Our Aims

:: Stop any sale of a long leasehold interest of the Palace that's not for charitable purposes. The 1900 Alexandra Park and Palace Act provided that both Palace and park be held on trust "for the free use and recreation of the public for ever"

:: Safeguard the studios and the mast which pioneered the world's first high-definition television broadcasts and preserve the outline of the original studios A and B. Preserve and maintain the Palace's Victorian theatre and famous Willis organ. Protect public access to all of these and promote them as visitor attractions.

:: Reconstitute AP's trustees back to representatives of the whole of London and of the nation, capable of and interested in maintaining the Palace and Park for public use under its trusts (e.g. north London boroughs, The GLA, English Heritage, BBC, The Arts Council; individuals who have experience in community, heritage and educational areas.

The Palace is a unique national public asset and should be cherished as such.

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This Just In

2,393 signed petition to the PM to prevent any sale of AP

The Save Ally Pally online petition attracted 2,393 signatures by its closing date on February 27. Although the High Court blocked a proposed sale to a developer, Firoka Ltd., the overall trustee, the London Borough of Haringey, has still not publicly or finally abandoned its policy of flogging Ally Pally entire. SAP thanks all those who signed. We now await a response from the Prime Minister's office...

The petition wording:
We the undersigned petition the Prime Minister to instruct Haringey Council not to sell Alexandra Palace to a property developer. Save Ally Pally!

For more information click here

Transcript of the judgment | Last updated 31.10.07
Transcript of the judgment of the judicial review held before the high court on the 5th of October 2007, is available from here.
Read the full High Court of Justice judgment pdf 237kb

The High Court has blocked the disposal of Alexandra Palace on a 125-year lease to a developer | 5.10.07

The reason for the challenge

The Court agreed with Claimant Jacob O’Callaghan on behalf of SaveAllyPally.com campaign, represented by David Wolfe of Matrix, that the decision by the Commission to authorize the sale by Haringey was unfair. The Palace is governed by a Parliamentary statute, and a Minister had promised MPs that prior to the decision objectors would be fully consulted. This "consultation" was "fatally flawed" because the Commission never published the proposed lease and project agreement referred to with their draft Order, or any details, so that no-one could make a meaningful response about exactly what was proposed.

What parts of the park and palace would be leased and what parts maintained as an public space available for the free use and recreation of the public? How would the maintenance of the park be financed, once the trust lost the asset of the palace, that has financed the park maintenance so far? What assurances if any were given to preserve the heritage and historic elements of the Palace, such as the first TV studios and broadcasting mast?

The hearing

The proceedings were an application to the administrative court for a “judicial review” of the Charity commission decision/Order.

Read more here

Senior AP Trustees write to the Charity Commissioners

1 June 2007
David Unwin
Senior Legal Commissioner
Charity Commission

Dear Mr Unwin
VERY URGENT AND IMPORTANT – ALEXANDRA PALACE

As you may be aware, all councillors, as charity trustees of Alexandra Park and Palace, have received letters alleging deficiencies in the proposed 125 year lease to Firoka of Alexandra Palace, and in the processes which have, over the years, led to it.

We write to express our concern that these issues should be resolved prior to the completion of the sale, and in particular seek clarity over:

1. the disproportionate area of the Palace given over to commercial activity by the proposed lease;

2. the nature of the activities that may be permitted;

3. the financial statements to the charity commission on the trustees' behalf made to justify the lease.

In view of the uncertainty and the length of the proposed contract, we request that the Charity Commission undertake an urgent investigation to ensure that the above and other serious concerns which have been expressed about the nature of the proposed contract are properly examined before any irrevocable action is taken.

Yours sincerely

Signed by Neil Williams for and on behalf of

Cllr Neil Williams
(LB Haringey), Trustee

Cllr Richard Wilson
(LB Haringey), Trustee

Cllr Wayne Hoban
(LB Haringey), Trustee

What's going on at Ally Pally?

Alexandra Palace in Muswell Hill, designed by the Victorians as the People's Palace for educational recreation, music, sport and entertainment, a landmark north London rival to the Crystal Palace, and in 1936 birthplace of television, has lasted 130 years and survived two fires. And, in 1900, it literally became the People's Palace because by Act of Parliament it was given to the people of London, with its Park, in trust for all time.

That was threatened a few years ago by a proposal by officials of Haringey council, the current trustee, and the Palace's then managers to dispose of the whole building to a commercial developer, Firoka Ltd. Lock, stock and barrel.

High Court action blocks sale

So five years ago Jacob O'Callaghan of the Save Ally Pally campaign went to the High Court to ask that the decision by the charity commission to permit the sale be overturned, on the grounds that details of the sale had been kept secret - when Parliament had been promised that any sale would not go ahead before full consultation . The court agreed and quashed the decision.

TV studio A at Alexandra Palace, set- up for Cafe Continental

Popperfoto

New management, new future

Five years later the picture is very different.

Firstly, the Trustees declared they were abandoning their attempts to sell the Palace. They retook control over the Palace and its trading company.

They began replacing the officials who had masterminded the attempts to flog it off. In particular the General Manager, Keith Holder, was shown the door. The trust's former solicitor was also "let go". Now the Palace is run by a manager, Duncan Wilson, who (unlike all the previous bosses) has extensive experience of running historic buildings.

Developing the potential inside.

Heritage Lottery bid

Besides its exhibition spaces, the palace still houses two important historic areas.

Firstly, a large Victorian theatre, complete with working original stage machinery.

Secondly, a space of international historic importancce - the two BBC television studios which in 1936 were the scene of the birthplace of television - being the world's first regular high-definition public television service.

The years of uncertainty and neglect have taken their toll on these spaces - and they probably would have been lost forever had the Firoka sale not been overturned. But they have survived, and now the Heritage Lottery fund is being asked to help provide funds to re-open them so that the public - which owns them - can once again visit them.

Save Ally Pally welcomes and fully endorses this bid, and urges all our supporters to as well!

So our campaign is seeing many of its aims finally on their way to being realized. And instead of having to battle with the trustees to save the Palace, now we can work with the new management to do so.

We will update this site in the next few weeks, but retain much of the information to show how close the Palace came to being lost, how this was averted - and how and why it must never happen again.