Highgate Cemetery has removed plans for a controversial maintenance and toilet block from its £18m redevelopment application, following threats from grave owners to exhume their loved ones' remains if the building proceeded. The decision comes after dozens of objections, including from Jeremy Corbyn, actors Jonathan Pryce and Bertie Carvel, and widows of the late actor Tim Pigott-Smith and sociologist Stuart Hall.
The proposed building, dubbed a 'bunker' by critics, was to be located on a part of the cemetery known as the mound, where nearly 200 people have been recently buried. Grave owners had expressed fears that the structure would desecrate the area and disrupt the peace of the historic site.
In a letter to grave owners, Ian Dungavell, chief executive of the Friends of Highgate Cemetery Trust (FHCT), stated that the trust had 'listened carefully' and decided to remove the gardeners' building from the current application. He added that the amended application would help meet the timing requirements of the National Lottery Heritage Fund, whose support is critical for the site's conservation.
However, grave owners remain suspicious, fearing the removal is a 'ploy' to secure lottery funding before resubmitting the contentious plans. Architect Amir Sanei, a grave owner, wrote to the trust asking for a commitment to never build on the mound and to propose an alternative site. Film producer Anna Seifert-Speck, whose husband is buried on the mound, threatened to approach the Heritage Lottery Fund to make any grant conditional on an alternative location.
Tim Pigott-Smith's son, Tom, expressed distrust, noting the trust had previously argued the building was essential and dismissed alternative sites. Dungavell has promised a fresh consultation with grave owners to find the best way to provide facilities for gardeners, but the community remains wary of the trust's intentions.
