Theatre Group walk in Penge on 15 October

Theatre group members assembled for our rescheduled walk on the Thursday afternoon of 15 October in Empire Square. Its name not known to many of the local residents but clearly labelled. We learnt it was so named after the Empire Theatre which was on this site until demolished in the 1960s. It hosted such stars as Marie Lloyd in its music halls. We heard of Penge’s claims to both Bill Wyman, who lived and went to school in Penge and David Bowie, who played in the Maple Tree pub.

Penge developed from a hamlet to a thriving community due to the building of The Crystal Palace nearby and then the development of the railway. It had a vast numbers of pubs and entertainment venues used by the workers of the Crystal Palace. We were surprised by the sets of lavish alms houses, to the Royal Watermen and Lightermen of the Thames and The King William IV Naval Asylum for widows, single daughters and young sons of naval officers and founded by Queen Adelaide his widow. Both now not used as such but all privately owned.

We saw St John’s Church built when the population grew and needed its own church in 1847 and then expanded twice due to the growing number of inhabitants.

Further down the road we saw Queen Adelaide Flats, built to reflect the shape of the alms houses, which won an award at the Festival of Britain. Our walk ended at Penge East station and nearby we saw the famous plaster works of Tomei founded in 1875 and still family owned and with work in such prestigious places as Harrods.

Penge East station opened in 1863 and at that time has a level crossing and a picturesque crossing keepers cottage which is still there. However, there is now a listed footbridge dating from 1880s after the crossing was closed in 1879. Most of us, after thanking Kate Boyle for her fascinating walk, crossed the footbridge to catch the train back towards Bromley.

Contributed by Mary Garside