Golders Green Crematorium

Golders Green Crematorium and Mausoleum was the first crematorium to be opened in London, and one of the oldest crematoria in Britain. It is owned by the London Cremation Co plc, and opened in 1902, designed by the architect Sir Ernest George.

Since its opening Golders Green Crematorium has become the flagship of crematoriums the world over.Fact|date=October 2008 It has pioneered cremation and its practices. But what probably sets Golders Green apart is its association with the funerals of many of the great names of British history over the last century.

Golders Green Crematorium, as it is usually called, is in Hoop Lane, off the Finchley Road, Golders Green, London NW11, five minutes walk from Golders Green tube station. It is directly opposite an extensive Jewish cemetery (Golders Green is an area with a high Jewish population). The Crematorium is secular, accepts all faiths, and all kinds of non-believers; clients may arrange their own type of service or remembrance event, and choose whatever music they wish.

The crematorium's buildings have an Italianate style, and include a notable tower, visible in the photograph, which contains the chimney from the crematoria. The convert|12|acre|abbr=on of gardens are extensively planted, and produce a beautiful and tranquil environment for visitors. There are several large tombs, two ponds and bridge, and a large crocus lawn. Another notable feature is a special children's section, which includes a swinging bench. There is also a 'communist corner' with notables of the Communist Party of Great Britain. There are two cremation chapels and a chapel of remembrance. There are also three columbariums containing the ashes of thousands of Londoners.

There are grave locations for 14 holders of the Victoria Cross cremated here, and there are locations and memorials for many other military personnel of all ranks, and from many countries.

At Christmas, although the crematorium is secular, a Christmas tree is erected on the field in front of the main buildings, and a nativity scene is placed near the chapel of remembrance.

Cremations

Among those cremated here, but whose ashes are elsewhere, are:
*Stanley Baldwin, ashes removed to Worcester Cathedral
*Neville Chamberlain, ashes removed to Westminster Abbey
*Bebe Daniels, with her husband, Ben Lyon, at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery, Hollywood
*T. S. Eliot, at rest in a church in the village of East Coker, England
*Gary Holton, actor most famous as the star of Auf Wiedersehen, Pet
*Kenneth Horne, comedian and businessman, star of Much-Binding-in-the-Marsh, Beyond Our Ken and Round the Horne
*John Inman, actor, star of Are You Being Served?
*Henry James, ashes removed to family plot in Cambridge, Massachusetts
*Leonid Krasin, ashes buried in the Kremlin Wall Necropolis
*Rudyard Kipling, ashes removed to Westminster Abbey
*Alice Liddell (see "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland")
*Vivien Leigh, ashes were scattered on the lake at Tickerage Mill pond, near Blackboys, Sussex, London
*Princess Louise, Duchess of Argyll, ashes buried at the Royal Cemetery at Frogmore
*Arnold Ridley, author and actor
*H. G. Pelissier, actor, composer and satirist
*King Prajadhipok of Thailand, ashes removed to Chakri Throne Hall in the Grand Palace, Bangkok
*Dr Richard Bowdler Sharpe, zoologist, founder of the British Ornithologists' Club Assistant Keeper British Museum

Burials

Among those whose ashes are retained here are:
* Larry Adler
* Kingsley Amis
* Boris Anrep
* Sir Fenton Aylmer VC
* Simon Blumenfeld
* Enid Blyton
* Marc Bolan
* Bernard Bresslaw
* Eric Coates
* Leslie Compton
* Dame Cicely Courtneidge
* Walter Crane
* Tony Crombie
* Ed Devereaux
* James Dewar
* Ray Ellington
* Bud Flanagan
* George Frampton
* Anna Freud
* Sigmund Freud
* Sir Ernest George
* Ernő Goldfinger
* Charles Gray
* Hughie Green [citeweb|url=http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=pis&GRid=6692&PIgrid=6692&PIcrid=658441&PIpi=84013&ShowCemPhotos=Y&|title=Hughie Green|publisher=Find A Grave|accessdate=2008-04-02]
* Joyce Grenfell
* Irene Handl
* Tommy Handley
* Robert Harbin
* Sir Cedric Hardwicke
* Jack Hawkins
* Tubby Hayes
* Ian Hendry
* Alex James
* Sid James
* Jimmy Jewel
* Yootha Joyce
* Geoffrey Keen
* Johnny Kidd
* Alexander Korda
* David Kossoff
* Paul Kossoff
* Wolf Mankowitz
* Moore Marriott
* Janet Munro
* Keith Moon
* Ivor Novello
* Seán O'Casey
* Joe Orton
* Val Parnell
* Anna Pavlova
* Ronnie Scott
* Phil Seamen
* Peter Sellers
* Sir Bernard Spilsbury
* Bram Stoker
* Wilfred Fienburgh
* Conrad Veidt
* H. G. Wells
* Bernie Winters

ee also

*List of cemeteries

References

External links

* [http://www.cwgc.org/search/cemetery_details.aspx?cemetery=2043720&mode=1 CWGC: Golders Green Crematorium]
* [http://goldersgreen.com/ GoldersGreen.com: Crematorium]
* [http://www.londoncemeteries.co.uk/?c=30 LondonCemeteries: Golders Green Crematorium]