Editing Isle of Dogs

{{Short description|Area in the East End of London, England}}
{{About|the peninsula in London|the animated film|Isle of Dogs (film)|other uses}}
{{Use British English|date=September 2015}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2016}}
{{Infobox UK place
| official_name            = Isle of Dogs
| static_image_name        = Isle of Dogs within Central London.svg
| map_type                 = nomap
| static_image_caption     = Location of the Isle of Dogs within Inner London
| country                  = England
| region                   = London
| london_borough           = Tower Hamlets
| constituency_westminster = [[Poplar and Limehouse (UK Parliament constituency)|Poplar and Limehouse]]
| post_town                = LONDON
| postcode_area            = E
| postcode_district        = E14
| dial_code                = 020
| os_grid_reference        = TQ375785
| coordinates              = {{coord|51.491|-0.015|region:UK-ENG_type:city|display=inline,title}}
}}
[[File:Isle of Dogs as shown in John Rocque's map of London, 1747.JPG|thumb|upright=1.3|Isle of Dogs as shown in [[John Rocque's maps of London#The Country Near Ten Miles Round|John Rocque's Map of London and ten miles around, 1746]], showing the area before development]]

The '''Isle of Dogs''' is a large [[peninsula]] bounded on three sides by a large [[meander]] in the [[River Thames]] in [[East London]], England. It includes the [[Cubitt Town]], [[Millwall]] and [[Canary Wharf]] districts. The area was historically part of the Manor, Hamlet, [[Parish]] and, for a time, the [[Metropolitan Borough of Poplar|wider borough]] of [[Poplar, London|Poplar]]. The name had no official status until the 1987 creation of the Isle of Dogs Neighbourhood by [[Tower Hamlets London Borough Council]].  It has been known locally as simply "the Island" since the 19th century.<ref name=BritHist/>

The whole area was once known as '''Stepney Marsh'''; [[Anton van den Wyngaerde]]'s "Panorama of London" dated 1543 depicts and refers to the Isle of Dogs. Records show that ships preparing to carry the English royal household to [[Calais]] in 1520 docked at the southern bank of the island. The name ''Isle of Dogges'' occurs in the ''Thamesis Descriptio'' of 1588, applied to a small island in the south-western part of the peninsula. The name is next applied to the ''Isle of Dogs Farm'' (originally known as ''Pomfret Manor'') shown on a map of 1683. At the same time, the area was variously known as ''Isle of Dogs'' or the ''Blackwell levels''. By 1855, it was incorporated within the parish of Poplar under the aegis of the Poplar Board of Works. This was incorporated into the [[Metropolitan Borough of Poplar]] on its formation in 1900.<ref name=BritHist/>

==Geology==
The [[soil]] is [[Alluvium|alluvial]] and [[silt]]y in nature, underlaid by [[clay]] or [[mud]], with a [[peat]] layer in places.<ref name=BritHist>[http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.asp?compid=46507 The Isle of Dogs: Introduction, Survey of London: volumes 43 and 44: Poplar, Blackwall and Isle of Dogs (1994), pp. 375-87] accessed: 9 February 2007</ref>

==Etymology and heraldry==
The first known written mention of the Isle of Dogs is in the ''[[Letters and Papers of the Reign of Henry VIII]]''. In Volume 3, entry 1009 "Shipping" dated 2 October 1520, there is a list of purchases, which includes "A hose for the Mary George, in dock at the Isle of Dogs, 10[[Penny (English coin)|d]]."<ref>[https://www.british-history.ac.uk/letters-papers-hen8/vol3/pp369-381 "Henry VIII: October 1520"], in ''[https://www.british-history.ac.uk/letters-papers-hen8/vol3 Letters and Papers, Foreign and Domestic, Henry VIII, Volume 3, 1519&ndash;1523]'', ed.  J. S. Brewer (London, 1867), ''[[British History Online]]''. pp.&nbsp;372. Accessed 11 December 2024.</ref>

The 1898 edition of ''[[Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable]]'' attributes the name: "So called from being the receptacle of the [[greyhound]]s of [[Edward III]]. Some say it is a corruption of the Isle of Ducks, and that it is so called in ancient records from the number of wild fowl inhabiting the marshes."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bartleby.com/81/8997.html |title=E. Cobham Brewer 1810–1897. Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. (1898) |publisher=Bartleby.com |access-date=27 June 2013}}</ref> Other sources<ref name=BritHist/><ref>[http://www.towerhamlets.gov.uk/data/discover/data/canary-wharf/index.cfm Tower Hamlets website] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090729200024/http://www.towerhamlets.gov.uk/data/discover/data/canary-wharf/index.cfm |date=29 July 2009 }}</ref> discount this, believing these stories to all derive from the antiquarian [[John Strype]], and believe it might come from one of the following:
*a nickname of contempt: [[Ben Jonson]] and [[Thomas Nashe]] wrote a satirical play in 1597, which was a mocking attack on the island of Great Britain, titled ''[[The Isle of Dogs (play)|The Isle of Dogs]]'', which offended some in the nobility. Jonson was imprisoned for a year; Nashe avoided arrest by fleeing the area. [[Samuel Pepys]] referred to the "unlucky Isle of Doggs."<ref>{{Citation |last=Pepys |first=Samuel |editor-first1=Robert |editor-first2=William |editor-last1=Latham |editor-last2=Matthews |title=The Diary |date=1971-01-01 |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/oseo/instance.00174762 |work=The Diary of Samuel Pepys, Vol. 1: 1660 |publisher=Harper Collins (UK); University of California Press (US) |doi=10.1093/oseo/instance.00174762 |isbn=9780004990217 |access-date=2023-02-22}}</ref>
*the presence of Dutch engineers reclaiming the land from a disastrous flood.<ref name=BritHist/>
*the presence of [[gibbet]]s on the foreshore facing Greenwich.<ref name=BritHist/>
*a [[yeoman]] farmer called ''Brache'', this being an old word for a type of hunting dog.<ref name=BritHist/>
*the dogs of a later king, [[Henry VIII]], who also kept deer in [[Greenwich Park]]. Again it is thought that his hunting dogs might have been kept in derelict farm buildings on the island. Now known as the area [[Westferry Circus|West Ferry Circus]].<ref name=BritHist/><ref>{{cite web|title=An Account of the Hamlet of Poplar, in Middlesex|url=http://www.mernick.org.uk/thhol/accohaml.html|work=The Universal magazine|publisher=East London History Society|access-date=19 September 2011|date=June 1795|quote=It is opposite Greenwich in Kent; and when our sovereigns had a palace near the site of the present magnificent hospital, they used it as a hunting-seat, and, it is said, kept the kennels of their hounds in this marsh. These hounds frequently making a great noise, the seamen called the place the Isle of Dogs.}}</ref>
* Isle of [[Levee|Dykes]], which then got corrupted over the years.<ref name="barryoneoff1">[http://barryoneoff.co.uk/html/the_island.html The Isle of Dogs and Docklands]. {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120831010041/http://barryoneoff.co.uk/html/the_island.html|date=31 August 2012}}.</ref>

[[File:Thamesis Descriptio IoD.png|thumb|"Isle of Dogges", 1588, then a small [[eyot]] alongside present-day peninsula]]
Laura Wright in a 2015 essay showed that in the Elizabethan era the term "Isle of Dogges" was applied to a small [[eyot]] (mud island)<ref>The eyot may have formed a pair of islands at high tide.</ref> lying offshore the present-day Isle of Dogs.  It was across the river from the royal [[Deptford dockyard]], whose vessels being outfitted were moored at the eyot; the first record of the name appears about the time the dockyard was established.  The peninsula itself at that time was always known as Stepney Marsh.  A government map, prepared in connection with the Thames defences at the time of the Spanish Armada, suggests the eyot was a recognised navigational landmark alongside an otherwise featureless marsh.  Later, the name was extended to a farm on the peninsula, and then to the peninsula itself.  That the name referred to the site of royal kennels, she argued, was unsupported speculation 200 years after the first attested usage.<ref name="Wright">{{cite book|last=Wright|first=Laura|year=2005|chapter=On the Place-Name ''Isle of Dogs''|title=From Clerks to Corpora: Essays on the English Language Yesterday and Today|editor1-first=Philip|editor1-last=Shaw|editor2-first=Britt|editor2-last=Erman|editor3-first=Gunnel|editor3-last=Melchers|editor4-first=Peter|editor4=Sundkvistsher|publisher=Stockholm University Press|
isbn=978-91-7635-006-5|doi=10.16993/sup.bab|url=https://www.stockholmuniversitypress.se/site/books/10.16993/sup.bab/read/?loc=Text%2FSUP_002_erman_book_Chapter-06.xhtml|access-date=8 January 2025}}</ref> Dr Wright offered a speculation of her own: that the name "dogs" was bestowed by the Deptford dockyard workers as a punning reference to the barks (naval vessels) moored at this eyot.

The lost Ben Jonson/Thomas Nashe play (above) was vigorously pursued by the authorities, who even employed a torturer to track down its authors.  "The severity of the response seems too great to have been triggered by an attack on a mere individual"; it has been hypothesised that what the play satirised was the then appalling state of England's defences, the play's title ''Isle of Dogs'' being taken to mean the place where the Queen's ships were outfitted.<ref name="Wright"/>{{rp|106–112}}

It is said that [[Canary Wharf]], located in the Isle of Dogs, took its name from sea trade with the [[Canary Islands]], which were named in [[Latin]] as {{lang|la|Canariae Insulae}} ({{lit|Dog Islands}}).  However the name Canary Wharf does not appear until 1936.<ref name="Wright"/>{{rp|89–90}}

The [[Talbot (dog breed)|Talbot dog]] in the [[London Borough of Tower Hamlets#Coat of arms|coat of arms of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets]] represents the Isle of Dogs.<ref>Heraldry of the world https://www.heraldry-wiki.com/heraldrywiki/index.php?title=Tower_Hamlets</ref>

==Society==
[[File:Aerial view of London from LHR approach (03).jpg|thumb|Aerial view of the Isle of Dogs in 2015. [[The O2 Arena]] can be seen on the [[Greenwich Peninsula]] to the right (east) of the Isle of Dogs.]]
Following the building of the Docks (especially the [[West India Docks]] and the adjacent [[City Canal]]), and with an increasing population, locals increasingly referred to the area as ''The Island''. This area includes [[Millwall]], [[Cubitt Town]], and [[Blackwall, London|Blackwall]]. The south of the isle opposite [[Greenwich]] was once known as ''North Greenwich'', now applied to the area around the [[Millennium Dome]] on the Greenwich Peninsula. Between 1986 and 1992 it enjoyed a brief formal existence, as the name ''Isle of Dogs'' was applied to one of seven neighbourhoods to which power was devolved from the council. The neighbourhood was later abolished.<ref>[http://www.election.demon.co.uk/thbc/thbcmap.html Tower Hamlets Borough Council Election Maps 1964-2002] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061004072317/http://www.election.demon.co.uk/thbc/thbcmap.html |date=4 October 2006 }} accessed: 9 February 2007</ref>

It was the site of the highest concentration of [[council house|council housing]] in England but is now best known as the location of the Canary Wharf office complex. [[One Canada Square]], also known as the Canary Wharf Tower, is the second tallest habitable building in Britain at {{Convert|244|m|ft}}.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.canarywharf.com/mainFrm1.asp?strSelectedArea=Factfile|title=Welcome to the Canary Wharf Group plc website<!-- Bot generated title -->|access-date=28 March 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080405213152/http://www.canarywharf.com/mainFrm1.asp?strSelectedArea=Factfile|archive-date=5 April 2008|url-status=dead}}</ref> The peninsula is an area of social extremes, comprising some of the most prosperous and most deprived areas of the country; in 2004, nearby Blackwall was the 81st most deprived [[Wards and electoral divisions of the United Kingdom#England|ward]] in England out of over 8,000,<ref>[http://www.idcf.org/Web%20Site%20File/Documents/IDCF%20Survey%2004.pdf Isle of Dogs Community Foundation report August 2004 indicates that Blackwall was in the most deprived 1% of wards] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090326015507/http://www.idcf.org/Web%20Site%20File/Documents/IDCF%20Survey%2004.pdf |date=26 March 2009 }}</ref> while the presence of Canary Wharf gives the area one of the highest average incomes in the UK.<ref>[http://www.towerhamlets.gov.uk/data/thp/channels/thp/resources/ward+data+report+2005+-+final1.pdf Ward Data Report] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080409101559/http://www.towerhamlets.gov.uk/data/thp/channels/thp/resources/ward+data+report+2005+-+final1.pdf |date=9 April 2008 }} ''Theme 3: Creating & sharing prosperity'' (Tower Hamlets Partnership, 2004) accessed 2 May 2008</ref> [[Lincoln Plaza (London)|Lincoln Plaza]] was the 2016 winner of the [[Carbuncle Cup]] for the year's "worst new building" and ''The Times'' described it as "mediocre at best, ugly at worst".<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.thetimes.com/comment/article/there-are-ways-to-build-homes-that-people-want-to-live-in-w8pr66c9q|title=There are ways to build homes that people want to live in|author=Jonathan Morrison|work=[[The Times]]|url-access=subscription |date=1 July 2017|access-date=1 July 2017}}</ref>

==History==
[[File:Stepney Civil Parish Map 1870.png|thumb|The Isle of Dogs was historically part of the Manor, Hamlet and Parish of Poplar.]]
[[File:Poplar Met. B Ward Map 1916.svg|thumb|The wards of the Metropolitan Borough of Poplar. The borough comprised Bow, Bromley-by-Bow and Poplar (including the Isle of Dogs).]]
[[File:Isle of Dogs from the air at night.jpg|thumb|The Isle of Dogs at night]]

===Origins===
The Isle of Dogs is situated some distance downriver from the [[City of London]].  It was originally marsh, being several feet below water at high tide.  In the Middle Ages it was made available for human habitation by a process known in the Thames estuary as [[Embanking of the tidal Thames#Inning|inning]].  The reclaimed land was below high water, protected by earthen banks.<ref>{{cite book|editor-last=Hobhouse|editor-first=Hermione|chapter=The Isle of Dogs: Introduction|title=Survey of London: Volumes 43 and 44, Poplar, Blackwall and Isle of Dogs|year=1994|location=London|publisher=British History Online|url=https://www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-london/vols43-4/pp375-387}}</ref>  These banks if not properly kept up were liable to be breached.  This happened in 1448, drowning the land for 40 years.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Croot|first=Patricia|year=1997|title=Settlement, Tenure and Land Use in Medieval Stepney: Evidence of a Field Survey c. 1400|journal=The London Journal|volume=22|issue=1|pages=1–15|doi=10.1179/ldn.1997.22.1.1}}</ref>

In 1660, the river started to break through the neck of the peninsula, initiating [[meander cutoff]]. This was arrested by human intervention, but it left a 5-acre lake called [[Poplar Gut]].  It appears on [[John Rocque]]'s 1746 ''Map of London and ten miles around'', in the extract reproduced in this article.
{{main|Embanking of the tidal Thames#The great breach, or Poplar Gut}}

One road led across the Marshes to an ancient ferry, at Ferry Road. There was rich grazing on the marsh, and cattle were slaughtered in fields known as the ''Killing Fields'', south of Poplar High Street.{{citation needed|date=September 2024}}

The western side of the island was known as ''Marsh Wall'', and the district became known as ''Millwall'' with the building of the docks, and from the number of [[windmill]]s constructed along the top of the flood defence.{{citation needed|date=September 2024}}

===Industry===
[[File:East Ferry Road.jpg|thumb|East Ferry Road, Isle of Dogs]]
In 1802, the [[West India Docks]] began to be developed on the Isle of Dogs. Beginning in 1812 the Poplar and Greenwich Ferry Roads Company installed tolls on the East Ferry Road. These proved to be unpopular and after many years of lobbying the Metropolitan Board of Works bought the company and abolished the tolls in 1885.<ref>{{cite web | author= Island History| url= https://islandhistory.wordpress.com/2020/01/13/east-ferry-road-the-oldest-road-on-the-isle-of-dogs/ | title = East Ferry Road – The Oldest Road on the Isle of Dogs | work = Isle of Dogs – Past Life, Past Lives| date=13 January 2020|access-date= 2020-06-18}}</ref>

The Docks brought with them many associated industries, such as flour and sugar processing, and also ship building. On 31 January 1858 the largest ship of that time, the [[SS Great Eastern|SS ''Great Eastern'']] designed by [[Isambard Kingdom Brunel]], was launched from the yard of Messrs Scott, Russell & Co, of Millwall.{{citation needed|date=September 2024}} The {{Convert|211|m|ft}} length was too big for the river so the ship had to be launched sideways. Due to the technical difficulties of the launch this was the last big ship to be built on the Island and the industry fell into a decline. However, parts of the launching slipway and plate works have been preserved in situ and may be seen close to [[Masthouse Terrace Pier]].{{citation needed|date=September 2024}}

===Docks===
[[File:Isle of dogs 1899.jpg|right|thumb|upright|1899 The Isle of Dogs, at the height of its Victorian commercial success]]
[[File:Heinkel over Wapping.jpg|right|thumb|upright|[[Heinkel He 111]] bomber over the [[Surrey Commercial Docks]] in [[South London]] and [[Wapping]] and the Isle of Dogs in the [[East End of London]] on 7 September 1940]] 
The [[urbanisation]] of the Isle of Dogs took place in the 19th century following the construction of the West India Docks, which opened in 1802. This heralded the area's most successful period, when it became an important centre for trade. The [[East India Docks]] were subsequently opened in 1806, followed by [[Millwall Dock]] in 1868.

By the 1880s, the casual employment system caused Dock workers to [[Unionization|unionise]] under [[Ben Tillett]] and [[John Burns]].<ref>John Burns is commemorated in the name given to a current [[Woolwich Ferry]]</ref> This led to a demand for ''6d per hour'' (2.5p), and an end to casual labour in the docks. After a bitter struggle, the [[London Dock Strike of 1889]] was settled with victory for the strikers, and established a national movement for the unionisation of casual workers.

The three dock systems were unified in 1909 when the [[Port of London Authority]] took control of the docks. With the docks stretching across from East to West with locks at each end, the Isle of Dogs could now almost be described as a genuine island.

Dock workers settled on the "island" as the docks grew in importance, and by 1901, 21,000 people lived there, largely dependent on the river trade on the Isle as well as in Greenwich and [[Deptford]] across the river to the south and west. The Isle of Dogs was connected to the rest of London by the [[London and Blackwall Railway]], opened in 1840 and progressively extended thereafter. In 1902, the ferry to Greenwich was replaced by the construction of the [[Greenwich foot tunnel]], and  [[Island Gardens]] park was laid out in 1895, providing views across the river. The London and Blackwall Railway closed in 1926. Until the building of the Docklands Light Railway in 1987, the only public transport accessing and exiting the Island consisted of buses using its perimeter roads. These were frequently and substantially delayed by the movement of up to four bridges which allowed ships access to the  West India Docks and Millwall Docks. The insular nature of the Island caused its separateness from the rest of London, and its unique nature.

During [[World War II]], the docks were a key target for the [[Nazi Germany|German]] [[Luftwaffe]] and were heavily bombed. A number of local civilians were killed in the bombing and extensive destruction was caused on the ground, with many warehouses being destroyed and much of the dock system being put out of action for an extended period. [[Unexploded ordnance|Unexploded bombs]] from this period continue to be discovered today.<ref>{{cite news|work=BBC News|title=World War II bomb found at Canary Wharf|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/6920474.stm|date=28 July 2007}}</ref>  [[Anti-aircraft warfare|Anti-aircraft batteries]] were based on [[Mudchute]] Farm; their concrete bases remain today.<ref>{{cite web|title=Mudchute in WWII|url=http://www.mudchute.org/about-us/mudchute-in-wwii|publisher=Mudchute Park & Farm|access-date=19 February 2013}}</ref>

After the war, the docks underwent a brief resurgence and were even upgraded in 1967. However, with the advent of [[containerization|containerisation]], which the docks could not handle, they became obsolete soon afterwards. The docks closed progressively during the 1970s, with the last &ndash; the West India and Millwall docks &ndash; closing down in 1980. This left the area in a severely dilapidated state, with large areas being derelict and abandoned.

==='Unilateral declaration of independence'===
Local residents resented the scarcity of schools and supermarkets and inadequate transport to neighbourhoods that did have them.<ref name="Mason">{{cite news|last=Mason|first=John|date=12 May 2004|title=Obituary: Ted Johns|work=The Guardian|location=London|url=https://www.theguardian.com/news/2004/may/12/guardianobituaries.politics|access-date=6 January 2024}}</ref><ref name="NYT"/>
On 1 March 1970 a group of activists led by Ted John and John Westfallen, in a reference to the [[Republic of Rhodesia]]'s recent [[unilateral declaration of independence]] or UDI,<ref name="Lemmerman"/> issued a UDI for the Isle of Dogs.  For two hours<ref name=Lemmerman/><ref>[https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/146174/Ted-Johns.html Ted Johns] ''The Daily Telegraph'' (London). 14 May 2004.</ref> (though some reports say a day,<ref>{{cite news |last1=Brooke |first1=Mike |title=Even Thames Armada and sheep couldn't stop Docklands invasion of Isle of Dogs |url=https://www.eastlondonadvertiser.co.uk/news/even-thames-armada-and-sheep-couldn-t-stop-docklands-invasion-3571848 |access-date=10 February 2021 |work=East London Advertiser |date=2 October 2017}}</ref> others a week<ref name="Mason" />) they blocked the two swing-bridges providing the only access to the area by road.<ref name="Lemmerman">{{cite web|last=Lemmerman|first=Mick|date=7 December 2013|title='It was all a bit of a joke' - the Isle of Dogs' unilateral declaration of independence|work=Isle of Dogs - Past Life, Past Lives: Two Hundred Years of Docks, Industry & Islanders|url=https://islandhistory.wordpress.com/2013/12/07/it-was-all-a-bit-of-a-joke/|access-date=6 January 2025}}</ref>  According to Johns the intent was semi-jocular<ref name="Lemmerman"/> and the purpose was only to achieve independence from the rest of London,<ref name="NYT"/> a right already enjoyed by the nearby [[City of London|City]]: it was the Press who dubbed him "President Ted of the Isle of Dogs'.<ref name="Harker">{{cite news|last=Harker|first=Joseph|date=11 February 1994|title=Notes & Queries|work=The Guardian|location=London|page=A4}}</ref>  Nevertheless, and though a body of local opinion resented the stunt,<ref name="Foster">{{cite book|last=Foster|first=Janet|year=1998|title=Docklands: Cultures in Conflict, Worlds in Collision|publisher=Routledge|page=47|isbn= 978-1857282733|url=https://www.google.co.uk/books/edition/Docklands/hTgDEAAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=%22forests+of+canada%22+inauthor:janet+inauthor:foster&pg=PA47&printsec=frontcover|access-date=7 January 2025}}</ref><ref name="ITN">{{cite news|work=ITN Archive|title=A Very Strange Day in British History – The London Island that Declared Independence|year=1970|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wbk4HQ6KVdI|access-date=7 January 2025}}</ref> it achieved wide national and international publicity.  It featured on the front page of the ''[[New York Times]]'',<ref name="NYT">{{cite news|last=Weinraub|first=Bernard|date=10 March 1970|title=Dock Area in London Declares Its 'Independence'|work=New York Times|page=1|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1970/03/10/archives/dock-area-in-london-declares-its-independence-defiant-dock-area-of.html|access-date=7 January 2025}}</ref> and Johns was interviewed by satellite by [[Walter Cronkite]] for ''[[CBS Evening News]]''.<ref name= "Lemmerman"/>  A new secondary school and improvements in public transport materialised.<ref name="Harker"/>  According to one source it even served as the catalyst for the eventual development of Canary Wharf.<ref name="Lemmerman"/>

[[Patricia Cornwell]]'s 2002 novel ''Isle of Dogs'' features an island off the coast of [[Virginia]] that declares UDI, "claiming its independence lies with those who set sail from the Isle of Dogs in 1607".<ref name="Cornwell">{{cite web|work=Hampshire County Council Library Service|title=Isle of Dogs|url=https://hampshire.spydus.co.uk/cgi-bin/spydus.exe/FULL/WPAC/BIBENQ/138790993/22122605,8|access-date=6 January 2025}},</ref>

===London Docklands Development Corporation===
Successive [[UK Labour Party|Labour]] and [[Conservative Party (UK)|Conservative]] governments proposed a number of action plans during the 1970s but it was not until 1981 that the [[London Docklands Development Corporation|London Docklands Development Corporation (LDDC)]] was established to redevelop the area. The Isle of Dogs became part of an [[enterprise zone]], which covered 1.95&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup> of land and encompassed the West India, Millwall and East India Docks. New housing, office space and transport infrastructure were built. This included the [[Docklands Light Railway]] and later the [[Jubilee line]] extension, which eventually brought access to the [[London Underground]] to the area for the first time.

Since its construction in 1987–1991, the area has been dominated by the expanding Canary Wharf development with over {{Convert|437,000|m2|sqft}} of office and retail space having been created; 93,000 now work in Canary Wharf alone.<ref>[http://www.canarywharf.com/mainFrm1.asp?strSelectedArea=History Welcome to the Canary Wharf Group plc website<!-- Bot generated title -->] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071203014042/http://www.canarywharf.com/mainFrm1.asp?strSelectedArea=History |date= 3 December 2007 }}</ref>

===Politics===
{{Main|1993 Millwall by-election}}
The Island achieved notoriety in 1993 when [[Derek Beackon]] of the [[British National Party]] became a councillor for Millwall ward, in a [[by-election]]. This was the culmination of years when race was a prominent issue in local politics, especially with regards to allocation of housing.<ref>{{cite book|title=Contemporary British Fascism: The British National Party and its Quest for Legitimacy|last=Copsey|first=Nigel|year=2004|publisher=Palgrave Macmillan|isbn=978-1-4039-0214-6|pages=52–64}}</ref> Labour regained the ward in the full council election of May 1994, and held all three seats until a further by-election in September 2004.

===Incidents===
On 9 February 1996, the [[Provisional IRA|IRA]] [[1996 Docklands bombing|detonated a truck bomb]] near [[South Quay DLR station]] on the Isle of Dogs that killed two people and injured more than a hundred others.<ref>{{Cite web|title=80 Minutes: The Timetable of Terror|url=http://www.independent.co.uk/news/80-minutes-the-timetable-of-terror-1318333.html|last=Cusick|first=James|date=1996-02-11|website=The Independent|language=en|access-date=2020-05-27}}</ref>

==Education==
{{For|details of education in the Isle of Dogs|List of schools in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets}}

There are four state [[primary school]]s located on the Isle of Dogs &ndash; Cubitt Town Junior School, Arnhem Wharf, Harbinger School and St Edmunds. There was also an independent primary school, River House Montessori.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.river-house.co.uk/|work=River House Primary School|title=Welcome to River House Montessori School|access-date=9 September 2015}}</ref>

Canary Wharf College<ref>{{cite web|title=Canary Wharf College|url=http://www.canarywharfcollege.co.uk/|work=canarywharfcollege.co.uk|access-date=9 September 2015}}</ref> is a [[Free school (England)|free school]] on the Island which covers primary and secondary education.<ref>{{cite web|title=Canary Wharf College 3 - GOV.UK|url=https://www.get-information-schools.service.gov.uk/Establishments/Establishment/Details/142879|access-date=9 September 2023}}</ref>

==Transport==

===London Underground, DLR, and Elizabeth line stations===
The nearest [[List of London Underground stations|London Underground station]] is [[Canary Wharf tube station|Canary Wharf]] on the Jubilee line. Key areas including [[Regent's Park]], [[West End of London|The West End]], [[Westminster]], [[South Bank]], [[Millennium Dome]] and the [[Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park]], are all within 20 minutes of Canary Wharf by Tube.

The DLR runs north–south through the Isle of Dogs. [[List of Docklands Light Railway stations|DLR stations]] are [[Canary Wharf DLR station|Canary Wharf]], [[Heron Quays DLR station|Heron Quays]], [[South Quay DLR station|South Quay]], [[Crossharbour DLR station|Crossharbour]], [[Mudchute DLR station|Mudchute]] and [[Island Gardens DLR station|Island Gardens]]. Key areas including the City of London, [[Tower Hill]] and Greenwich are all within 20 minutes of the Isle of Dogs by DLR.

The [[Elizabeth line]]'s [[Canary Wharf railway station|Canary Wharf station]] opened in 2022. Situated at the north of the Island, it provides high-frequency, fast connections to the heart of the West End, [[London Paddington station|Paddington Station]], [[Heathrow Airport]] and [[Abbey Wood]].

===London bus routes===
* [[London Buses route 135]]
* [[London Buses route 277]]
* [[London Buses route D3]]
* [[London Buses route D6]]
* [[London Buses route D7]]
* [[London Buses route D8]]
* [[London Buses route N550]]

===River bus services===
Regular commuter boat services serve both [[Masthouse Terrace Pier]] and [[Canary Wharf Pier]] on the Isle of Dogs.

The [[Thames Clippers]] provides regular commuter services to [[Woolwich Arsenal Pier]], [[Greenwich Pier]] in the east, and the City of London including St. Katherine Docks, [[Tower Millennium Pier|Tower Bridge]], {{HMS|Belfast|C35|6}}, [[Greater London Authority]] building, [[Tate Modern]], [[Blackfriars, London|Blackfriars]], as well as the West End of London in the west on the commuter service. There is also a connecting shuttle service to [[Rotherhithe]] and the Tate to Tate service from [[Tate Modern]] to [[Tate Britain]] via [[London Eye]].

From Summer 2007, the service has been enhanced with express boats<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.thamesclippers.com/article/166 |title=Travelling to The O2 |publisher=ThamesClippers |access-date=27 June 2013 |archive-date=11 May 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120511074436/http://www.thamesclippers.com/article/166 |url-status=dead }}</ref> from central [[London]] to the [[The O2 Arena (London)|O2 Arena]] (former Millennium Dome).

===Airport and helipad===
The nearest airport is [[London City Airport]], which is 25 minutes away from Canary Wharf by DLR.

There is also a [[helipad]] situated on the west of the Island and next to Ferguson's Wharf, which is privately run by Vanguard.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.vanguardhelipad.co.uk/|work=vanguardhelipad.co.uk|title=Welcome to Vanguard Helipad|access-date=9 September 2015}}</ref>

=== Sailing and watersports activities ===
The presence of docks, some of a considerable size, has enabled a practice of various watersports, like [[sailing]], [[kayaking]], [[windsurfing]] and [[standup paddleboarding]].

Docklands Sailing and Watersports Centre<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.dswc.org/|work=dscw.org|title=Docklands Sailing and Watersports Centre|access-date=30 January 2019}}</ref> is one of the main reference spots for watersports fans.

The [[Catherine, Princess of Wales|Duchess of Cambridge]] visited the centre in 2017.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.eastlondonadvertiser.co.uk/news/duchess-of-cambridge-meets-pupils-during-docklands-sailing-and-watersports-centre-visit-1-5065357|work=eastlondonadvertiser.co.uk/news/duchess-of-cambridge-meets-pupils-during-docklands-sailing-and-watersports-centre-visit-1-5065357|title=Duchess of Cambridge meets pupils during docklands sailing and watersports centre visit|date=16 June 2017|access-date=30 January 2019|archive-date=31 January 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190131040110/https://www.eastlondonadvertiser.co.uk/news/duchess-of-cambridge-meets-pupils-during-docklands-sailing-and-watersports-centre-visit-1-5065357|url-status=dead}}</ref>

==In the media==
{{More citations needed section|date=February 2016}}
[[T.S. Eliot]]'s ''[[The Waste Land]]'' contains the lines "The barges wash / Drifting logs / Down Greenwich reach / Past the Isle of Dogs."<ref>{{citation |url=http://www.gutenberg.org/files/1321/1321-h/1321-h.htm|title=The Waste Land |work=Project Gutenberg |access-date=2 April 2018}}</ref>

In modern times the Isle of Dogs has provided locations for many blockbuster films, including the opening scenes of the James Bond film ''[[The World Is Not Enough]]'', ''[[Full Metal Jacket]]'', and more recently ''[[Batman Begins]]'', ''[[The Constant Gardener (film)|The Constant Gardener]]'', ''[[Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (film)|Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix]]'', and ''[[Love Actually]]''. The Isle of Dogs featured heavily in the 1980 British film ''[[The Long Good Friday]]'',<ref>{{citation |url=http://www.thamesleisure.co.uk/five-best-film-scenes-set-on-the-thames|title=Five Best Film Scenes Set On The Thames |work=Thames Leisure |date=11 May 2016 |access-date=20 June 2016}}</ref> and the Isle of Dogs is the primary location of the 2007 horror film ''[[28 Weeks Later]]'', where it is the only secure and quarantined area in all of Britain suitable for recivilisation after a virus epidemic kills the population of Britain.

The Isle of Dogs was the setting for the 1986 Channel 4 comedy-drama ''[[Prospects (TV series)|Prospects]]'' starring [[Gary Olsen]] and Brian Bovell.

While shooting in East London for his film ''[[Fantastic Mr. Fox (film)|Fantastic Mr. Fox]]'', [[Wes Anderson]] spotted a road sign directing to the Isle of Dogs. This sparked his imagination, becoming an eponymous source of inspiration for his animated 2018 film ''[[Isle of Dogs (film)|Isle of Dogs]]''.<ref>{{cite news |title=Wes Anderson says a road sign in East London was the real-life inspiration behind Isle of Dogs |author=Rozanne Els |url=https://www.channel24.co.za/Movies/News/channel24-spoke-to-wes-anderson-about-his-new-film-isle-of-dogs-20180622-2 |publisher=Channel24.co.za |date=22 June 2018 |access-date=21 July 2018}}</ref>

In a 2024 episode of British drama series ''[[Call the Midwife]]'' set in March 1970, blockades as part of the declared independence of the Isle impede the ability of midwives in Poplar to transport a [[High-risk pregnancy|high risk pregnancy]] to hospital.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Carter |first=Jess |date=2024-12-31 |title=Call the Midwife season 14 premiere video: The Isle of Dogs |url=https://cartermatt.com/677556/call-the-midwife-season-14-premiere-video-the-isle-of-dogs/ |access-date=2025-01-13 |website=CarterMatt |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Davies |first=Rachael |date=January 7, 2024 |title=Call the Midwife season 14: Release date, plot and returning cast |url=https://www.msn.com/en-us/tv/news/call-the-midwife-season-14-release-date-plot-and-returning-cast/ar-AA1x6gYz |access-date=2025-01-13 |website=www.msn.com}}</ref>

==See also==
*[[Burrells Wharf]]
* [[Crossrail]]
* [[Honourable East India Company]]
* [[Island History Trust]]
* [[Islands in the River Thames]]
* [[London Museum Docklands]]
* [[Samuda Estate]]
* [[SS Robin|SS ''Robin'']]

==References and notes==
{{reflist|2}}

==Bibliography==
*Eve Hostettler, ''The Isle of Dogs: 1066–1918: A Brief History, Volume I'' (London: Island History Trust, 2000) {{ISBN|0-9508815-4-6}}
*Eve Hostettler, ''The Isle of Dogs: The Twentieth Century: A Brief History, Volume II'' (London: Island History Trust, 2001) {{ISBN|0-9508815-5-4}}
*Mick Lemmerman, ''The Isle of Dogs During World War II'' (Amazon, 2015) {{ISBN|978-1-5077-4611-0}}
*Mike Seaborne,  ''The Isle of Dogs - Before The Big Money'' (London: Hoxton Mini Press, 2019) {{ISBN| 978-1-9105-6639-8}}
*Con Maloney,    ''Boozers, Bompers & Bridgers - The History of the Public Houses of the Isle of Dogs'' (London: Friends of Island History Trust, 2020) {{ISBN|978-1-5272-8827-0}}
*Ann Regan-Atherton, ''Heavy Rescue Work on the Isle of Dogs'' (Amazon, 2015) {{ISBN|978-1-5196-1086-7}}

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20010124022100/http://www.islandhistory.org.uk/ Island Heritage & History Trust] (archived 24 January 2001)
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20071017063251/http://gardenvisit.com/landscape/london/lguide/isle-of-dogs.htm Isle of Dogs landscape architecture] (archived 17 October 2007)

{{LB Tower Hamlets}}
{{London Districts}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Districts of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets]]
[[Category:Areas of London]]
[[Category:Peninsulas of England]]
[[Category:Former islands of England]]
[[Category:Geography of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets]]
[[Category:Districts of London on the River Thames]]
[[Category:Port of London]]
[[Category:Islands of London]]