Northala Land
So facts: the Hollywood Hills have nothing on the Northala Hills. They're made from the rubble of the old Wembley stadium, and they absorb all the A40 noise pollution. Pretty cool right? But did you know that Northolt was also the backdrop of several successful TV productions and home to fascinating celebrities? (If you believe Wikipedia).
Did Somebody Say Bog Off?
"So which successful productions?" do I hear you ask? Well, perhaps the most exciting, Northolt's swimming pool (then Swimarama, now Northolt Leisure Centre) was a filming location during the first season of CBBC staple The Story of Tracy Beaker (2002-2005). What an icon wow!
Hauntings and Heroes
Northolt was also the setting of BBC's controversial 1992 Halloween special 'Ghostwatch'. A team of paranormal investigators visited a family haunted by Pipes, a ghoul creepy enough to send 20,000 viewers into panic, calling the landline set up to reassure those too invested in the mockumentary (Woods, 2017).
I'm not sure if this one counts because it was actually filmed in Pinner. But BBC's My Hero (2000-2006), about an alien superhero, is also set in Northolt. Never heard of it before? Me neither... (Wikipedia, 2021)
Less Lust from Less Protein... or something
We need to talk about Stanley Green. And protein? Born in 1915, the man was on a mission, commuting all the way to Central London daily (trust me, despite our tube station, which we have, it's a trek) for years to warn people of the dangers of consuming too much protein. Which, by the way, he believed was excessive lust and aggression. Carrying his signature billboard and distributing leaflets, Green became a bit of a celebrity weirdo. He even inspired the Red or Dead fashion house in 1985 and campaigned his way into the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (Harding, 2020).
Robots and Royals in the High Schools
In 2014 the corridors and classrooms of Northolt's Alec Reed Academy hosted the cast and crew of Channel 4's sci-fi drama Humans (Bazaraa, 2015). The series explores ethics surrounding artificial intelligence and consciousness through a storyline about anthropomorphic robots.
The same year, the town's other school, Northolt High, welcomed the Duchess of Cambridge, Kate Middleton. The royal was there on behalf of charity The Art Room, opening a new room where students can access art therapy (Bazaraa, 2014).
A star is born, a star dies
Wikipedia says the illustrator best known for his designs for Terry Pratchett's Discworld book covers, Paul Kidby, was born in Northolt. All the other websites (Paul Kidby Art, 2021; Books Illustrated Ltd, 2021) only say West London, fake news or Northolt erasure?
Unfortunately, Northolt's Lime Tree Park was where musician Paul Gardiner overdosed in 1984. He was known for playing bass in Gary Numan's Tubeway Army as well as his solo projects.
References:
Bazaraa, D. (2015) 'Humans filmed at Northolt school: 'Does that mean we're famous?', My London, 16 July. Available at: https://www.mylondon.news/news/west-london-news/humans-filmed-northolt-school-does-9663119 (Accessed: 23 April 2022).
Bazaraa, D. (2014) 'Duchess of Cambridge opens art room at Northolt High', My London, 17 February. Available at: https://www.mylondon.news/incoming/duchess-cambridge-opens-art-room-6711860 (Accessed: 23 April 2022)
Books Illustrated Ltd, Art of the Imagination (2021) Paul Kidby. Available at: https://books-illustrated-ltd.myshopify.com/collections/paul-kidby (Accessed: 1 November 2021).
Harding, M. (2020) 'Stanley Owen Green - The Protein Man', Michael Harding, 7 January. Available at:
https://www.michaelhardingphotography.com/these-things-i-have-seen/stanley-owen-green-the-protein-man (Accessed: 9 October 2021).
Paul Kidby Art (2021) Available at: https://www.paulkidby.com/about/about-paul-kidby/ (Accessed: 9 October 2021).
Wikipedia (2021) My Hero (British TV series). Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Hero_(British_TV_series) (Accessed: 7 October 2021).
Wikipedia (2021) Northolt-Wikipedia. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northolt (Accessed: 7 October 2021).
Woods, R. (2017) 'Ghostwatch: The BBC spoof that duped the nation', BBC, 30 October. Available at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-41740176 (Accessed: November 1 2021).
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