Charles Brooking

 

One man and his taxi

charles brooking

Charles Brooking is a fascinating and knowledgeable collector of architectural detail, The Brooking Collection of Architectural Detail, and as Surveyors we find his lifelong quest to collect British building details unique, informative and valuable and a collection that must be kept intact for years to come. If you need help and advice with regard to building surveys, structural surveys, structural reports, engineers reports, specific defects report, dilapidations or any other property matters please free phone 0800 298 5424.

The following is one of a series of interviews with Charles Brooking, Historic and Listed Buildings Detail Expert, The Brooking Collection of Architectural Detail and a Surveyor where we have recorded his comments and various aspects that have affected windows and doors and other collectibles. The interviews outline how his collection started and built over the years and gives an insight into the amazing architectural features housed in his fine collection.

Surveyor: So would it be true to say many of your rescues were still taking place during your lunch hour?

Charles Brooking: Yes, in my lunch breaks I would walk around various areas of London and come across buildings that were being demolished and rescue some interesting architectural details.

charles brooking

Rescue defined

Charles Brooking defines a rescue as saving a window or door or staircase that would be doomed.

Charles Brooking was a pioneer in the rescue of architectural detailing as many years ago it was very much considered a strange and an unusual past time to want to rescue old parts of buildings with everything new and shiny being so important.

charles brooking

Surveyor: Were you rescuing items before it was widely known that you were doing this?

Charles Brooking : Yes, it was later that people became aware of my architectural rescues with English Heritage for example later getting in touch when a notable building had architectural detailing items which they knew I would wish to save.

Surveyor: Can you give me an example?  

charles brooking

Charles Brooking : Yes, there was a catholic church in White Rose Lane in Woking which was built in 1925-1930. Fitzroy Square, London. WC1 was another source of some amazing rescues. My London cabbie friend would meet me in my lunch hour and we would rush from my office in Paddington to rescue items.

charles brooking

Surveyor: At this time would you take a window or door out yourself?

Charles Brooking : Well in some cases they took them out for me and in some cases I took them out myself, often in a great rush because I had to be back by 2 o'clock or half past depending upon the situation. I would take the window out, load it into the cab and get back to the office all within a short space of time. It was always rather stressful but in Fitzroy Square I got some hob grates, architraves so it was worth it!

Surveyor: Could you describe the buildings that these are being rescued from?

charles brooking

Charles Brooking : There are large very smart town houses with a grand first floor, tall windows with the balconies outside.

Surveyor: And the first floor was for living on?

Charles Brooking : Exactly, the ground floor was still quite grand but the principal room was on the first floor, splendid staircases, Portland Stone facades, and they were being refurbished.

Surveyor: Were they three storey buildings?

Charles Brooking : Four storey I think.

Surveyor: Four storey, so there were servants?

charles brooking

Charles Brooking: Yes the basement, first floor basement, ground floor, first floor, second floor I think there was a third floor, and of course back then you would have had servants. They were very grand, very tall and narrow, very with high ceilings, stone cantilevered staircases and the architraves which were all original which came out, some had the red crayon marks from the construction on the back, so we retrieved samples.

If you found this article on The Brooking Collection of Architectural Detail interesting you may also be interested in the following articles on our website

Buying at Auction

Common Pitched Roofs

Cheap Building Surveys or being wrongly advised by your Building Surveyor

Glass

References:

TheBrookingCollection.com

DartfordArchive.org.uk

IHBC.org.uk

ProjectBook.co.uk

Independent Surveyors

If you truly do want an independent expert opinion from a surveyor with regard to building surveys, structural surveys, structural reports, engineers reports, specific defects report, dilapidations or any other property matters please contact 0800 298 5424 for a surveyor to give you a call back.

Commercial Property Surveyors

If you have a commercial property, be it leasehold or freehold, then you may wish to look at our Dilapidations Website at www.DilapsHelp.com and for Disputes go to our Disputes Help site www.DisputesHelp.com.

We hope you found the article of use and if you have any experiences that you feel should be added to this article that would benefit others, or you feel that some of the information that we have put is wrong then please do not hesitate to contact us (we are only human).

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