Exceptional Travel Writing

CAMDEN PASSAGE ANTIQUE VILLAGE:
THE ANGEL, ISLINGTON
by
Bruce Burnett

It has often been said that London is not so much a large city as a vast coagulation of small villages. Fierce regional loyalties center on the district's soccer club or local pub. Many of London's Underground stations, and therefore the area in general, are named after the ancient village inn that once, and sometimes still does, stand there.

Such an area is The Angel in Islington, North London. The Angel was a 17th-century coaching inn, which stood at the important crossroads of City Road and Islington High Street. This was the London end of the Great Road north to Scotland. Tom Paine, author of The Rights of Man, is said to have lodged here and "The Angel Inn" is featured in Charles Dickens' Oliver Twist.

Although The Angel Inn no longer stands, local pubs of note include The Old Queen's Head, which dates from Elizabethan times. The original Elizabethan chimneypiece has been preserved and can be seen in the bar today.

The nearby King's Head Pub Theatre is one of the most famous and best fringe theatre venues in London. Music hall, or vaudeville, entertainment started in London pubs well over a century ago. The King's Head has brought show business full circle back to its roots. Many of the pub theatre's productions transfer to London's West End or New York's Broadway. To complement the nostalgic ambience, pub patrons are likely to be charged for their drinks in pre-decimal shillings and pence.

Camden Passage, Islington, London

But the main attraction at The Angel is Camden Passage, London's Antique Village. From small beginnings in 1960 it has become one of Europe's highest concentrations of antique dealers. Camden Passage is a pedestrianised street only a few hundred meters long. It was mostly built in the mid 18th century and still retains a Georgian, village atmosphere, although only a kilometer or two from London's bustling core.

Before the antique market blossomed, Camden Passage held several second-hand shops specializing in books and records. Said one Saturday morning shopper, "I used to come down here as a teenager in the mid-fifties looking for bargains in old jazz 78 rpm records. Now my wife comes here looking for bargains in Art Deco chinaware. It's amazing how the area has changed. After the war you could have bought one of these row houses for 200 pounds. Now they sell for upwards of 400 thousand pounds."

The liveliest times to visit Camden Passage are Wednesday and Saturday mornings, when over 300 shops, arcades and stalls are operating. There is also a small book market on Thursdays. Immediately adjacent to Camden Passage are other antique markets, including the York Arcade and The Mall Antiques Arcade. The latter was once an electrical substation and is a fine example of Victorian industrial architecture.

Another interesting piece of Victorian architecture is the Business Design Center, opposite Camden Passage. It was formerly the Royal Agriculture Hall and dates from 1862. The building now has a new lease of life as an exhibition and trade center.

Worth seeing also are the public gardens in Colebrooke Row just south of Camden Passage. Originally, the New River flowed here. This was a 17th-century scheme to provide London with cleaner drinking water than was available from the River Thames. The New River flowed 65 kilometers (39 miles) from rural Hertfordshire to Islington.

Noel Road has a number of literary and artistic connections. The novelist George Gissing lived at no. 60, Walter Sickert the artist had rooms at no. 56 and Joe Gorton, playwright, shared a flat at no. 25.
Public parking is limited near The Angel, but the area is amply served by public transport. The newly-renovated Angel station is on the Northern Line, the line shown in black on maps of London's Underground railway system.

Camden Passage Antique Village is not to be confused with Camden Lock outdoor market in Camden Town, just three kilometers (two miles) away.

CAMDEN PASSAGE ANTIQUE VILLAGE:
THE ANGEL, ISLINGTON
was first published in the Regina Leader-Post

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