Frank Pullen

Francis Henry "Frank" Pullen (September 8 1915 – January 17 1992) was an English businessperson and racehorse owner.

He was born, the youngest of four children, as Francis Henry Pullen to Arthur and Alice Pullen at Catford, South London. His father died while serving with the Royal Navy during WW1 and Alice Pullen supported her children during the depression.

Frank Pullen married at the age of 17 and enlisted in the British Army at the start of World War II. He was one of the survivors of D-Day, landing at ""gold"" beach, and later during WW2 helped liberate the Belgium town of Lessines. The grateful town gave him the freedom of the city and he later named two of his homes (one in Bromley ,south London and one in Looe, Cornwall, where he would holiday) "Lessines" in honor of this.

After he was demobilised from the 8th army in 1948, Pullen started in business as a builder in a wartorn South London and became a member of the National House Building Council . Pullen became one of South London's leading property developers, and incorporated his business in 1962 , using the slogan "We Build To Please" . He specialised at first building bungalows (Clarence Road,Croydon) and houses. Maisonettes followed, one of his first being "Karen Court", Blyth Road, Bromley, a block of three. Pullen soon progressed to blocks of flats ( like Tina Court, Knollys Road , Streatham and at Ravensbourne park crescent , Catford , along with Colin Court ) and then moved on to housing estates, building over fifty major developments. At Iona Court in Catford stands a type of Pullen's apartments that were purpose built for Lewisham Council . Examples of his later buildings can be found at Parklands Wickham road ( overlooking Kelsey Park) , Ingleside Close, Montreux Court, Highgrove Court and Gatcombe Court in Beckenham, the last three being the innovative "Big roof" design, by Joyce Lowman. At Florida Court in Bromley stand three blocks in a low density five acre landscaped plotand at Beulah Hill he built a ground breaking block of flats, climbing up Spurgeon Road with balconies having a grand view over S.W.London. The architect again being the young Joyce Lowman . Pullen developed extensively down Wells Park road, Sydenham and with Chevening Court built the whole of Brasted Close in Orpington , Kent . This is one of Pullen's last estates, reviving his old practice of naming his structures after Royal Houses .

Pullen also opened a series of general hardware shops , selling a wide range of products . These included "pink" parafin , wallpapers and paints , DIY and household goods,cutlery and crockery , dustbins and ice-creams . Branches covered south London , the first of these being on Catford broadway . Pullen became a millionaire and he enjoyed his wealth , and by July 1965 had ordered his first new Rolls-Royce - Silver Cloud III Coupe from James Young, a luxury coachbuilder cited in Bromley . A car lover , Pullen owned a stable of many of the Grand Tourer automobiles of the period , including Audi`s , BMW`s , Jaguar`s and Jensen`s .
Pullen was also able to indulge in his lifelong passion of horse racing, training and breeding, adopting the colours Chocolate and Blue for his Racing silks . His friends included Peter Bromley, racing commentator, and Pullen went on to be a popular owner with a string of race horses most famously at Josh Gifford's yard in Findon, Sussex . It was as such that he was interviewed by the "Radio Times" magazine ("Six owners in search of a winner" by Russell Twisk) in 1972, having just bought a horse especially for that year's Grand National Horse race at Aintree. Pullen never sold any of his race horses , preferring to let them live out their retirement in sanctuary .
Pullen was a frequent visitor to Kenya where he created a racing complex in Nairobi, and embarked on an ambitious project there to build a township including schools and hospitals. Pullen went on to form Bromley Industrial Consultants Ltd , centred in Pall Mall, London , with the purpose of helping 3rd world nations develop .
Frank Pullen formally retired in 1988 and he died peacefully, aged 77, at his race horse sanctuary and livery yard in Orpington , Kent, and is buried at London Road Cemetery, Bromley. Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, who's nieces were inmates of Royal Earlswood Hospital, where Pullens relatives James Henry Pullen and Arthur William Pullen were also notable residents, sent Frank's widow a letter of condolence upon hearing of his death.

References

* The Radio Times, April 8-14, 1972
* The Sporting Life (newspaper), January 24, 1992
* [http://www.findonvillage.com/0424_the_horses_of_frank_h_pullen.htm This is Findon Village – The Horses of Frank H. Pullen]
* [http://www.spamula.net/blog/archives/000267.html Pictures and information about Pullen] * [http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/home/article-6621318-details/Bruce+Webb%3A+%27It+is+a+very+creative+place%27+/article.do;jsessionid=0smrFp6TKGJZmTB2HbdynwdFT6YQSmhh2g05yLwDD8DrSvGjdvbf!-454549504 Evening Standard article about Pullen buildings]