Celebrating 100 years of QMH

The hospital has a rich and varied history which will be commemorated as part of a free Family Fun and Open Day event in the hospital grounds on Saturday 9 September.

The celebrations will include an exhibition looking at the changing face of the hospital over the last 100 years.

The Queen’s Hospital opened on 18 August 1917 in the grounds of Frognal House in Frognal Avenue. It had taken just five months to build and had 300 beds based in wooden huts. It was where almost every soldier, who had suffered a facial injury, was sent for pioneering plastic surgery led by surgeon, Sir Harold Gillies, until 1925. Renamed Queen Mary’s Hospital in 1930, it continued to develop as a general hospital serving the local population after the Second World War.

You can find out all about the history of Queen Mary’s Hospital and see historical artefacts in our fascinating exhibition depicting medicine through the ages.

Dr Andrew Bamji, a retired Consultant in Rheumatology and Rehabilitation, is also Curator of the Queen Mary’s Hospital archives. He will be signing copies of his book, Faces From The Front, which tells the story of Harold Gillies, the Queen’s Hospital and the origins of modern plastic surgery.

The Family Fun and Open Day starts at 10.30am with the Rt Hon James Brokenshire, Member of Parliament for Old Bexley and Sidcup, officially opening the modern-day Queen Mary’s Hospital at 11am.

There will also be an unveiling of a commemorative Gillies blue bench at 3pm. These blue benches were placed along the road leading from the hospital to Sidcup during the First World War for wounded soldiers, who were recovering from their operations, to sit in peace.

As well as a host of stalls, there will be entertainment, tours of the operating theatres as well as the new cancer and kidney treatment centre, live music, refreshments and performances throughout the day. All parking and entertainment is free. The day will close at 3.30pm.

Andy Trotter, Chair of Oxleas NHS, said: “We’re all really looking forward to this special occasion in the hospital’s history and are delighted, that with the help of Dr Bamji, we have been able to bring to life Queen Mary’s Hospital’s rich past and the truly outstanding work of Harold Gillies. It promises to be a great day out for all the family.”