I love to walk through beautiful old buildings, courts and arcades. One that stands out to me in Perth, Western Australia, is "London Court". The architecture is beautiful Tudor/Elizabethan. It was built by a wealthy gold financier and businessman, Claude de Bernales. Originally it was used for residential and commercial purposes. The arcade runs between the Hay Street Mall and St Georges Terrace.
The arcade is situated on land which previously was a collection of alleys known as Gun Alley and owned by former Mayor of Perth, Thomas Molloy. Claude de Bernales acquired the properties from Thomas Molloy in February 1936 for the Australian Machinery and Investment Co. Ltd for the sum of £75,000. The arcade was conceived as being a continuation of the recently completed Plaza Arcade to the north, giving shoppers and commuters a continuous retail thoroughfare from the Perth Railway Station through to The Esplanade and the Swan River.
Claude de Bernales engaged Melbourne architect Bernard Evans to design the arcade in association with local consulting firms Oldham, Boas and Ednie-Brown Architects. Construction commenced in August 1936 and took less than 12 months to complete at a cost of £100,000.
The building was constructed using quite modern building techniques
for its time, and featured an air-conditioning system not previously
seen in the state.
Other architectural features include ornate entrances with large wrought iron gates at each end. At the Hay Street end at the first storey level, a large clock chimes every quarter-hour, half-hour and on the hour. Four mechanised knights appear from a castle door and move in a semicircle each time the clock chimes as they apparently joust with each other.
At the Terrace end, another clock in a window shows a miniature Saint George doing battle with the dragon. The clocks were made by the Synachrome Company of London at a cost of £4,000.
The two interior ends include statues of Dick Whittington and his cat (northern end) and Sir Walter Raleigh (south end), each in bastion towers and gazing down on the shoppers below. Other distinctive features include gargoyles, masks, shields, crests and wrought iron signs and brackets. Gabled roofs, weather cocks and lead lighting add to the Tudor style. The arcade floor is laid with terracotta tiles.
Originally, the arcade included 24 residential flats in the upper levels as well as 53 shops and 55 offices. Most of the residences have now been taken over for commercial purposes. The arcade currently houses mainly small specialty retail shops and cafes.
The arcade was opened by former Lieutenant Governor and former premier Sir James Mitchell in a lavish ceremony on 29th of July 1937. Mitchell described the arcade as being "unique in Australia" and that it "would be an ornament to the city".
The opening was celebrated with a three-day 'Ye Olde English Fayre' which attracted several thousand visitors and raised £2,000 for the new Perth Hospital at St Georges Terrace and Irwin Street.
After all the sight seeing let's have afternoon tea with my delicious Matchsticks!
Bernadette's Cream and Jam MatchsticksIngredients
2 sheets of puff pastry
3 cups of whipped cream
5 tablespoons of icing sugar
Half a teaspoon of vanilla essence
Jam of choice - plum or strawberry are my favourites!
Method
Turn oven on to 180 degrees Celsius. Line a flat baking tray with baking paper.
Cut pastry into about 5cms wide by about 12cms long and place on the baking tray. Bake in oven until puffed up and golden brown.
Once cooled cut each matchstick in half.
Place cream in bowl and whip until thickens, add 2 tablespoons of icing sugar and vanilla essence, then slightly mix until combined. (Do not over whip or it will go like butter)
Spread the bottom half of each matchstick with jam. Then place whipped cream on top normally to about 2cms in thickness.
Place tops on the matchsticks and sift the remaining icing sugar over the top.
