Kenwood: December, 1968.

Master bedroom, Kenwood.

36 years.

Kenwood: January 1995.

In January 1995, Andrew Hawkins, finding the gates at Kenwood open, took the decision to chance his luck and headed up to the house to see if he might be allowed to film the exterior. Lucky, really, because what he discovered was a building site, overseen by an amenable Irish foreman who agreed to give Andrew and his friend the grand tour. Thus, Andy's camera recorded the last gasp of the house as John would have known it - shortly thereafter the kitchen, sunroom and garage were demolished and rebuilt, and the first floor master bedroom and attic were gutted and reconstructed.
I will try and put the footage on the blog over Christmas, but in the meantime here, with a minimum of verbiage from me, are some screencaps and a bit of context.

ENTRANCE HALL - The doorway visible here led to the kitchen. Note too the large mirror, still in place:

KITCHEN - Split level, an upper "breakfast terrace" and lower cooking area:

Note the floor tiles, some of which were still evident:

LIVING ROOM - Note the ceiling:

DEN - Colour scheme still in place, 25 years later:

Back to the entrance hall, this time facing the main stairs to the upper levels:

MASTER BEDROOM:

EN-SUITE BATHROOM:

ATTIC: Again, compare the photo of John with the situation in January 1995; clearly the same:

ATTIC LIVING ROOM - Next to the studio room, John pictured here above. This room was where Pete Shotton recalled helping with the general concept for Eleanor Rigby:

ATTIC BEDROOM - Home at various times to Fred Lennon, Pauline Lennon, and even John and Cyn whilst renovation was going on in 1964:

ATTIC TANK ROOM - Home to John's semi-feral cats:

ATTIC CORRIDOR - A glimpse of the studio room at the far end:

SUNROOM EXTERIOR - I'm still not sure if this is a completely different structure, or simply the old sunroom with a new roof and fireplace installed:

SUNROOM INTERIOR:

POOLSIDE STEPS:

GARAGE 1:

GARAGE 2:

And there we have it, for nau. As mentioned, at some point before long the footage itself will appear here.
Finally, I'd like to express my thanks to Andy for his generosity in allowing me to use his film. Cheers, mate!

Kenwood: December, 1968.

Foot-holding "action" in the master bedroom at Kenwood.
Note the bedside literature in the picture below; John, in common with the rest of them (and with the possible exception of Ringo), always was an autodidact.
Apparently in later years, and in Joycean fashion, he would read seven pages of seven books before sleep, covering such subjects as ancient history, anthropology and mysticism, amongst many others.
But back to feet:


Many thanks to Robert Dietrich.
ADDENDUM: More bewks:


Lizzie just sent this 'un. Thanks Lizzie.

Kenwood: more sun & bedroom - December, 1968.

Sunroom close-ups from Susan Wood, and more of John's inveterate tea drinking (and "snoutage"):


Plus one that Tammy just posted, taken from Look magazine, showing more bed:


Dribblesome stuff.

Kenwood: master bedroom, December 1968.

John caught napping in the master bedroom at Kenwood in December, 1968 (and in its own way, a more intimite shot than some other more obvious contendahs).
Compare with the black and white pic previously on here:


Some more similarly first-rate shots have been shoved under my nose this evening, and they'll be on here in good time.
Sir Thom, I thank ye once more...

Kenwood: master bedroom.

The master bedroom during John's time at Kenwood was really a suite of three - the bedroom itself, a dressing room and a bathroom. Interesting as it is to see the layout, the thing I noticed immediately was the words "sliding doors". This could well (with the usual caveats re. conjecture) finally allow us to nail the position of the famous shot of John plus panda.
I've mentioned in the past that I felt the distinctive panelled "wall" behind John was probably a set of sliding doors - you can see handles, and in other photos taken in the same location, the doors appear to be open, revealing another room behind.


The panda photo must have been taken beside a corner, near a large window - due to the reflection of wall, curtain and window in the panels. (In fact, you can see a reflection from a second window beyond the larger first one too.)
This all fits...


I'd say, therefore, that's it's very likely that this photo was actually taken in the master bedroom, with John's back against the sliding doors detailed on the Partridge plan.

Master bedroom: 2006 & 1968.

Ploughing on, with the usual caveats about insanity/obsession etc etc (and I'd recommend listening to Revolution 9 at maximum volume as you attempt to read this gibberish)...the map shows the position in 2006 of the first floor rooms (UK nomenclature), with the master bedroom suite directly above the dining room. The second pic shows the '06 master bedroom window, and the same window externally circa 1966. (The perspective is a bit odd because, in effect, the two photographers would be facing each other). But what this means is that the other window in this room, circled in the third pic of John sitting outside, is not the same as the window in the fourth pic - the master bedroom circa 1968. Note the odd shape of this window - but the window in the '68 bedroom is flat. So this can't be the same room. In that case, where was the master bedroom in John's time? One possibility is that it used to be in the space occupied by the master bathroom in 2006. Again, compare the windows in the above pics. That looks like the same one to me. The wall corner looks identical too. If this is so (and I know that's a big "if") then the master bedroom in the John era would have been to the rear of the house, on the first floor, facing east, occupying what in 2006 was the bathroom and dressing room. The '06 bedroom would probably have been the bathroom. Confused? Join the club. I shouldn't have assumed it was the same layout in '68 and '06, given the amount of renovation that has gone on - I mean, even the titting swimming pool has been moved because it was at the wrong angle for someone. Oh to have such problems (and solutions).

Kenwood: Nursery/Playroom?

Again, at least a couple of slight variations. This is definitely Kenwood, and I'd say it's the same room in both sets of photos - those panels are quite distinctive. They seem to be part of a sliding door arrangement - open in the spinning top photos to give a glimpse of the room beyond. I have seen the colour one blown up to quite a large size (in some kind of book, not some kind of vision, I hasten to add) - and the reflection in the panels looks like those same curtains. Is this the nursery/playroom? The presence of toys in all these pics suggests it as a possibility. Might the room beyond be Julian's room? Or should that be "Julian's" room? This is beginning to get slightly "ridiculous". Or should that be etc etc. UPDATE - it's the master bedroom. See later guff for the skinny.

Tittenhurst Park: December, 1969 etc.

In December 1969 John was filmed, simultaneously, for two documentaries - 24 Hours and Man Of The Decade, both of which have footage of Tittenhurst. The second pic here shows John on the phone in the bedroom there. Our old friend the Variety Club Christmas card painting, from 1967, is now propped up on the piano to the left of his bed. This gives a clearer idea of its size, and seems to be more evidence that it could well be what he was working on in the various shots taken on or about August 9, 1967 outside the sunroom at Kenwood.

Master Bedroom: 1968 & 2006.

A rare photo of the master bedroom at Kenwood, taken just as John and Yoko were finally moving out in December, 1968, plus the same room circa 2006. (Update: I'm not at all sure this is the same room - the windows don't fit. See later post).