Peterlee: County Durham's Post War New Town on the East Durham Plateau
Peterlee was designated a new town in 1948, named after the miners' leader Peter Lee who served as the first Labour chairman of a county council. The town was planned by Berthold Lubetkin, the Georgian-born architect responsible for the Penguin Pool at London Zoo, though his more radical designs were scaled back. The Apollo Pavilion, a Brutalist concrete structure designed by Victor Pasmore and completed in 1970, stands over a lake on the Sunny Blunts estate. Controversial from the start, it was Grade II listed in 2011. The population is around 20,000.
Built to rehouse mining communities from the scattered colliery villages of East Durham, Peterlee sits on a plateau above the Durham Heritage Coast. Castle Eden Dene, a wooded limestone gorge managed as a National Nature Reserve, runs along the town's eastern edge. The A19 provides the main road link, connecting to the Tyne Tunnel northbound and Teesside southbound. Durham city is fifteen miles to the west. Adult companionship services in the area are subject to English criminal law.
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Peterlee was designated a new town in 1948, named after the miners' leader Peter Lee who served as the first Labour chairman of a county council. The town was planned by Berthold Lubetkin, the Georgian-born architect responsible for the Penguin Pool at London Zoo, though his more radical designs were scaled back. The Apollo Pavilion, a Brutalist concrete structure designed by Victor Pasmore and completed in 1970, stands over a lake on the Sunny Blunts estate. Controversial from the start, it was Grade II listed in 2011. The population is around 20,000.
Built to rehouse mining communities from the scattered colliery villages of East Durham, Peterlee sits on a plateau above the Durham Heritage Coast. Castle Eden Dene, a wooded limestone gorge managed as a National Nature Reserve, runs along the town's eastern edge. The A19 provides the main road link, connecting to the Tyne Tunnel northbound and Teesside southbound. Durham city is fifteen miles to the west. Adult companionship services in the area are subject to English criminal law.
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