which it has been for many years, to £10. and cakes already on offer. All residents of Strawberry Hill are Finally, we have a new look for our automatically members and receive the HAIRDRESSING re-organised shop. It is lighter, benefits of the Association but our funds brighter and more spacious, with a do require regular replenishment in the Get your Spring look with 30% new product range including plans face of rising costs. OFF ALL COLOUR SERVICES It is hoped that, by this means, the EVERY MONDAY for a bespoke plant and garden area launching in time for the subscription can remain unchanged for DISCOUNT FOR SENIOR CITIZENS many more years; all contributions of three-day Flower Festival in June. AND STUDENTS ALL WEEK whatever size will of course continue 39 Tower Road We look forward to welcoming visitors to be gratefully received. Strawberry Hill to explore the house and garden Twickenham this season. TW1 4PS Strawberry Hill CPZ 020 8891 2255 Paul Finucane, Interim Director Richmond Upon Thames Council is currently carrying out a review of the Strawberry Hill (SH), South Twickenham(E) and Teddington (T) CPZs. All businesses Get into golf and residents should have received a letter and questionnaire which asks for views on how the CPZs are working and whether any changes should be made. There will also be a consultation over a Strawberry Hill is offering large area where CPZs do not currently four lessons for beginners operate, asking residents for their views and novices for just £40.00 on parking conditions and whether they would welcome a CPZ. led by our PGA professional, Peter Buchan More information can be obtained from [email protected] or on 020 8891 1411. Just call the secretary on: 020 8894 0165 Email: [email protected]. Strawberry Hill Golf Club, Wellesley Road, Twickenham TW2 5SD Fabergé, the Bolsheviks and Strawberry Hill road as part of the SHra StreetWise series, we have been triangle in the romantic, historical researching the history of one of the area’s finest Victorian novel. The book, which was streets, Strawberry Hill road. in 1939, Horace Wallick published in 2013 by Random (1869-1956), and his wife lillie (1870-1954), lived in an House, is a work of fiction, although apartment at 21 Strawberry Hill road. His grandfather, it brings in real characters such as a botanist, was born in Copenhagen and his father, a Horace and Rasputin. Vanora tried, surgeon, was born in india. in the 1939 register his in vain, to gain more detail about occupation is given as ‘painter’ but this does not reveal Horace’s actual life in Russia from the whole story. visiting many libraries and archives, In 1910, he went to Russia and many other White Russia supporters, but she does know that his life worked for Fabergé. His specialism he ended up in Yalta on the Black drifted when he got back to England. was painting miniatures for Sea. From there he was lucky to portraits, the top of jewellery boxes catch a British ship, the Princess Ena, He spent his time doing art jobs for or for the insides of lockets. back to Malta and then to Britain. friends and relatives, and just about making ends meet. He always He lived through the final years of The author, Vanora Bennett, has smoked gold-tipped Balkan Sobranie the Tsar, and through the included her great-great-uncle cigarettes, a habit picked up during revolutionary upheavals of 1917, Horace as one of three main his years in Russia. only a few streets away from characters in a novel about Russia Fabergé’s shop.