There has been a lot of redevelopment work taking place in London’s Camden area in the last year or so. Some of it is confusing at the moment as new cycle routes have been added and one-way roads have become two-way. Extra signs have been added to remind pedestrians to look both ways, but it’s still hard to do.
The upside, though, is the redevelopment and addition of some garden and seating areas.
And a giant mural has been revived. Even in its delapidated state, I enjoyed pausing to take a look at it as I walked from the city centre to St Pancras. And now it looks wonderful again.
Whitfield Gardens, Tottenham Court Road, London, March 2021
And as it was in 2013:
Copyright Debbie Smyth, 1 February 2021
Enjoying street art has become a regular event on my travels around the world: more of my findings can be seen here
For even more art, pop over to see Sami at Monday Mural
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What an amazing makeover, Debbie. I was so impressed with how nicely it has been repaired. Great photos showing some of the people in the mural. I could look at this all day and still find something new.
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Wow. They did a good job of it. It’s been around since 1980. Here’s how it looked 5 years ago (18th March 2016). https://urbanartalacarte.blogspot.com/2016/04/street-art-collaboration-by-mike-jones.html here’s an interesting article from 2010 also https://fitzrovianews.com/2010/09/06/mural-could-return-to-its-former-grace/
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Thanks for these links. It took a long time to actually do the revival work!
It certainly faded a bit but really it survived polllution and weather well – and the taggers stuck to damaging what was within easy reach!
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Glad the mural has had a makeover, as it’s a brilliant mural. It’s huge and there’s so much to see there!
Thanks for participating in Monday Murals Debbie.
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Brilliant, isn’t it!
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So much detail on one wall!
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Indeed so
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Great to see it back to its former glory. It was painted by Simon Barber & Mike Jones. If I remember correctly there is a dedication in the bottom left corner on a menu held by a waiter. My favourite character is the Dracula like guy. This is said to represent Horace Cutler (then leader of the GLC) pointing at Council Hall plans for sky-scrapers. Developers were trying to change the area in the 80s and wanted to rebrand it as “Noho”(North Soho). Luckily their plans were apposed and Fitzrovia still holds some of its charm from the Victorian and inter war periods.
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Huge thanks for that information. And yes, the dedication is there on a menu, bottom left.
Yes, it’s great that the area has kept a lot of its history. I used to work in the area, on Store Street and in British Museum, so I still have a soft spot for it.
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And for any of you now keen to explore this area, I see that Steve runs a walking tour of Fitzrovia (and many other parts of London). Check it out here: https://www.alondonmiscellany.com/beyond-the-fringe
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These are wonderful .. such intricate detail
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So many stories in there, and a sense of humour too
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There’s a lot in these murals Debbie, huge; who’s the artist?
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Glad the mural has been redone. It looks fab 🙂
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