Monkenhurst

Monkenhurst is a house in the Victorian Gothic style at 15 The Crescent on the north edge of New Barnet in London, England. It overlooks Monken Hadley Common. The house was built in 1880 to a design by Peter Dollar and was once the home of the comedian Spike Milligan. In 2002 Mr & Mrs Dervish, Solicitors purchased Monkenhurst.

For the nearby listed building in Monkey Hadley, see Monkenholt.
Monkenhurst

History

Monkenhurst was built in 1880[1] to a Victorian Gothic[2] design by Peter Dollar[3] and enlarged in 1915.[1] It is of red brick with three storeys and a pyramid-capped tower.[3] Stained glass windows, acquired from Northumberland House[2] (demolished 1874), show the crests of participants in the Wars of the Roses[1] in reference to the Battle of Barnet, a key battle in the conflict that took place nearby.[4]

In the 1920s the house was the home of the mining engineer and metallurgist Savannah Johnson Speak (1868–1929)[5] and in the 1950s it was the residence of the radiologist Steven Carstairs (1919–1998).[6]

In 1973, the house along with other property totalling about two acres, was acquired by Highshore Properties, who, it was reported in The Estates Gazette, intended to sell Monkenhurst and build houses and bungalows on the rest of the site.[7]

In 1974[8][9] Monkenhurst was acquired by the comedian Spike Milligan who spent £10,000 restoring it.[10] He also paid to have the pound (an historic livestock enclosure) on Monken Hadley Common repaired.[11] Visitors to the house during Milligan's ownership included Prince Charles,[12] and fellow Goon Show cast-member Peter Sellers, who arrived naked as a practical joke, and was sent away again still naked.[4] The house was later purchased by the property developer Stephen Friel who spent £250,000 refurbishing it after acquiring it in a poor condition. It was offered for sale in 2002 for £1.75 million[13]

Monkenhurst is locally listed by the London Borough of Barnet.[14]

  • Window detail
  • North side, view from The Crescent
  • View from the west
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References
  1. Taylor, Pamela, & Joanna Corden (1994) Barnet, Edgware, Hadley and Totteridge: A Pictorial History. Chichester: Phillimore. Photograph No. 86. ISBN 0850339189
  2. Pevsner, Nikolaus & Bridget Cherry. (2002). The Buildings of England: London 4 North. New Haven & London: Yale University Press. p. 186. ISBN 0300096534.
  3. Monken Hadley: Introduction. British History Online. Retrieved 27 May 2017.
  4. "Barnet: My part in its rise and downfall", Anne Spackman, The Times, 4 October 2002, p. 8.
  5. Who's Who in Engineering, Volume 1. John W. Leonard Corporation, New York, 1922. p. 1187.
  6. Arhi MN, Batt CK. "Mohammed iftikar akhter". BMJ. 317: 353. doi:10.1136/bmj.317.7154.353. PMC 1113649. PMID 9685300.
  7. The Estates Gazette, Volume 227 (1973), Part 1, p. 651.
  8. Me and my dad, Spike. Genevieve Fox, Evening Standard, 1 April 2003. Retrieved 27 May 2017.
  9. Scudamore, Pauline. (2013). Spike. Stroud: The History Press. p. 182. ISBN 978-0-7524-9501-9.
  10. Milligan, Spike, & Norma Farnes (Ed.) (2012). Milligan's Meaning of Life: An Autobiography of Sorts. Viking. p. 233. ISBN 978-0-241-95595-6.CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: extra text: authors list (link)
  11. Take a Tour of the Common. Monken Hadley Common. Retrieved 27 May 2017.
  12. Lot 59 A humourous dinner menu. Bonhams. Retrieved 2 June 2017.
  13. Spike's home for sale. Chortle, 9 October 2002. Retrieved 27 May 2017.
  14. Monken Hadley Conservation Area Character Appraisal Statement London Borough of Barnet, Barnet, 2007, p. 38.

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