Inspired by the grand Pere-Lachaises in Paris, Kensal Green Cemetery was the first of the "Magnificent Seven" garden-style cemeteries created in London in the Victorian era. The final resting place of more than 700 notable personalities, including civil engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel, mathematician Charles Babbage and numerous fellows of the Royal Society, it is also remarkable for the often unsung women buried here, among them Lord Byron's wife, Anne Isabella, and Jane Wilde, the mother of playwright Oscar.
It is such figures that have inspired a series of exhibitions throughout 2017, the first of which takes place at the newly launched Dissenters' Gallery. The cultural space is part of the historical chapel of the same name within the grounds, one of 130 listed buildings across the 72-acre site and one of the first ever purpose-built nonconformist chapels in a public cemetery.
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