The Blackheath Society produces a range of leaflets providing local information and guided walks around the area.

Forgotten Neighbours - Some Residents of St Margaret’s Churchyard

The old churchyard of St Margaret's dates back at least eight hundred years. Members will be familiar with the ancient church tower which still stands on this historic site across Lee Terrace from the current fine Victorian church.

Last year Paul Wright and guests presented a history of some of the churchyard's remarkable residents in an evening called 'Forgotten Neighbours' and more recently Paul conducted walks around the churchyard as part of the Open House weekend. He has now produced an illustrated account of the churchyard's history and some of the colourful characters who reside there including a restoration actress, the claimant in an eighteenth century legal battle, a disgraced local worthy, two Astronomers Royal and an unsuccessful parachutist. The publication is available to download here and a helpful map from the storyboard in the churchyard here.

Rock Around Blackheath

A surprising number of pop and rock stars either originated from Blackheath and the surrounding area or chose to live here – at least temporarily. Stars such as Albert Lee, Chris Difford and Marty Wilde grew up in Blackheath while others such as Manfred Mann, John Mayall and Kate Bush became famous while living in the area. A number of local venues also figured prominently on the twentieth century music map, including the Lewisham Odeon, the Green Man pub and the Underhill rehearsal studio.

Paul Wright, a long standing member of the Blackheath Society (also responsible for ‘Road Rage’ and ‘Forgotten Neighbours – Some Residents of The Old St Margaret’s Churchyard’), together with friend and colleague Maureen Corcoran, gave an illustrated talk on the area’s musical past in 2022. Paul has now produced an illustrated booklet based on that talk which also contains links to interviews with some illustrious figures from rock history. These can also be seen here.

The booklet is available to download as a PDF here.

Road Rage – Fifty Years of Plans for Motorways Through Blackheath

In the late 1960s there was a plan to build an eight-lane motorway through the centre of Blackheath Village. In what many regard as its finest hour, the Blackheath Society was instrumental in ensuring that this very real plan never came to fruition. The plan was in fact part of a London-wide scheme which would have seen a ring of mostly elevated motorways around the capital. It was also just one of a number of schemes developed for major roads across Blackheath throughout the twentieth century.

Paul Wright presented an illustrated talk on these spine-shivering plans in October 2019. He has now produced an illustrated booklet based on the talk, which describes in detail the various ways in which planners sought largely to destroy Blackheath Village by driving major roads through it.

The booklet is available to download as a PDF here.