Return of Central Hall - the first installation in a heritage art trail for Barking

Barking’s Wesleyan Central Hall, designed in 1925, built in 1928 and damaged by a V2 Rocket in 1945 was demolished in 1957 making way for a new Methodist Church, in London Road.

This striking Art Deco building with aesthetic lines, prominent glass windows and crowned by a metal dome and spire had a memorable, if short lived place in the heart of Barking, for almost three decades. In recent years the site of this grand place of entertainments and worship has been converted into a public space, known as Short Blue Place, and mosaic artist Tamara Froud has recreated this attractive building from Barking’s past in alcove, a few paces from where it once stood.Central Hall replaced earlier wooden and brick chapels, built by the Wesleyans in East Street in the nineteenth century. The first Wesleyan preacher to address Barking people was John Cennick in 1750, and John Wesley himself visited in 1783 and 1784. By 1791 Methodism was consolidated in Barking by John Childs a Soho shoemaker who had sent six of his workers to live and preach in Barking. The twentieth century Central Hall cost £50,000 to build and was largely funded by a £30,000 donation from future movie mogul J Arthur Rank. Perhaps unsurprisingly the new venue included a cinema as part of its temperance aims - to entertain the local people without the supply of alcohol. Meanwhile a Capitol Cinema also replaced the old Wesleyan Chapel on the opposite side of East Street - these were two of several screens for movie goers in Barking, in the early twentieth century - it was the hey day of film, before televisions became widely available. Variety shows would also be performed at Central Hall for a 1500 capacity audience, before World War Two.

During the war, damage claims and salvaged furniture were dealt with at Central Hall and at least one local couple had their wedding reception there! Mr Wheatcroft was told that his parents’ reception took place there in 1945. One of the most tragic days of that war for Barking people was Sunday 14th January 1945. A V2 Rocket hit St Paul’s church, Ripple Road, just after the service, where eight people were killed and 52 seriously injured, including the choir boys. Despite the falling masonry, the papers reported, the priest, still praying, was unharmed… Later that evening fourteen more local people were killed in another V2 incident in London Road, which destroyed much of the rear of Central Hall. The main façade and dome did remain standing (although the dome was reportedly damaged) and can be seen in newspaper reports of the building’s demolition in 1957. Several local people on social media history groups, remember attending Sunday School, Brownies and Guides there in the post war era and one person even recalls having a piano recital there! It is good to hear people’s memories of local places and we hope that everyone will enjoy Tamara’s mosaic whether they knew the original building or not… A QR code will be placed in the alcove, next to the mosaic to allow visitors to find out more about the history of Central Hall while admiring Tamara’s mosaic.

This mosaic is the first of several heritage art works to be installed in Barking this Autumn. There will be more mosaics depicting Barking’s heritage including representations of ‘Protest’ at the Three Lamps, Abbey Green, based on designs by pupils at St Margaret’s Primary School. Also including, Jake Attewell’s Mural on the side elevation of MacDonald’s in Short Blue place and a bronze model of Barking Abbey as part of the improvements to the public realm at the Curfew Tower. Barking Heritage Project’s heritage trail is funded by The National Lottery Heritage Fund and managed by Be First Regeneration on behalf of the London borough of Barking and Dagenham.

We hope you enjoy these permanent installations, which will culminate in an illuminating event which will ‘shine a light’ on Barking’s heritage this autumn…