Harold Hill
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205723676
2008-04-15T05:08:25Z
Alchemica
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added interwiki to french article
{{dablink|Harold Hill is also the name of a fictional character in the musical [[The Music Man]]}}
{{infobox UK place|
|country = England
|map_type = Greater London
|region= London
|population=
|official_name= Harold Hill
|latitude= 51.6100
|longitude= 0.2322
|os_grid_reference= TQ545925
|london_borough= Havering
|postcode_area= RM
|postcode_district= RM3
|post_town= ROMFORD
|dial_code= 01708
|constituency_westminster= [[Upminster (UK Parliament constituency)|Upminster]]
}}
'''Harold Hill''' is a place in the [[London Borough of Havering]], [[East London, England|East London]], [[England]]. It is a suburban development situated 16.6 miles (26.7 km) east north-east of [[Charing Cross]].
Harold Hill is a large-scale post war development and part of the [[New Towns]] movement at the end of the [[World War II]], an attempt to move large sections of the population from poor conditions in central districts to the more pleasant surroundings of the suburbs. The success of the plan is a matter for debate.
==Education==
{{main|List of schools in the London Borough of Havering}}
==Transport and locale==
Unlike the comparable [[Becontree]] development, Harold Hill was built without direct connection to the [[London Underground]] or [[National Rail]] services. [[Transport for London]] provides bus routes 174, 256, 294, 496 and 499 with connections to tube and rail and are planning that the [[East London Transit]] will serve the area.
===Nearest places===
* [[Collier Row]]
* [[Gallows Corner]]
* [[Gidea Park]]
* [[Harold Wood]]
===Nearest stations===
* [[Gidea Park railway station]]
* [[Harold Wood railway station]]
==In song==
[[Ian Dury]], known for references to places in [[Essex]] and [[London]], name-checked Harold Hill in his popular song ''This Is What We Find'' on his 1978 album ''Do It Yourself'':
{{cquote|Home improvement expert Harold Hill from Harold Hill<BR>
Of do it yourself dexterity and double glazing skill<BR>
Came home to find another gentlemen's kippers in the grill<BR>
so he sanded off his winkle with his [[Black & Decker]] Drill|10px|10px|[[Ian Dury]]}}
The song set all three of its verses in real places the others were [[Turnham Green]] and [[Lambeth Walk]]. In his 2CD ''Retrospective Reasons To be Cheerful'' produced by [[Repertoire Records]] Dury stated that he never wrote another verse as good as Harold Hill's verse.
== External links ==
*[http://www.haroldhill.org Harold Hill: A People's History]
{{LB Havering}}
* http://www.friendsofdagnampark.org.uk/
[[Category:Districts of London]]
[[Category:Neighbourhoods of Havering]]
{{London-geo-stub}}
[[fr:Harold Hill]]
[[nl:Harold Hill]]