HIGHGATE NEW TOWN PHASE 1, CAMDEN Community-led Conservation Guidance for inclusion in the Dartmouth Park Conservation Area and Application for Grade II* Listing

4.3.4 The scheme began in joint venture with neighbouring Islington Council; the Islington side eventually
becoming the Girdlestone Estate completed in 1975/76 (Willats 1986). The architects at this early
stage were Richard Gibson for Camden and Norman Cedar for Islington. Tábori replaced Gibson in
late ’68, when he left Camden. Something of Gibson’s legacy remains in the layout of streets set at
right angles to Dartmouth Park Hill, which Tábori developed (see 4.8).
4.3.5 The Retcar Street section (north) of HNT was given first priority because conditions were perceived
to be worst there, no doubt aided by the fact that the council had already begun to acquisition
houses. An alternate view of this is that the threat of CPO hanging over Highgate New Town
prompted neglect and a lack of investment (Webb 1972: 148) The 1966 scheme was primarily
residential and would see an increase from 1800 residents to 2060, which would be sufficiently
above the housing yardstick density of 136 persons per acre (ppa.); the lower limit for subsidies
to councils (required to make the scheme viable) as set by the Ministry of Housing and Local
Government (MHLG).
4.3.6 The acquisition by Compulsory purchase order (CPO), requiring approval by the MHLG, dragged
out between ‘68-69 and resulted in a public enquiry delaying the start of construction. During this
time Sydney Cook, recently appointed head of architecture at the new London Borough of Camden
(by merging St Pancras, Hampstead and Holborn under the Civic Act of 1965) engaged Tábori on
another scheme at Polygon Road in the south of the borough where he designed “a four-storey
terrace embracing two two-storey ones, arranged on five levels. These are divided at ninety
degrees, creating an L-shape, so that every flat gets some southern light.” Polygon Road provided
Tábori the opportunity to test out ideas for HNT (Watkinson 2019: 2). It achieved a density of 220
ppa. and has been described as “A scheme of panache with stairs linking up between units” (Webb
1972: 148). By the time matters were resolved, a decision had been taken to progress Phase
1 of Highgate to the north of Raydon Street (HNT), whilst Phase 2 would follow at a later date.
Redevelopment east of Chester Road was dropped in preference for retaining the existing terraces.
4.4 Peter Tábori
4.4.1 Before describing the scheme that Peter Tábori produced and Kenneth Adie delivered for HNT an
account of Tábori as an architect is required so as to contextualise the influences borne out in HNT.
It is also important to note that whilst Adie ensured exacting standards in construction, the scheme
as completed is largely as designed by Tábori. Whilst some changes were suggested by Sydney
Cook’s successor Alfred Rigby, only the glass canopies above stairwells at Lulot Gardens are
recorded as having been implemented (Swenarton 2017 & Pers Comm. Watkinson: 2018).
4.4.2 Peter Tábori moved to London in 1956, following the Russian invasion of Tábori’s home country
of Hungary during which he was incarcerated for 6 months. Arriving in London, Tábori studied at
Regent Street Polytechnic (today Westminster University), where his tutors and critics included
fellow architects James Stirling, Neave Brown, Eldred Evans and Richard Rogers. He earnt
a travel scholarship in the first year which he used to travel in northern Italy, visiting Siena,
Florence and Pisa. At the end of his second year Tábori took a break at architect James Stirling’s
recommendation, during which he worked for fellow Hungarian Ernö Goldfinger. Goldfinger
undertook to mentor Tábori which he described as “every night [it] was like a tutorial” (Swenarton
2017: 109). This mentoring is reflected in a shared interest in Pre-Modernist buildings and form
and the rich wood interiors of HNT and Goldfinger’s Willow Road (built 1939) (McKay 2006: 155).
The former of these Swenarton describes as having a “sense of the mysterious and formal” which
is completely unlike the clarity of Neave Brown’s interiors and links them to Tábori’s Hungarian
background which suggests a further link with Goldfinger (Swenarton 2017: 130)
4.4.3 On returning to Regent Street in 1963-64, Tábori was inspired by tutor Richard Rogers’ enthusiasm
for mass production (from Eames, Soriano and others see 4.4.7) and began his thesis exploring
industrialized housing typologies under Rogers’ supervision who recommended he use real sites
and briefs. The Italian-born Rogers also encouraged Tábori to draw on experience from travels
visiting Italy’s hill-towns, providing a likely link between the focus of the thesis on vertical facades
and hung balconies, and the terraces and externalised features (stairs, accesses etc.) of HNT and
Polygon Road. Swenarton cites San Gimignano, Umbria as an example, in addition to others he
visited. Whilst the hill-towns and terraced sites were being made popular at the time by coverage
in the Architectural Review (AR), this was more in the Picturesque tradition advanced by Gordon
Cullen characterised by his “interest in a psychological approach to form and the complex issues
surrounding urban renewal and the conservation of identity” and others rather than Tábori’s reading
of them as a source for urban renewal (Appleyard 1986: 127, Orillard 2012: 728 & Swenarton 2017:
20-21).
Adjacent- Fig. 13: Polygon Road (TD)
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