Architectural folly
ST GEORGES HALL
The Neo Classical St George's Hall contains concert halls and law courts, and is Grade I listed. The architectural historian Nikolaus Pevsner thought it one of the finest neo-Grecian buildings in the world. A competition in 1839 to design the hall was won by Harvey Lonsdale Elmes, an architect aged only 25. Elmes died in 1847 and the work was continued by John Weightman, Corporation Surveyor, and Robert Rawlinson, structural engineer, until in 1851 Sir Charles Cockerell was appointed architect. Cockerell was largely responsible for the decoration of the interiors. On my first visit I was suprised to be greeted by a blind guide but need not have worried as he certainly knew his stuff. The two lads in the picture riding children's bikes had just stopped to discuss the relative merits of the Gothic and Classical styles.The former is represented by the old North Western Hotel directly facing St Georges Hall. Both are impressive but I know which I prefer!
ST GEORGES HALL
The Neo Classical St George's Hall contains concert halls and law courts, and is Grade I listed. The architectural historian Nikolaus Pevsner thought it one of the finest neo-Grecian buildings in the world. A competition in 1839 to design the hall was won by Harvey Lonsdale Elmes, an architect aged only 25. Elmes died in 1847 and the work was continued by John Weightman, Corporation Surveyor, and Robert Rawlinson, structural engineer, until in 1851 Sir Charles Cockerell was appointed architect. Cockerell was largely responsible for the decoration of the interiors. On my first visit I was suprised to be greeted by a blind guide but need not have worried as he certainly knew his stuff. The two lads in the picture riding children's bikes had just stopped to discuss the relative merits of the Gothic and Classical styles.The former is represented by the old North Western Hotel directly facing St Georges Hall. Both are impressive but I know which I prefer!