Beckton Gasworks was a major London

gasworks A gasworks or gas house is an industrial plant for the production of flammable gas. Many of these have been made redundant in the developed world by the use of natural gas, though they are still used for storage space. Early gasworks Coal ...

built to manufacture

coal gas Coal gas is a flammable gaseous fuel made from coal and supplied to the user via a piped distribution system. It is produced when coal is heated strongly in the absence of air. Town gas is a more general term referring to manufactured gaseous ...

and other products including coke from coal. It has been variously described as 'the largest such plant in the world' Winchester C (Ed), ''Handling 2,000,000 tons of coal'', Wonders of World Engineering P309-313, The Amalgamated Press, 1937 and 'the largest gas works in Europe'. It operated from 1870 to 1976, with an associated by-products works that operated from 1879 to 1970. The works were located on

East Ham East Ham is a district of the London Borough of Newham, England, 8 miles (12.8 km) east of Charing Cross. East Ham is identified in the London Plan as a Major Centre. The population is 76,186. It was originally part of the Becontree Hun ...

Level, on the north bank of the

Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...

at Gallions Reach, to the west of

Barking Creek Barking Creek joins the River Roding to the River Thames. It is fully tidal up to the Barking Barrage (a weir), which impounds a minimum water level through Barking. In the 1850s, the creek was home to England's largest fishing fleet and a Vict ...

History

The plant was opened in 1870 by the

Gas Light and Coke Company The Gas Light and Coke Company (also known as the Westminster Gas Light and Coke Company, and the Chartered Gas Light and Coke Company), was a company that made and supplied coal gas and coke. The headquarters of the company were located on H ...

(GLCC). The name

Beckton Beckton is a suburb in east London, England, located east of Charing Cross and part of the London Borough of Newham. Adjacent to the River Thames, the area consisted of unpopulated marshland known as the East Ham Levels in the parishes of Bark ...

was given to the plant and the surrounding area of east London in honour of the company's governor Simon Adams Beck (1803-1883). It came eventually to manufacture gas for most of London north of the Thames, with numerous smaller works being closed. Its counterpart south of the river was the South Metropolitan Gas Co's

East Greenwich Gas Works The East Greenwich Gas Works of the South Metropolitan Gas Company was the last gas works to be built in London, and the most modern. Originally manufacturing town gas from coal brought in by river and exporting coke and chemicals, the plant was ...

on the

Greenwich Peninsula The Greenwich Peninsula is an area of Greenwich in South London, South East London, England. It is bounded on three sides by a loop of the River Thames, Thames, between the Isle of Dogs to the west and Silvertown to the east. To the south is the ...

Town gas Coal gas is a flammable gaseous fuel made from coal and supplied to the user via a piped distribution system. It is produced when coal is heated strongly in the absence of air. Town gas is a more general term referring to manufactured gaseous ...

was produced using coal carbonisation and was conveyed to central London through a 48-inch (1.22 m) diameter gas main to the City of London with an extension to Westminster. The 48-inch main was subsequently duplicated. To augment gas supplies the GLCC built a carburetted water gas (CWG) plant at Beckton in 1890 capable of producing 10 million cubic feet per day (283,166 m³/d). The capacity of the CWG plant had risen to 40 million cubic feet per day (1.133 million m³/d) by 1934. However, the majority of the gas was still produced by coal carbonisation. After the Second World War a major reconstruction project was undertaken by the civil engineer T. P. O'Sullivan of Brian Colquhoun and Partners. Following nationalisation in 1949 the plant was owned by the

North Thames Gas Board The North Thames Gas Board was an autonomous state-owned utility area gas board providing gas for light and heat to industries, commercial premises and homes in south-east England. The board's area of supply, encompassing , included parts of th ...

Beckton Gas works from Gallions Reach DLR station, 1994

In 1949 Beckton was the largest gas works in the world, capable of producing a total of 119.12 million cubic feet of gas per day (3.37 million m³/day). Over the next 20 years a series of upgrades to the works were undertaken: * In 1952 a modern carburetted

water gas Water gas is a kind of fuel gas, a mixture of carbon monoxide and hydrogen. It is produced by "alternately hot blowing a fuel layer okewith air and gasifying it with steam". The caloric yield of this is about 10% of a modern syngas plant. F ...

plant was built with a capacity of 20 million cubic feet per day (566,332 m³/day). * During 1957 a

butane Butane () or ''n''-butane is an alkane with the formula C4H10. Butane is a gas at room temperature and atmospheric pressure. Butane is a highly flammable, colorless, easily liquefied gas that quickly vaporizes at room temperature. The name but ...

/air plant was built at Beckton to augment peak-load gas supplies. * In 1959 a

catalytic reforming Catalytic reforming is a chemical process used to convert petroleum refinery naphthas distilled from crude oil (typically having low octane ratings) into high-octane liquid products called reformates, which are premium blending stocks for high-o ...

plant was commissioned. This used tail gases from the refineries at Coryton and

Shell Haven Shell Haven was a port on the north bank of the Thames Estuary at the eastern end of Thurrock, Essex, England and then an oil refinery. The refinery closed in 1999 and the site was purchased by DP World who received planning consent in May 200 ...

, delivered by pipeline, as a feedstock to manufacture town gas. * In 1968 another large gas reforming plant was built at Beckton producing 100 million cubic feet of gas per day (2.8 million m³/day). The plant initially operated with liquefied petroleum gases as a feedstock until

North Sea gas North Sea oil is a mixture of hydrocarbons, comprising liquid petroleum and natural gas, produced from petroleum reservoirs beneath the North Sea. In the petroleum industry, the term "North Sea" often includes areas such as the Norwegian Sea and ...

became available in 1969. The coal carbonisation plant at Beckton became uncompetitive with

and was closed in 1969, which was also when the last trainload left the associated chemical works. Beckton still produced town gas using its reforming plants – with a total gas reforming capacity of 143 million cubic feet gas per day (4.05 million m³/day). The reforming plants operated until 1976; Beckton was the location of the last town gas to natural gas domestic conversions in the

supply area on 29 August 1976. At its peak Beckton had employed 4,500 people, but by the late 1970s only 100 employees remained. After closure the residual site passed to

British Gas British Gas (trading as Scottish Gas in Scotland) is an energy and home services provider in the United Kingdom. It is the trading name of British Gas Services Limited and British Gas New Heating Limited, both subsidiaries of Centrica. Serving ...

and Transco. The works lay within the

London Docklands London Docklands is the riverfront and former docks in London. It is located in inner east and southeast London, in the boroughs of London Borough of Southwark, Southwark, London Borough of Tower Hamlets, Tower Hamlets, London Borough of ...

area and parts were redeveloped by the

London Docklands Development Corporation The London Docklands Development Corporation (LDDC) was a quango agency set up by the UK Government in 1981 to regenerate the depressed Docklands area of east London. During its seventeen-year existence it was responsible for regenerating an a ...

Location

The works covered a site to the south of the

Northern Outfall Sewer The Northern Outfall Sewer (NOS) is a major gravity sewer which runs from Wick Lane in Hackney to Beckton sewage treatment works in east London; most of it was designed by Joseph Bazalgette after an outbreak of cholera in 1853 and the "Great ...

, between Woolwich Manor Way and the Thames. The company had considered several sites for the works. The site to the west of

was selected as it was possible to build deep water piers in the Thames, enabling direct unloading from steam colliers bringing coal from mines in the North-East of England.Clifford,T., notes to ''Old Ordnance Survey Maps: Beckton 1914'', The Godfrey Edition, Alan Godfrey Maps, 2000, Gateshead, There were two piers, for importing coal and exporting by-products. In the 1930s an annual average of a million tons of coal mainly from

Durham Durham most commonly refers to: *Durham, England, a cathedral city and the county town of County Durham *County Durham, an English county *Durham County, North Carolina, a county in North Carolina, United States *Durham, North Carolina, a city in No ...

was unloaded at the main pier, with a further 750,000 tons transhipped to barges for other works. The GLCC had a fleet of seventeen

coastal The coast, also known as the coastline or seashore, is defined as the area where land meets the ocean, or as a line that forms the boundary between the land and the coastline. The Earth has around of coastline. Coasts are important zones in n ...

colliers ranging from 1,200 to 2,841 gross register tons, and also chartered larger ships as needed. At this time the plant had a coal storage capacity of 250,000 tons. The plant had an extensive internal railway system of between and featured some unusual elevated sidings that also ran out on a number of piers into the Thames. The Beckton Railway provided a link to the national network at

Custom House A custom house or customs house was traditionally a building housing the offices for a jurisdictional government whose officials oversaw the functions associated with importing and exporting goods into and out of a country, such as collecting c ...

, used for passenger traffic to the works and for transport of by-products such as coal tar. This was leased and operated by the

Great Eastern Railway The Great Eastern Railway (GER) was a pre-grouping British railway company, whose main line linked London Liverpool Street to Norwich and which had other lines through East Anglia. The company was grouped into the London and North Eastern R ...

from 1874. There were no intermediate stations between

Custom House station Custom, customary, or consuetudinary may refer to: Traditions, laws, and religion * Convention (norm), a set of agreed, stipulated or generally accepted rules, norms, standards or criteria, often taking the form of a custom * Norm (social), a r ...

and

Beckton railway station Beckton railway station was a railway station in Beckton, London originally owned by the Gas Light and Coke Company, to serve the (then) recently built Beckton Gas Works. The line was opened for freight in 1872 and to passengers in 1874. It was ...

, which was at the entrance to the works. The line closed to passengers following bomb damage in 1940, the freight line finally closing in February 1971.

Beckton Products Works

Following the invention of coal gas early in the 19th century, it was discovered that numerous

organic Organic may refer to: * Organic, of or relating to an organism, a living entity * Organic, of or relating to an anatomical organ Chemistry * Organic matter, matter that has come from a once-living organism, is capable of decay or is the product ...

and

inorganic In chemistry, an inorganic compound is typically a chemical compound that lacks carbon–hydrogen bonds, that is, a compound that is not an organic compound. The study of inorganic compounds is a subfield of chemistry known as '' inorganic chemist ...

chemicals could be obtained when purifying the gas. Processes began to be developed to recover these, and a major branch of the British chemical industry – the

coal tar Coal tar is a thick dark liquid which is a by-product of the production of coke and coal gas from coal. It is a type of creosote. It has both medical and industrial uses. Medicinally it is a topical medication applied to skin to treat psoriasi ...

and

ammonia Ammonia is an inorganic compound of nitrogen and hydrogen with the formula . A stable binary hydride, and the simplest pnictogen hydride, ammonia is a colourless gas with a distinct pungent smell. Biologically, it is a common nitrogenous was ...

by-products industry – came into existence. By 1876 a nearby company, Burt, Boulton and Haywood of

Silvertown Silvertown is a district in the London Borough of Newham, in east London, England. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames, Thames and was historically part of the parishes of West Ham and East Ham, Becontree Hundred, hundred of Becontr ...

, was distilling each year of coal tar to manufacture ingredients for disinfectants, insecticides and dyes.

Sulphur Sulfur (or sulphur in British English) is a chemical element with the symbol S and atomic number 16. It is abundant, multivalent and nonmetallic. Under normal conditions, sulfur atoms form cyclic octatomic molecules with a chemical formula ...

from the gas works was the raw material for local manufacturers of

sulphuric acid Sulfuric acid (American spelling and the preferred IUPAC name) or sulphuric acid ( Commonwealth spelling), known in antiquity as oil of vitriol, is a mineral acid composed of the elements sulfur, oxygen and hydrogen, with the molecular formu ...

needed by other nearby companies producing products such as fertilizers. Subsequently, the GLCC decided that it would carry out the processing of by-products itself, rather than sell them to independent chemical companies. A purpose-built chemical works, Beckton Products Works, was constructed in 1879. It was the largest tar and ammonia by-products works in the UK, possibly in the world. Besides millions of gallons of road tar, products included

phenol Phenol (also called carbolic acid) is an aromatic organic compound with the molecular formula . It is a white crystalline solid that is volatile. The molecule consists of a phenyl group () bonded to a hydroxy group (). Mildly acidic, it req ...

, the

cresol Cresols (also hydroxytoluene or cresylic acid) are a group of aromatic organic compounds. They are widely-occurring phenols (sometimes called ''phenolics'') which may be either natural or manufactured. They are also categorized as methylphenols. ...

s and

xylenol Xylenols are organic compounds with the formula (CH3)2C6H3OH. They are volatile colorless solids or oily liquids. They are derivatives of phenol with two methyl groups at various positions relative to the hydroxyl group. Six isomers exist, of whi ...

naphthalene Naphthalene is an organic compound with formula . It is the simplest polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon, and is a white crystalline solid with a characteristic odor that is detectable at concentrations as low as 0.08 ppm by mass. As an aromati ...

pyridine Pyridine is a basic heterocyclic organic compound with the chemical formula . It is structurally related to benzene, with one methine group replaced by a nitrogen atom. It is a highly flammable, weakly alkaline, water-miscible liquid with a d ...

bases,

creosote Creosote is a category of carbonaceous chemicals formed by the distillation of various tars and pyrolysis of plant-derived material, such as wood or fossil fuel. They are typically used as preservatives or antiseptics. Some creosote types were ...

benzene Benzene is an organic chemical compound with the molecular formula C6H6. The benzene molecule is composed of six carbon atoms joined in a planar ring with one hydrogen atom attached to each. Because it contains only carbon and hydrogen atoms, ...

toluene Toluene (), also known as toluol (), is a substituted aromatic hydrocarbon. It is a colorless, water-insoluble liquid with the smell associated with paint thinners. It is a mono-substituted benzene derivative, consisting of a methyl group (CH3) at ...

xylene In organic chemistry, xylene or xylol (; IUPAC name: dimethylbenzene) are any of three organic compounds with the formula . They are derived from the substitution of two hydrogen atoms with methyl groups in a benzene ring; which hydrogens are sub ...

, solvent

naphtha Naphtha ( or ) is a flammable liquid hydrocarbon mixture. Mixtures labelled ''naphtha'' have been produced from natural gas condensates, petroleum distillates, and the distillation of coal tar and peat. In different industries and regions ''n ...

ammonium sulphate Ammonium sulfate (American English and international scientific usage; ammonium sulphate in British English); (NH4)2SO4, is an inorganic salt with a number of commercial uses. The most common use is as a soil fertilizer. It contains 21% nitrogen a ...

and

solution,

picoline Picoline refers to any of three isomers of methylpyridine (CH3C5H4N). They are all colorless liquids with a characteristic smell similar to that of pyridine. They are miscible with water and most organic solvents. The CAS number of an unspecifie ...

quinoline Quinoline is a heterocyclic aromatic organic compound with the chemical formula C9H7N. It is a colorless hygroscopic liquid with a strong odor. Aged samples, especially if exposed to light, become yellow and later brown. Quinoline is only sli ...

quinaldine Quinaldine or 2-methylquinoline is an organic compound with the formula CH3C9H6N. It is one of the methyl derivatives of the heterocyclic compound quinoline. It is bioactive and is used in the preparation of various dyes. It is a colorless oil ...

acenaphthene Acenaphthene is a polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) consisting of naphthalene with an ethylene bridge connecting positions 1 and 8. It is a colourless solid. Coal tar consists of about 0.3% of this compound. Production and reactions Acena ...

anthracene Anthracene is a solid polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) of formula C14H10, consisting of three fused benzene rings. It is a component of coal tar. Anthracene is used in the Economic production, production of the red dye alizarin and other dyes ...

and

dicyclopentadiene Dicyclopentadiene, abbreviated DCPD, is a chemical compound with formula C10H12. At room temperature, it is a white brittle wax, although lower purity samples can be straw coloured liquids. The pure material smells somewhat of soy wax or camphor ...

. Since the Products works was dependent on by-products of gas manufacture it could not long survive the introduction of natural gas. The last train carrying chemical products, a load of pitch, left the works on 1 June 1970.

Beckton Alps

The toxic spoil heaps from the works are known ironically as Beckton Alps. Originally covering an extensive area to the west of the works, they have been landscaped and much reduced in size. From 1989 to 2001 a dry ski slope, opened by

Diana, Princess of Wales Diana, Princess of Wales (born Diana Frances Spencer; 1 July 1961 – 31 August 1997) was a member of the British royal family. She was the first wife of King Charles III (then Prince of Wales) and mother of Princes William and Harry. Her ac ...

, was operated on the small remaining section (), though the nickname pre-dates this. The site is the highest point in Newham, and a Site of Borough Importance for Nature Conservation, Grade II. It is said to be the highest artificial hill in London. In 2003, a proposed £35m replacement for the site - the ''SnowWorld'' indoor centre - ran into financial problems. The site was acquired for development as a hotel in 2013. The A13/A117 road junction is also named Beckton Alps. During 2013 the sheets of corrugated iron situated on top of the former dry sky slope were painted in the colour of the Lithuanian national flag (the site is adjacent to London's largest Lithuanian supermarket) but later covered up with the St George Cross in retaliation.

Beckton Gasworks as a film location

The Gasworks, Products Works and Alps were used as a location for TV and cinema filming on a number of occasions. In the 1960s comedy films and TV programmes, such as

Michael Bentine Michael Bentine, (born Michael James Bentin; 26 January 1922General Register Office for England and Wales – Birth Register for the March Quarter of 1922, Watford Registration District, Reference 3a 1478, listed as "Michael J. Bentin", mother ...

’s ''

It's a Square World ''It's a Square World'' is a British comedy television series starring Michael Bentine and produced by the BBC. It ran from 1960 until 1964, each episode being of 30 minutes duration. The series gained Bentine a BAFTA award in 1962 for Light En ...

'', were shot here. The mounds of chemical waste were used to portray mountaineering scenes. In 1975 the film '' Brannigan'' starring

John Wayne Marion Robert Morrison (May 26, 1907 – June 11, 1979), known professionally as John Wayne and nicknamed The Duke or Duke Wayne, was an American actor who became a popular icon through his starring roles in films made during Hollywood's Gol ...

used the location. The opening sequence of the 1981

James Bond The ''James Bond'' series focuses on a fictional British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short-story collections. Since Fleming's death in 1964, eight other authors have ...

movie '' For Your Eyes Only'' was filmed here. The scenes involved

Roger Moore Sir Roger George Moore (14 October 192723 May 2017) was an English actor. He was the third actor to portray fictional British secret agent James Bond in the Eon Productions film series, playing the character in seven feature films between 19 ...

as James Bond attempting to regain control of a helicopter operated by remote control by his nemesis

Ernst Stavro Blofeld Ernst Stavro Blofeld is a fictional character and villain from the James Bond series of novels and films, created by Ian Fleming. A criminal mastermind with aspirations of world domination, he is the archenemy of the British Secret Service agen ...

. The gasworks buildings were also used in a number of scenes representing a dystopian 1984 London in the 1984 film version of the George Orwell's ''

Nineteen Eighty-Four ''Nineteen Eighty-Four'' (also stylised as ''1984'') is a dystopian social science fiction novel and cautionary tale written by the English writer George Orwell. It was published on 8 June 1949 by Secker & Warburg as Orwell's ninth and final ...

''. In 1986, the film '' Biggles: Adventures in Time'' used the gasworks as a location for a weapon testing ground. Neil Dickson, who played Biggles in Biggles: Adventures in Time, played a similar character in the 1987 film ''

It Couldn't Happen Here ''It Couldn't Happen Here'' is a 1988 musical film starring the British pop duo Pet Shop Boys and based on the music from their first two studio albums ''Please'' and ''Actually''. It was originally conceived as an hour-long video based on ''Act ...

'', a surreal, musical journey through the songs of the pop duo

Pet Shop Boys The Pet Shop Boys are an English synth-pop duo formed in London in 1981. Consisting of primary vocalist Neil Tennant and keyboardist Chris Lowe, they have sold more than 50 million records worldwide, and were listed as the most successful duo i ...

. In the film, Dickson drives

Neil Tennant Neil Francis Tennant (born 10 July 1954) is an English musician, singer, songwriter and music journalist, and co-founder of the synth-pop duo Pet Shop Boys, which he formed with Chris Lowe in 1981. He was a journalist for ''Smash Hits'', and a ...

and

Chris Lowe Christopher Sean Lowe (born 4 October 1959) is an English musician, singer and songwriter, and co-founder of the synth-pop duo Pet Shop Boys, which he formed with Neil Tennant in 1981. Biography Lowe attended Arnold School, an independent ...

to a apocalyptic wasteland, the scenes of which were filmed at Beckton, very close to the same area used in Stanley Kubrick’s 1987 film Full Metal Jacket.

Patrick Keiller Patrick Keiller (born 1950) is a British film-maker, writer and lecturer. Biography Keiller was born in 1950, in Blackpool and studied at the Bartlett School of Architecture, University College London. In 1979 he joined the Royal College of Art ...

's 1997 film ''Robinson in Space'' visits Beckton, including 'East Ham Churchyard' ("the largest in England" noted the narrator

Paul Scofield David Paul Scofield (21 January 1922 – 19 March 2008) was a British actor. During a six-decade career, Scofield achieved the US Triple Crown of Acting, winning an Academy Awards, Academy Award, Emmy Award, Emmy, and Tony Award, Tony for his ...

) opposite Beckton Alps. ''Asylum'', a 2000 film of

Iain Sinclair Iain Sinclair FRSL (born 11 June 1943) is a writer and filmmaker. Much of his work is rooted in London, recently within the influences of psychogeography. Biography Education Sinclair was born in Cardiff in 1943. From 1956 to 1961, he was educate ...

and

Chris Petit Chris Petit (born 17 June 1949) is an English novelist and filmmaker. During the 1970s he was Film Editor for '' Time Out'' and wrote in ''Melody Maker''. His first film was the cult British road movie ''Radio On'', while his 1982 film ''An Unsu ...

for

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned enterprise, state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a four ...

, was partially shot at Beckton Alps while it was still a dry-ski slope. In the final hour or so of ''

Full Metal Jacket ''Full Metal Jacket'' is a 1987 war drama film directed and produced by Stanley Kubrick, who also co-wrote the screenplay with Michael Herr and Gustav Hasford. The film is based on Hasford's 1979 novel ''The Short-Timers'' and stars Matthew M ...

'',

Stanley Kubrick Stanley Kubrick (; July 26, 1928 – March 7, 1999) was an American film director, producer, screenwriter, and photographer. Widely considered one of the greatest filmmakers of all time, his films, almost all of which are adaptations of nove ...

's 1987 movie portraying the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...

Matthew Modine Matthew Avery Modine (born March 22, 1959) is an American actor and filmmaker, who rose to prominence through his role as U.S. Marine Private/Sergeant J.T. "Joker" Davis in ''Full Metal Jacket''. His other film roles include the title character ...

(Private Joker),

Adam Baldwin Adam Baldwin (born February 27, 1962) is an American actor. He starred in '' Full Metal Jacket'' (1987) as Animal Mother, as well as in the television series ''Firefly The Lampyridae are a family of elateroid beetles with more than 2,000 ...

(Animal Mother) and their platoon go into

Huế Huế () is the capital of Thừa Thiên Huế province in central Vietnam and was the capital of Đàng Trong from 1738 to 1775 and of Vietnam during the Nguyễn dynasty from 1802 to 1945. The city served as the old Imperial City and admi ...

, a Vietnamese city, to clear it of

Viet Cong , , war = the Vietnam War , image = FNL Flag.svg , caption = The flag of the Viet Cong, adopted in 1960, is a variation on the flag of North Vietnam. Sometimes the lower stripe was green. , active ...

and snipers. Kubrick had the whole gasworks selectively demolished and the art department then dressed the 'set' with latticework and appropriate advertising hoardings to make it believable. At one point the soldiers enter a building to flush out a sniper. This building was one of several located between the central buildings of the old gasworks and about 200 yards from the river Thames. The final scene sees the soldiers marching off into the (London) sunset against the silhouettes of the burning gasworks' chimneys and buildings, singing the

Mickey Mouse March "(The) Mickey Mouse March" is the opening theme for ''The Mickey Mouse Club'' television show, which aired in the United States from October 1955 to 1959, on the ABC television network. (The first two lines are: ''Who’s the leader of the club tha ...

from the US children's TV show. In the film a period of several days takes place in the protagonists' lives as they travel through Huế city; in reality the action took place within just . According to Kubrick collaborator

Leon Vitali Alfred Leon Vitali (26 July 1948 – 19 August 2022) was an English actor, best known for his collaborations with film director, Stanley Kubrick, as his personal assistant, and as an actor, most notably as Lord Bullingdon in ''Barry Lyndon''. ...

, who worked on ''Full Metal Jacket'', the gasworks were built by an architectural firm that also constructed much of Huế. Within weeks, British pop/rock trio

The Outfield The Outfield were an English rock band based in London, England. The band achieved success in the mid-1980s and are best remembered for their hit single, " Your Love". The band's lineup consisted of guitarist John Spinks, vocalist and bassist ...

filmed multiple sequences for the video to the band's 1987 hit "Since You've Been Gone", from their album ''

Bangin' ''Bangin' '' is the second album by the English pop rock band the Outfield, released in 1987. It yielded the top 40 hit, " Since You've Been Gone". The album also contained two other singles, "No Surrender" and "Bangin' on My Heart". "Bangin' on M ...

'', at Beckton Gasworks. The video for

Loop Loop or LOOP may refer to: Brands and enterprises * Loop (mobile), a Bulgarian virtual network operator and co-founder of Loop Live * Loop, clothing, a company founded by Carlos Vasquez in the 1990s and worn by Digable Planets * Loop Mobile, an ...

's 1990 single 'Arc-lite' was filmed on the set of ''Full Metal Jacket''. The gasworks was used as the main background scene for the

Oasis In ecology, an oasis (; ) is a fertile area of a desert or semi-desert environment'ksar''with its surrounding feeding source, the palm grove, within a relational and circulatory nomadic system.” The location of oases has been of critical imp ...

video '

D'You Know What I Mean? "D'You Know What I Mean?" is a song by English rock band Oasis. Written by Noel Gallagher, it was released on 7 July 1997 as the first single from their third album, '' Be Here Now'' (1997). The song reached number one on the UK Singles Char ...

', as it shows the band members playing on a concrete slab within the gasworks. The videoclip for

Marcella Detroit Marcella Levy (born June 21, 1952), known professionally as Marcy Levy and (later in her career) Marcella Detroit, is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. She co-wrote the 1977 Eric Clapton hit "Lay Down Sally" and released her debut al ...

's 1994 single ' I Believe' was shot in this location. Also, the 1995 TV series '' Bugs'' episode 'Out Of The Hive' shows the entire works in a scene where a car drives off an unfinished bridge in flames.

Derek Jarman Michael Derek Elworthy Jarman (31 January 1942 – 19 February 1994) was an English artist, film maker, costume designer, stage designer, writer, gardener and gay rights activist. Biography Jarman was born at the Royal Victoria Nursing Home ...

's 1986 promotional video for The Smiths 'The Queen is Dead' single was partly shot at Beckton Gasworks. Part of the 1985 ''Max Headroom'' TV Movie '' 20 Minutes into the future'' was shot at Beckton Gasworks.

Present

Virtually no trace of the old gasworks now exists. Bisected by many roads, including the

A1020 A1, A-1, A01 or A.1. may refer to: Education * A1, the Basic Language Certificate of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages * Language A1, the former name for "Language A: literature", one of the IB Group 1 subjects * A1, a ...

Royal Docks Road, a small area of the waste tip and some gas holders remain, separated by or so of redevelopment. Parts of the site are occupied by an

industrial estate An industrial park (also known as industrial estate, trading estate) is an area zoned and planned for the purpose of industrial development. An industrial park can be thought of as a more "heavyweight" version of a business park or office park, ...

, the Beckton Retail Park and

Gallions Reach Shopping Park Gallions Reach Shopping Park is a major out-of-town retail park in Beckton, east London, England. Located on Armada Way beside the River Thames, Gallions Reach is the largest retail park in London and the M25, containing 34 units in an area of ...

. Part of the extensive

industrial railway An industrial railway is a type of railway (usually private) that is not available for public transportation and is used exclusively to serve a particular industrial, logistics, or military site. In regions of the world influenced by British ra ...

route has since been used for the

Docklands Light Railway The Docklands Light Railway (DLR) is an automated light metro system serving the redeveloped Docklands area of London, England and provides a direct connection between London's two major financial districts, Canary Wharf and the City of Londo ...

between

Beckton DLR station Beckton is the eastern terminus of the Beckton branch of the Docklands Light Railway (DLR) in the Docklands area of east London. It is in Travelcard Zone 3. History When the London Docks and Beckton Gasworks were active, they were served by ...

and the Royal Docks Road. The site also houses the

Beckton DLR depot Beckton Depot is the primary railway maintenance depot for the Docklands Light Railway (DLR). History Upon the initial opening of the DLR in 1987, Poplar DLR depot was the primary maintenance depot. But the proposed extension to Beckton would ...

References

External links

''Powering the City''
(Port Cities: London)
1902 photo of locomotive and carriages
{{Coord, 51.515876, 0.071965 , display=title, type:landmark *http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ww2peopleswar/stories/99/a7273299.shtml Former buildings and structures in the London Borough of Newham Chemical industry in London Port of London Industry on the River Thames History of the River Thames

Beckton Gas Works Beckton Gasworks was a major London gasworks built to manufacture coal gas and other products including coke from coal. It has been variously described as 'the largest such plant in the world' Winchester C (Ed), ''Handling 2,000,000 tons of coal ...