The Festival of Britain and The Great Exhibition

The Festival of Britain

The Festival of Britain opened on the 4^th May 1951 and came just six years after the war as a regard for war efforts and to promote the idea of recovery. It lasted for 5 months before closing in September 1951 and had more than 8 million visitors. It celebrated British Industry, Arts and Science. However, there was still a lot of hesitation and anxiety about events like this which celebrated nationalism, resulting in controversy surrounding this event. It was also criticized for being too expensive, with entrance to the Dome of Discovery at five shillings.

Hugh Casson, aged 38, was appointed Director of Architecture and wanted to showcase urban design that would feature in the post war rebuilding of London and other areas in Britain. The main area of the Festival of Britain was the largest dome in the world at the time. It was 93 feet in height and 365 feet in diameter. Within this site was the ‘Discovery’, including the New World, the Polar Regions, the Sea, the Sky and Outer Space and featured a 12 tonne steam engine.

Next to the Dome was the Skylon which was a futuristic, vertical, cylindrical shape, supported by cables. It is said to have mirrored the British economy as it had no clear means of support. Another part of the Festival was the Telekinema which was a 400 seat cinema operated by the British Film Institute. After the festival, the Telekinema became home to the National Film Theatre which wasn’t demolished until 1957 when the National Film Theatre moved to another site. Other buildings at the Festival included the Royal Festival Hall which was a 2,900 seat concert hall that hosted concerts conducted by the likes of Sir Malcolm Sargent and Sir Adrian Bould in its opening concerts, as well as, a new wing of the Science Museum holding the Exhibition of Science and The Exhibition of Live Architecture at Poplar.

The Great Exhibition

The Great Exhibition was the first international exhibition of manufactured products and invited countries from all over the world, including France and Germany. It had a huge impact on the development of British society, especially the art and design education, international trade and relations and tourism of Britain.

Henry Cole was an assistant record keeper at the Public Records Office, however he enjoyed writing, editing and publishing journals. In 1846, Cole was introduced to Prince Albert due to his position as a council member of the Society of Arts. Soon after, the society receiver a Royal Charter and its name changed to the Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufacturers and Commerce. Henry Cole was inspired by the 1844 French ‘Industrial Exhibition’ and sought Prince Albert’s support to stage a similar event in England. Even though the Government show little interest in the idea, Cole and Prince Albert continued developing their ideas until increasing public pressure resulting in the Governments set up of a Royal Commission to investigate the idea.

The firm ‘Fox and Henderson’ won the competition to design a building that would be large enough and grand enough to house the event. Their idea was influenced by Joseph Paxton who had produced a glass and iron ‘conservatory’ for the Duke of Devonshire’s Chatsworth House. The design was to be built in Hyde Park and became commonly known as ‘Crystal Palace’ and accommodated the parks large elm trees.

The Great Exhibition was opened on the 1^st May 1951 by Queen Victoria and went on till October, with around 6 million visitors. It showcased Victorian ideas, including, pottery, porcelain, ironwork, furniture, perfumes, pianos, firearms, fabrics, steam hammers, hydraulic presses and two houses. However, it became more of a British event with more than half the 100,000 exhibits on display were from Britain or the British Empire.