Clik here to view.
Educating Arnie: The Terminator in Forest Gate - in his own words
Arnold Schwarzenegger is one of Forest Gate's most famous adopted sons. His stay in Forest Gate was the subject of this website's first-ever, and most visited, post, see here.Arnie was in London...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Tons happening in Upton Lane
One of the great (and loudly sung) successes of Forest Gate over recent months lurks behind the boarded up decay that was once the proud Old Spotted Dog pub, on Upton Lane.Tucked to one side of the pub...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Forest Gate during the Blitz
The most significant series of events of the last century to affect the constituent parts of Newham: East Ham and West Ham - including Forest Gate - were the World War 11 bombings.The whole physical...
View ArticleClik here to view.
V1 and V2 bombs in Forest Gate 1944 - 1945 - second part of bombing round up
This is the second of a two-part post on World War 11 bombs and Forest Gate, covering the last two years of the conflict. The first post can be found below.As we explained in the earlier article, we...
View ArticleClik here to view.
FG Good Booze guide - 2015
This is the third of our popular annual look at Forest Gate's drinking spots. And, this year, it's good news. No closures, a new opening and the prospect of a restaurant selling "craft beers" on the...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Thanks, for the memory (1)
If journalism is the first draft of history, websites like this have a good claim to be the second. So, in most of the articles, we try to give a flavour of what the press had to say about a particular...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Thanks, for the memory (2)
This is the second of two postings, summarising comments on some of the articles that have appeared on this blog, since its inception.Please see the opening paragraphs of last week's blog - immediately...
View ArticleClik here to view.
The street where you live (1) - Woodford Road
This is the first in an occasional series of articles by local historian, Peter Williams, who specialises in Newham housing, maps and local history. In each he will be looking, in detail, at the...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Offshore Forest Gate
Meticulous work by Private Eye and friends has tracked down over 100,000 properties in the UK owned by companies based in overseas tax havens - usually for tax avoidance purposes.This pattern of...
View ArticleClik here to view.
From chapel to ...?
The fate of Forest Gate's longest surviving, purpose-built, religious building hangs in the balance since a recent attempt by an evangelical church to take it over and restore it to its original...
View ArticleClik here to view.
The street where you live (2) : Ebor Cottages and Irish Row
This is the second in an occasional series of articles by local historian, Peter Williams, who specialises in Newham housing, maps and local history. In each he looks, in detail, at the history of...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Councillor/landlord interests in Forest Gate
Great detective work by the local Green Party has thrown up an interesting story about the property interests of some of our local councillors, which we examine, below.This blog also provides a timely...
View ArticleClik here to view.
End of an era – wood turners Brettell's leaves Chestnut Avenue
- the last active member of a five-generation-firm diesA piece of local industrial history slipped by, almost unnoticed, last month. The Chestnut Avenue factory of H Brettell & Sons Ltd,...
View ArticleClik here to view.
The street where you live (3): Chestnut Avenue
This is the third in an occasional series of articles by local historian, Peter Williams, who specialises in Newham housing, maps and local history. In each he looks, in detail, at the history of...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Forest Gate and family history
This site is often contacted with family history enquiries from genealogists tracing their Forest Gate roots. We always try to assist, and where enquirers can provide a little bit of local background...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Very poor food hygiene practice in Forest Gate (and some decent) - 2015 ratings
Forest Gate hosts some of the country's least hygienic eateries and food stores - and some of the best - according to the Food Standards Agency. This is our second round-up of the Agency's ratings for...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Forest Gate's first £2m house? - 224 Romford Road
Reluctant as we are to add to the property price madness that is sweeping Forest Gate, it is worth noting that one of the district's more distinct, and Grade 11 listed, houses is currently up for sale...
View ArticleClik here to view.
A nod at our neighbours (2): Manor Park pt 1
This is the second in an occasional series of articles taking a quick peep at the history of a neighbouring area. This time our friends to the north east: Manor Park: from the Domesday Book until the...
View ArticleClik here to view.
A nod at our neighbours: Manor Park pt 2
Last week we traced the history of what we now know as our neighbouring district of Manor Park, from the 11th century Domesday book until the latter part of the nineteenth century. We pick up the story...
View ArticleClik here to view.
The ups and downs of Forest Gate schools' Ofsted judgements
Ofsted has produced its annual report this week, summarising the findings of its 5,000 school inspections, nation-wide, over the last year (here). This brief blog summarises the inspectorate's findings...
View Article