Golders Green Crematorium and Mausoleum was the first crematorium to be opened in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

, and one of the oldest crematoria in Britain. The land for the crematorium was purchased in 1900, costing £6,000 (the equivalent of £135,987 in 2021), and the crematorium was opened in 1902 by

Sir Henry Thompson Sir Henry Thompson, 1st Baronet, (6 August 1820 – 18 April 1904) was a British surgeon and polymath. His interest was particularly in the surgery of the genito-urinary tract. Medical career Thompson was born at Framlingham, Suffolk. His ...

. Golders Green Crematorium, as it is usually called, is in Hoop Lane, off

Finchley Road Finchley Road is a designated arterial road in north-west London, England. The Finchley Road starts in St John's Wood near central London as part of the A41; its southern half is a major dual carriageway with high traffic levels often frequ ...

Golders Green Golders Green is an area in the London Borough of Barnet in England. A smaller suburban linear settlement, near a farm and public grazing area green of medieval origins, dates to the early 19th century. Its bulk forms a late 19th century and ea ...

, London NW11, ten minutes' walk from Golders Green Underground station. It is directly opposite the Golders Green Jewish Cemetery (Golders Green is an area with a large Jewish population). The crematorium is

secular Secularity, also the secular or secularness (from Latin ''saeculum'', "worldly" or "of a generation"), is the state of being unrelated or neutral in regards to religion. Anything that does not have an explicit reference to religion, either negativ ...

, accepts all faiths and non-believers; clients may arrange their own type of service or remembrance event and choose whatever music they wish. The crematorium gardens are listed at Grade I in the National Register of Historic Parks and Gardens.

History

Horder Japanese Garden Pond, Golders Green Crematorium

Cremation was not legal in Great Britain until 1885. The first crematorium was built in

Woking Woking ( ) is a town and borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in northwest Surrey, England, around from central London. It appears in Domesday Book as ''Wochinges'' and its name probably derives from that of a Anglo-Saxon settlement o ...

and it was successful. At that time cremation was championed by the Cremation Society of Great Britain. This society was governed by a council, at that time led by Sir Henry Thompson (president and founding member). There is a bust to his memory in the West Chapel of Golders Green Crematorium. Out of this Society was formed the London Cremation Company (which has its offices on the premises), who desired to build a crematorium within easy reach of London. The crematorium in Golders Green was designed by the architect Sir

Ernest George Sir Ernest George (13 June 1839 – 8 December 1922) was a British architect, landscape and architectural watercolourist, and etcher. Life and work Born in London, Ernest George began his architectural training in 1856, under Samuel Hewitt, ...

and his partner Alfred Yeates. The gardens were laid out by William Robinson. The crematorium is a red brick building in Lombardic style and was built in stages, as money became available. The crematorium opened in 1902 and was built in four phases (1901–1910, 1910–1911, 1912–1916, 1926–1928). By 1939, the site was largely completed, although since then some buildings have been added. Since November 1902 more than 323,500 cremations have taken place at Golders Green Crematorium, far more than any other British crematorium. It is estimated that the crematorium now averages around 2,000 cremations a year. The funerals of many prominent people have taken place there over the last century. Ironically, the ashes of the first person cremated at Woking, Mrs Jeanette Pickersgill (died 21 April 1885), widow of artist

Henry William Pickersgill Henry William Pickersgill RA (3 December 1782 – 21 April 1875) was an English painter specialising in portraits. He was a Royal Academician for almost fifty years, and painted many of the most notable figures of his time. Biography Born in ...

, were removed from Woking to the East Columbarium at Golders Green, according to Woking's cremation records. Interior of the columbarium, Golders Green Crematorium

Interior of the columbarium, Golders Green Crematorium

The chimney of the crematorium is located within the tower and the building is in an Italianate style. The of gardens are extensively planted, and produce a beautiful and tranquil environment for visitors. There are several large tombs, two ponds and bridge, and a large

crocus ''Crocus'' (; plural: crocuses or croci) is a genus of seasonal flowering plants in the family Iridaceae (iris family) comprising about 100 species of perennials growing from corms. They are low growing plants, whose flower stems remain underg ...

lawn. Another notable feature is a special children's section, which includes a swinging bench. There is also a 'communist corner' with memorials to notables of the

Communist Party of Great Britain The Communist Party of Great Britain (CPGB) was the largest communist organisation in Britain and was founded in 1920 through a merger of several smaller Marxist groups. Many miners joined the CPGB in the 1926 general strike. In 1930, the CPGB ...

. There are two cremation chapels and a Chapel of Memory. There are also three

columbaria A columbarium (; pl. columbaria) is a structure for the reverential and usually public storage of funerary urns, holding cremated remains of the deceased. The term can also mean the nesting boxes of pigeons. The term comes from the Latin "''co ...

containing the ashes of thousands of Londoners and residents of neighbouring counties. There have been 14 holders of the

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previously ...

cremated here, and there are locations and memorials for many other military personnel of all ranks, and from many countries. Largest among them is the

Commonwealth War Graves Commission The Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) is an intergovernmental organisation of six independent member states whose principal function is to mark, record and maintain the graves and places of commemoration of Commonwealth of Nations mi ...

memorial, commemorating 496 British and Commonwealth military casualties of both World Wars who were cremated here. Designed by Sir Edward Maufe, it was unveiled in 1952. Built in

Portland stone Portland stone is a limestone from the Tithonian stage of the Jurassic period quarried on the Isle of Portland, Dorset. The quarries are cut in beds of white-grey limestone separated by chert beds. It has been used extensively as a buildi ...

with names listed on three bronze panels, it stands at head of an ornamental pond at the western end of the memorial cloister.http://www.cwgc.org/find-a-cemetery/casualty/2043720/GOLDERS%20%GREEN%20CREMATORIUM At Christmas, a

Christmas tree A Christmas tree is a decorated tree, usually an evergreen conifer, such as a spruce, pine or fir, or an artificial tree of similar appearance, associated with the celebration of Christmas. The custom was further developed in early modern G ...

is erected in the field in front of the main buildings. Although the crematorium is secular, a

nativity scene In the Christian tradition, a nativity scene (also known as a manger scene, crib, crèche ( or ), or in Italian ''presepio'' or ''presepe'', or Bethlehem) is the special exhibition, particularly during the Christmas season, of art objects rep ...

is also placed near the Chapel of Memory.

Notable monuments

The crematorium gardens are listed at Grade I in the National Register of Historic Parks and Gardens. The Philipson Family mausoleum, designed by Edwin Lutyens, is a

Grade II* listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Ire ...

on the

National Heritage List for England The National Heritage List for England (NHLE) is England's official database of protected heritage assets. It includes details of all English listed buildings, scheduled monuments, register of historic parks and gardens, protected shipwrecks, a ...

and the crematorium building, the wall, along with memorials and gates, the Martin Smith Mausoleum and ''Into The Silent Land'', a sculpture by

Henry Alfred Pegram Henry Alfred Pegram (27 July 1862 – 26 March 1937) was a British sculptor and exponent of the New Sculpture movement.Chamot, M.; Farr, D.; Butlin, M.: The Modern British Paintings, Drawings and Sculpture'' London 1964. Life Pegram wa ...

are all Grade II listed buildings. The largest sculpture portraying someone cremated here is the statue of Indian industrialist and friend of Gandhi, Ghanshyam Das Birla. Into the Silent Land by Henry Pegram, Golders Green Crematorium

Into the Silent Land by Henry Pegram, Golders Green Crematorium

Golders Green crematorium (pictures) 004

Visiting

A map of the Garden of Rest and some information on persons cremated here is available from the office. Staff are available to help in finding a specific location. This service is £10 per request. The columbaria can be visited. There is also a tea room.

Notable cremations

Ashes at Golders Green Crematorium

Among those whose ashes are retained or were scattered here, are: * Larry Adler, American harmonica player *

Kingsley Amis Sir Kingsley William Amis (16 April 1922 – 22 October 1995) was an English novelist, poet, critic, and teacher. He wrote more than 20 novels, six volumes of poetry, a memoir, short stories, radio and television scripts, and works of social and ...

, British writer, one of the Angry young men *

Boris Anrep Boris Vasilyevich Anrep (russian: Борис Васильевич Анреп; 27 September 1883 – 7 June 1969) was a Russian artist, active in Britain, who devoted himself to the art of mosaic. In Britain, he is known for his monumental mosaic ...

, Russian artist *

Pegaret Anthony Pegaret Anthony née Keeling (1 November 1915 – 25 May 2000) was an English artist and lecturer in Historical Costume and Theatre History, best known for her watercolour paintings of war workers during the Second World War. Early years Pega ...

, British artist * Sir Fenton Aylmer, 13th Baronet, British soldier, VC recipient * Sir Edward Battersby Bailey, geologist * Lionel Bart, composer of ''Oliver!'' and many other shows and songs * Edith Rosenbaum, First Class survivor of the sinking of RMS Titanic *

Ronnie Biggs Ronald Arthur Biggs (8 August 1929 – 18 December 2013) was an English criminal who helped plan and carry out the Great Train Robbery of 1963. He subsequently became notorious for his escape from prison in 1965, living as a fugitive for 36 y ...

, criminal and participant of

The Great Train Robbery of 1963 The Great Train Robbery was the robbery of £2.6million from a Royal Mail train heading from Glasgow to London on the West Coast Main Line in the early hours of 8 August 1963 at Bridego Railway Bridge, Ledburn, near Mentmore in Buckingham ...

* Eric Blom, British musicologist *

Simon Blumenfeld Simon Blumenfeld (25 November 1907 – 13 April 2005) was a British columnist, author, playwright, theatre critic, editor and communist. Although he described himself as Jewish, he was born to a family of Sicily#Demographics, Sicilian refugee ...

, writer and columnist *

Enid Blyton Enid Mary Blyton (11 August 1897 – 28 November 1968) was an English children's writer, whose books have been worldwide bestsellers since the 1930s, selling more than 600 million copies. Her books are still enormously popular and have be ...

, children's author (''Famous Five, Noddy'') *

Marc Bolan Marc Bolan ( ; born Mark Feld; 30 September 1947 – 16 September 1977) was an English guitarist, singer and songwriter. He was a pioneer of the glam rock movement in the early 1970s with his band T. Rex. Bolan was posthumously inducted into ...

, musician, poet and writer (founder of

T. Rex ''Tyrannosaurus'' is a genus of large theropod dinosaur. The species ''Tyrannosaurus rex'' (''rex'' meaning "king" in Latin), often called ''T. rex'' or colloquially ''T-Rex'', is one of the best represented theropods. ''Tyrannosaurus'' liv ...

) * Bernard Bresslaw, ''Carry On'' film series actor * Arthur Brough, actor * George Brown, Baron George-Brown, Labour party politician, ultimately Foreign Secretary. *

Jack Bruce John Symon Asher Bruce (14 May 1943 – 25 October 2014) was a Scottish bassist, singer-songwriter, musician and composer. He gained popularity as the primary lead vocalist and ‍bassist ‍of British rock band Cream. After the group disban ...

, Scottish composer, musician and member of

Cream Cream is a dairy product composed of the higher-fat layer skimmed from the top of milk before homogenization. In un-homogenized milk, the fat, which is less dense, eventually rises to the top. In the industrial production of cream, this process ...

Mrs Victor Bruce Mildred Mary Petre (10 November 1895 – 21 May 1990) was a British record-breaking racing motorist, speedboat racer and aviator in the 1920s and 1930s, and later, successful businesswoman. Commonly referred to as Mrs Victor Bruce, she was also k ...

, racing motorist, speedboat racer and aviator * Bella Burge, music hall performer and boxing promoter * Sir Neville Cardus, notable cricket writer, also distinguished music critic *

Eric Coates Eric Francis Harrison Coates (27 August 1886 – 21 December 1957) was an English composer of light music and, early in his career, a leading violist. Coates was born into a musical family, but, despite his wishes and obvious talent, his p ...

, English composer of light music * Leslie Compton, English footballer and cricketer * Steve Conway, singer * Cicely Courtneidge, actress and comedian *

Walter Crane Walter Crane (15 August 184514 March 1915) was an English artist and book illustrator. He is considered to be the most influential, and among the most prolific, children's book creators of his generation and, along with Randolph Caldecott and ...

, English artist and book illustrator * Tony Crombie, English jazz musician *

Victor Dandré Victor E. Dandré or D'André (1870–1944) was a Russian-born, Duma official who left Russia and became the husband of the world renowned ballerina, Anna Pavlova and a ballet impresario. Life Victor Emmanuel Dandré was born in the Russian ...

, Russian impresario and husband of Anna Pavlova * Ed Devereaux, Australian actor * James Dewar, British chemist and physicist (inventor of the

Dewar flask A vacuum flask (also known as a Dewar flask, Dewar bottle or thermos) is an insulating storage vessel that greatly lengthens the time over which its contents remain hotter or cooler than the flask's surroundings. Invented by Sir James Dew ...

or vacuum flask) * Edith Durham, writer, traveller and anthropologist * Ray Ellington, English musician * Havelock Ellis, intellectual * Dame Millicent Fawcett, leader of the

suffragist Suffrage, political franchise, or simply franchise, is the right to vote in public, political elections and referendums (although the term is sometimes used for any right to vote). In some languages, and occasionally in English, the right to v ...

movement *

Kathleen Ferrier Kathleen Mary Ferrier, CBE (22 April 19128 October 1953) was an English contralto singer who achieved an international reputation as a stage, concert and recording artist, with a repertoire extending from folksong and popular ballads to the c ...

, British singer (there is a rosebed in her memory) *

Molly Fink Esme Mary Sorrett Fink (15 September 1894 – 20 November 1967), popularly known as Molly Fink was an Australian socialite and wife of Martanda Bhairava Tondaiman, the Raja of the princely state of Pudukkottai. The marriage created a public scan ...

, Australian socialite and wife of Marthanda Bhairava Tondaiman of Pudukkottai. * Bud Flanagan, singer and Crazy Gang star * George Frampton, British sculptor *

Lynne Frederick Lynne Frederick (25 July 1954 – 27 April 1994) was an English actress, film producer, and fashion model. In a career spanning ten years, she made over thirty appearances in film and television productions. Known for her classic English rose b ...

, actress * Anna Freud, daughter of Sigmund Freud, also a psychoanalyst, especially of children * Sigmund and

Martha Freud Martha Bernays ( , ; 26 July 1861 – 2 November 1951) was the wife of Austrian psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud. Bernays was the second daughter of Emmeline and Berman Bernays. Her paternal grandfather Isaac Bernays was a Chief Rabbi of Hamburg. Ba ...

, father of modern psychoanalysis and his wife *

, English architect (and who designed this crematorium with Alfred Yeates) *

Simon Gipps-Kent Simon Gipps-Kent (born Simon Trevor Kent; 25 October 1958 – 16 September 1987) was a prolificAlistair D. McGown & Mark J. Dochert''The Hill and Beyond: Children's Television Drama – An Encyclopedia'' British Film Institute, 2003, p. 97. 20 ...

, English actor, Crocus Lawn, Section 3H * Elinor Glyn, English romantic novelist and scriptwriter. * Ernő Goldfinger, Hungarian born architect and designer of furniture * Charles Gray, English actor * Hughie Green, Canadian born quiz show host * Arthur Greenwood, English Labour politician. (Ashes and memorial, Bay 17 of the East Boundary Wall.)Golders Green Crematorium guide notes * Joyce Grenfell, actress and comedian * John Gross, writer * Irene Handl, actress and comedian * Tommy Handley, British comedian * Robert Harbin, South African born magician and writer * Sir Cedric Hardwicke, English actor * Jack Hawkins, actor * Tubby Hayes, English jazz musician * Ian Hendry, actor * Patrick Hennessy, Irish Realist Artist * Dezo Hoffmann, photographer of actors and rock stars including the Beatles * Henry Holland, 1st Viscount Knutsford, British Conservative politician * Lady Margaret Huggins and her husband Sir

William Huggins Sir William Huggins (7 February 1824 – 12 May 1910) was an English astronomer best known for his pioneering work in astronomical spectroscopy together with his wife, Margaret. Biography William Huggins was born at Cornhill, Middlesex, in ...

, astronomers * Ralph Ince, American film actor, director and screenwriter * Gordon Jackson, actor * Alex James, footballer *

Sid James Sidney James (born Solomon Joel Cohen; 8 May 1913 – 26 April 1976) was a British actor and comedian whose career encompassed radio, television, stage and screen. He was best known for numerous roles in the Carry On film series. Born to a mi ...

, South African actor for both ''Bless This House'' and ''Carry On'' film series star * Sir Geoffrey Alan Jellicoe, architect * Jimmy Jewel, comedian * Yootha Joyce, actress * Geoffrey Keen, actor * Albert William Ketèlbey, English composer, conductor and pianist * Johnny Kidd, singer * Sir

Alexander Korda Sir Alexander Korda (; born Sándor László Kellner; hu, Korda Sándor; 16 September 1893 – 23 January 1956)David Kossoff, actor, writer, and campaigner * Paul Kossoff, musician (guitarist with Free, among others) *

Alfred Lawrence, 1st Baron Trevethin Alfred Tristram Lawrence, 1st Baron Trevethin, PC (24 November 1843 – 3 August 1936) was a British lawyer and judge. He served as Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales from 1921 to 1922. He is best remembered for the questionable manner in ...

, former Lord Chief Justice of England, drowned in fishing accident. * Doris Lessing, writer, 2007

Nobel Prize in Literature ) , image = Nobel Prize.png , caption = , awarded_for = Outstanding contributions in literature , presenter = Swedish Academy , holder = Annie Ernaux (2022) , location = Stockholm, Sweden , year = 1901 ...

laureate * Percy Wyndham Lewis, artist and writer *

William Howard Livens William Howard Livens, (28 March 1889 – 1 February 1964) was an engineer, a soldier in the British Army and an inventor particularly known for the design of chemical warfare and flame warfare weapons. Resourceful and clever, Livens' successfu ...

, military engineer and inventor * Wolf Mankowitz, British playwright and screenwriter *

Karl Mannheim Karl Mannheim (born Károly Manheim, 27 March 1893 – 9 January 1947) was an influential Hungarian sociologist during the first half of the 20th century. He is a key figure in classical sociology, as well as one of the founders of the sociolo ...

, Hungarian-born British sociologist, founder of the sociology of knowledge * Moore Marriott, British comic actor * Mary Millar, British actress and singer * Marthanda Bhairava Tondaiman,

Raja ''Raja'' (; from , IAST ') is a royal title used for South Asian monarchs. The title is equivalent to king or princely ruler in South Asia and Southeast Asia. The title has a long history in history of South Asia, South Asia and History of ...

of Pudukkottai 1886–1928 * Keith Moon, musician (drummer for The Who) * Janet Munro, actress, wife of actor Ian Hendry (above) * Alexander Murray, 8th Earl of Dunmore, British soldier, politician and VC winner *

Ivor Novello Ivor Novello (born David Ivor Davies; 15 January 1893 – 6 March 1951) was a Welsh actor, dramatist, singer and composer who became one of the most popular British entertainers of the first half of the 20th century. He was born into a musical ...

, actor, writer and lyricistWilson, Scott. ''Resting Places: The Burial Sites of More Than 14,000 Famous Persons'', 3d ed.: 2. McFarland & Company (2016) * Seán O'Casey, Irish playwright *

Joe Orton John Kingsley Orton (1 January 1933 – 9 August 1967), known by the pen name of Joe Orton, was an English playwright, author, and diarist. His public career, from 1964 until his death in 1967, was short but highly influential. During this brie ...

, playwright * Val Parnell, impresario *

Anna Pavlova Anna Pavlovna Pavlova ( , rus, Анна Павловна Павлова ), born Anna Matveyevna Pavlova ( rus, Анна Матвеевна Павлова; – 23 January 1931), was a Russian prima ballerina of the late 19th and the early 20t ...

, Russian ballerina *

Harry Pollitt Harry Pollitt (22 November 1890 – 27 June 1960) was a British communist who served as the General Secretary of the Communist Party of Great Britain (CPGB) from 1929 to September 1939 and again from 1941 until his death in 1960. Pollitt spen ...

, General Secretary of the British Communist Party * Marie Rambert, ballerina and founder of Rambert Dance Company * William Rust, Communist activist, editor of '' The Daily Worker'' * Peter Schidlof, Austrian-British violist * Ronnie Scott, British jazz musician *

Phil Seamen Philip William Seamen (28 August 1926 – 13 October 1972) was an English jazz drummer. With a background in big band music, Seamen played and recorded in a wide range of musical contexts with virtually every key figure of 1950s and 1960s Bri ...

, British jazz musician *

Peter Sellers Peter Sellers (born Richard Henry Sellers; 8 September 1925 – 24 July 1980) was an English actor and comedian. He first came to prominence performing in the BBC Radio comedy series ''The Goon Show'', featured on a number of hit comic songs ...

, actor and comedian * Geoffrey Shaw composer *

Ella Shields Ella Shields (27 September 1879 – 5 August 1952) was a music hall singer and male-impersonator. Her famous signature song, " Burlington Bertie from Bow", a parody of Vesta Tilley's "Burlington Bertie", written by her manager and first husban ...

, Music Hall artiste and male impersonator. Singer of Burlington Bertie. *

Kathleen Simon, Viscountess Simon Kathleen Rochard Simon, Viscountess Simon, DBE (formerly Manning, Harvey; 23 September 1869 – 27 March 1955) was an Anglo-Irish anti-slavery activist. She was inspired to research slavery after living in Tennessee with her first husband, an ...

, abolitionist * Bernard Spilsbury, pathologist *

Bram Stoker Abraham Stoker (8 November 1847 – 20 April 1912) was an Irish author who is celebrated for his 1897 Gothic horror novel ''Dracula''. During his lifetime, he was better known as the personal assistant of actor Sir Henry Irving and busin ...

, Irish writer (''Dracula'') * John Stride, actor * A.J.P. Taylor, historianArticle by A. F. Thompson. *

Sir Henry Thompson, 1st Baronet Sir Henry Thompson, 1st Baronet, (6 August 1820 – 18 April 1904) was a British surgeon and polymath. His interest was particularly in the urology, surgery of the genito-urinary tract. Medical career Thompson was born at Framlingham, Suffol ...

, surgeon and founder of the Cremation Society of England * Karl Tunberg, American screenwriter, author and film producer; past-President WGA, West (USA) * Tommy Vance, British broadcaster *

Conrad Veidt Hans Walter Conrad Veidt (; 22 January 1893 – 3 April 1943) was a German film actor who attracted early attention for his roles in the films '' Different from the Others'' (1919), ''The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari'' (1920), and '' The Man Who Laug ...

, German actor, following cremation in the USA * Vesta Victoria, music hall performer *

Barbara Windsor Dame Barbara Windsor (born Barbara Ann Deeks; 6 August 193710 December 2020) was an English actress, known for her roles in the ''Carry On'' films and for playing Peggy Mitchell in the BBC One soap opera, ''EastEnders''.Bernie Winters, comedian * Maurice Woodruff, English clairvoyant, following cremation in Singapore

Ashes taken elsewhere after cremation

Among those cremated here, but whose ashes are elsewhere, are: * Dame Peggy Ashcroft, actress, ashes scattered in the Great Garden at New Place,

Stratford-upon-Avon Stratford-upon-Avon (), commonly known as just Stratford, is a market town and civil parish in the Stratford-on-Avon district, in the county of Warwickshire, in the West Midlands region of England. It is situated on the River Avon, north-w ...

Warwickshire Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, and the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare at Stratford-upon-Avon an ...

* Arnold Bennett, novelist, ashes buried at

Burslem Burslem ( ) is one of the six towns that along with Hanley, Tunstall, Fenton, Longton and Stoke-upon-Trent form part of the city of Stoke-on-Trent in Staffordshire, England. It is often referred to as the "mother town" of Stoke on Trent. ...

Cemetery, Staffordshire *

Ernest Bevin Ernest Bevin (9 March 1881 – 14 April 1951) was a British statesman, trade union leader, and Labour Party politician. He co-founded and served as General Secretary of the powerful Transport and General Workers' Union in the years 1922–19 ...

, British Labour politician, ashes removed to

Westminster Abbey Westminster Abbey, formally titled the Collegiate Church of Saint Peter at Westminster, is an historic, mainly Gothic church in the City of Westminster, London, England, just to the west of the Palace of Westminster. It is one of the United ...

* Sir Alfred Billson (1839–1907), Liberal MP, ashes buried at

Kensal Green Cemetery Kensal Green Cemetery is a cemetery in the Kensal Green area of Queens Park in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in London, England. Inspired by Père Lachaise Cemetery in Paris, it was founded by the barrister George Frederic ...

. *

Hypatia Bradlaugh Bonner Hypatia Bradlaugh Bonner (31 March 1858 – 25 August 1935) was a British peace activist, author, atheist and freethinker, and the daughter of Charles Bradlaugh. Early life and teaching She was born Hypatia Bradlaugh, at 3 Hedger's Terrace, Ha ...

, daughter of

Charles Bradlaugh Charles Bradlaugh (; 26 September 1833 – 30 January 1891) was an English political activist and atheist. He founded the National Secular Society in 1866, 15 years after George Holyoake had coined the term "secularism" in 1851. In 1880, Br ...

, atheist and freethinking author and peace campaigner, ashes buried in

Brookwood Cemetery Brookwood Cemetery, also known as the London Necropolis, is a burial ground in Brookwood, Surrey, England. It is the largest cemetery in the United Kingdom and one of the largest in Europe. The cemetery is listed a Grade I site in the Regi ...

. * Horatio Bottomley, British Liberal, later Independent, M.P., journalist, swindler, ashes scattered on

Sussex Downs The South Downs are a range of chalk hills that extends for about across the south-eastern coastal counties of England from the Itchen valley of Hampshire in the west to Beachy Head, in the Eastbourne Downland Estate, East Sussex, in the eas ...

Brendan Bracken, 1st Viscount Bracken Brendan Rendall Bracken, 1st Viscount Bracken, PC (15 February 1901 – 8 August 1958) was an Irish-born businessman, politician and a minister in the British Conservative cabinet. He is best remembered for supporting Winston Churchill during ...

, Irish born British Conservative politician ashes scattered on

Romney Marshes Romney may refer to: Romney (surname), including a list of people with the name *Romney family, a family prominent in U.S. politics **George W. Romney (1907–1995), former CEO of American Motors, Governor of Michigan, and U.S. Secretary of Housin ...

. *

Neville Chamberlain Arthur Neville Chamberlain (; 18 March 18699 November 1940) was a British politician of the Conservative Party who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from May 1937 to May 1940. He is best known for his foreign policy of appeasem ...

, British Conservative politician and Prime Minister, ashes removed to Westminster Abbey * Alan J. Charig, British Palaeontologist, ashes scattered with his wife’s at Woldingham Viewpoint near Oxted, Surrey. * Peter Cook, British actor and comedian, ashes buried in an unmarked plot behind St. John's Church in Hampstead. *

Bebe Daniels Phyllis Virginia "Bebe" Daniels (January 14, 1901 – March 16, 1971) was an American actress, singer, dancer, writer, and producer. She began her career in Hollywood during the silent film era as a child actress, became a star in musicals suc ...

, American actress, singer and writer, with her husband,

Ben Lyon Ben Lyon (February 6, 1901 – March 22, 1979) was an American film actor and a studio executive at 20th Century-Fox who later acted in British radio, films and TV. Early life and career Lyon was born in Atlanta, Georgia, the son of Alvine ...

, at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery, Hollywood *

Ian Dury Ian Robins Dury (12 May 1942 27 March 2000) was a British singer, songwriter and actor who rose to fame during the late 1970s, during the punk and new wave era of rock music. He was the lead singer and lyricist of Ian Dury and the Blockheads ...

, English singer-lyricist, best known for No. 1 hit " Hit Me with Your Rhythm Stick", his ashes have reputedly been scattered in 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 ...

, there is a memorial bench in

Richmond Park Richmond Park, in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, is the largest of London's Royal Parks, and is of national and international importance for wildlife conservation. It was created by Charles I in the 17th century as a deer pa ...

T. S. Eliot Thomas Stearns Eliot (26 September 18884 January 1965) was a poet, essayist, publisher, playwright, literary critic and editor.Bush, Ronald. "T. S. Eliot's Life and Career", in John A Garraty and Mark C. Carnes (eds), ''American National Biogr ...

, Anglo-American poet, playwright, and literary critic, ashes in St Michael's Church in East Coker, Somerset * Lily Elsie, actress (location of ashes unknown) * Barry Evans, English actor (location of ashes unknown) * John Fisher, 1st Baron Fisher, Admiral of the Fleet, ashes buried at

Kilverstone Kilverstone is a civil parish in the English county of Norfolk east of Thetford. It covers an area of and had a population of 60 in 25 households at the 2001 census. For the purposes of local government, it falls within the district of Brecklan ...

, Norfolk. *

John French, 1st Earl of Ypres Field Marshal John Denton Pinkstone French, 1st Earl of Ypres, (28 September 1852 – 22 May 1925), known as Sir John French from 1901 to 1916, and as The Viscount French between 1916 and 1922, was a senior British Army officer. Born in Kent t ...

, Field Marshal, ashes buried at Ripple, Kent. * Sir Edward German, composer, ashes buried at Whitchurch, Shropshire. * David Gest, Music producer, Comedian and Television personality. Funeral service held at Golders Green Crematorium on 29 April 2016, His ashes were scattered in

York York is a cathedral city with Roman Britain, Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers River Ouse, Yorkshire, Ouse and River Foss, Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many hist ...

. * W. S. Gilbert, dramatist and author, who with

Arthur Sullivan Sir Arthur Seymour Sullivan (13 May 1842 – 22 November 1900) was an English composer. He is best known for 14 operatic collaborations with the dramatist W. S. Gilbert, including ''H.M.S. Pinafore'', '' The Pirates of Penzance ...

wrote the

Savoy opera Savoy opera was a style of comic opera that developed in Victorian England in the late 19th century, with W. S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan as the original and most successful practitioners. The name is derived from the Savoy Theatre, which ...

s, ashes buried at the Church of St. John the Evangelist,

Stanmore Stanmore is part of the London Borough of Harrow in London. It is centred northwest of Charing Cross, lies on the outskirts of the London urban area and includes Stanmore Hill, one of the highest points of London, at high. The district, whi ...

. * Sir Charles Henry, expatriate Australian businessman and Liberal

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house ...

(MP) in the British Parliament, ashes buried Willesden Jewish Cemetery. * Richard Hillary, Anglo-Australian RAF fighter ace, ashes scattered over English Channel. He is listed on Commonwealth War Graves Commission cremation memorial. * Reginald Hine, British historian, ashes scattered at Minsden Chapel *

Eric Hobsbawm Eric John Ernest Hobsbawm (; 9 June 1917 – 1 October 2012) was a British historian of the rise of industrial capitalism, socialism and nationalism. A life-long Marxist, his socio-political convictions influenced the character of his work. ...

, British historian, ashes interred at

Highgate Cemetery Highgate Cemetery is a place of burial in north London, England. There are approximately 170,000 people buried in around 53,000 graves across the West and East Cemeteries. Highgate Cemetery is notable both for some of the people buried there as ...

* Professor Louis Hoffmann (Angelo John Lewis), author of " Modern Magic" (1876) and other books on magic, games, amusements and puzzles. Funeral service and cremation took place at Golders Green on 29 December 1919, location of ashes unknown. *

Gary Holton Gary Frederick Holton (22 September 1953 – 25 October 1985) was an English singer-songwriter, musician and actor from London. He was the frontman of the band Heavy Metal Kids (1972–1977), worked with Casino Steel (1981–1984), and played ...

, actor best known as the star of '' Auf Wiedersehen, Pet'', his ashes rest in Maesgwastad Cemetery,

Welshpool Welshpool ( cy, Y Trallwng) is a market town and community in Powys, Wales, historically in the county of Montgomeryshire. The town is from the Wales–England border and low-lying on the River Severn; its Welsh language name ''Y Trallwng'' m ...

, Montgomeryshire * Kenneth Horne, comedian and businessman, star of '' Much-Binding-in-the-Marsh'', '' Beyond Our Ken'' and '' Round the Horne'', ashes have reputedly been moved to an unknown location *

A.E. Housman Alfred Edward Housman (; 26 March 1859 – 30 April 1936) was an English classical scholar and poet. After an initially poor performance while at university, he took employment as a clerk in London and established his academic reputation by pub ...

, classical scholar and poet, author of '' A Shropshire Lad'', ashes interred outside St Laurence's Church, Ludlow,

Shropshire Shropshire (; alternatively Salop; abbreviated in print only as Shrops; demonym Salopian ) is a landlocked historic county in the West Midlands region of England. It is bordered by Wales to the west and the English counties of Cheshire to ...

, England * John Inman, actor, star of '' Are You Being Served?'', location of ashes unknown * Henry Irving, stage actor in the

Victorian era In the history of the United Kingdom and the British Empire, the Victorian era was the period of Queen Victoria's reign, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. The era followed the Georgian period and preceded the Edward ...

, ashes removed to

* Rufus Isaacs, 1st Marquess of Reading, Liberal politician and lawyer, ashes buried at the nearby

Jewish cemetery A Jewish cemetery ( he, בית עלמין ''beit almin'' or ''beit kvarot'') is a cemetery where Jews are buried in keeping with Halakha, Jewish tradition. Cemeteries are referred to in several different ways in Hebrew, including ''beit k ...

Henry James Henry James ( – ) was an American-British author. He is regarded as a key transitional figure between literary realism and literary modernism, and is considered by many to be among the greatest novelists in the English language. He was th ...

, American-born British novelist, ashes buried at

Cambridge, Massachusetts Cambridge ( ) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. As part of the Greater Boston, Boston metropolitan area, the cities population of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 U.S. census was 118,403, making it the fourth most ...

, U.S.A. * Jerome K. Jerome, writer, ashes buried at St Mary's Churchyard, Ewelme, Oxfordshire * Kenrick Hymans ("Snakehips") Johnson, Guyanese-born British jazz band leader, cremated here, ashes removed to chapel of Sir William Borlase's Grammar School,

Marlow, Buckinghamshire Marlow (; historically Great Marlow or Chipping Marlow) is a town and civil parish within the Unitary Authority of Buckinghamshire, England. It is located on the River Thames, south-southwest of High Wycombe, west-northwest of Maidenhead and ...

* Adrian Jones, sculptor of various war and other military memorials, ashes interred outside St Laurence's Church, Ludlow. * Ernest Jones, psychoanalyst, ashes were buried in the grave of the oldest of his four children in the churchyard of St Cadoc's Cheriton on the Gower Peninsula *

Hetty King Winifred Emms (4 April 1883 – 28 September 1972), best known by her stage name Hetty King, was an English entertainer who performed in the music halls as a male impersonator over some 70 years. Early life She was born in New Brighton, Chesh ...

, Music Hall artiste and male impersonator. *

Rudyard Kipling Joseph Rudyard Kipling ( ; 30 December 1865 – 18 January 1936)''The Times'', (London) 18 January 1936, p. 12. was an English novelist, short-story writer, poet, and journalist. He was born in British Raj, British India, which inspired much o ...

, British author and poet, ashes removed to Poet's Corner, Westminster Abbey *

Leonid Krasin Leonid Borisovich Krasin (russian: Леони́д Бори́сович Кра́син; 15 July 1870 – 24 November 1926) was a Russian Soviet politician, engineer, social entrepreneur, Bolshevik revolutionary politician and a Soviet diplomat. I ...

, Russian and Soviet Bolshevik politician and diplomat, ashes buried in the Kremlin Wall Necropolis * Kit Lambert, manager and record producer for

The Who The Who are an English rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup consisted of lead singer Roger Daltrey, guitarist and singer Pete Townshend, bass guitarist and singer John Entwistle, and drummer Keith Moon. They are conside ...

, ashes buried at

Brompton Cemetery Brompton Cemetery (originally the West of London and Westminster Cemetery) is a London cemetery, managed by The Royal Parks, in West Brompton in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. It is one of the Magnificent Seven cemeteries. Es ...

* Verity Lambert, television producer. *

Vivien Leigh Vivien Leigh ( ; 5 November 1913 – 8 July 1967; born Vivian Mary Hartley), styled as Lady Olivier after 1947, was a British actress. She won the Academy Award for Best Actress twice, for her definitive performances as Scarlett O'Hara in ''Gon ...

, English actress, ashes were scattered on the lake at Tickerage Mill pond, near Blackboys, Sussex *

Alice Liddell Alice Pleasance Hargreaves (''née'' Liddell, ; 4 May 1852 – 16 November 1934), was an English woman who, in her childhood, was an acquaintance and photography subject of Lewis Carroll. One of the stories he told her during a boating trip bec ...

, ashes removed to Lyndhurst, Hampshire (see ''

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland ''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'' (commonly ''Alice in Wonderland'') is an 1865 English novel by Lewis Carroll. It details the story of a young girl named Alice who falls through a rabbit hole into a fantasy world of anthropomorphic creatur ...

''). * Lieutenant General

Samuel Lomax Lieutenant General Samuel Holt Lomax (2 August 1855 – 10 April 1915) was a British Army officer who commanded the 1st Division during the early battles of the First World War. He was fatally wounded in action in October 1914 at the First Batt ...

, died of wounds World War I, ashes buried at Aldershot Military Cemetery *

Princess Louise, Duchess of Argyll Princess Louise, Duchess of Argyll, (Louisa Caroline Alberta; 18 March 1848 – 3 December 1939) was the sixth child and fourth daughter of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. In her public life, she was a strong proponent of the arts and higher ...

, ashes buried at the Royal Burial Ground at Frogmore * Princess Louise Margaret, Duchess of Connaught and Strathearn, the first member of the British Royal Family to be cremated, ashes buried at the Royal Burial Ground at

Frogmore Frogmore is an estate within the Home Park, adjoining Windsor Castle, in Berkshire, England. It comprises , of primarily private gardens managed by the Crown Estate. It is the location of Frogmore House, a royal retreat, and Frogmore Cottage. ...

* Edwin Lutyens, architect whose designs include The Cenotaph. Ashes buried at

St Paul's Cathedral St Paul's Cathedral is an Anglicanism, Anglican cathedral in London and is the seat of the Bishop of London. The cathedral serves as the mother church of the Diocese of London. It is on Ludgate Hill at the highest point of the City of London ...

, London * Charles Rennie Mackintosh, Scottish architect, ashes scattered at sea at Port Vendres, France. * Matt Monro, singer, ashes removed by the family * John Morley, 1st Viscount Morley of Blackburn, Liberal politician, ashes buried at Putney Vale Cemetery. * Peter O'Toole, actor and author, cremated on 21 December 2013 in a wicker coffin *

Marian Cripps, Baroness Parmoor Marian Emily Cripps, Baroness Parmoor (née Ellis; 6 January 1878 – 6 July 1952) was a British anti-war activist. Early life and wartime activities Marian Ellis was born in Nottingham, one of twin daughters of Quaker and radical parents, the ...

, anti-war activist, ashes taken to Frieth * H. G. Pelissier, actor, composer and satirist, ashes rest in

Marylebone Cemetery East Finchley Cemetery is a cemetery and crematorium in East End Road, East Finchley. Although it is in the London Borough of Barnet, it is owned and managed by the City of Westminster.Admiral of the Fleet Sir

Dudley Pound Admiral of the Fleet Sir Alfred Dudley Pickman Rogers Pound, (29 August 1877 – 21 October 1943) was a British senior officer of the Royal Navy. He served in the First World War as a battleship commander, taking part in the Battle of Jutland ...

, ashes, with those of his wife, scattered at sea; commemorated on the Commonwealth War Graves Commission cremation memorial here.CWGC Casualty Record
* King Prajadhipok of Thailand, ashes removed to Chakri Throne Hall in the

Grand Palace The Grand Palace ( th, พระบรมมหาราชวัง, Royal Institute of Thailand. (2011). ''How to read and how to write.'' (20th Edition). Bangkok: Royal Institute of Thailand. .) is a complex of buildings at the heart of B ...

Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estimated populatio ...

. * Wendy Richard, English actress, ashes interred at East Finchley Cemetery * Arnold Ridley, author and actor, ashes rest in

Bath Abbey Cemetery The Anglican Bath Abbey Cemetery, officially dedicated as the Cemetery of St Peter and St Paul (the patron saints that Bath Abbey is dedicated to), was laid out by noted cemetery designer and landscape architect John Claudius Loudon (1783–184 ...

* Herbrand Russell, 11th Duke of Bedford, politician and hereditary peer, President of the Cremation Society. Ashes buried at St Michael's Church, Chenies, Buckinghamshire. *

Ernest Rutherford Ernest Rutherford, 1st Baron Rutherford of Nelson, (30 August 1871 – 19 October 1937) was a New Zealand physicist who came to be known as the father of nuclear physics. ''Encyclopædia Britannica'' considers him to be the greatest ...

, 1st Baron Rutherford of Nelson, physicist, ashes removed to Westminster Abbey. * Shapurji Saklatvala, Indian-born Labour and

Communist Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a ...

Member of the British Parliament. Cremated here, ashes buried at the Parsi burial ground in

.The ODNB does not mention the cremation. *

Richard Bowdler Sharpe Richard Bowdler Sharpe (22 November 1847 – 25 December 1909) was an English zoologist and ornithologist who worked as curator of the bird collection at the British Museum of natural history. In the course of his career he published several mo ...

, zoologist, founder of the British Ornithologists' Club and Assistant Keeper of the

British Museum The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It docume ...

* Sophia Duleep Singh (1876–1948) Indian princess and suffragette, daughter of the last Maharaja of the Punjab. Cremated here, ashes scattered in the Punjab. * F. E. Smith, 1st Earl of Birkenhead, lawyer-statesman, ashes buried at Charlton, Northamptonshire. * Sir

Charles Villiers Stanford Sir Charles Villiers Stanford (30 September 1852 – 29 March 1924) was an Anglo-Irish composer, music teacher, and conductor of the late Romantic era. Born to a well-off and highly musical family in Dublin, Stanford was educated at the Un ...

, composer, ashes buried in Westminster Abbey. * Vivian Stanshall, founding member of the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band, artist, poet and broadcaster. His ashes are in the possession of his wife and daughter. A memorial plaque is in the crematorium's Poets' Corner, unveiled on 13 December 2015. *

Ellen Terry Dame Alice Ellen Terry, (27 February 184721 July 1928), was a leading English actress of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Born into a family of actors, Terry began performing as a child, acting in Shakespeare plays in London, and tour ...

, actress, ashes kept at St Paul's, Covent Garden, London * James Henry Thomas (1874–1949), Labour cabinet minister and railwaymen's trade union leader, ashes buried at Swindon, Wiltshire. * H. G. Wells, English author, ashes scattered at sea *

Ralph Vaughan Williams Ralph Vaughan Williams, (; 12 October 1872– 26 August 1958) was an English composer. His works include operas, ballets, chamber music, secular and religious vocal pieces and orchestral compositions including nine symphonies, written over ...

, composer, ashes buried in North Aisle, Westminster Abbey *

Amy Winehouse Amy Jade Winehouse (14 September 1983 – 23 July 2011) was an English singer and songwriter. She was known for her deep, expressive contralto vocals and her eclectic mix of musical genres, including soul, rhythm and blues and jazz. A m ...

, singer-songwriter, ashes buried at Edgwarebury Cemetery, alongside her grandmother. *

Szmul Zygielbojm Szmul Mordko Zygielbojm (; yi, שמואל זיגלבוים; – ) was a Polish socialist politician, Bund trade-union activist, and member of the National Council of the Polish government-in-exile. Zygielbojm was born in 1895 into a w ...

Polish-Jewish political activist. In 1943 committed suicide in London as a protest against international indifference towards Holocaust. His ashes were transferred to

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

in 1961 by Zygielbojm's fellows from Bund Jewish Organization.

Gallery

References

External links

Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC): Golders Green Crematorium

Golders Green Crematorium
at Hampstead Garden Suburb Trust {{Crematoria in England Parks and open spaces in the London Borough of Barnet Religion in the London Borough of Barnet Grade I listed parks and gardens in London Grade II* listed buildings in the London Borough of Barnet Grade II listed buildings in the London Borough of Barnet Crematoria in England Crematoria in London

Crematorium A crematorium or crematory is a venue for the cremation of the dead. Modern crematoria contain at least one cremator (also known as a crematory, retort or cremation chamber), a purpose-built furnace. In some countries a crematorium can also ...