Fulham Residents' Journal January 2013 by Runwild Media Group

fulham Resident s Journal ’

Written for the residents of SW6 JANUARY 2013 • Issue 6

fulham Resident s Journal ’

J ANUA R Y 2 0 1 3 • I s s u e 6

Editorial Director Kate Harrison

Editor-in-Chief Lesley Ellwood

Associate Publisher Sophie Roberts

Editor Alice Tozer

Editorial Assistant Lauren Romano

Client Relationship Director Felicity Morgan-Harvey

Head of Design Hiren Chandarana

Production Hugo Wheatley, Alex Powell

Head of Finance Elton Hopkins

Senior Designer Lisa Wade

Production Manager Fiona Fenwick

Managing Director Eren Ellwood

w w w. R e s i d e n t s J o u r n a l . c o . u k (020) 7987 4320

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DEAR RESIDENT A very happy new year to you! If you’re turning to the strong stuff (by which I mean coffee) in an attempt to stay perky for seasonal party action, a pause for thought in the direction of the former residents of Fulham Palace wouldn’t go amiss. Among said bishops was Henry Compton, who grew the first coffee tree in England; all part of his excellent botanical efforts which laid the foundations for the beautiful Palace Gardens. Pick up more such quirky local trivia in our main story on pages 6-8. Incidentally, another of the bishops started an act which dictated appropriate ways in which people were permitted to spend their weekend. Incredibly, it was followed for two hundred years. I wonder how that would go down now. Follow our own (entirely non-dictatorial) guide for ways to pass your weekend on pages 10-11.

I M A G E: Kempson Road i n t eri or , see K NI GHT F RAN K, PA GE 37

Over Christmas it’s all too easy to disconnect with the world (in fact that’s the whole point, isn’t it?). Get back on top of events with our news stories on pages 4-5. Re-connect with local schooling news, too, on page 16. Fulham is dotted with small clothing boutiques but what does it really take to get such a joint running? We find out on pages 18-19. I hope you start the year as you mean to go; that is with your trusty Residents’ Journal to hand, to inform and inspire!

Alice We highly value your feedback: editor@residentsjournal.co.uk or 020 7987 4320

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LOCAL NEWS

News of interest for local residents who want to stay on the pulse

W o r d s: LAUREN ROMANO

Zut alors!

New Leaf

The French form the greatest population in our borough before any other European country, with some 4,977 Gallics making their homes here. A strong community spirit may well abound among them, but a focal point was arguably lacking for them within Fulham until last month when local residents Philippe Lassagne and the Mayor Belinda Donovan started a French club. The club, which welcomes French natives, Francophones and

those with a passion for the language, will meet once a month around Brook Green, with a food and wine evening scheduled every three months or so. A special cheese and wine reception, already held in the Mayor’s parlour, was a resounding success, and attended by some forty French people, including Antoine De Navacelle, the great grand-nephew of Baron Pierre de Coubertin, father of the modern Olympic Games.

Singleton central

ILLU S TRATI ON : RUSS TUD O R

The council will be collecting Christmas trees from Wednesday 2 January until Tuesday 15 January. Residents should leave their trees, bereft of all decorations, in their front gardens or outside their properties (in clear view of the street) by midday on their normal weekday rubbish and recycling collection.

Some 17,000 new residents have made our borough their home in the last decade, according to the first census in as many years, compiled by the Office for National Statistics. Every ten years since 1841, the powers that be have gathered data on the changing population and the last stretch has seen our locale alter considerably. Considering ours is the second least populated borough in inner London, with only Kensington and Chelsea harbouring fewer souls on its streets, it’s noteworthy that the population has totted up to 182,000. We’re also a borough full of singletons; fifty-six percent of us have yet to couple up, which theoretically makes our patch one of the best to pick up a date in time for Valentine’s Day. On the whole we’re a clever bunch with exactly half holding certificates of higher education. Some fifteen percent set their sights all the way to the top and succeeded in becoming senior managers or directors. The average resident is aged thirty-two.

Bosi brothers’ new venture The gastronomic tailwinds of Lyon brought the Brothers Bosi to Blighty back in the nineties. Claude, who honed his cooking mettle under the most celebrated chefs in France is now Chef Patron at two-Michelin-starred Hibiscus, while his brother Cedric mans their gastro pub, Fox and Grapes in Wimbledon Village. Their most recent acquisition, The Malt House – an eighteenth-century pub ensconced on the corner of Vanston Place will open its doors in February. The focus will be on modern British pub food, rustled up with the most seasonal of produce. At a glance, the preliminary menu is shaping up rather nicely; so far there’s talk of crab gratin, white port and Seabuckthorn and short ribs of beef. 17 Vanston Place, 020 7084 6888, www.malthousefulham.co.uk

Residents voice anguish on the future of Charing Cross Hospital The ‘Save Charing Cross Hospital’ campaign has upped its efforts to fight against the closure of the local Accident and Emergency department and hyper-acute stroke unit, up for the axe after an NHS North West London consultation backed proposals to close the emergency services. This could mean that all A&E provision in the borough would have to be diverted to Chelsea & Westminster Hospital, a prospect which has angered many residents, not least the 66,000 of them who inked their signatures to the eighteen petitions circulated in the past few months.

Plans realised for new teaching theatre at the Lyric After six years in the planning, the Lyric Theatre’s £16.5million expansion project has got underway with a breaking-the-ground ceremony. Once W o r d s : a n n a c a s ta ldi completed, the new Lyric will go on to inspire future generations (7,000 pupils are expected to use it each year) to get involved in the arts. It will become the country’s first teaching theatre, with a new two-storey extension housing drama and recording studios, an editing suite, a film and TV studio, music practice rooms and a sensory room for children with disabilities. The original building will be subjected to a major facelift, its first in thirty years, with a new bar and café. The fundraising appeal is on-going and members of the public can donate items for the building – everything from specialist studio lights to sedum seeds for the green roof, or even dressing-room mirrors. www.lyric.co.uk/changing-landscapeschanging-lives/donate/

A breath of fresh air

I M A G E : B a s P h o t o / S hu t t e r s t o c k . c o m

Councillor Nicholas Botterill, Leader of Hammermith and Fulham Council, has vowed to continue the fight, saying:

The NHS consultation was appalling and the service level left available to residents is appalling… we are determined to see a hospital retained at Charing Cross On 7 December, campaigners from the action group ‘Save Our Hospitals’ drove a convoy to Hammersmith and Charing Cross Hospital, making their voices heard through loudspeakers. www.savecharingcross.com

FULHAM RESIDENTS’ JOURNAL

A New Year has dawned, and with it the opportunity to wipe the slate clean and put a stop to niggling to-do lists. If you are keen to right the organisational wrongs of last year, a helping hand from a (too-good-to-be-true sounding) virtual assistant might be just the ticket. Since launching two years ago, Fulham-based ‘roomtobreathe’ virtual assistants have spread their methodical magic locally and beyond. No job is too trivial for the highly experienced duo, Fatima Malagueira and Bea Da Silva, whose most rewarding tasks of late have included everything from reuniting a client with his long-lost aunt, to organising a year-long fundraiser. They are even happy to declutter client home offices. A manageable work-life balance here we come. www.roomtobreathe.uk.com

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to the

palace

Over the years Fulham Palace has harboured a burgeoning grammarian, a Devil out-smarting blacksmith, a botanist, an abolitionist and a religious dissenter, all taking up office as a Bishop of London. Lauren Romano profiles some of the more colourful clerics

Bonner – also known as t was the year 700AD, Bloody Bonner for his hand roughly speaking, when the in the persecution of heretics first Bishop of London made under Mary I – ended up being his digs on the land where imprisoned during both Edward the present Fulham Palace sits. VI’s and Queen Elizabeth I’s His name was Waldhere and he reign, consequently dying in rode up from St Paul’s Cathedral the confines of his Marshalsea in the East Saxon Kingdom of prison cell. Bonner, the part-time London, his cope and mitre inmate, personifies the confusion catching the wind and billowing in matters of faith that defined brightly behind him. The exact the Tudor age. dates he moved in or indeed Initially an instrumental figure died (anytime between 705 in Henry VIII’s split with the and 716 is the educated guess) Catholic Church in Rome, Bonner have been eroded by antiquity. became increasingly infuriated by Indeed, history does not record the Protestant reforms introduced with certainty the chronology by the Protector Somerset and of the early Bishops, not until Archbishop St Dunstan Cranmer and arrived in 957 the role of the Bishop of once more AD. But that is London was a delicate one, a sided with the Roman of little matter balancing act between serving Catholic cause. for, regardless, the palace was the crown and the church in Under Mary, the responsibility for countless perfect synchronicity to stamp out centuries the religious dissenters sat squarely on Bonner’s country residence of the Bishop of London, later shoulders as the Bishop of London, and in 1555 becoming his only home. It was here that each he began the task in hand, apparently keeping successive Bishop, the third most senior figure in prisoners at the palace, where some were reportedly the Church – one rung below the Archbishops of tortured and forced to work his land. His notoriety Canterbury and York – set up camp until 1973. was such that he is remembered in Foxe’s Book of These colourful pontificators, of whom there Martyrs such: ‘This cannibal in three years space have been 132 and counting, each brought with them a new episode in one great ecclesiastical soap three hundred martyrs slew/ They were his food, he loved so blood, he spared none he knew.’ The opera. Between them they courted controversy few sources that insist he was not the merciless here and there, got on the wrong side of the persecutor his adversaries would have us believe Monarch, campaigned for the abolition of slavery, were drowned out by the majority of historians wrote grammar compendiums (Robert Lowth of the period and so the moniker ‘the Bloody was responsible for A Short Introduction to Bonner’ (or the ‘bloody sheep-bite of London’ as English Grammar in 1762) and edited historical former friar John Bale wrote of the Bishop) well magazines – all in their spare time. A handful and truly stuck. In recent years there have been met their ends at the hands of the executioner; alleged sightings of his ghost, which reportedly a beheading, a burning at the stake and a death sweeps through the north rooms of the courtyard under imprisonment hardly seem predictable ends on occasion. for men of the cloth. But Bonner was just one of a string of Bishops But the role of the Bishop of London was a who have made their mark on Fulham. Back in delicate one; a balancing act between serving the 957, Saint Dunstan made a name for himself by Crown and the Church in perfect synchronicity outsmarting the Devil. Dunstan, the legend goes, and pledging unerring devotion to both. The nailed a horseshoe to the Devil’s hoof when he was rapid changes in religion and the quick succession asked to re-shoe the Devil’s horse. Dunstan then of Protestant and Catholic monarchs involved agreed to remove the shoe only if he promised much to-ing and fro-ing for the Bishops. Edmund

l e f t: B i s h o p Po rt e u s ; a b o v e : B i s hop Creighton, b oth cou rt e s y o f t h e M u s e um C o l l ec tion at Fu lha m Pa la c e

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never to enter a place with a horseshoe hanging above the door, thus the origin of the horseshoe as a lucky token emerged. Later came the tumultuous years of the English Reformation, which established Protestantism and brought with it a string of Bishops in quick succession. Nicolas Ridley successfully steered his way through the Vestments Controversy which was a hot topic at the time concerning English Protestant identity. All was going well until a slip-up in 1553 at the cross of St Paul’s where in a sermon he proclaimed Princesses Mary and Elizabeth illegitimate. It was a misdeamour that cost him his life and he went on to be convicted of heresy and was burned at the stake in 1555. Edmund Grindal was more fortunate – exiled at the accession of the Catholic Queen Mary, he returned to assume the Bishop post on the day Elizabeth I was crowned and introduced grapevines to the grounds at Fulham. The fruit was the first to ripen within reach of the royal court and bunches were sent annually to the Queen to keep her sweet.

saint dunstan outsmarted the devil and thus the origin of the horseshoe as a lucky token emerged Then there was William Laud and with him another souring relationship between crown and clergy. Laud was immortalised by King Charles I’s jester as follows: ‘Give great praise to the Lord, and little Laud to the devil’ (a double dig at the Bishop’s diminutive stature). Laud had initially promised much as Archbishop of Canterbury. His determination to impose uniformity on the Church of England however, led to accusations of treason in 1640. It was an unforeseeable turn of events that was to swiftly worsen; despite his trial reaching no conclusion, the Houses of Parliament declared him guilty nonetheless and he was beheaded even after being granted a Royal Pardon. An unfortunate end indeed. But the position of Bishop wasn’t always so precarious. Heretics, horticulturalists... the line-up wouldn’t be complete without a moral crusader thrown in. He arrived at the palace in the form of one Beilby Porteus in 1787. A leading voice in the abolition of slavery, Porteus supported Sir William Dolben’s Slave Trade Bill and took official responsibility for the spiritual welfare of several

British colonies. He was also staunchly opposed to what he believed to be a decline in moral standards which he felt was a result of the pleasure gardens and theatres of the age. His Sunday Observance Act of 1781, which dictated appropriate ways people were permitted to spend their weekend, was followed for two hundred years. Other Bishops were less adverse to a little fun. Mandell Creighton, the first Editor of The English Historical Review (and who reportedly replied single-handedly to 20,000 letters a year) threw garden parties for thousands of guests each July. His son Walter also staged several plays at Fulham Palace. In 1908, the Bishop’s wife founded Creighton House, the community centre which still exists today. Some others kept up morale. During the First World War, 42-year-old Arthur Foley Winnington-Ingram became the youngest ever Bishop of London. Chaplain to the Rifle Brigade, he went to the trenches in 1915 with his car which was nicknamed ‘Fulham Palace’ by the troops. His popularity may have been rocked by his controversial decision to fill the palace’s moat – the largest domestic moat in England – but his invitations to schools to use the grounds for sports matches and to working people to take tea every Saturday went some way to make amends. The legacy of some Bishops is still clearly visible today. Henry Compton’s blissful residence lasted for thirty-eight years (1675-1713), during which time he laid the foundations for the beautiful Palace Gardens. His botany know-how led him to collect all manner of exotic trees and shrubs. Thanks to Compton the first magnolia in Europe was grown at Fulham and some of his species of trees, including the Virginian black walnut, can still be counted among the rare arbours in the palace grounds today. In his ‘stovehouses’ he also grew the first coffee tree in England, helping to bring a caffeine hit to fatigued Fulham residents. God bless him indeed.

I L L U S T RATION: mai osawa

art focus The cream of the crop of London’s art

Russian roulette Jim Hanlon goes undercover at the Saatchi Gallery

he title of a new collection of art at the Saatchi Gallery is ironic at least: Gaiety is the most outstanding feature of the Soviet Union. (So said Stalin in 1935.) This show of post-Soviet Union expression is not exactly gay in tone, nor even bordering on it. But it is definitely humorous; just in a dour, cynical, baleful and bleak – some would say, Russian – sort of way. Occupying the ground and first-floor galleries, acres of space is given over to a disparate variety of photography, sculpture, installation, collage and painting. Unsurprisingly it is photography that carries the main burden of social commentary, from gallery one the downside of 1989’s break-up of the Soviet Union and the ensuing turmoil, is obliquely portrayed through a fascinating group of portraits by Sergei Vasiliev, entitled Russian Criminal Tattoo Encyclopedia. The convicts stare defiantly at the camera lens,

FULHAM RESIDENTS’ JOURNAL

their illegal and homemade tattoos exposed, hard-looking men with broken noses and cauliflower ears, each with the most delicate and intricate designs covering their bodies. The images contain coded messages about their crimes, are clearly against the Soviet regime and incongruously incorporate iconography of the Orthodox Church. One of the lauded heavyweights of this show is Boris Mikhailov, whose photographic series, ‘Case History 19971998’ documents the homeless and dispossessed of his hometown Krakov in the Ukraine. His camera captures them against a backdrop of Krakov’s wastelands with images of decay in both background and foreground. The prints are huge, often showing the subjects as larger than life-size, the general effect making you recoil in both horror and pity. In marked contrast to Mikhailov’s photographs are those of Vikenti Nilin, whose series ‘From The Neighbours’ shows denizens of Russia’s ubiquitous tower blocks perched on window ledges. Legs dangle, their owners seemingly unperturbed by the abyss below them. At first they seem depictions of suicide but there is a compelling calmness, even apathy, evident here that speaks of time suspended. Canvases of Janis Avotins (Gallery 5) were

completed this year. Monochromatic paint is so thinly applied (and wiped away in places) that it gives the impression of a world obscured in the fog of time. The subjects he paints are mysterious, at once feeling familiar yet resisting identification within their unfocused void. Most striking is one painting showing only a right hand and its shirt cuff in the centre of a field of dark nothingness, edited out of context like an awkward bit of party propaganda. If the pick’n’mix of this collection is exciting, it also results in a profound discomfort of change. Since the end of the Soviet ideal, such has been life in Russia and art has reacted to it. Though it may be a case of Russian roulette, everyone should find at least something to entrance and engage in this eclectic show. Until 5 May www.saatchi-gallery.co.uk

The reviewer, Jim Hanlon, is a London-based artist: www.jimhanlon.co.uk l e f t: ‘ f u g i t i v e m o m e n t ’ b y j i m h aNL ON t o p : pa rt o f ‘ t h e Ne i g h b o u r s S e r i e s ’ b y Vi k e n t i Ni l i n , 1 9 9 3 - p r e s e n t, G i clé e print, 1 6 5 x 1 1 0 c m © V i k e n t i Ni l i n ; a b o v e : ‘ W h at D o e s I t M at t e r T o He r E v er C r eating Womb I f Tod ay M at t e r I s Fle s h An d T o m o r r ow W o r m s ’ b y D a s h a Sh i s h k in, 2012, Mi xe d med i a o n M yl ar , 1 5 2 . 4 x 2 1 3 . 4 c m , © D a s h a S h i s h k i n , 2 0 1 2 ; i m a g e s c o u rtesy of the S a atchi G a ll e ry, L o ndo n

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the calendar Diary dates for residents looking for the best in the local area’s events

W o r ds: LAUREN ROMANO

Summer loving Tête à Tête’s much-praised musical comedy, Salad Days, returns to Riverside Studios for a limited season until 2 March. A nostalgic feel-good antidote to New Year dreariness without being too saccharine, this charming revival of the mid1950s classic about young sweethearts dancing to the tune of a magic piano and prancing about carefree, presents a heart-warming couple of hours’ escapism. The toe-tappingly catchy tunes, sparkling wit and the actors’ irresistible urge to dance imbues the production with an infectious blast of fun. The traditional theatre setting has even been transformed into a sunny Hyde Park for the occasion with café tables dotted about the conventional theatre seats. Until Saturday 2 March. Riverside Studios: Crisp Road, 020 8237 1111, www.riversidestudios.co.uk image: ROY TAN

The great outdoors Fulham Palace is in the midst of its first ever garden lecture series which explores the exploits of head gardeners from various stately homes. The third instalment will be delivered by Andrew Turvey – honcho of the grounds at Myddelton House in Enfield – who will enlighten audiences as to the hidden treasures of the beautiful period edifice and its charming setting. It is, of course, the one-time patch of the great botanist Edward Augustus Bowles, who is numbered amongst Britain’s most famous self-taught gardeners. Bowles lived at Myddelton House from 1865 to 1954 and transformed its surrounding grounds with blankets of exotic plants. In more recent years it has fallen to Turvey and his team to ably oversee the restoration

fulham palace’s new lecture series explores the exploits of head gardeners from various stately homes of the grounds and its once glorious outbuildings and glasshouses. Find out about the trials and tribulations of the task on Wednesday 16 January from 6pm. Jessie Mylne Education Centre: Bishop’s Avenue, 020 7736 3233, www.fulhampalace.org

images : S t u a rt B e es l e y, F o x & S q u i r r e l S t r e e t P h o t o g r ap h y Gui d e

Brain freeze?

Urban inspiration London-based walks company, Fox & Squirrel and its knowledgeable troop of guides, are not of the umbrella waving ilk. Nor do they rattle off the same old spiel time after time, as their Street Photography Walk (for which they venture into southwesterly territory) is proof. Meeting at Michael Hoppen Gallery, a short amble along the Kings Road out of Fulham, Travel Photographer of the Year, Stuart Beesley, will lead those assembled on a guided walking tutorial, camera in hand (whether that be a lowly compact or a swish SLR). He will encourage the inky capturing of places, the existence of which even the most long-standing of locals might have overlooked. A set of interesting challenges will help attune the artistic eye in the capturing of fleeting moments. The next walk takes place on 19 January, costs £30 and starts at 12 midday, ending at 3.30pm. Fox & Squirrel walks: www.foxandsquirrel.com

FULHAM RESIDENTS’ JOURNAL

Replace bobble hats with thinking caps this month at The Hurlingham pub for its weekly quiz on a Monday evening. Here, you can settle down on mismatched armchairs and among eye-wonderingly novel décor, then be fired with questions as of 7.30pm. Five prizes are awarded and free drinks may be up for grabs as part of the victors’ spoils. Brain boxes with £1 each to spare can compete in a little gentle intellectual stimulation, with a beer from the well-stocked range to help jolt the grey matter into action. Make a night of it and book a table to feast on generous plates of proper pub comfort food – from dripping, juicy burgers to chilli con carne and fish and chips. There’s even a ping-pong table if a table tennis tournament sounds more up your street. The Hurlingham pub: 360 Wandsworth Bridge Road, 020 7610 9816, www.thehurlingham.co.uk

Feeling raw Perennial couch potatoes who want to look lively and start January off on the right foot should take advantage of the ‘Lush Escapes Raw Foods and Yoga Urban Detox’ taking place on 13 January at the beautifully serene Slice Urban Lifestyle Studios. For one day only, city retreat Lush Escapes will pitch up for a blissfully soothing and energising few hours of stretching and raw food lectures, which will take place over a virtuous green smoothie. Participants will learn to boost digestion, detoxify and maintain a healthy weight naturally. Rejuvenating hatha yoga classes will intersperse the useful nutrition de-briefs, as will food demonstrations and question and answer sessions. The day costs £95 per person or £160 for two and includes all ingredients and yoga mats for the day. A timely solution if you have languished in your lounge for longer than you’d care to admit this Christmas. Slice Urban Lifestyle Studios: 11 Heathmans Road, 020 7186 6007, www.slicestudios.co.uk

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the noticeboard

getting out of town

Dancing Downton Take a trip to Sadler’s Wells Theatre this festive season to see Matthew Bourne’s Sleeping Beauty. Rebecca Ross already did

fairytale princess; willful and winsome, she This atmospheric interpretation adds atthew Bourne completes his bridges the gap between childish innocence new flavours to the centuries-old story. trilogy of reimagining and and adult sensuality. Gone are Disney’s saccharine fairies; here reinventing Tchaikovsky Beginning very deliberately in 1890 (the the supernatural saviours are elemental and ballets with his new gothic date of the first performance of the ballet), the romance, Sleeping Beauty. Incorporating the impish, certainly more Puck than Tinkerbell. first act seems like a dancing Downton Abbey, The villainous magic-wielder is surprisingly technical proficiency of a traditional ballet, whilst the second (half-a-century later) brings male, adding a dark and predatory theme but with the joie de vivre of a musical and the action quite literally into the here and now. to the bewitchment. Aurora herself is much the narrative drive of a blockbuster, Bourne Whilst purists may decry this most recent more fun than you would expect for a blurs the lines between these cultural forms incarnation, Bourne has to produce a show that reinvigorated the story and is accessible for first-time gone are disney’s saccharine fairies; created an evocative and ballet goers whilst also here the supernatural saviours are impressive piece. It seems refreshingly innovative for ballet just got sexy. veterans. more puck than tinkerbell

p ho tos : s imo n an n a n d

A forum for residents’ daily concerns and activities

club culture

End of year Hammering on rugby pitches The Ladies team played both the Old Albanians and the East London Ninjas in December, both friendlies. They triumphed on 9 December with a substantial win over the Ninjas (53-29) in an away match; a particularly welcome win given that the week before they had been pipped to the post during their game against the Old Albanians, narrowly losing 17-18. Lucinda Tauchert, who plays wing, said of the loss, ‘We conceded a penalty in the last sixty seconds to lose the game by a point. The team were mollified by the fact that OA this year consolidated their 1st and 2nd teams which meant we played against a few former premiership players!’ Meanwhile, on 24 November, the Men’s 1st XV team playing in the NW2 league enjoyed a 35-12 home win against the Honourable Artillery Company. Then, on 8 December they triumphed 37-8 (away) against Grasshoppers RFC to take them to fifth in the league. Continuing their winning spell, on 15 December the boys won at home against Chiswick, 17-15.

THE MAYOR’S DIARY

his month I have been to many carol services all over the borough and one of the most stunning was in Fulham Palace Chapel; an ancient edifice that takes your breath away. Along with other London Mayors, I also went to the Oslo Christmas Tree Lighting up Ceremony in Trafalgar Square. The lights were turned on by the Lord Mayor of Westminster, with a fabulous reception held beforehand in the Crypt at St Martin’s in the Field Church, a really knockout venue. It is probably not a well-known fact that our borough has a rickshaw, but I enjoyed two excursions out in it this month. As a cyclist myself, I felt hugely guilty that I was not putting in any work as Richard pedalled me to Addison Primary School, where I have been a Governor since 2003 and where I attended the start of a day given over completely to cycling; even the maths lessons had bikes involved! Later on that week I took one of the children from Addison Primary with their mother to see the best production of Cinderella that I have ever seen at our own Lyric Theatre. I was taken to the Lyric as a child by my parents, as I was bought up in Ladbroke Grove, and I was present at the launch of the Lyric’s groundbreaking new project to extend their theatre. My second rickshaw was judging the Bling your Bike competition at All Saints School – a horrendously difficult exercise. The standard was incredibly high and we all ended up biking round Bishops Park. All in all, a fabulous morning. I have just come back from the Karen Hardy Dance Studios where I was invited to their Winter Wonderland Christmas Special. This was such a treat; however the standard of dancing from their showcase contestants was so

amazingly high, drawn from their ‘pupils’, that it put all my stumbling efforts at doing the ‘cha cha cha’, foxtrot and waltz to shame! I recommend the team at Karen Hardy; they are endlessly patient and at my Jubilee Tea Dance gave me great confidence. I am going to have to go back to Karen Hardy in January to brush up on my footwork as in February I will be dancing to support the wonderful White Ribbon campaign which was launched recently to help fight domestic violence. Last, but by no means least: a huge thank you to everyone who came to my first fundraising events for my chosen charities; you all helped me raise a stunning £7,300 for worthy, local causes. Georgios Kosma from LaLa, where the event was held, must get special praise for donating the food, not to mention his staff’s time, as well as funding the tango dancers. Many wonderful individuals and local businesses made the event possible by donating auction and raffle prizes: Tates Estate Agents, Olympia, Douglas and Sara Smillie (who own Locale Restaurant on the Munster Road), the Chairman of L’Oréal, Lady Jay, Snappy Snaps, Rosamund Rose, Harper Collins and finally John and Nikki Clinton, who were so generous with the golfing prizes. Serving perhaps as a taster for the next Olympics, my next fundraiser involves Brazilian jazz. It is being held on 13 February, as an early Valentine’s event. To find out details, please email me: Belinda.Donovan@lbhf.gov.uk Councillor Belinda Donovan Mayor, Hammersmith & Fulham Council

Star letter

photos: wa l i i d a c k b a r

Dear all at Fulham Residents’ Journal, Just a quick note to congratulate you on your recently launched magazine. It makes quite a nice change to get a magazine through my door that I like the look and feel of, and that is filled with content rather than just adverts. Keep up the good work! Regards, Ray Dowling LBIPP Director

Feel strongly about any local issue? Have a comment on one of our articles? Write to us at: letters@residentsjournal.co.uk

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That was then Born in London in 1910, actor George Devine lived at Number 9 Lower Mall, and is credited with helping launch the directing career of John Gielgud while both were students at Oxford. Devine’s own acting career often consisted of smaller roles than the likes of Gielgud, as he tended not to quite live up to the required ‘look’ for the leads. He was Artistic Director of the Royal Court Theatre from 1956 to 1965...

n 2 April 1956, the English Stage Company opened the first production of its first season at the Royal Court Theatre, Angus Wilson’s The Mulberry

Bush. My father, George Devine had been appointed artistic director of the new company, with Tony Richardson as his associate. That it has kept its doors open for fifty years, and that its

policies remain those of its first artistic directors, is truly remarkable, especially since it has survived numerous financial disasters and vicissitudes. In 1956 it was the first and only theatre to provide a permanent venue for new writing, while today almost every theatre in Britain, from the National Theatre to many tiny fringe venues, offers openings to new playwrights. Yet despite this competition and the fact that the theatre regularly comes under fire for failing to do what its various critics think it should be doing, the Royal Court survives and seems to have a special place in the hearts and minds of its writers and its audiences.

I was still a child when my father and Tony Richardson finally brought into being their plans for a ‘vital modern theatre of experiment’ that would produce ‘hard-hitting, uncompromising writers [whose] works are stimulating, provocative and exciting’. They wanted to reach out to a new audience, an audience of young people who would not, traditionally, be theatregoers, and above all this was to be done by a new emphasis on the dramatist: ‘Ours is not to be a producers’ theatre or an actors’ theatre; it is a writers’ theatre,’ my father said in an interview just before the theatre opened in the spring of 1956. In order to support and encourage ‘a contemporary style in dramatic work’, writers were to be encouraged to ‘look upon the Court as a workshop, and… come to any rehearsals, not only of their own plays but of other people’s’. George Devine, the founder of London’s Royal Court theatre, had some words of aeronautical wisdom for anyone foolhardy enough to follow him as artistic director. “I can promise my successor adventurous flying,” he proclaimed during his resignation speech in 1965. “Plenty of bumps, many anxious glances at the fuel gauge, most of the time in thick stormy cloud.” But the job offered a sliver of something brighter and, he concluded, something unique: “occasional, very occasional, glimpses of the nearest thing to paradise”.

In the many years since Devine spoke those words, the Royal Court has weathered plenty of turbulence, but for the moment the theatre seems to have found, if not quite paradise, at least an earthly equivalent. Last year began with not one but two consecutive transfers to the West End – for the first time since 1968 – and ended with the news that the theatre’s production of Jez Butterworth’s play Jerusalem was on its way to Broadway (where it will open in April). After winning big at the 2010 Oliviers, the Royal Court was crowned London theatre of the year by the Stage newspaper. No doubt it’s tempting fate to say it currently seems invincible, but in two categories of last November’s Evening Standard awards the theatre supplied every single name on the shortlist. During the early 1950s, the marriage of George Devine and Sophia Harris suffered in the turmoil surrounding the demise of the Old Vic. Devinewas stretched thin by the tribulations of the Vic and by his insufficiencies (as her perceived them) as father and husband. […] While Devine was consumed with the Vic, Sophia Harris became surrounded by a number of younger theatre artists, designers especially, who looked to her as an inspiration […] “The image I have of her as a designer, seats her at her scrubbed kitchen table in Lower mall, with an up-turned dinner plate and poster paints for a palette, licking her paintbrush, painting design after design with casual elegance […]” remembered director Peter Gill. Extracts (1) and (2) from ‘Looking Back: Playwrights at the Royal Court, 1956-2006’ by Harriet Devine, published by Faber 2006; (3) from an article by Andrew Dickson in The Guardian, 29 January 2011; and (4) from ‘Design by Motley’ by Michael Mullin, Associated University Presses, 1996.

c o m p i l e d b y: charlotte newman i l l u stration: mai osawa

FULHAM RESIDENTS’ JOURNAL

015

the classroom Key news regarding your local schools

W o r d s : c h a r l o t t e n e w m an & anna castaldi

Local schools the best in the country

A celebration of girls’ education Kensington Prep School was among twenty-six schools across the UK who, as 2012 drew to a close, took part in a national attempt to create the world’s biggest practical science lesson for entry into The Guinness Book of Records. The massive experiment involved more than 2,300 students aged between ten and fifteen, whilst only 1,000 pupils were needed to break the record. It was all in aid of the Girls’ Day School Trust, a network of independent girls’ day schools across the UK that aims to further female education in a single-sex environment. The organisation is celebrating its 140th anniversary, and the science lesson was just one of a series of special events put on to mark this milestone. At Kensington Prep, Year 6 pupils undertook a practical physics experiment to measure gravity. Teacher Mrs Lynch pointed out how single-sex education at the school was beneficial to girls wanting to study science: ‘We find in the girls-only environment of Kensington Prep School and the other GDST schools, science subjects are hugely popular and successful. The most disturbing statistic from the Institute of Physics’ recent report was that nearly half of all co-ed maintained schools in England do not send even one girl on to do physics at A-level.’ Though the girls have collectively broken the world record, they will have to wait a few weeks for their achievement to be confirmed. Kensington Prep School: 596 Fulham Road, 020 7731 9300, www.kensingtonprep.gdst.net

According to Ofsted’s annual report for 2011-2012, secondary schools in Hammersmith and Fulham are among the very best in the country, with one-hundred percent of pupils attending schools designated ‘good’ or ‘outstanding’, a marked improvement since 2006, when figures sat at eighty-one percent. Schools in the capital generally perform better than the national average: eighty percent of London’s secondary schools are rated good or outstanding compared with an average sixty-six percent nationally. Economic disadvantage was not necessarily a deciding factor either, with sixty-nine percent of the poorest children in the capital going to good schools, compared with forty-five percent in the south-east. However, only nine local authorities across the UK achieved the same success rate as Hammersmith and Fulham, and five of those were London boroughs. Hammersmith and Fulham ultimately came twenty-ninth out of 151 local authorities. Councillor Helen Binmore, cabinet member for children’s services, said: ‘It has been a joint effort to raise standards in our schools over the past few years and to make them places where our children, no matter what their background or circumstances, can get a first-class education.’ www.ofsted.gov.uk

Ready-made workforce Officially opened by The Duke of York KG in December, Fulham Enterprise Studio offers relevant hands-on learning experience alongside core national curriculum qualifications. The first studio-school to open in inner London, residing on Kingwood Road, FES is part of a larger school group which includes Fulham Cross School and Fulham College Boys’ School and is designed to cater for the educational needs of fourteen to nineteen-year-olds looking to go on to further education or employment in general construction and performing arts production. Students will study towards nationally recognised qualifications and then work with local employers (Age UK, Fulham Football Club, The Lyric Hammersmith, St George and Virgin Media among them) for up to two days a week, guided on the way by their own personal coach. Such invaluable on-the-job training will equip students with the confidence and practical skills which are so highly desired for the workplace. FES: Kingwood Road, 020 7381 3606, www.fulhamenterprise.net

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09.08.2012 14:36:44

With a spring

in her step March Fashion opened on the Fulham Road in September 2012. Just another ladies’ clothes boutique? Far from it. Owner Liza Mitchell, 32, has used her extensive retail background to full effect. March also marks the overcoming of a very personal hurdle... strong need for a boutique in Fulham that really served the needs of the women in south-west London. Fortunately I did get better and it was in March that I completely recovered, hence the name of the boutique.

Are you originally from Fulham? I’m half Irish, half Swiss. I grew up in Ireland and went to Newcastle University where I studied business management. Passionate about retail, I knew I had to be in London and moved in with a friend on the Wandsworth Bridge Road. I’ve been in Fulham now for ten years. What did you do before you, quite literally, set up shop? I worked at Debenhams for eight years, climbing up through the ranks whilst received amazing training. But it was relentless; twelve hours a day in an office takes its toll. I left in 2010 after being diagnosed with ME. I consequently spent two years practically in bed, wondering if I would ever get better. Once you step back from the corporate world you realise there is another side to life. It was during this time that I realised there was a

What made you confident you could run your own boutique? It’s extremely hard work and you’re only as good as your last season, meaning you cannot be complacent. I’m very grateful for my retail training which comes into play with stock management and cash flow, for example. You can’t just go along to trade fairs and find clothes you love without knowing what you’re doing. What defines your boutique? My vision for March is based on a shop in Ireland that I have being going to for a long time with my Mum, and where we always buy something each. Lots of boutiques stock the same brands and there are plenty of boutiques in Fulham already, so I have to try and be different. I aim to give a subtle nod to the trends but the people round here are not necessarily super trendy so I water it down. [Liza is wearing chocolatey-burgundy tight trousers which are a case in point – burgundy being the obvious

colour of the season.] I stock Marella and Penny Black which are two Max Mara brands. House of Fraser is pretty much the only stockist of the former, but they stock it differently to me. Acquiring stock of a particular label is not easy. You have to pitch to the brand and undergo months of negotiations sometimes. They want to know all the ins and outs of your outlet.

How would you describe your involvement in community life? I’m an active member of the Harbledown Road Residents’ Association. I was sort of wooed by the Chairman at a Christmas party [she laughs] but the idea really appealed to me. It is a great group of people and it’s important to know your neighbours are looking out for you. Further down the line, I would like to give young people in Fulham the opportunity to work in fashion retail, when they would otherwise not have the opportunity to get into the retail industry.

It gives me such satisfaction to see someone walk out of March and see them walk taller Boutiques can be hard to establish. how much do you aim to compete with the big chains? Boutiques can be off-putting and daunting. People come in here and apologise because they’re in their gym kit. I’m totally relaxed. I don’t mind them coming in and just looking every time, without the pressure to buy. In the world of chains, Zara is getting so big it’s overtaking Topshop. But this means people see their items in the window of charity shops. This works in boutiques’ favour. My aim is to buy clothing which suits the Fulham clientele. Brands can be so forceful about convincing me to buy hundreds of sparkly tops. But will people want these? Instead, Fulham ladies might want a really smart cardigan/coat to suit their routine; they can wear it for the school runs, to go for coffee or at dinner parties. They may want advice on what to wear after having a baby (a flattering jean, say) or be after a practical workdress (all my work dresses sold out within the first week

of opening). I aim to solve these different problems with the right edit of brands and to make women feel confident in what they are wearing. Aren’t boutiques expensive? I feel very strongly about keeping prices down. With the cost of living ever increasing, I think it is essential to stock brands that reflect this reality. Prices for my tops in the spring range retail from £45 and my dresses start at £90. What’s the best thing about having set up March? I’m a real people person and I came to a point where I craved interaction. (I’ve made a lot of spreadsheets in my time!) Seeing women come into the store with little idea what to wear but leaving with a big smile on their face and the perfect item is what it’s all about for me. My Dad’s an entrepreneur and I always wanted to work for myself, which I’m now doing. I’m also lucky to continue working in the industry about which I am so passionate. March Fashion: 821 Fulham Road 020 3638 0204 email: liza@marchfashion.co.uk www.marchfashion.co.uk Open Monday-Saturday, 9.30am-6pm (7pm Weds) Find March Fashion on Facebook and Twitter

Words: alice tozer I L L U S TRATIO N : RU SS TU DOR

FULHAM RESIDENTS’ JOURNAL

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INTERIORS

The

middle ground Local interior-design duo at magentapink, Veronica Lucey and Kate Thornton bridge the gap between the interior showroom and the high-street store. They let Lauren Romano in on their mission to inject a little personality into Fulham homes

edecorating a house can be a lengthy, not to mention expensive, business. It takes time and the patience of a saint to even begin the overhaul in the first place. From scuttling shyly around the daunting interior showrooms of this world to picking through the ubiquitous stock at the shopping centre, the repetitiveness of it all is enough to instil a casual indifference into the heart of even the most house-proud. Such reticence happens much to the irritation of Veronica Lucey and Kate Thornton whose work centres around helping people tackle such matters. Their two-year-old interior design business, magentapink, hinges on the quirky little idiosyncrasies that mark one’s abode out from the Jones’ next door. ‘We want our client’s property to stand out for all the right reasons and not blend into the ‘nice but dull’ category. Everyone’s got a Barcelona chair; it’s all about putting your own stamp on things and having fun with it all.’ Thankfully the magentapink ladies have the knack of taking bland bricks and mortar and putting

their client’s stamp on the place even before said individual has a clue what this might be and how. Apparently the key is to start with a list of your pet peeves. ‘We take a long time talking to the client, establishing who will use the space and how it will be used. We find asking a client what they dislike gives more focus than asking what they like. People always know what they don’t like. We try and incorporate existing pieces as much as possible so that the finished home really belongs to the client. We want them to walk into the room when it is done and instantly feel that they are in their home; familiar things mixed, hopefully, with a bolder backdrop and style.’ As Veronica talks me through the process, it becomes clear that these two routinely leave no stall nor shop unturned, searching high and low for the right pieces to transform a house into a home. It’s a laborious process but one in which the pair clearly take great pleasure. Finding unusual items is the cornerstone of the process and to that end they can often be spotted wandering along Lillie Road and Wandsworth Bridge Road, popping into WBR

and Finch Lighting for inspiration. Decorus on the New Kings Road has their seal of approval for its contemporary lighting options, while Grapefruit Gallery on the Fulham Road has yielded many a piece of artwork for the walls of several properties round about. However, the two do lament the fact that, although blessed with countless interiors options, it is often hard to find value for money in the locale; they find that a trip to Lots Road Auctions is often a good remedy to this.

ARRANGING INTERIORS IS NO DIFFERENT TO POSSESSING THE CLASSIC JOSEPH COAT BUT THEN PAIRING IT WITH A TOP FROM MANGO But the rifling through the hubbub of homewares boutiques, furniture markets and antiques yards isn’t just confined to London; sometimes the sourcing takes place further afield. They recently purchased a striking, early twentieth-century post-room desk, having unearthed it from a vintage dealer in Wales. The little black book they have amassed during their two years in the business also means that Veronica and Kate can commission bespoke items on behalf of their clients. Whilst they tend to get their teeth stuck into full, furnishing projects – thinking of everything from the welcome mat to the show-stopping, living room centrepiece – they insist that they are just as happy making-over individual rooms. In recent years, their well-attuned eyes have been cast over properties from the City to the south

of the river, although Fulham is where it all began. Spurred on by a general boredom with their careers in advertising and law and a shared ‘unhealthy’ interest in interiors, the friends decided to turn their hand to something new and word of mouth has helped magentapink take off since then. Fulham is where the pair has lived for many years and it’s an area they know well and love. ‘We are aware of the property style and the target market here and we wanted to show people that there was a lot more out there than the “Fulham/ Chelsea” look.’ Interiors, they insist, is like any other fashion; it constantly evolves. Veronica’s advice is that everyone should invest in a few statement pieces and then mix in a bit of the highstreet and, above all, a little carefully chosen colour. ‘It’s the equivalent of owning one classic piece and then injecting quirky little cushions or the like. You wouldn’t necessarily dress head-to-toe in designer togs, so your home should follow suit,’ she tells me. ‘It’s like possessing the classic Joseph coat but then pairing it with a top from Mango and other seasonal trends. It’s all about having fun. ‘Everyone needs sofas and beds in their homes but [...] so many houses have become bland and formulaic. They lack soul. We inject colour and texture and encourage the client to move out of their comfort zone,’ says Veronica in parting. Ordinarily cutting out the middleman and going it alone is a satisfying accomplishment but as Veronica and Kate personify, sometimes middleladies are actually indispensable miracle-workers. www.magentapinkinteriors.co.uk

Imag e s , f r o m l e f t t o rig h t: A ba rr i s t e r ’ s c i t y pad t ra ns f o r m e d b y ma g e n tap i n k ; c h ai r s i n a F u l ha m k i t c h e n t hat m a g e ntap ink fur n i s h e d af t e r hav i n g d o n e t h e ba se m e n t a nd g y m ; ‘ A l o ha’ l i g h t; b e s p o k e b e d r o o m c h e s t w i t h ma g e n ta f l o c k d rawers c o m m i s s i o n e d t o f i t i n t o a n u n u s ua l - s i z e d s pa c e ; a pa i r o f 7 0 s t rac t o r s t o o l s b y Ro d n e y Ki n s ma n, a n au c t i o n f i nd.

FULHAM RESIDENTS’ JOURNAL

021

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PLANNING & development Urban development and changes to logistics

Smile, you’re

on camera

Councillors from Hammersmith & Fulham and the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea have unveiled a new CCTV hub which covers nearly all of west London. It will stream images from around 800 cameras on a 24/7 basis, and use the latest technological advancements including high definition, infrared and LED technology. This is an example of the two borough councils clubbing together to improve safety for residents; instead of having separate CCTV stations, they are sharing a facility to save costs. These new cameras use infra-red for night vision purposes, and even come equipped with ‘windscreen’ wipers to combat the effects of bad weather. Images can be beamed live to the police, and council operators can alert police immediately in the case of illegal activity, greatly increasing the chance that criminals will be caught. Councillor Greg Smith, H&F Council Deputy Leader, described the CCTV scheme as ‘the eyes and ears of law-abiding residents,’ adding that ‘criminals can run but they cannot hide.’ This last statement sums up some of the opposition to the scheme that has been voiced by local residents, who are worried that this level of CCTV coverage is “Orwellian”. As well as being used to catch violent criminals, this CCTV hub will also play a role in slapping otherwise lawabiding residents with parking tickets.

there’s no new LIMIT Hammersmith and Fulham Borough Council has put the kibosh on proposals to introduce blanket 20mph speed limits on the borough’s major roads. The Green Party and safety campaigners had argued that the rate of road deaths is drastically reduced by lowering the speed limit, and Islington Council has already implemented such a change. However, Hammersmith and Fulham Council argue that this is ‘unproven’, and transport chief Victoria Brocklebank-Fowler believes that enough has already been done on the subject of road safety: ‘We currently have seventeen 20mph zones in residential parts of the borough, covering about a third of our road network, and have a robust road safety programme that is helping to reduce the number of injuries on the roads.’

W o r d s : CHArlotte newm a n

Caught in app-tion If dumping, fly-tipping and graffiti in your local area make you angry, help is at hand. You can now download the Hammersmith and Fulham ‘Report It’ app, which allows you to take a picture of any environmental damage done to the local area and send it directly to the council for investigation. The app uses GPS to locate the sender, who is asked to fill in a brief description of the problem along with their photograph. The launch of this app is part of a wider initiative by the Borough Council to help keep local streets as tidy as possible, and which aims to tidy up so-called ‘grot-spots’ within twenty-four hours of the area being reported. Councillor Greg Smith, Deputy Leader of our Council and cabinet member for residents’ services said: ‘Independent research shows that our streets are among the cleanest in the capital, and the cleanest they have ever been, with ninety-eight percent of streets complying with Keep Britain Tidy cleanliness standards. But we want to go further by getting residents to help us make them the cleanest streets in London.’ He did make it clear, however, that the app will not work for reporting incidents of of rubbish dumped on private property.

Fines for bad driving Another downside – or upside depending on your view – of the new CCTV installation in Fulham is the effect it will have on motorists. In a bid to ease congestion, the council has approved a £750,000 plan to film box junctions on the Fulham Palace Road. Its reasoning is that drivers regularly flout road rules at box junctions, particularly at the junction with Lillie Road; there are also problems with drivers ignoring banned turn signs at the junctions with Greyhound Road, Averill Street, Delorme Street and New Kings Road. Repeat offenders will be snapped on CCTV and forced to pay fines. There are also set to be other improvements to the road in order to make it safer for pedestrians, such as the implementation of a ‘countdown’ crossing at Rigault Road and the moving and widening of the crossing at the New King’s Road junction. This area is a hotspot for pedestrian injuries, particularly at Putney Bridge, the Lillie Road junction and the Fulham Road roundabout. Other aspects of the plan include creating one-hour parking bays for shoppers, which will be a great boost for local businesses, alongside road resurfacing and repaving in order to limit the need for future roadworks which cause traffic congestion.

PLANNED ROAD WORKS & CLOSURES STREET

PLANNED WORK

DATES

WORKS OWNER

Askew Road to Curwen Road and down to Goldhawk Road

Footway maintenance

15 October2 February

Hammersmith and Fulham 020 8748 3020

Beadon Road (outside Hammersmith tube station at the junction with Hammersmith Broadway and at junction with Shepherds Bush Road)

Refurbishment works for Hammersmith tube station

9 November3 March

Transport For London 0845 305 1234

Harwood Road

Connection work from junction of Harwood Road 14 Novemberwith Blake Gardens to junction of Harwood Road 28 January with Effie Road

National Grid Gas plc 0845 605 6677

Broughton Road

Lay mains pipe from Broughton Road approach to 12 November104 Broughton Road 10 January

National Grid Gas plc

Fulham High Street (and part of Rigault Road)

Highway improvements along the Fulham High Street corridor

1 October31 March

Hammersmith and Fulham

Fulham Palace Road (between Guinness Trust Buildings and Lillie Road junction and between Lillie Road and Atalanta Street)

Highway improvements including: traffic signals upgrade, CCTV installation, road marking changes, footway improvements and carriage resurfacing

22 October31 March

Hammersmith and Fulham

Great West Road

New piping works

29 September22 January

National Grid Gas plc

Breer Street (junction with Hugon Road)

Mains connections

18 January1 February

National Grid Gas plc

Bronsart Road

Mains connections

3 January9 January

National Grid Gas plc

Do you wish to comment on any local planning stories? Send us an email: planning@residentsjournal.co.uk

FULHAM RESIDENTS’ JOURNAL

025

the directory A compendium of the area’s key establishments

Estate Agents John D Wood & Co 287 New King’s Road 020 7717 5152

Marsh & Parsons 105 Moore Park Road 020 7736 9822

Belvoir! 632 Fulham Road 020 7736 2786

Knight Frank 203 New King’s Road 020 7751 2400

Savills 191 New King’s Road 020 7731 9400

Strutt & Parker 701 Fulham Road 020 7731 7100

Property Search Agent Penn Holmes London Ltd 55 Langthorne Street 07884 180480 07989 746499

Fashion Essam Guenedy 267 New King’s Road 020 7371 8010

Iceblu 24A New King’s Road 020 7371 9292

Zaeem Jamal ‘Luxury, hand-embroidered evening gowns decorated with radiant gem stones.’ 309 Kings Road 020 7100 2072

Marc Wallace 261 New King’s Road 020 7736 6795

Health & Beauty Barber

Crew Experience 911 Fulham Road 020 3010 1096

Dentist

The Fulham Dentist 9 Salisbury Pavement, Dawes Road 020 7385 8366

Doctors

The Fulham Medical Centre 446 Fulham Road 020 7385 6001

Hair Salon

Gina Conway 612 Fulham Road 020 7731 7633

Home Antiques

A&L Antiques 284 Lillie Road 020 7610 2694 Nimmo & Spooner 277 Lillie Road 020 7385 2724

Architects & Design Hogarth Architects Ltd 186 Dawes Road 020 7381 3409

Barroll Webber Architects Unit 8H Michael Road 020 7731 3094

Finishing Touches Artbeat (framer) 703 Fulham Road 020 7736 0337

Fitness Virgin Active ‘Gym with pool and spa, as well as club lounge.’ Fulham Pools, Normand Park Lillie Road 0845 270 9124 (enquiries) 020 7471 0450 (members)

Spa

Amara Spa 18-20 Fulham High Street 020 7384 9111

Galleries

Stationer

Piers Feetham Gallery 475 Fulham Road 020 7381 3031

Perry’s 777 Fulham Road 020 7736 7225

Joanna Grigson Interior Design The Mews, Harwood Road 07803 008 514

Wood Flooring

Interior Design

Bembé UK Ltd ‘German craft since 1780.’ 315-317 New King’s Road 020 7371 9090

Cologne & Cotton (linen) 791 Fulham Road 020 7736 92

B Lowe 10 Atalanta Street 020 7381 9207

B&B

Boutique

Guest House

Luxury

Fulham Thames Walk B&B 91 Langthorne Street 020 7381 0198

La Reserve Hotel 422-428 Fulham Road 020 7385 8561

Fulham Guest House 55 Wandsworth Bridge Road 020 7731 1662

Millennium & Copthorne Stamford Bridge, Fulham Road 020 7565 1400

Hotels

Schools & Nurseries Chelsea Independent College 517-523 Fulham Road 020 7610 1114

Godolphin and Latymer School Iffley Road 020 8741 1936

Latymer Upper School 237 King Street 0845 638 5800

Sinclair House School 159 Munster Road 020 7736 9182

Eridge House Preparatory School 1 Fulham Park Road 020 7371 9009

Hurlingham and Chelsea School Peterborough Road 020 7731 2581

L’Ecole des Petits 2 Hazlebury Road 020 7371 8350

The London Oratory School Seagrave Road 020 7385 0102

Fulham Cross Girls’ School Munster Road 020 7381 0861

Kensington Prep School 596 Fulham Road 020 7731 9300

Millie’s House Nursery & Pre-School 163 New King’s Road 020 7731 0440

The Moat School Bishop’s Avenue 020 7610 9018

Fulham Prep School 200 Greyhound Road 020 7371 9911

Lady Margaret School Parsons Green 020 7736 7138

Parayhouse School New King’s Road 020 7751 0914

Thomas’s Fulham Hugon Road 020 7751 8200

Greengrocer

Restaurants

Pots & Co 133 Munster Road 020 7384 0133

Brasserie de l’auberge 268 Fulham Road 020 7352 1859

Food & Drink Bakery Well Bread ‘A family-run bakery with three fully qualified and professional chefs. Makers of bespoke cakes to-order in any size, including birthday and wedding cakes with any picture or shape.’ 383 North End Road 020 7385 7474

Kosmospol 138 Fulham Road 020 7373 6368

Cafés Drawing Room Café Fulham Palace, Bishop’s Avenue 020 7736 3233 Pottery Café 735 Fulham Road 020 7736 2157

Pubs The Rose Pub 1 Harwood Terrace 020 7731 1832

Fabrella Eating House 786 Fulham Road 0871 971 7654

The Rylston 197 Lilie Road 020 7381 0910

Mao Tai 58 New King’s Road 020 7731 2520

Bars

Confectioner

Kona Kai 515 Fulham Road 020 7385 9991

Demarquette 285 Fulham Road 020 7351 5467

The Hurlingham 360 Wandsworth Bridge Road 020 7610 9816

Vingt-Quatre 325 Fulham Road 020 7376 7224

Bookmaker

Cleaner

Motoring

Post Office

Ladbrokes Plc 344 North End Road 0800 022 3454

Vanston Dry Cleaning & Laundry 1 Vanston Place 020 7381 3609

Triangle Garage 2 Bishops Road 020 7385 1193

Fulham Road Post Office 815 Fulham Road 0845 722 3344

Charity

Florist

Newsagent

Printing

Cancer Research UK 350 North End Road 020 7381 8458

Town and County Flowers 131 Wandsworth Bridge 020 7736 4683

Filmer Newsagents 14 Filmer Road 020 7385 2953

Paramount Press Ltd 129 Munster Road 020 7731 0900

Childcare

Library

Pharmacy

Travel

Fulham Nannies 69 Stephendale Road 020 7736 8289

Fulham Library 598 Fulham Road 020 8753 3879

Palace Pharmacy 331 Fulham Palace Road 020 7736 3034

The Ultimate Travel Company 25-27 Vanston Place 020 7386 4646

Services

FULHAM RESIDENTS’ JOURNAL

027

savills.co.uk

1 FINE VICTORIAN TERRACED FAMILY HOUSE crondace road, sw6 Potential to create: double reception room ø kitchen/dining room ø 4 bedrooms ø 2 bathrooms ø cellar ø garden ø currently 207 sq m (2,228 sq ft)

Savills Fulham Emma Stead estead@savills.com

020 7731 9400 Guide £1.95 million Freehold

savills.co.uk

1 BEAUTIFULLY PRESENTED FAMILY HOME gowan avenue, sw6 Double reception room ø kitchen/dining room ø 4 bedrooms (1 en suite) ø family bathroom ø guest cloakroom ø garden ø 149 sq m (1,604 sq ft)

Savills Fulham Sebastian Hipwood shipwood@savills.com

020 7731 9400 Guide £1.395 million Freehold

savills.co.uk

1 FAMILY HOUSE WITH EXCELLENT SPACE foskett road, sw6 4 bedrooms ø 3 bathrooms ø kitchen ø dining room ø double reception ø study area ø patio garden ø wc ø 77.12 sq m (830 sq ft)

Savills Fulham Milly Webb mwebb@savills.com

020 7731 2692 £1,250 per week Unfurnished

Residents of Bishop’s Park, we are delighted to announce the opening of our second office in Fulham. Alongside our Parson’s Green branch, our new office by the park can take care of all your property needs – and save you the walk. For property advice or a market appraisal, please call us on 020 7731 9400.

24 offices across London, 80 in the UK and 500 offices and associates worldwide Savills Fulham – Bishops Park

Savills Fulham – Parson’s Green

423 Fulham Palace Road London SW6 6SX

191 New King’s Road London SW6 4SW

savills.co.uk

Local know-how. Better results. Our Ofﬁces: Balham Barnes

Battersea Brook Green Chelsea

Clapham Earls Court Fulham

Hammersmith Holland Park Kensington

Little Venice Mayfair North Kensington

Notting Hill Pimlico & Westminster South Kensington

Maxwell Road SW6 £2,750,000 Located on the desirable Moore Park Estate, this exceptional property is beautifully presented throughout. The accommodation includes an elegant double reception room, an open plan kitchen with dining area and concertina doors leading out to a private walled garden, a further reception room, a wine cellar and a private garage. The upper two ﬂoors provide a superb master bedroom suite, four further double bedrooms (one en suite), a study and a bathroom. Freehold.

FULHAM: 020 7736 9822 sales.ful@marshandparsons.co.uk

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SALES

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Moore Park Road SW6 £2,595,000 Arranged over five floors, this impressive property is presented in excellent condition throughout. The house comprises a dining area, fully integrated kitchen, utility room, cinema area, a beautiful drawing room and a separate study. The bedroom accommodation is arranged over three floors and includes a master bedroom with en suite bathroom, four further double bedrooms (one en suite) and an additional family bathroom. The house further benefits from a large, south facing garden. Freehold.

FULHAM: 020 7736 9822 sales.ful@marshandparsons.co.uk

Sailmakers Court SW6 £1,995,000 This superb penthouse apartment is presented in exceptional condition throughout with incredible views of the River Thames. The accommodation includes a breathtaking reception room with a conservatory area overlooking the river, a large eat-in Bellini kitchen, a master bedroom with en suite shower room that occupies the upper ﬂoor, three further double bedrooms all with en suite bathrooms and a further WC. The apartment also boasts/features underﬂoor heating and secure off street parking. Sole Agents.

FULHAM: 020 7736 9822 sales.ful@marshandparsons.co.uk

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LETTINGS

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Kempson Road SW6 £850 per week This exceptional apartment is enviably located on the Moore Park Estate, a short walk from the beautiful Eel Brook Common and the King’s Road. This unique property is ﬁnished to the highest standard throughout and offers fantastic living space comprising a reception room, eat-in kitchen, three generous double bedrooms all with en suite shower rooms, a family bathroom, study and a south facing roof terrace.

FULHAM: 020 7736 9822 lets.ful@marshandparsons.co.uk

Knight Frank

Rumbold Road, Fulham SW6 A perfect family home

A truly wonderful four bedroom house presented in immaculate condition and located on the Fulham/Chelsea borders. Rumbold Road is a very sought after street on the Moore Park Estate. Master bedroom suite, 3 further bedrooms, reception room, kitchen/dining room, family room, utility room, garden. Approximately 196.8 sq m (2,118 sq ft) Freehold Guide price: ÂŁ2,400,000 (FLH120179)

KnightFrank.co.uk/Fulham fulham@knightfrank.com 020 7751 2400

Knight Frank

Kempson Road, Fulham SW6 Five bedroom family house

A lovely, elegant family house with an abundance of entertaining space and bedrooms and a pretty garden, situated close to Eel Brook Common and convenient for accessing Fulham Broadway. Master bedroom and en suite bathroom, 4 further bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, kitchen/dining room, 3 reception rooms, conservatory, 2 guest WCâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s, utility room, garden, terrace. Approximately 244.8 sq m (2,635 sq ft) Freehold Guide price: ÂŁ2,595,000 (FLH120140)

KnightFrank.co.uk/Fulham fulham@knightfrank.com 020 7751 2400

LandLords and ProPerty Investors WInter’s here… For an expert view on this season’s ever-changing lettings market, please call Belvoir! and speak to our specialists. Our professional advice is provided confidentially, free and without obligation. We look forward to assisting you soon. 632 Fulham Road | London | SW6 5RT 020 7736 2786 | fulham@belvoirlettings.com

www.belvoirlettings.com/fulham 5880 Belvoir Converting Winter Window Display Card into an Advert v5.indd 1

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home comforts Useful nuggets of information concerning the local property market

ollowing the success of its Fulham office, Savills has now opened a new office in Bishops Park. The new team is headed up by Glynn Gibb as Head of Sales and Kate Rotherham as Head of Lettings, and both have an indepth knowledge of the local area. Their vibrant, new entourage hope to shake up the property market in the Bishops Park area, which is home to some of Fulham’s wider properties possessing larger gardens than those on the Peterborough Estate. An approximate £8million has been spent on the restoration of Bishops Park, and it now features a café and a clubroom as well as an urban beach and a lake. Glynn believes the jazzed up park will be ‘a popular destination for families, especially given the children’s play area has been

FULHAM RESIDENTS’ JOURNAL

W o r d s : CHARLOTTE NEWMAN

in that area do not need to come to us, upgraded and improved and [that the park we’ll come to them.’ will] now give both young and old a great The team is looking forward to the place to socialise.’ He adds that the new spring market, when owners of the office and the area have the potential to larger houses in Fulham tend to put their form a fruitful relationship: ‘We believe properties up for sale. They are also there is significant scope for a top-class predicting a busier summer market in 2013 agent in the Bishops Park area, not least as there will be fewer cultural distractions because of the calibre and quality of the than in 2012. Glynn says: ‘Pricing should houses and flats in the locale but also because we believe Savills can offer a The office looks fantastic truly global property and we believe that people will solution to the soon be drawn in by the friendly residents of Bishops and professional atmosphere Park and [to those of] property near the which we provide at Savills Munster Road.’ Kate is confident that the new office remain constant throughout 2013 with location will be in prime position for significant rises expected by 2017 as Savills drop-in property buyers and that it will forecasters predict. Similarly, London rents make Savills more doorstep-ready for their will rise by three percent in 2013, with existing clients in the area: ‘We are close to Fulham remaining a busy market.’ The the newly refurbished Fulham Palace, and market for flats is also set to be buzzing as are near to popular restaurants and shops. young families and professionals looking The office looks fantastic and we believe for flat shares move to the area. that people will soon be drawn in by the friendly and professional atmosphere which New Bishops Park Savills office: we provide at Savills.’ She adds, ‘Opening 423 Fulham Palace Road, 020 7731 9400 an office in Bishops Park means our clients www.savills.co.uk

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Chelsea Fulham & Parsons Green Kensington & Holland Park Knightsbridge, Belgravia & Mayfair Notting Hill & Bayswater West Chelsea & South Kensington

Sales 020 7225 3866 Sales 020 7731 7100 Sales 020 7938 3666 Sales 020 7235 9959 Sales 020 7221 1111 Sales 020 7373 1010

Lettings 020 7589 9966 Lettings 020 7731 7100 Lettings 020 7938 3866 Lettings 020 7235 9959 Lettings 020 7221 1111 Lettings 020 7373 1010

struttandparker.com

Dolphin House | Fulham | SW6 1,873 sq ft (174 sq m)

Fulham 020 7731 7100

Scan this QR code with your camera phone to read more about this property. Free QR code readers are available to download from our website at struttandparker.com/qrcode

M COW COW M HON KONG

Where will we find your perfect buyer? At Strutt & Parker, we’ve always gone to great lengths to bring the right buyer to your door, using our knowledge, contacts and total commitment to achieve the sale you want. But now we go further than ever. As members of the Christie’s International Real Estate network, we can reach quality buyers in 42 countries via 1,049 offices and a website visited 135,600 times a month. There’s no better way to open your door to the world.

struttandparker.com

Chelsea Fulham & Parsons Green Kensington & Holland Park Knightsbridge, Belgravia & Mayfair Notting Hill & Bayswater West Chelsea & South Kensington

Sales 020 7225 3866 Sales 020 7731 7100 Sales 020 7938 3666 Sales 020 7235 9959 Sales 020 7221 1111 Sales 020 7373 1010

Lettings 020 7589 9966 Lettings 020 7731 7100 Lettings 020 7938 3866 Lettings 020 7235 9959 Lettings 020 7221 1111 Lettings 020 7373 1010

struttandparker.com

Swift Street | Fulham | SW6 3,584 sq ft (333 sq m)

Fulham Sales 020 7731 7100

Scan this QR code with your camera phone to read more about this property. Free QR code readers are available to download from our website at struttandparker.com/qrcode

Where will we find your perfect buyer? At Strutt & Parker, we’ve always gone to great lengths to bring the right buyer to your door, using our knowledge, contacts and total commitment to achieve the sale you want. But now we go further than ever. As partners in the Christie’s International Real Estate network, we can reach quality buyers in 42 countries via 1,049 offices and a website visited 135,600 a month. There’s no better way to open your door to the world. struttandparker.com/christies 66 Sloane Street, London SW1X 9SH 020 7235 9959 knightsbridge@struttandparker.com

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04/09/2012 14:10