Legacy
These walls breathe “breakthrough”
Charlie Phillip’s photograph above, taken in 1967, captures a defining period in the social and racial history of Notting Hill and Ladbroke Grove – a time of intense change, that truly brought people together like never before. The Tab has stood an observer throughout, and offered a stage and a home to some of the most pioneering artists of the 20th Century.
1888: Lord Shaftesbury opens the ‘old tin’ Talbot Tabernacle on Powis Square.
1950s: Powis Square is epicentre of Rachman’s slum empire. As more West Indians come to live in Notting Hill (7000 by 1958), Rachman was one of the few landlords to rent properties to them. But he exploited the situation by overcrowding and overcharging.
1958: Barred from the pubs, the West Indian hustlers built their own scene of illegal ‘blues’ clubs – tensions rise with the white youths of Notting Dale, fanned by Oswald Mosley and his fascists. Riots break out over August Bank Holiday, causing national outcry.
1960’s: Brian Jones lives in Powis Square. Counter Culture takes root nearby. London Free School opens. Michael de Freitas has become Michael X, Britain’s Black Power leader. World Heavy Champion Muhammed Ali visits Portobello Rd.
1966: The first Carnival in Powis Square is started by Michael X and Mrs Laslett as a local affair for kids.
1968-73: Pink Floyd debut with a residency at All Saints Church Hall. Hawkwind form nearby. The BBC film ‘Interstellar Overdrive’ at The Tabernacle. Hendrix, Marley, Van Morrison and Rolling stones are regulars at The Globe.
1973: The Siege of Notting Hill – local councillors are locked into All Saints Hall to listen to demands that include opening the Tabernacle as a Community Centre and saving the Electric Cinema from redevelopment. The Tabernacle is squatted and will soon become the heart of the community.
1974-80: The Tabernacle has become the community arts centre base of the Carnival and the Mangrove steel band (it still is today). Rough Trade opens in ‘76. In ‘77 it is the venue of the Raincoats’ debut gig; and at the end of the 70s, Joe Strummer appears at the time of ‘London Calling’ with Richard Dudanski’s Ladbroke Grove All Stars 101’ers reunion.
The 90’s: The Stones and Pink Floyd rehearse at the Tabernacle. It reopens after a £4 million refurbishment, featuring a new hall, studios, art gallery and bar/restaurant. The first 21st century Portobello Film Festival is screened at the Tab. Joe Strummer dies in 2002. In 2006, the building is used as the rehearsal studio of The Good, the Bad and the Queen.
