Talk:John Poulson

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Untitled[edit]

I believe that John Poulson was the architectural designer for the Al Ain Hilton in Abu Dhabi. The main cladding at the front was a soft rose coloured sandstone and I was at the official opening. I worked in Abu Dhabi from 1971 to 1974 on the then new deep water port of Mina Zayed. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Peter Nicholas Arundel Inman (talk • contribs) 14:18, 20 February 2019 (UTC)[reply]

Untitled[edit]

Splendid article! —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 209.178.162.249 (talk • contribs) .

Thanks, I'm rather proud of it myself! I'd like to put more in about his architectural contributions though. David | Talk 14:26, 15 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I'd like to see some sources for this stuff. For example, why should we believe you when you say he sacked people for having beards? I don't doubt what you're saying, but it needs backing up with actual sources if it is to meet Wikipedia's standards. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 91.125.61.92 (talk) 20:04, August 27, 2007 (UTC)

The sources were "Nothing to declare: the political corruptions of John Poulson" by Michael Gillard and Martin Tomkinson (John Calder, 1980) and "Web of corruption: the story of J.G.L. Poulson and T. Dan Smith" by Raymond Fitzwalter and David Taylor (Granada, 1981). Fys. Ta fys aym. 20:16, 27 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Fine - but if you or someone else could turn the general references into full inline citations (specific page numbers etc) that would be even better. 195.194.238.103 (talk) 11:06, 5 May 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Agree with above, this STILL needs to be sourced correctly, as the article currently reads as if a disgruntled employee wrote it! In fact, there are several places it needs PROPER sourcing. (I am not doubting the sources listed above, they just need citing inline, as references.) --gobears87 (talk) 15:37, 4 April 2011 (UTC)[reply]

Leeds Poly?[edit]

Leeds Polytechnic was only founded in 1970. Presumably Poulson was educated at one of the institutions which subsequently went on to form the Poly; which one? Tsuguya (talk) 06:37, 3 July 2010 (UTC)[reply]

According to 'The Price' Poulson was articled to a Pontefract architectural practice, Garside & Pennington, in 1928 and at some point during his four year apprenticeship did a one day a week course at the Leeds College of Art. (The Price pp18-19) —Preceding unsigned comment added by 80.0.97.196 (talk) 14:43, 10 August 2010 (UTC)[reply]

NPOV[edit]

A lot of the language in this article reads as a direct criticism of his character, without adequate sourcing (e.g. "This desire to show his financial superiority over others only served to highlight his true character as a lonely, friendless and insecure person." This isn't NPOV, and the article needs to be purged of this. I don't know enough about the architect to tackle it myself, unfortunately. illspirit|talk 13:53, 13 August 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Demolished Works[edit]

I'm pretty sure that the International Swimming Pool in Leeds was demolished in 2009/2010. There isn't much info about other buildings he had a hand in, but it'd be interesting to see how many have stood the test of city-development time.81.129.201.185 (talk) 11:02, 3 March 2011 (UTC)[reply]

Just from memory: housing in Pontefract, Mexbrough and many other places. Swimming pools including Feltham (London). Sunderland police station. Many schools/colleges in Yorks WR and Co Durham. The Peterlee Lodge Hotel, Peterlee, Co Durham, and Peterlee swimming pool (completed by successor company Booth Hancock & Johnson). Hospital in Gozo. Airedale Hospital. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2.26.70.111 (talk) 17:44, 8 June 2011 (UTC)[reply]

The questionable Masonic angle[edit]

The first sentence reads "...a British architect and businessman who caused a major political scandal when his use of bribery and connections with the Freemason were disclosed in 1972." Beyond wondering who or what "the Freemason" might be, there is no source quoted for Poulson having any association with the Freemasons, nor does the rest of the entry even touch on it. I would ask that the claim be substantiated or removed, as per WP:Bio policies. Thanks. Bricology (talk) 03:06, 19 March 2011 (UTC)[reply]

Agree. This page has several places that read as if the author is NON-objective about Poulson. --gobears87 (talk) 15:37, 4 April 2011 (UTC)[reply]

This article is factually incorrect. John Poulson married Cynthia Sykes in 1939. They had two daughters, one of whom - Sally was a contemporary of mine at the University of Durham in the early 1970's. It is also BIASED. It represents John as a charlatan when in fact he ran one of the largest Architectural practices in Europe during the 1960's See The Independants Obituary for confirmation - http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/obituary-john-poulson-1470735.html — Preceding unsigned comment added by 78.162.8.81 (talk) 13:48, 27 April 2011 (UTC)[reply]

This article is factually incorrect. John Poulson married Cynthia Sykes in 1939. They had two daughters, one of whom - Sally was a contemporary of mine at the University of Durham in the early 1970's. It is also BIASED. It represents John as a charlatan when in fact he ran one of the largest Architectural practices in Europe during the 1960's See The Independants Obituary for confirmation. John Poulson was not an architect. He did not train as one, he did not qualify as one, he was never registered as one. It is therefore wrong to refer to him as an architect. He did the reputation of the profession great harm without being a member of it. He ran a large 'architectural' practice. It has been illegal to call oneself an architect without being suitably trained and qualified since the 1930s. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 81.107.37.237 (talk) 13:24, 7 July 2011 (UTC)[reply]

It is, of course, possible to be both a competent businessman and a charlatan at the same time. Regardless, I've removed the 'Freemasons' bit. Even if it is true, it's bad practice to refer to something in the introduction and never bring it up again in the article. It's particularly bad practice to do so without references. Can someone double check the 'Not An Architect' claim? — Preceding unsigned comment added by Mysticete (talk • contribs) 20:25, 17 September 2011 (UTC)[reply]

External links modified[edit]

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Poulson in Concretopia[edit]

Apparently much easier to come by than any of the older books listed here under Sources, John Grindrod's 2013 book, Concretopia, includes a chapter (Part 3, chapter 3) devoted largely to Poulson; https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Concretopia — Preceding unsigned comment added by 173.17.179.75 (talk) 13:09, 17 January 2020 (UTC)[reply]