J C Decaux UK Head Office, Brentford

J C Decaux have chosen this wonderful Art Deco building on the Great West Road (A4) in Brentford as their UK Head Office.

I know from a distance or a speeding car it doesn't look that special but stand in front of it and there is lots of nice features to take in.

The rectangular wings featuring their red metal framed windows have rounded ends where they meet the central tower. The tower itself has a clock and the ubiquitous flagpole.

At the edge of the wings the windows cut through the corners creating a spacious feel to the building. Then another section of the building is set back from the road with lovely rounded quadrant windows at the end of the two horizontal bands.

And I make no apology for the inclusion of this arty photo, just because I like it a lot, especially the way I caught the Union Flag in mid-flutter.

Firestone Factory, Brentford

On a visit to West London in 2003 to see the Gillette Factory, I came to Brentford's Golden Mile, a section of the Great West Road opened in the mid 1920s and quickly became a preferred location for new factories, many Art Deco in style.

We pulled he car off the road so I could jump out and take some photos. The gate above is the first thing I saw. Obviously it was deco but I had no idea exactly what I had come across.

The fence along the main road was interspersed every few metres with these stylish pillars.

It was not until I reached the main gates that I was able to confirm what I was beginning to suspect. The F on the gates told me this was all that was left of the Firestone Factory.

Designed by Wallis, Gilbert & Partners in 1928, The Firestone Factory was an Art Deco gem, not unlike the Hoover Factory in Perivale also by Wallis, Gilbert & Partners.

I've read conflicting reports on various websites that the factory was demolished in 1971 or over the August Bank Holiday weekend in 1980 just days before a Preservation Order was going to be enacted.

Certainly the Twentieth Century Society website supports the second version. Gavin Stamp and Alan Powers go on to say that the demolition served as a catalyst to protect 20th C buildings leading directly to the listing of 150 inter-war buildings.

The fence and gates are now Grade II Listed which I guess is something and it does serve as a reminder of one of the greatest acts of architectural vandalism.

There are lot more pictures on the delightful Dog and Deco site and if you can face seeing what the building looked like before and as it was being demolished then have a look at www.users.globalnet.co.uk/~garycr/2001/firestone_factory.
[The photo of the original entrance is worth a visit to this site]