Rileys (Former Temperance Billiard Hall), Lewisham, London

Description

779/0/10149 LEWISHAM HIGH STREET
01-FEB-08 233-241
Rileys (former Temperance Billiard Hall)

II
Former Temperance Billiard Hall, 1909-10 by Norman Evans, Architect to Temperance Billiard Halls Ltd. Later alterations, to interior in particular.

EXTERIOR: The façade to Lewisham High Street has a prominent central tower above the entrance with a domed cupola, iron lamp brackets, a swan-necked pediment, Diocletian window and other whimsical details such as volutes and, across the shallow bow window, ribs with scrolled tops. The entrance bay, to which modern signage has been added, is flanked on each side by two shop-front windows with shallow bows to the ground floor and two smaller three-light bow windows on the upper storey. Transom lights of simple stained glass are visible in the southernmost two ground floor windows and all of the upper floor windows - the latter in a more exuberant Art Nouveau design - which also retain their original casements. The ground floors bays are divided by pilasters, formerly tiled now painted, whose capitals survive and the upper floors with banded brick pilasters and plasterwork wreaths. The facade is surmounted by a curved parapet in which decorative brickwork is still traceable in the roughcast render, despite having been painted white. The building's corner position is exploited by the small domed turret which terminates this elevation and draws attention to a corner entrance with a stained glass transom and elaborate plasterwork cartouche above the door. The elevation to Court Hill Road is long but enlivened by the showy detailing characteristic of the architecture of billiard halls, including a second domed turret, more plasterwork, hoppers with decorative cherub heads, a colonnade of Ionic columns, and pilasters decorated with a diamond pattern of red and green tiles set within specially-cut bricks (though these have been painted over). The elevation reflects the internal plan, comprising the deep gable end of the café / lounge, this with a projecting, half-domed section with an oculus and an apex with scroll detailing, and then the side elevation of the billiards hall which has seven and a half bays and four dormer windows with semi-circular hoods. This elevation is part-boarded up and earlier fabric, in particular stained glass, may survive behind the boards here and elsewhere in the building.

INTERIOR: The interior contains few visible features connected to the building's origin as a temperance billiard hall. The subdivision of the four shops and the partitions dividing them from the former café / lounge has been removed. The timber staircase to the upper storey and one metal spiral staircases survives, however. The two halls, the former café / lounge and billiard hall are readable in the plan but the former has lost the features visible in the historic photo - namely the booths, fountain, proscenium, and bow window. Suspended ceilings have been inserted in both halls resulting in the concealment of any features above this level which may survive (i.e. pilaster capitals, the upper sections of the proscenium, the iron trusses of the roof, ridge lighting).

HISTORY: Temperance Billiard Halls Ltd was founded in Manchester in 1906 at the height of the Temperance movement, perhaps in response to the success of the world convention on temperance held in London in the same year. The company built around seventeen billiard halls from 1906-1911 when Evans was architect; five were in London and the rest in Manchester. This is not a common building type nationally, however, and great numbers have been lost in the second half of the C20 when billiards declined in popularity and there was little interest in temperance. The London halls were in Clapham, Balham and Fulham and there were hall and shop complexes in Lewisham and Wandsworth. By 1939 there were over fifty temperance billiard halls in the capital, although few of those built subsequent to Evans' tenure as Company Architect matched his in distinctiveness or architectural quality.

The Temperance movement aimed to combat alcoholism by building 'dry' recreational halls and hotels which rivalled the architecture of the opulent public houses of the late C19. The buildings often used the same decorative materials that pubs used, such as tiled facades and stained glass windows, to create the congenial atmosphere of a public house without the pitfalls of available alcohol. The Temperance Billiard Company Ltd targeted the suburbs of south London, where many new pubs had been built in the late C19, as well as in the north-west of England where the firm originated. Thus, temperance billiard halls by the company are a distinctively south London and north-west England building type, although there are other temperance buildings elsewhere.

The site in Lewisham had formerly been occupied by a detached house in large grounds called Greenway Place. This was demolished and the temperance billiard hall, which was originally known as the Gild Hall, was built in its place. The original plans for the Gild Hall survive and show a building boasting a café / lounge, a large hall with fifteen billiard tables, a lobby, and four shops facing Lewisham High Street. Historic photographs in Lewisham Local History and Archives Centre reveal the appearance of the cafe / lounge which had a stained glass bow window at its southern end, a small platform and proscenium (presumably for bands and other entertainment) at the northern end, a fountain in the centre of the hall, tables and chairs and two small domed booths with Art Nouveau stained glass, possibly for purchasing refreshments. The photo also shows the roof with its ornate metal trusses and brackets, which is likely to survive beneath the suspended ceiling of what is now a refreshment area. Future work may reveal further historic features, particularly above the suspended ceilings.

An historic photograph of the exterior shows that on the Lewisham High Street elevation, the pilasters between the shop fronts were tiled and there was a canopy over the entrance which had a stained glass fanlight reading 'The Gild Hall' and advertising 'Billiards' and 'Music'; the Court Hill Road return elevation appears to have had windows along the side of the billiard hall, no doubt providing essential day light for players. These features have either been covered up or removed although the diamond patterned inlaid tiles on the pilasters of the Court Hill Road return can be seen beneath later coats of paint. Much of the detailing in the upper storeys shown in the photograph, such as courses of brickwork exposed in the roughcast render, has been painted white but is still traceable in the elevations.

SOURCES: 'Proposed Temperance Hall, High Street and Court Hill Road, Lewisham', original architect's drawings in the Lewisham Local History and Archives Centre.
Historians Files on temperance billiard halls at Fulham, Balham and Brixton, English Heritage.
Two historic photographs in the Lewisham Local History and Archives Centre

REASONS FOR DESIGNATION DECISION: The former Temperance Billiard Hall on Lewisham High Street is listed for the following principal reasons:
* It is a well-surviving example of an uncommon building type, it shares features in common with the listed hall at Fulham High Street and is less altered externally;
* It has special architectural interest for its attractive architecture by Norman Evans, including a clever plan, eclectic detailing, good compositional qualities and strong presence in the streetscape;
* It has special historic interest as representative of two defining characteristics of the Temperance movement: provision of an alternative to the public house for food, drink and recreational activities and a determination to make temperance commercially viable.

Reasons for Listing

* It is a well-preserved example of an uncommon building type, it shares features in common with the listed hall at Fulham High Street and is less altered externally;
* It has special architectural interest as an attractive early C20 commercial building with a clever plan, eclectic detailing, good compositional qualities and a strong presence in the streetscape;
* It has special historic interest as representative of two defining characteristics of the Temperance movement: provision of an alternative to the public house for food, drink and recreational activities and a determination to make temperance commercially viable.
* It is not known whether or not the roof structure and other original features survive beneath later boarding and suspended ceilings, but the building merits listing at face value.

External Links

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