62-594: High Voltage was a music festival, held twice in Victoria Park, London . The event hosted artists from various strands of rock music, including classic rock, progressive rock, and heavy metal. The first festival was held on 24 and 25 July 2010. The second took place on 23 and 24 July 2011. The festival was not held in 2012 to avoid clashing with the London Olympics , and it did not return in 2013. The set times for 2011 were announced on 18 July 2011. There
124-405: A bomb made a direct hit, trapping around a hundred inside and killing fifteen. Much of the park was taken to be used as part of the war effort, which much of the earth being used for allotments, military stations and barrage balloon sites, even the park railings were melted down to be re-used. More controversially, anti-aircraft activity in the park has been implicated in the crowd panic that caused
186-660: A company called the Regent's Canal and City Docks Railway Company at a cost of £1,170,585. The company altered its name to the North Metropolitan Railway and Canal Company by the Regent's Canal City and Docks Railway Act 1892 ( 55 & 56 Vict. c. clxxxviii), but no railway was ever built; instead it raised money for dock and canal improvement and eventually, in 1904, became the Regent's Canal and Dock Company. The Regent's Canal and Dock Company became part of
248-421: A coolant for the high-voltage cables. The canal is frequently used today for pleasure cruising; a regular waterbus service operates between Maida Vale and Camden, running hourly during the summer months. Due to the increase in cycle commuting since the 2005 London Bombings and increasing environmental awareness, the canal's towpath has become a busy cycle route for commuters. National Cycle Route 1 includes
310-524: A joint management board, was part of both boroughs. Since 1994 Tower Hamlets has run the park alone. In recent times, Victoria Park became noted for its open-air music festivals , often linked with a political cause. In 1978, Rock Against Racism organised a protest event against growth of far-right organisations such as the National Front . The concert was played by The Clash , Steel Pulse , X-Ray Spex , The Ruts , Sham 69 , Generation X , and
372-685: A junction with the old Grand Junction Canal at Little Venice , a short distance north of Paddington Basin . After passing through the Maida Hill and Lisson Grove tunnels, the canal curves round the northern edge of Regent's Park, passing London Zoo and skirting round the base of Primrose Hill . It continues through Camden Town and King's Cross Central . It performs a sharp bend at Camley Street Natural Park , following Goods Way where it flows behind both St Pancras railway station and King's Cross railway station . The canal opens out into Battlebridge Basin originally known as Horsfall Basin, home of
434-420: A much shorter tunnel, just 48 metres (52 yd) long, under Lisson Grove . The Camden to Limehouse section, including the 886-metre (969 yd) long Islington Tunnel and the Regent's Canal Dock (used to transfer cargo from seafaring vessels to canal barges – today known as Limehouse Basin ), opened four years later on 1 August 1820. Various intermediate basins were also constructed (e.g.: Cumberland Basin to
496-550: A national vote to find the public's favourite Green Flag Awarded park, beaten only by Margam Country Park in south Wales from a field of 1,448 qualifying open spaces. In 2014 Victoria Park reinstated itself as the most popular park in the UK, with over 13,000 votes in the Green Flag Peoples Choice Awards. The park also was once again rewarded both Green Flag and Green Heritage status. In August 2015 it
558-467: A pagoda was put in London's Hyde Park as an entrance to its Chinese Exhibition, and when the exhibition finished it was moved to Victoria Park's island in the west boating lake for ornamental purposes. The original architect for the park, Pennethorne, designed a bridge to the island that matched the style of the pagoda; this was never built, however, and during WW2 the pagoda suffered much damage. The pagoda
620-535: A prophet, a man who professed to be inspired by the Holy Ghost; but this prophet ended by being locked up in an asylum, where he will have to convert the doctor before he can recover his liberty. The tradition of public speaking in the park continued until well after the Second World War, and was still later reflected in politically oriented rock concerts, such as those held by Rock Against Racism and
682-498: A railway along its banks. The scheme was abandoned in the face of vigorous opposition, especially from the government who objected to the idea of a railway passing through Regent's Park . In 1859, two further schemes to convert the canal into a railway were proposed. One, from a company called the Central London Railway and Dock Company, was accepted by the directors, but once again the railway company failed. In 1860
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#1732779871142744-504: A scene: On the big central lawn are scattered numerous groups, some of which are very closely packed. Almost all the religious sects of England and all the political and social parties are preaching their ideas and disputing [...] On this lawn the listener, as his fancy prompts him, may assist on Malthusianism , atheism, agnosticism, secularism, Calvinism , socialism , anarchism , Salvationism , Darwinism, and even, in exceptional cases, Swedenborgianism and Mormonism . I once heard there
806-462: A special general assembly of the proprietors approved the sale of the canal at the price of one million pounds to a group of businessmen who had formed the Regent's Canal Railway Company for the purpose. The advertisement for the company explained: The vast importance of this undertaking, whereby a junction will be effected between all existing and projected railways north of the Thames, combined with
868-482: A third man and a young boy. The Macclesfield bridge was destroyed and rebuilt in 1876 reusing the cast iron pillars (made in Coalbrookdale according to an inscription at their top), but turning them by 180° (canal side towards tow path side) so tow rope grooves that were created before the incident can be seen on the outer side of the columns. The explosion was heard 20 miles away. Debris flew in all directions,
930-641: Is used as a concert venue and hosts many festivals each year. The park is approximately a mile away from the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park . Owing to its proximity to the Olympic park, it became a venue for the BT London Live event along with Hyde Park during the London 2012 Olympic Games. The park underwent a £12 million refurbishment in 2011 and 2012, and many of the park's old features have been reinstated or repaired. It has won
992-670: The Anti-Nazi League in the 1970s and 1980s. And it is still not uncommon for marches or demonstrations to begin or end in Victoria Park. On 26 June 2014, a campaign to revive the Speakers' Corner at Victoria Park was launched at a democratic theatre event held in Shoreditch Town Hall . Hosted by The People Speak , a participatory campaign and events group, 66 audience members deliberated over how to use
1054-509: The Bethnal Green tube disaster of 1943. Some eyewitness accounts have led to the suggestion that, after several air raid alerts, the panic run for shelter was caused by a gigantic explosion of noise from the direction of the park. A BBC documentary on the event suggests that this was due to the first firing of the new Z-Battery anti-aircraft rockets. The UK Ministry of Defence, however, disputes this account. The war destroyed many of
1116-526: The Bishops of London , and was pulled down in 1845 to make way for Victoria Park. The land had originally been parkland, associated with the Bishop's Palace, but by the mid-1800s had been spoiled by the extraction of gravel, and clay for bricks. The park was opened to the public in 1845. It is reminiscent of Regent's Park , having been designed by Pennethorne's teacher John Nash , and is considered by some as
1178-506: The Central line , District line , Hammersmith & City line services to Stratford , Upminster , Barking or Central London is 10min via Grove Road , you can take the 277 or 425 to Mile End which is 5min away. Cambridge Heath station for National Rail services to Liverpool Street and Enfield or Chingford is 5mins away via Bishops Way. Victoria Park had its own rather grand station Victoria Park railway station (London) , on
1240-657: The Grand Union Canal , 550 yards (500 m) north-west of Paddington Basin in the west, to the Limehouse Basin and the River Thames in east London. The canal is 8.6 miles (13.8 km) long. First proposed by Thomas Homer in 1802 as a link from the Paddington arm of the then Grand Junction Canal (opened in 1801) with the River Thames at Limehouse , the Regent's Canal was built during
1302-574: The Green Flag People's Choice Award for the most popular public green space in 2012, 2014 and 2015, the only park in the UK to have won the award three times. The park is Grade II* listed on the Register of Historic Parks and Gardens . A mass petition to the Queen, in support of a recommendation by epidemiologist William Farr , led to the creation of the park. The UK Parliament passed
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#17327798711421364-758: The London Canal Museum . Continuing eastwards beyond the Islington tunnel it forms the southern end of Broadway Market and meets the Hertford Union Canal at Victoria Park, East London . It turns south towards the Limehouse Basin , where it meets the Limehouse Cut , and ends as it joins the River Thames . On the Regent's Canal the maximum length is 21.95 metres (72.0 ft), with a beam of 4.27 metres (14.0 ft) and
1426-589: The North London Railway , closed in 1943. The station survived into the 1960s, but when the line to Stratford reopened, it was replaced by Hackney Wick railway station , which is also a short walk from the eastern end of the Park. The Regent's Canal borders the west side of the park, while Hertford Union Canal borders the south side of the park; this offers access to walking or cycling on their towpaths. The National Cycle Route 1 (NCR1) passes here on
1488-593: The Tom Robinson Band . The 1980 rock docudrama Rude Boy features The Clash playing at an Anti-Nazi League event in the park. London International Festival of Theatre presented pyrotechnics company Group F in 2001 and again in 2004, led by acclaimed pyrotechnician Christophe Berthonneau. In 2006 through to 2010, Paradise Gardens, a free community festival, produced by Remarkable Productions working in partnership with Tower Hamlets Council's Arts and Events department, re-imagined Victorian pleasure gardens for
1550-525: The York House and Victoria Park Act 1841 , which enabled the Crown Estate to purchases 218 acres (88 ha) which were laid out by notable London planner and architect Sir James Pennethorne between 1842 and 1846. A part of the area was known as Bonner Fields, after Bishop Bonner , the last lord of the manor of Stepney . Bonner's Hall, also known as Bonner's Palace, served as a residence of
1612-538: The 19th century and with a tradition of socialist and revolutionary agitation — and Hackney , more genteel, but heir to a legacy of religious dissent and non-conformism that led to its own brand of reformism . So there was a lot of activity at Speaker's Corners . Although any one could set up their own soapbox, the biggest crowds were usually drawn to 'star' socialist speakers such as William Morris and Annie Besant . This description by J. H. Rosney, correspondent for Harper's Magazine (February 1888) evokes
1674-595: The Hertford Union Canal. Mare Street or Mile End or Hackney Wick can easily be reached from here. The northern end of the Greenway walk/cycle path to Beckton , via Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park and Newham General Hospital , starts nearby on the eastern side of Victoria Park. In summer 2008, the park was voted London's best local park by Time Out magazine. In 2011 it won its first Green Flag award (which it has won every year since,) and it
1736-602: The London Borough of Tower Hamlets a £4.5 million grant towards a £12 million programme of major improvements to Victoria Park. Plans included a new building, the Eastern Hub, comprising a cafe, public toilets, community rooms and adult play facilities to promote healthy living. The landscape has been restored in many places, and the Old English gardens restored to include new water features. In 1842
1798-479: The Regent's Canal Company proposed a railway track alongside the canal from Kings Cross to Limehouse, but funds could not be raised. Further schemes over the next twenty years also came to nothing, with the Metropolitan Railway that opened to the south in 1863 serving much the same purpose of linking the lines radiating north of London. In 1883, after some years of negotiation, the canal was sold to
1860-518: The Second World War; it was closed in 1986 and demolished in 1990. In the latter half of the 19th Century, Victoria Park became an essential amenity for the working classes of the East End . For some East End children in the 1880s, this may have been the only large stretch of uninterrupted greenery they ever encountered. Facilities like the Bathing Pond (picture right) —later superseded by
1922-480: The West Lake. Despite both being made of hay enforced with steel frames they still remain in the park and have become a prominent feature of the lake receiving their own plaques in 2015. London Buses Routes 277, 425 serve the heart of the park, 8, 339, D6, and Night Route N8 on Roman Road. 309 and D3 at London Chest Hospital via Approach Road. 388 (westbound) on Victoria Park Road. Mile End tube station for
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1984-523: The advantage of a General City Terminus, is too obvious to require comment. By the proposed railway, passengers and goods will be brought into the heart of the City at a great saving of time and expense, and facilities will be afforded for the more expeditious transmission of the mails to most parts of the kingdom. The railway company subsequently failed, but in 1846 the directors of the canal went about trying to obtain an act of Parliament to allow them to build
2046-580: The canal's original purpose of transshipping imports to the Midlands. The opening of the London and Birmingham Railway in 1838 actually increased the tonnage of coal carried by the canal. By the early twentieth century, with the Midland trade lost to the railways, and more deliveries made by road, the canal had fallen into a long decline. Just before 5am on 2 October 1874 the narrowboat barge Tilbury which
2108-704: The early 1970s, at the end of 1973, the British Waterways Board embarked on a three-year programme to convert one chamber at each lock into an overflow weir to facilitate unmanned use by pleasure craft without the risk of serious flooding due to incorrect use of the paddles. The City Road Basin, the nearest to the City of London , soon eclipsed the Paddington Basin in the amount of goods carried, principally coal and building materials. These were goods that were being shipped locally, in contrast to
2170-450: The early 19th century after the Regent's Canal Act 1812 ( 52 Geo. 3 . c. cxcv) was passed. Noted architect and town planner John Nash was a director of the company; in 1811 he had produced a masterplan for George IV , then Prince Regent, to redevelop a large area of central north London – as a result, the Regent's Canal was included in the scheme, running for part of its distance along
2232-499: The east of Regent's Park, Battlebridge Basin , close to Kings Cross , and City Road Basin ). Many other basins such as Wenlock Basin , Kingsland Basin, St. Pancras Stone and Coal Basin, and one in front of the Great Northern Railway 's Granary were also built, and some of these survive. All the locks were built with duplicate chambers to facilitate the heavy barge traffic. With the demise of commercial traffic in
2294-865: The festival in time, due to flight disruptions caused by events in Norway , so Rival Sons played a headline set in their place. Attendance over two days: around 30,000 Victoria Park, London Victoria Park (known colloquially as Vicky Park or the People's Park ) is a park in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets in East London , England. It is the largest park in Tower Hamlets and one of London's most visited green spaces with approximately 9 million visitors every year. The park spans 86.18 hectares (213.0 acres) of open space and opened to
2356-649: The finest park in the East End. It is bounded on two sides by canals : the Regent's Canal lies to the west, while its branch, once known as the Hertford Union Canal , runs along the southern edge of the park. There is a gate named after Edmund Bonner , and guarding the main entrance at Sewardstone Road are replica statues of the Dogs of Alcibiades , the originals of which stood here from 1912 to 2009 until vandalism led to their being removed, restored and rehoused elsewhere in
2418-468: The first Sunday in July. The Park is also the home of Tower Hamlets Football Club and Victoria Park United Football club, Tower Hamlets Cricket Club, Victoria Park Harriers & Tower Hamlets Athletics Club , which has its headquarters at St. Augustine's Hall located at the north-east corner of the Park. The club celebrated its 80th anniversary in 2006. During the summer cricket is played every evening on
2480-639: The fountain had been fenced off due to graffiti and vandalism, but along with the restoration the fences were removed, and four symmetrical mirror pools were placed around the fountain along with decorative flower beds. The area is now a public space, with many benches offering an attractive place to sit. A modern addition to the park is the Memoryscape trail, an audio trail winding through the park that visitors listen to using headphones. The trail consists of many historical facts and tidbits of information, and includes accounts from people who grew up in and around
2542-559: The merged Grand Union Canal Company on 1 January 1929. A new purpose was found for the canal route in 1979, when the Central Electricity Generating Board (CEGB) installed underground cables in a trough below the towpath between St John's Wood and City Road . These 400 kV cables now form part of the National Grid , supplying electrical power to London. Pumped canal water is circulated as
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2604-466: The modern era, before moving in 2012 to London Pleasure Gardens in Newham. Radiohead played two concerts in the park on 24–25 June 2008. Madness celebrated their 30th year with a fifth Madstock festival there on 17 July 2009. The park has also become very popular amongst dance music 's biggest names; Dutch DJ Tiësto played at Victoria Park in 2009 and again in 2010. On 24–25 July 2010, Victoria Park
2666-425: The northern edge of Regent's Park . As with many Nash projects, the detailed design was passed to one of his assistants, in this case James Morgan , who was appointed chief engineer of the canal company. Work began on 14 October 1812. The first section from Paddington to Camden Town opened in 1816 and included a 251-metre (274 yd) long tunnel under Maida Hill east of an area now known as ' Little Venice ', and
2728-453: The park lido—would have introduced many to swimming in an era when many public baths (like that at Shacklewell ) were still simply communal washing facilities. Victoria Park's reputation as the 'People's Park' grew as it became a centre for political meetings and rallies, perhaps exceeding in importance than the more well-known Hyde Park in this regard. The park occupies much of the space between Tower Hamlets — experiencing poverty in
2790-607: The park's beautiful early features: three lodges including the Bonner Lodge were completely reduced to rubble, the palm house was shattered, St Augustine's Church collapsed in on itself and the pagoda, moorish shelter and lido were all damaged. With finances tight after the war ended, most were torn down rather than repaired. In 1986 the Greater London Council transferred responsibility for Victoria Park to London Borough of Tower Hamlets and Hackney , through
2852-638: The park's three all-weather wickets, organised by the Victoria Park Community Cricket League. The park also has a popular three-lane cricket net, free to use at all times. It was refurbished to a high standard at the end of 2005, paid for by a grant from the England and Wales Cricket Board . The park is open daily from 7:00am to dusk. In 2010 the National Lottery Big Lottery Fund awarded
2914-560: The park, with one person for example reminiscing about the prisoner of war camp in the park during World War 2. Visitors can either download the tracks from the council's website and put them on their own device, or they can get a pair of pre-loaded headphones from the hub in exchange for a small refundable deposit. As part of the 2012 Summer Olympics , the Romanian Cultural Institute commissioned artist Ernö Bartha to produce two sculptures Bird and Skyscraper in
2976-720: The park. Two pedestrian alcoves are located at the east end of the park near the Hackney Wick war memorial where they were placed in 1860. They are surviving fragments of the old London Bridge , demolished in 1831, and were part of the 1760 refurbishment of the 600-year-old bridge, by Sir Robert Taylor and George Dance the Younger . They provided protection for pedestrians on the narrow carriageway. The insignia of Bridge House Estates can be seen inside these alcoves, which have been Grade II listed since 1951. The Lido opened in 1936 and reopened in 1952 following damage during
3038-431: The path of German Luftwaffe bombers looping north west after attacking the docks and warehouses further south in what is now Tower Hamlets , and so the park was of some strategic importance. Prisoner of war camps were erected along the north eastern edge parallel to Victoria Park Road and were used to house both Germans and Italians. An air raid shelter was built underground just inside St Marks Gate. On 15 October 1940
3100-530: The plans for his original bridge were discovered and the bridge built after over 100 years. As a finishing touch, pedalos and row boats were brought back on to the West lake, a feature which had been missing from the park for decades. The Burdett-Coutts fountain (named after the Victorian philanthropist Angela Burdett-Coutts) had a partial restoration of its intricate granite carvings and sculptures. In recent years
3162-595: The pooled cash revenue from their tickets, and eventually voted to recreate the well-known tradition of free speech and debate in Hyde Park in East London's Victoria Park. The campaign was to formally launch in July 2014. During the Second World War , Victoria Park was largely closed to the public and effectively became one huge Ack-Ack (anti-aircraft) site. The gun emplacements conveniently straddled
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#17327798711423224-421: The public in 1845. There are two cafes in the park, The Pavilion Cafe in the west and The Hub in the east. There are two playgrounds, one on either side of the park, as well as sporting facilities and a skatepark in the east. The park is home to many historic artifacts and features and has decorative gardens and wilder natural areas as well as open grass lands. It also hosts a lawn bowls club. Victoria Park
3286-508: The roofs of surrounding houses blew off, windows smashed, trees uprooted and dead fish rained down on the West End. The tugboat's keel was found embedded in a house 300 yards away. The bridge was nick-named the 'Blow-Up Bridge'. The damage would have been far worse had the barge exploded in the highly populated areas of Camden and Islington , which the convoy had passed through earlier that morning. The canal company that owned Tilbury
3348-446: The stretch along the canal towpath from Limehouse Basin to Mile End. British Waterways carried out several studies into the effects of sharing the towpath between cyclists and pedestrians, all of which have concluded that despite the limited width there were relatively few problems at the time of the audits. More recently, in 2019, The Guardian reported on instances of conflict between pedestrians and cyclists. The Regent's Canal forms
3410-550: The world, the Victoria Model Steam Boat Club, founded in the Park on 15 July 1904, is still active today and holds up to 17 of their Sunday regattas a year. The VMSB Club runs straight-running boats just as they did 100 years ago but have also progressed to radio controlled boats and hydroplanes . The first Regatta is traditionally held on Easter Sunday and the Steam Regatta is always held on
3472-460: Was again voted London's favourite park, this time in the national People's Choice Award, a UK wide competition. In 2013 Victoria Park was also certified a Green Heritage Site by English Heritage and Keep Britain Tidy, an award given in recognition of achieving the required standard in the management and interpretation of a site with local or national historic importance. In 2013 the park came second in
3534-524: Was also an Evel Knievel exhibition; a beer festival with bands playing, including The Amber Herd who headlined on the Sunday; and the Ace Café area – featuring performances from The Crazy World of Arthur Brown (which was recorded and subsequently released on limited edition vinyl as The Crazy World of Arthur Brown Live at High Voltage ), Aaron Keylock, and Allegra Shock. Electric Wizard couldn't make
3596-468: Was condemned for gross negligence in permitting the “highly imprudent and improper” practice of carrying petroleum and gunpowder aboard the same barge. The incident accelerated the passing of the Explosives Act 1875 , which regulates the manufacture and carriage of dangerous substances. There were a number of abortive projects to convert the route of the canal into a railway. In September 1845
3658-499: Was eventually demolished in the 1950s and all but forgotten, while the water surrounding the island was filled in, shrinking the lake and making what was the island part of the park landscape. With the park's refurbishments that began in 2010 it was decided to restore the island to its former glory; the lake was extended back around the original area, the pagoda was replicated through the use of many photographs and eye-witness information and then, to complete Pennethorne's unfinished vision,
3720-682: Was loaded with sugar , nuts , three barrels of petroleum and around five tons of gunpowder exploded right under the Macclesfield Bridge, just outside London Zoo . Until the explosion, the Tilbury was part of a convoy consisting of a tugboat and three narrowboats travelling westwards heading for a quarry in the West Midlands. All the people on board died; captain Charles Baxton, a labourer named William Taylor,
3782-465: Was revealed that the park had retained its Green Flag People's Choice Award, winning the most votes for a park in the whole of the UK. 51°32′13″N 0°02′17″W / 51.537°N 0.038°W / 51.537; -0.038 Regent%27s Canal Regent's Canal is a canal across an area just north of central London , England . It provides a link from the Paddington Arm of
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#17327798711423844-419: Was the site of the first High Voltage Festival . Victoria Park has also hosted Field Day , The Apple Cart, Underage Festival , Lovebox Festival , and All Points East . For children, Victoria Park is host to: a One O'Clock Club for under-fives and a programme of summer activities and a children's play park including a paddling pool that runs from 1-5pm in the summer months. The oldest model boat club in
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