Surname
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Cadbury-Brown
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Forename
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Henry Thomas known as Jim
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Date of recording
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April 2009
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Year of birth
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1913
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Place of Birth
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Sarratt, Herts
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Occupation
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Architect
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Fathers occupation
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Army Officer
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Present Address
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Aldeburgh
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Location Interview
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Aldeburgh
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Interviewer
Summary |
Doreen Bartlett
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Duration
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55 Mins
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No of tracks: 7
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This recording consists of 7 tracks.
Track 1 [15 secs] Introduction by Doreen Bartlett interviewing Jim Cadbury Brown at his home Church Walk, Aldeburgh on 8th April 2009. Track 2 [10 mins] Describes how his family first came to Thorpeness on holiday when he was about 12 years old. Mentions that they used to rent a house for about one month and then later bought a more permanent home for use during the holidays. Remembers it was in a place called The Bays and that there were not many houses in Thorpeness then. Describes a crescent of houses from the Dolphin round to the Country Club. Mentions that building the houses at Thorpeness started before the war and that the Meare was built during the war. He describes their home and where it was, near the golf course. Briefly mentions some of their neighbours. Mentions that his father left the army in 1916 and bought a farm near Colchester. Confirms he was born in 1913. Describes how there were no schools and he and his sister had a Governess prior to going to prep school. Describes going to prep school and contracting Diphtheria, caught from his music teacher, Miss Salter. Remembers staying at home during this time. Mentions that his father liked to live in different house and moved homes a lot, and mentions living in Mill Hill and Northwood, North London. Track 3 [10 mins] Describes going to Westminster School, and then at 17 enrolling at the Architectural Association School. Mentions that during this time his parents moved to Rendham, between Saxmundham and Framlingham. Mentions winning two 'competitions' one for British Rail and the other for a central feature at Olympia for a show by a group of people - Design and Industry Association, believes that after the war this became the Ministry for Design. Thinks that this was the beginning of the modern movement. Mentions that neither of these bore much fruit. Remembers working as a part-time teacher at the AA after the war, in 1947. Mentions he started working for Erno Goldfinger, assisting with the design of the famous houses in Willow Road, Hampstead. Mentions working for British Rail and designing a series of railway offices and then setting up his own practice in 1937. Mentions a group called CIAM, International Congress of Modern Architecture. Mentions other design work including the design of new town, Harlow, Hatfield and Basildon. Track 4 [10 mins] Continues describing designing for the new towns and mentions that they built, 1 garage for every 10 houses. Describes working on two area at Harlow new town and also working on a school. Describes the Congress meetings held and attended by about 70 architects. These were held in Italy 1947-9, in London 1951, The Festival of Britain year and then he remembers another in Aix en Provence but then believes they trailed off, and the organisation died. Repeats the places where his parent moved to, mentioning that he was born in Sarratt, Hertfordshire and then moved to a farm at Colchester then Mill Hill and Northwood. Mentions living in Ladbroke Square, London in rented accommodation. His parents moved to Rendham in the 1930's. Track 5 [7 mins 55 secs] Describes how his sister and her husband, an artillery officer, took over the house in Rendham and his parents moved into the gardeners cottage. Mentions that his mother died of a heart attack in 1939, at Christmas, whilst she was staying at the Wentworth Hotel in Aldeburgh. Describes his office in London which he had for 27 years. Describes his marriage to an American lady called Elizabeth Elwyn, a divorced lady who also worked for Goldfinger. Mentions that the marriage took place a few weeks before his 40th birthday. Track 6 [10 mins] Describes how in 1956, he was going to build a concert hall in Aldeburgh for Benjamin Britten along Church Walk, but instead the concert hall was built at Snape. Describes how he then built his own house on the site in Church Walk. Also mentions that he designed a music room at the Red House, which had previously been a barn. Describes how he taught one day a week at the RCA at a sculpture school and tried to encourage the amalgamation of sculpture and architecture. Describes designing the Royal College of Art on a site next to the Albert Hall in partnership with Robert Goodden and Hugh Casson. Track 7 [6 min 49 secs] Mentions the building of Snape Maltings. Describes his home in Church Walk and mentions that he also built the adjacent home for Imogen Holst. Mentions that the cost of his home was £2,554. |