Obituary - Death of ‘Ask Bertie’ architect Bertie Dinnage
Published: 18 March 2011
REGINALD Bertram Dinnage, known as Bertie, who has died aged 79, was deeply involved in the life of the community in Fitzrovia.
A promising sportsman in his youth, he later became a noted architect who had the unusual distinction of having six mentions in the Pevsner guide for London.
In a voluntary role he was chairman of the Charlotte Street Association, secretary of the Friends of Open Spaces Fitzrovia and an associate editor of Fitzrovia News. He was also a member of the Fitzrovia Trust, a charity which acquires mixed-use properties to provide social housing and small business premises.
Bertie studied at the Architectural Association in Bedford Square and in the mid-1960s lived with his first wife Valerie for some years in Canada.
For much of his career he worked at the London Borough of Haringey architects’ department, where he led a number of municipal buildings and housing developments.
Later he took a special interest in access for the disabled. Despite the introduction of computer-aided design (CAD) into architects’ offices he preferred to use a traditional drawing board.
Bertie was physically sturdy. In an accident more than 20 years ago he survived death in a fall from several storeys. He escaped with some broken bones but came to walk with a characteristic stooping gait.
He moved to Gordon Mansions in Torrington Place in the late 1960s. When the flats were later being bought and sold speculatively, Bertie helped establish the residents’ association.
He became the first chairman and persuaded Camden Council to buy the flats to protect the residents’ security of tenure.
When right-to-buy came in, tenants and leaseholders continued together in one organisation. With his architectural background he ensured that the flats retained their character, and were not “standardised” by building repairs.
His communication skills were much valued. Often you would hear the mantra “Ask Bertie” when neighbours had been puzzling over an intractable repair; and when relationships between neighbours broke down Bertie was called in to mediate. He is survived by two sons from his first wife (who pre-deceased him) and by his second wife, Keiko.
His funeral at the Golders Green crematorium was attended by more than 60 people.
Clive Henderson, Sandra Wheen and Linus Rees