London: Royal Festival Hall

Country: England, United Kingdom City: London Borough: London Borough of Lambeth Location: Southbank / Belvedere Road Concert hall, built 1949-1951 by Sir Robert H. Matthews and Leslie Martin with E. Williams and Peter Moro (acoustics consultants: Hope Bagenal with H. R. Humphreys, P. H. Parkin, and W. A. Allen) as a contribution of the London County Council to the Festival of Britain 1951. Opened 1951 with a concert of British music, attended by King George VI and Queen Elizabeth. The concert hall can be converted into a theatre by erecting a proscenium arch. 1954 installation of the "Festival Hall Organ" by Ralph Downes. 1964 installation of an "assisted resonance system". Home to the London Philharmonic Orchestra and the Philharmonia Orchestra. Used for symphonic concerts, and jazz, rock, dance, and world music performances. Operated as part of Southbank Centre. 2909 seats. Links: www.rfh.org.uk, Theatres Trust, Wikipedia

Ticket 2 Nov 2002, concert performance of Meyerbeer's "Margherita d'Anjou"

Picture: centre, left: Royal Festival Hall Front Text: "Festival of Britain 1951. South Bank Exhibition" Publisher: Efroc Ltd., Ealing; Officially Authorized Series Type: Real Photo Size: Classic Sent: from Bath to North Ockendon, 9 Aug 1951

Front Text: "Royal Festival Hall", inscription: "Royal Festival Hall" Publisher: Jarrold and Sons Ltd., Norwich; Festival of Britain 1951 Post Card Type: Divided Back Size: Classic Not sent.

Front Text: "Royal Festival Hall, London" Publisher: Valentine & Sons, Dundee and London; V.101 Type: Real Photo Size: Classic Not sent.

Front Text: "Interior, Royal Festival Hall, London" Publisher: Valentine & Sons, Dundee and London; OUP.1. Type: Real Photo Size: Classic Not sent.

Front Text: "Concert in progress in the Royal Festival Hall, London" Publisher: Valentine & Sons, Dundee and London; OUP.2. Type: Real Photo Size: Classic Not sent.

Front Text: "The Main Foyer, Royal Festival Hall, London" Publisher: Valentine & Sons, Dundee and London; OUP.3. Type: Real Photo Size: Classic Not sent.

Reverse Text: "The Royal Festival Hall at Night. From a water-colour drawing by Maurice Wilson." Publisher: Royle Publications Ltd; Ref. PC.36. Type: Divided Back Size: Classic Not sent.

Reverse Text: "The Royal Festival Hall. A Concert in Progress. From a water-colour drawing by Bryan de Grineau." Publisher: Royle Publications Ltd; Ref. PC.37. Type: Divided Back Size: Classic Not sent.

Front Text: "Margaret Howell", "Open House London 2013" Reverse Text: "Royal Festival Hall, South Bank Centre Belvedere Road SE 1 8XX, Architects Leslie Martin, Robert Matthew, Peter Moro & Edwin Williams 1951. Completed in 1951 as part of the Festival of Britain and dubbed the 'People's Palace'. The RFH became a Grade 1 listed building in 1988, the first post-war building to be granted this status.", "Favourite buildings by Margaret Howell", "'This building is made to work for people; an effortless movement of space on different levels, carpeted and comfortable. Everything speaks of the designerss' thought and touch, from the auditorium to the door handels.' - Margaret Howell", "Chosen by Margaret Howell from the many buildings featured by Open House London since 1992" Publisher: Open House London Type: Advertising Card, not designed for postal use; 2013 reproduction of a 1950s photograph Size: Modern Not sent.

Front Text: inscription: "Royal Festival Hall" Reverse Text: "Royal Festival Hall: View from Waterloo Bridge. A view of the Hall from Waterloo Bridge. The Hall was built by the London County Council at the time of the Festival of Bratain in 1951, the chief architects being R. H. Matthew and J. L. Martin at that time Architect and Deputy Architect of the L.C.C. In the background is County Hall, Headquarters of the L.C.C., designed by Ralph Knott (1878-1929). The part shown in the picture was built between 1911 and 1922." Publisher: Gordon Fraser Postcard Size: 20.3 x 7.9 cm Sent:from North Kensington to Schwäbisch Gmünd (Germany), 1960

Reverse Text: "Royal Festival Hall, London. The Hall was built by the London County Council at the time of the Festival of Bratain in 1951, the chief architects being R. H. Matthew and J. L. Martin at that time Architect and Deputy Architect of the L.C.C. The Hall can seat up to 3,173 persons." Publisher: Gordon Fraser Postcard; AA03-X4 Size: 20.3 x 7.9 cm Not sent.

Front Text: "Royal Festival Hall from Cleopatra's Needle, London" Reverse Text: "Royal Festival Hall from Cleopatra's Needle, London. La Royal Festival Hall vue de L'Obélisque de Cléopâtre, Londres. Royal Festival Hall von Kleopatras Nadel aus Gesehen, London. Il Palazzo dei Concerti visto dall'obelisco di Cleopatra, Londra." Publisher: Valentine Printers & Publishers, Dundee and London; ET.5165R Type: Divided Back Size: Classic Not sent.

Reverse Text: "Festival Hall: Overlooking the river Thames. It was built in 1951 for the Festial of Britain. The main auditorium will seat 3000 and the stage holds a choir of 250. It is London's leading modern concert hall." Publisher: John Kalbian Associates, London; L058 Type: Divided Back Size: Classic Not sent.

Front Text: "The Royal Festival Hall, London" Publisher: John Hinde, London; 3L 70 Type: Divided Back Size: Classic Not sent.

Picture: left: Queen Elizabeth Hall/Purcell Room, middle: Royal Festival Hall, right: Shell Tower Reverse Text: "The Royal Festival Hall and Shell Centre. Built for the 1951 Festival of Britain, the Royal Festival Hall, seating 3,000, is claimed to be acoustically the best concert hall in the world. The giant Shell Centre (1957) in two huge blocks connected by a tunnel, is one of the largest office builidngs in the world. [...] On the left are the arches of Waterloo Bridge." Publisher: J. Arthur Dixon; PLO/21362/London Size: Modern Not sent.

Picture: left: Queen Elizabeth Hall/Purcell Room, middle: Royal Festival Hall, right: Shell Tower Reverse Text: "Royal Festival Hall and the Shell Centre" Publisher: Floodlite, London; PT8041 Type: Divided Back Size: Classic Not sent.

Reverse Text: "Maria Callas and Giuseppe di Stefano, Royal Festival Hall, 26th November 1973" Publisher: Royal Festival Hall; "50 Years"; 0142 Type: 2001 postcard of a 1973 photograph Size: 21.0 x 14.7 cm Not sent.

Reverse Text: "London, Lambeth, South Bank Arts Centre, Aerial View. Between Waterloo Bridge on the left and Hungerford railway bridge on the right lies an integrated group of buildings on the South Bank. The landing steps in the foreground give on to a riverside terrace. To the right is the Royal Festival Hall with its curved roof. Left of it is the Queen Elizabeth Hall with the Purcell Room behind it. These three halls are for various types of music making. To the rear of the Queen Elizabeth Hall and Purcell Room is the Hayward Gallery." Publisher: Gordon Fraser; LRFH-C9 Size: Modern Not sent.

Reverse Text: "Royal Festival Hall, London, Stage and Orchestra. The platform can be adapted for various needs by raising or lowering separate levels so as to accomodate orchestras, conferences, ballet and spectacles. There are also seats for choirs round the organ console. The Hall was opened in 1951 and was designed by Sir Robert Mathew and Sir Leslie Martin, then respectively Architect and Deputy Architect to the L.C.C." Publisher: Gorden Fraser; LRFH-C4 Size: Modern Not sent.

Reverse Text: "Diana Atkinson, The Art of the Fugue, 1990, (The Royal Festival Hall Organ), Oil on canvas, 93 x 60 cm, Private Collection, England" Publisher: The Hayward Gallery, SBC, London Size: Modern Not sent.

Picture: left: Queen Elizabeth Hall/Purcell Room, right: Royal Festival Hall Reverse Text: "Royal Festival Hall as taken from the Embankment" Publisher: SBC, London; C21002X Size: Modern Not sent.

Reverse Text: "Royal Festival Hall interior" Publisher: SBC, London; C21003X Size: Modern Not sent.

Reverse Text: "Royal Festival Hall Auditorium" Publisher: Royal Festival Hall; "50 Years"; 0141 Size: 14.7 x 21.0 cm Not sent.

Front Text: "Transforming the South Bank Centre Royal Festival Hall" Reverse Text: "[...] The Royal Festival Hall will re-open in January 2007. [...]" (for full text see reverse scan) Publisher: Royal Festival Hall Type: Advertisement Card, not designed for postal use Size: Modern Not sent.

For another picture of this concert hall, see London: "The Theatres of London". Permanent link: https://www.andreas-praefcke.de/carthalia/id/1132 CARTHALIA Homepage