First Chairman Of Chiswick House Friends Has Died

Ted Fawcett was associated with the House for thirty years

Ted Fawcett, first chairman of Chiswick House Friends, died on Friday 18th October aged in his nineties.

Ted Fawcett was one of the doyens of Garden History, a founder member of the London Parks and Gardens Trust and of the Architectural Association’s Conservation of Landscapes, Parks and Gardens and the first chairman of Chiswick House Friends. He was for many years an Adviser to the National Trust on garden history.

He claimed that his favourite public park was Chiswick House Gardens. He was associated with Chiswick House for thirty years and was first chairman of its Friends’ group. He said ‘It is one of the great historic gardens. We are incredibly lucky to have it in West London.'

After Chiswick House and Gardens Trust received its generous grant from the national lottery fund in 2005/6 he said the gardens ‘look beautiful. It is an immense satisfaction to be able to walk around and for all of it to look right. The fundamental things to get right were the trees and the paths. We can now see the garden as it was at the time of Lord Burlington and it is a huge satisfaction’.

He was one of the first to recognize the contribution that volunteers have to offer to offset the costs of maintenance, upkeep and improvement. He said of them; ‘People like getting together and volunteer groups are friendly. If they are well-run they are successful. I think this must be one of the main tasks in front of London Parks and Gardens- to start imaginative maintenance using volunteers. Another good thing would be to encourage councils to take an interest in the history of their own gardens and parks, making the information available to the public’.

Ted Fawcett was a prominent member of the Chiswick House Friends Advisory Group. His knowledge and enthusiasm will be much missed.

A memorial service will be held in Petersham on Saturday 23rd November.

*Source: #London Landscapes of the London Parks and Gardens Trust’.

George Nissen

November 1, 2013