may 4, 1951 - The Festival of Britain 1951

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In an effort to promote a feeling of healing after the War, the Festival of Britain celebrated British arts, science and industry, hoping to inspire the feeling of a better Britain. This was almost exactly 100 years to the day after the 1851 Great Exhibition.

The Festival was held on a 27 acre lot in South Bank, London. This area had remained mostly untouched since it was bombed during the War. Hugh Casson was appointed Director of Architecture for the Festival and his designs showcased the principles of urban design that focused on the post-war rebuilding of London and other cities. The main site featured the largest dome at the time, standing at 93 feet tall and a 365 foot diameter. The Festival featured exhibitions on the New World, Polar regions, the Sea, the Sky and Outer Space, and also featured a 12 ton steam engine show. It also featured a large art cinema, the Telekinema, which was not torn down until 1957, when the National Film Theatre moved to the site it still occupies at the South Bank Center. Although the main site was in London, there were additional sites throughout the country in smaller cities.

There was much controversy over the funds used to support the Festival, as many residents believed the money would have been better spent on rebuilding housing that was destroyed during the War. After the opening, the Festival was criticized artistically for being too futuristic, too gaudy, too expensive (entering the Dome of Discovery was 5 shillings) and even too innovative.

Over 8 million paying visitors enjoyed the Festival. The Festival ran for 5 months, from May until September. The new Prime Minister Churchill saw the festival as a work of socialist propaganda and ordered everything to be destroyed -- only allowing the Royal Festival Hall to remain.

A. Mahoney

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