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Introduction
May Day provided an opportunity to take a peek inside the Castle
itself and, here, we feature some of the rooms along with the new
roof terrace.
 Photograph
30: The Mallandain Room
This shot shows the Mallandain Room - located on the ground
foor at the northern end (ie beach end) of the Castle.....
Although now generally regarded as the main
reception room, it is not the oldest part of the building. It was
built as a billiard room in the late 19th/ early 20th century by
the then owner Thomas Adams. After the Castle was purchased by the
Whitstable Urban District Council in 1935, it became the
authority's Council Chamber and served as such until the WUDC was
consumed by Canterbury City Council in 1972.
The room is now known as the Mallandain Room -
named after Albert Mallaidain, the Castle's owner between 1920 and
1930. The crowds were so large on May Day this year that the new
Orangery Tea Rooms on the south side of the building couldn't meet
demand. Thus, the Mallandain was opened up as a temporary
refreshment area and that is what we can see above.
Photograph
31: The Miles Room
One of the brightest and most impressive
rooms is the Miles Room, shown below.
This is located in the octagonal turret on the
east side of the Castle - almost above the entrance door. In the
mid-twentieth century it served as the chamber of the Chairman of
the WUDC.
Photographs
32-33: Upper Floor
The photograph below shows another impressive
room. This one is on the south-west corner of the council above
the older section of the Orangery Tea Rooms .
Back in the mid-twentieth century, it was the
office of the Clerk of the Whitstable Urban District Council.
Next door, we have the Castle's second biggest
reception room.....
This one overlooks the bowling green on the west
side of the building. Under WUDC ownership, it was the heart of
the Clerk's department. At that time it was had a glass partition
that separated the Chief Admin Clerk from his minions
Photograph
34: Stair Well
The stair well (below) is located just inside the
Castle's main door. The stairs lead down to the Orangery Tea Rooms
and up to the up landing of the upper floor...
Photographs
35-36: The Roof Terrace
The recent renovation work created a roof terrace
with fine views across Whitstable Bay.
The shot above points towards the North West
corner of the building. The one below is directed at the South
East corner.
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