Barnes Wallis statue unveiled – 15 Nov 2008

The statue actually looks like a cross between the real BW and Michael Redgrave to me…neither one Wallis nor the other!

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Local businessmen who help promote the town of Herne Bay stepped in, when the local council would not assist.

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That was the information I had, but like yours-it may be incorrect. It is far more interesting that the inscription displayed for only one day was taken down from the statue. A new inscription will be replaced when the ” correct wording can be agreed “.

Mike

Hi, thanks for this extra information on the statue.

organised by local businessmen after the local council refused to help

Was a local business organisation behind it, or was it just a group of individuals? Presumably it must have been a recognised group to qualify for lottery funding?

The Wallis family were told, his brother was unable to travel at the last moment.

I presume you mean his son, who lived in Kent. Sadly he passed away in July, and his two sisters knew nothing about the statue.

Thanks again for this info.

Regards,

Iain.

Looking back over this thread, I’m startled that no-one has even taken a pot-shot at my challenge of 20th November. I genuinely expected to have it answered within minutes.

It’s also another reason for having the statue in the town itself, of course, though I don’t know whether that was a consideration.

Adrian

Barnes Wallis

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This statue was organised by local businessmen after the local council refused to help. The national lottery helped with part funding but the main funding was raised locally. Residents were asked where “they” would like the statue. Tom White was commissioned from the USA when he provided the best design at £20,000 cheaper than anyone else. As funds had been raised locally this was an important factor. The Wallis family were told, his brother was unable to travel at the last moment.

The local fund raisers wanted the statue within Herne Bay, of course and Reculver was considered. More people would see the statue in it’s present location than anywhere else. Some of the pictures of the statue seen, were White’s “test” designs- described as < weathered pictures >.

Barnes Wallis Statue / R100

I’ve been studying Barnes Wallis and his work now on and off for the best part of 30 years. Iain Murray is quite right; the photographs shown are girder sections of the R101 and NOT the R100.

Wallis was always pretty scathing of the R101 and would not want his R100 to be associated with the R101. The sections of both craft are completely different and as Iain says, much of the R101 was fabricated in stainless steel.

There is little left of the R100, most of it was sold for scrap and that which remains will be in a very fragile state due to the corrosion (embrittlement) that occurred on duralumin. Some parts that were lacquered remain in a seemingly better condition and they are a distinctive brown colour now. The Science Museum storage centre at Wroughton have a spider joint (good condition) and some other sections that are in a more fragile state.

As far as the statue is concerned, it’s a nice idea, but with respect I would have thought in the wrong place. Why an American sculptor?
Sadly Barnes’s eldest son (Barnes Junior) passed away recently, otherwise I’m sure he would have had something to say on the matter. I have only seen photographs, it appears to me that he doesn’t quite have the face right. I stand to be corrected on this and would welcome other people’s views.

2. & 3. pieces of the structure of R.100?? these weren’t actually labelled but were on top of the case with the large model in. The propellor standing to the left of pic 3. is labelled “R101”

The girder structure with the circular elements is very distinctive of R.101, from the photos I’ve seen … R.100 girders would have had straight elements between the thicker members. The proof test would be that the heavier members are stainless steel, the circular bits duralumin (R.100 girders were entirely made from Duralumin, one reason she wasn’t so heavy!)

Regards,

Iain.

Im sure there are some parts from the R100 on the wall at Old Warden!

Photographed yesterday:
1. a crew member bunk bed. I notice that the side lattice ‘girder’ (at the top as it is exhibited) has some of the lattice (very thin alum) missing – perhaps broken off by souvenir thieves over the years?? The similar girder at the bottom looks complete.
2. & 3. pieces of the structure of R.100?? these weren’t actually labelled but were on top of the case with the large model in. The propellor standing to the left of pic 3. is labelled “R101”
4. large model R100 (and IIRC an original turnbuckle) This model was made 40 year ago by Phil Brown. nostalgia alert 🙂 In the mid 1960s when I and two school-mates used to camp at Old Warden Phil Brown lived there on his own in a caravan as a sort of caretaker. He had an ex-police Velocette motobike (water cooled) and was a great friend to us enthusiastic young lads. He must have passed away not long after completing the model as I think there was a ‘Phil Brown Memorial Room’ at OW for some years containing the model and all the other airship-related exhibits.

Roger Smith.

In the Q&A after John’s presentation, one point raised by an attendee was the apparent poor condition of Wallis’s grave at St Lawrence’s Church in Effingham, Surrey. Can any locally-based forumite give any details?

I am advised by a contact at Brooklands that the grave is in a satisfactory condition (no more mess than autumn leaves and a few weeds), and that someone from Brooklands does check on it from time to time.

Regards,

Iain.

The BW Memorial Trust has at least one section of R.100 girder, and also some wood panelling from the passenger accommodation. These were on display at YAM at Elvington, but the BWMT exhibition is now closed there and is unlikely to re-open at YAM, I understand. A 3ft section of R.100 came up on eBay a couple of years ago and sold for just shy of £1000.

Iain.[/QUOTE]

many thanks for the reply much appreciated

A little search on Google revealed that bouncing betties were a particularly nasty little land mine that would pop up into the air to about groin height if you stood on them, then explode………

i drove past that statue yesterday, and completly ignored it, so many statue’s of un-interesting people are in the world, wouldn’t think one would be in that place.
I agree that its out of place, it should be at reculver, its not right saying there is nothing there, the roman remains and the country park visitor centre are always busy, the car park is always full when i go. Its a beautiful spot and its where the events took place, another local council re-writing history, to up there tourist attractions quota.

Im sure there are some parts from the R100 on the wall at Old Warden!

What about Howden nr Goole where the R100 (the finest airship ever designed/built in my opinion)was constructed and flown ,surely a memorial Statue/Plaque should be considered by the local council at least i think there is a pub named after him there ,also do any parts of the R100 still exsist?

Howden would be appropriate (also home to the BW Memorial Trust) but the site itself is out in the country, so would not be seen by anyone unless placed at the side of a country road. Most of the actual airship station site is now a golf course.
The BW Memorial Trust has at least one section of R.100 girder, and also some wood panelling from the passenger accommodation. These were on display at YAM at Elvington, but the BWMT exhibition is now closed there and is unlikely to re-open at YAM, I understand. A 3ft section of R.100 came up on eBay a couple of years ago and sold for just shy of £1000.

Iain.

Barnes wallis

What about Howden nr Goole where the R100 (the finest airship ever designed/built in my opinion)was constructed and flown ,surely a memorial Statue/Plaque should be considered by the local council at least i think there is a pub named after him there ,also do any parts of the R100 still exsist?

However, the local council’s publicity machine has not been working very well – Brooklands Museum (where Wallis worked) did not know about the statue, nor did Wallis’s surviving children!

Iain.

The ultimate irony is that on that Saturday morning, former Vickers designer John Forbat was giving a fascinating lecture about Sir Barnes Wallis at the HAA Symposium, at Brooklands.

One interesting point was that Wallis was himself a talented sculptor and produced work in bronze that, dare I say it, was artistically a way ahead of the Herne Bay American import.

In the Q&A after John’s presentation, one point raised by an attendee was the apparent poor condition of Wallis’s grave at St Lawrence’s Church in Effingham, Surrey. Can any locally-based forumite give any details?

I think (personal opinion) it’s better overall to place this one near Reculver.

That would certainly be fitting. I suspect, though, the council took into count the fact that there is ****** all at Reculver (actually, that’s one of the reasons I used to love it when I lived in HB), and they didn’t fancy spending all that money on a statue that no-one would see! He’s not in too bad a spot now – a little off the end of town, but I can’t see how he’d fit in the middle of the seafront without either looking silly or being in a car park.

Adrian

Bouncing Betty? 😮 Surely she was the WAAF that drove the bomb train?
Moggy

I’ve been researching Wallis for years, and have NEVER seen the term “Bouncing Betty” before – did they make this up?
“Nidge” similarly, even though David Frost claims Gibson did use this name for his dog …

Iain.

Brooklands already has significant Barnes Wallis commemoration, plus you have to pay to enter.

I think (personal opinion) it’s better overall to place this one near Reculver.

Moggy

Surely a better location would be Brooklands?

Bri