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Church Street, CHESHAM, HP5 1HU

Now the Little Theatre by the Park, but a restrictive covenant prevents the sale of alcohol on the premises. Erected 1852.

Dated 1852

Built in 1852 in Church Street, the Hall is now used as a theatre, The Little Theatre by the Park http://www.littletheatrechesham.info/About%20The%20Little%20Theatre.htm for details

Number 44 is at the centre of the three properties. It is a Listed building and is described as having "a C19 front with terracotta decoration in a mixed Romanesque Byzantine style".

These cottages are nos. 53, 55 and 57 Church Street. The 18th century brick frontage was apparently added to timber-framed buildings of earlier date. The brickwork is laid in Flemish bond, using 'blue' headers and red stretchers to produce a chequered effect - very typical of these Chiltern towns. 'Queen Anne's Cupboard' is a name given in the listing text. http://www.britishlistedbuildings.co.uk/en-43527-53-57-church-street-chesham-buckinghamshi I am puzzled by the heavy bracket over the door of no. 57 - did it once carry an inn sign? If so, that might account for the quaint name. The building to the right of the cottages, by the corner of Bury Lane, was - I believe - once a police station. I took this photo on a very wet St Patrick's Day, while sheltering in the entrance to Old Bells Court.

View across Church Street from the steps of the parish hall. The archway leads to Old Bells Court, which may well be a vestige of the medieval plan of Chesham. The street frontage is interesting in itself - no. 44 has an old shop-front, said to be of early 19th century origin. But what this shot doesn't show is that the walls running back from the street on either side of the entrance have exposed timber framing, showing that the street frontage has been added to timber-framed buildings which are centuries older. Listing text: http://www.britishlistedbuildings.co.uk/en-43509-44-church-street-chesham-buckinghamshire

Many of the smaller properties along Church Street appear to be brick-built, but are in fact timber-framed. The Buckinghamshire 'Pevsner' and the listing texts agree that brick facing was added - from about 1700 onwards - to timber-framed cottages which were already a century or two old. Here, a carriage archway gives access to Old Bells Court. The buildings on either side appear to be brick-built, but their timber framing is exposed within the archway. A wider view of this portion of Church Street can be found here: http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/3382916 No. 44 appears to be a private residence, but incorporates an old shop-front, possibly pre-Victorian.