Another sunny morning for our visit to the Excalibur Estate near Catford and an interesting and comprehensive tour under the enthusiastic guidance of James and Elizabeth. After a welcome cup of tea in the Pre-fab Museum in Meliot Road, we walked round many of the roads which are still accessible since the landlord fenced off the north east corner and has started demolition work. Originally 187 pre-fabs were put up by German and Italian prisoners of war and the Museum has pictures of many of them along with other wartime and post-war memorabilia. 

Pre-fabricated houses come in two basic types, side-entrance and centre-entrance. All have two bedrooms and a slightly sloping roof (7°) and despite being “temporary” have proved durable and comfortable for many. Some attempts to "modernise" the dwellings have been made but most are much as they were originally built.

The pictures below include the Museum, some of the dwellings and the adjacent St. Mark’s church which, as might be guessed from its shape, was originally a Nissan hut and rebuilt in the 1960s in a similar shape.

Click on an image below to see a larger version - you can then move forward or back using the arrows on either side.