LIDOS


to reveal spaces of understated symmetry and proportion show this. But it is at the seaside where the most eye-catching designs are to be found: like the triangular Jubilee Pool at Penzance and the semicircular Tinside lido at Plymouth, both of which mimic the organic forms of the natural landscape – Jubilee Pool was said to represent a seagull alighting on the water. More common in the modernist period, (following one of its leading practitioners, Le Corbusier) was lido design born out of inspiration from the bold, sweeping curves of the ocean liner. The art deco pool at Saltdean, Brighton – itself an echo of the famous De La Warr Pavilion nearby – demonstrates what was possible, as, before it was demolished in 1982, did the beautiful seven-levelled diving platform at Weston-Super-Mare.


FOUNTAINS AND GRANDSTANDS HELPED TO CREATE A SPECTACULAR ENVIRONMENT


That unique structure was much admired. “It was exceptional for its graceful arched structure and seven diving boards,’ said the Twentieth Century Society (c20society.org.uk), which campaigns to conserve modernist architecture. In the 1930s, features such as fountains, underwater lighting, and


grandstands, at lidos across the country, helped to create a truly spectacular environment: not just for diving contests, but also beauty parades, synchronised swimming pageants and stunt shows. The mood may now be lower key, but modern lidos continue to host displays of creative work that both enrich, and are enriched by, their unique setting. The photographs in Madeleine Waller’s Wet and Dry, exhibited last year at London Fields Lido, show swimmers both dressed and in swimwear, underlining the transformation that occurs at the poolside. Lidos are perfect venues for dramatic and cinematic performances. Last summer a series of plays, Listed Lido, toured four pools across the country, adapted to each location. Many lidos also screen films; Brockwell Lido Café recently showed a documentary filmed at the pool itself – The Lido by Lucy Blakstad. One quote from this 1995 film sums up the continuing appeal of lidos: “The amazing thing is that, with the amount of people here, there’s a silence,” says a Brockwell swimmer. “That silence is people at ease with themselves.” ∆


Jonathan Knott is a freelance journalist and news editor for the Outdoor Swimming Society. He has written on lidos for a number of publications including The Guardian and the Evening Standard. His local lido is London Fields. Alongside swimming, he writes about politics and travel and is the author of the travel guide skiathostruth.com


SPONSORED BY:


SHARE OUR PASSION FOR SWIMMING


Zoggs want all swimmers to enjoy the freedom, fun and exhilaration of the water with unconditional trust in their Zoggs goggles, equipment and swimwear facebook.com/ZoggsUK twitter.com/ZoggsUK


64


Parliament Hill Lido: warmth and sunshine


Dynamic design at Weston-Super-Mare


MODERN LIFE: THE LIDO BBC documentary, The Lido, was created at Brockwell Lido, south London, in 1995, at a time when the public was becoming newly receptive to the benefits of lidos. Among the diverse users of the pool who feature are top civil servants beginning their day with a swim, single mothers celebrating a birthday with champagne at the poolside, and teenagers passing around roll-ups. There are few better illustrations of how the lido acts as a haven for what one swimmer calls “the whole spectrum of life”.


The film was made by the BBC but it has rarely been shown. Public enthusiasm for outdoor swimming is increasing each year and it would surely now be as well received as it has ever been. If enough people ask, can they find time to screen it this summer at a lido near you?


Photo © English Heritage


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60  |  Page 61  |  Page 62  |  Page 63  |  Page 64  |  Page 65  |  Page 66  |  Page 67  |  Page 68