Tag Archives: David Morgan

The day Dr Bookless took the wicket of the great WG Grace

CROYDON CHRONICLES: A long career in medicine based at Croydon General Hospital and on Harley Street followed for a sporting young man who, when a student at Guy’s Hospital, once enjoyed a cricket moment of a lifetime. DAVID MORGAN explains … Continue reading

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From flames to fame, Waddon’s Knox family made their mark

CROYDON CHRONICLES: From the night of the Great Fire of Croydon, DAVID MORGAN tells the story of a family of vicars and bishops, of writers and editors, and Enigma codebreakers The fire which destroyed Croydon Parish Church in 1867 had … Continue reading

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Vicar of Croydon announces move to Walsingham this summer

Canon Andrew Bishop is standing down as the Vicar of Croydon, to take up a position in the Diocese of Norwich. The Vicar of Croydon is an ancient church position that dates back to Saxon times, closely associated with Croydon … Continue reading

Posted in Bishop of Croydon, Canon Andrew Bishop, Canon Colin Boswell, Church and religions, Croydon Minster | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

The wartime night that the ‘first lady of jazz’ sang for Croydon

CROYDON CHRONICLES: Adelaide Hall performed at the Cotton Club, sang with Duke Ellington and took to the stage in the Berlin of Sally Bowles. And she was a star of the old Croydon Empire, as DAVID MORGAN explains  It was … Continue reading

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Music Hall performer whose potato song helped the war effort

CROYDON CHRONICLES: Musical director of the Croydon Empire theatre enjoyed a colourful career and played a part in the community, writes DAVID MORGAN A century ago, long before we had mass media in our living rooms and at our finger … Continue reading

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From a few lines in Henry V, actor stood alongside the greats

CROYDON CHRONICLES: An outstanding producer-director at The Old Vic who performed alongside the likes of Sir Henry Irving and Sir Laurence Olivier, and appeared in some of the most notable films of the 1940s and ’50s, Harcourt Williams’ acting talent … Continue reading

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Cycle Carnival saw thousands lining the streets for good cause

CROYDON CHRONICLES: There was a time when the town’s streets were not such a hostile environment for cyclists as they are today. They even had an annual event to celebrate, and raise large amounts for charity. DAVID MORGAN takes up … Continue reading

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Gertrude Massey’s masterstrokes showed Royalty in best light

CROYDON CHRONICLES: A prize-winner at Croydon School of Art went on to become one of the most sought-after portrait artists in Edwardian London, and taught Evelyn Waugh and the Wizard of Oz’s Scarecrow. DAVID MORGAN recalls the stellar career of … Continue reading

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Charity Nickel Support is providing people with real life skills

CROYDON CHRONICLES: This week, DAVID MORGAN pays a visit to an organisation operating very much in the present, providing a future for dozens of young people It is rare that any of us don’t require some help to learn a … Continue reading

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Palace winger Harrison’s Match of the Day at Croydon Minster

DAVID MORGAN uses the Minster archive to trace the life and career of former Hampshire batsman and Crystal Palace winger Bernie Harrison, who played at Selhurst Park in the era when footballers earned a maximum £20 per week What was … Continue reading

Posted in Cricket, Croydon Minster, Crystal Palace FC, David Morgan, Football, History, Sport | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

All downhill for Odlings after they dismantled London Bridge

CROYDON CHRONICLES: A dynasty began in the late 1800s with a family living at Lennard Road whose relatives would build a global business empire from marble, played roles in running the British team at the 1936 Winter Olympics, helped to … Continue reading

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Minster choir to sing world premiere of Wallen’s latest work

CROYDON CHRONICLES: Minster archivist DAVID MORGAN looks to the futurethis week and a world premiere performance by the church’s choir to take place at Southwark Cathedral Croydon Minster’s choir, which already has a substantial list of musical achievements, will add … Continue reading

Posted in Bishop of Croydon, Church and religions, Croydon Minster, David Morgan, Music, Rosemarie Mallett | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The curious case of the Croydon curate and his woman stalker

CROYDON CHRONICLES: For six years at the end of the 19th Century, church services and the lives of clergymen in Croydon and in Southend were disrupted by the behaviour of one woman. DAVID MORGAN with his latest discovery from the … Continue reading

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This teacher’s Foss way always led her back to South East Asia

CROYDON CHRONICLES: In his latest delve into the archives, DAVID MORGAN recalls the life of a missionary, the daughter of a former Mayor of Croydon, who worked in China, Malaysia and South Africa, and survived almost four years in the … Continue reading

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‘Cockney Wagner’ who wrote symphonies, waltzes and operas

CROYDON CHRONICLE: Born in Waddon to a musical family, Joseph Holbrooke was a prodigy who struggled to find a way to make his talents pay in the often harsh world of classical music in Edwardian Britain. DAVID MORGAN has traced … Continue reading

Posted in Dance, David Morgan, History, Music | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

PANTO WARS! Which shows are worth seeing this Christmas

OUTSIDE CROYDON: Ken Towl has reviewed the pantomimes being performed in Croydon and Bromley this festive season. But there’s lots more family shows available across London. Here’s DAVID MORGAN’s suggestions

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Mead’s Minster time to end after 32 years of church service

CROYDON CHRONICLES: Denise Mead became verger at Croydon Parish Church in 1993. This week, after working with three Vicars of Croydon, organising countless church events and welcoming Archbishops and a Princess Royal to Croydon, she will take her leave for … Continue reading

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This was a pub landlord who never needed any bouncers

CROYDON CHRONICLE: The Crown on North End, demolished in 1950, was a coaching inn with a history that stretched back 500 years, and whose many landlords included Jack Martin, a bare-knuckle boxer from the Regency era whose fights would attract … Continue reading

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10 shillings to join the Goose Club and lay on a Christmas feast

CROYDON CHRONICLE: Christmas is coming, as the old saying goes, and the goose is getting fat… DAVID MORGAN looks back to the Dickensian era, when financial planning for the end-of-year revels was serious business for the likes of Surrey Street … Continue reading

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Oh yes she is! Victorian dancer who became a pantomime star

CROYDON CHRONICLES: One of the great British traditions of this time of year is the family visit to the theatre, or to a church hall for the local am-dram performance, during pantomime season. DAVID MORGAN traces the career of Caroline … Continue reading

Posted in Art, Comedy, Dance, David Morgan, Fairfield Halls, History, Music, Stanley Halls, Theatre | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The casualties of war are not always killed on the battlefield

THE CROYDON CHRONICLES: There is history all around the Minster, not only in the archive, as shown this week as DAVID MORGAN provides the story behind one of the church’s plaques, which dates from more than 120 years ago, and … Continue reading

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The heretic bishop who recanted to avoid burning at the stake

SUNDAY SUPPLEMENT: Reginald Peacock was consecrated as a bishop in a service conducted in the Archbishop’s palace in Croydon, but had to survive a show trial and ritual humiliation on the streets of Medieval London, as DAVID MORGAN writes The … Continue reading

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Remembrance and History: a special Croydon Insider episode

Can you help in our appeal, with the Deputy Lieutenant of Croydon, in providing details of personnel from Croydon who have been killed on active duty in the years since the end of World War II? On Remembrance Sunday, our … Continue reading

Posted in Bourne Society, Croydon Airport, Croydon Insider, Croydon Minster, Croydon Natural History and Scientific Society, David Morgan, History, Inside Croydon, Johnny Dobbyn, Under The Flyover | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Armistice Day: when Croydon was ‘beflagged’ with good cause

SUNDAY SUPPLEMENT: Croydon’s joyful response to the news that war had ended in 1918 was widely covered in the local newspapers 107 years ago. DAVID MORGAN sifts through the cuttings in the Minster archives  By this time next Sunday, most … Continue reading

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Our archive of Inside Croydon’s Remembrance Day articles

Each year, around the time of the ceremonies for Remembrance Day, the Croydon Minister archivist, DAVID MORGAN, has produced a series of often moving articles about the sacrifices made by the men and women of the parish in the 20th … Continue reading

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