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1856: Frederick Goodall bought 170 acres of the land on which Grim’s Dyke now stands
1870: Building work began, overseen by the famous architect Norman Shaw
1872: Grim’s Dyke was completed and the Goodall family took up residence.
1880: The Goodalls sold Grim’s Dyke to Robert Heriot of Hambros Bank who lived here for 10 years
1890: Grim’s Dyke was bought by Sir William and Lady Gilbert
1899: Work began on Gilbert’s boating lake, a 1.5 acre stretch of water where he used to bathe every day
1905 – The lake was extended to form a large rectangle roughly 170 yards long by 50 yards wide
1906: Gilbert helped found Grimsdyke Golf Club where he was President
1911: Gilbert died on May 29th trying to rescue a local girl, Ruby Preece, who had got into difficulties swimming
1929: On one of her rare public appearances, Lady Gilbert attends the re-opening of the Savoy Theatre
1936: Lady Gilbert died, having spent her final years doing local charity work
1937: A public auction of the house realised £4600
1937: Grim’s Dyke became a rehabilitation centre for women suffering from tuberculosis
1939-1945: Officially, whatever role Grim’s Dyke played in the war is classified and not due for release until the 2040s
1945: Re-opened as a rehabilitation centre for men suffering from tuberculosis
1963: The rehabilitation centre was closed down and Grim’s Dyke entered a period of decline, during which time it was used as a film and television set
1967: The Champions was filmed here, as were several episodes of Dr Who during his battles with the Daleks
1968: Boris Karloff starred in his last film, The Curse of the Crimson Altar
1969: Vincent Price made his 100th film, The Cry of the Banshee. Ronnie Barker also used the house and grounds to shoot one of his comedies, Futtocks End
1998: Grim’s Dyke was formally re-opened by the Rt. Hon. Kenneth Clarke, Chancellor of the Exchequer
“Frederick Goodall”
Grim's Dyke was built in 1870 for Frederick Goodall a successful Victorian Painter who lived from 1822 to 1904. The House was designed by Norman Shaw a well known architect who also designed the New Scotland Yard Building.
Frederick Goodall was elected a full member of the Royal Academy in 1864. Some years earlier, Goodall had purchased 110 acres on the Harrow Weald from the Marquis of Abercorn. The best source of information about Frederick Goodall and the Goodall Family of Artists is www.goodallartists.ca. This site is maintained by Frederick's great nephew, Richard Goodall who lives in British Columbia.
Goodall's actual purchase took place in 1856 but he was unable to build until the expiry of a lease. The ancient Grime's Dyke earthwork as it was known at that time ran through the property. The fosse was dammed at one end to make a stretch of ornamental water in the midst of which Goodall placed the statue of Charles the 2nd from Soho Square given to him by a wealthy neighbour and patron.
The Architect, Norman Shaw, designed a brick and timber house fantastically gabled with immensely high chimneys and Goodall surrounded it with conifers and exotic shrubs. It was completed in 1872. The name of "Grime's Dyke" did not sound fitting for the new house, so Shaw suggested that it should be called Graeme's Dyke. Here Goodall entertained artists and society including the Prince of Wales and Charles Dickens. Graeme's Dyke was reluctantly sold to Mr.Heriot the banker who then sold it to W. S. Gilbert in 1890.
“Norman Shaw”
Grim's Dyke was designed for the Victorian Painter Frederick Goodall by Norman Shaw a well know architect of the time.
Richard Norman Shaw was born in Edinburgh in 1831. He studied in Edinburgh after which he worked for William Burn, an Edinburgh Architect with an office in London. In 1858 he worked for G E Street and in 1863 he opened his own practice with W E Nesfield as his partner. He designed several country houses, including Grim's Dyke, as well as a series of commercial buildings in a wide range of styles.
A Royal Academician from 1877, Shaw co-edited the 1892 collection of essays "Architecture, a profession or an Art?" In later years, Shaw moved to a heavier classical style which influenced the emerging Edwardian Classicism of the early 20th century. Shaw died in London in 1913. His most well known work was the New Scotland Yard building in the centre of London.
