Smiling again!

This was what the Alchemist, at 225 St John's Hill, SW11 1TH (near Clapham Junction/Wandsworth Common), looked like before it closed down a couple of years ago, very nice, and with more than a hundred years history behind it...  

This is what happened to it! Like the Carlton Tavern at Maida Vale (reported in my blog of 29th April this year), it is another London public house to be demolished, but without planning permission! 

Like the Carlton Tavern, the owner has been ordered to rebuild the Alchemist, brick by brick, using original materials! The Council said that "the demolition was a serious breach of planning rules which can only be right by the complete rebuilding and reconstruction... using the same materials and to the same architectural design."   BRAVO! 

See the Standard for more.       

It made me smile... The Carlton Tavern!

No! This didn't make me smile, but the fact that the firm that owns the Carlton Tavern in Maida Vale has been told to "recreate in fascimile the building as it stood immediately prior to its demolition." That is, they have to rebuild the pub, brick by brick, to look like this:  

Nice one! They shouldn't have thought they could ignore planning regulations... See the Standard for more information.