We talk to Matthew Gardiner Legge, sales manager at our Holland Park branch on Portland Road, to find out what makes his patch so special.
Tell us about the areas where you work?
My area offers an eclectic array of styles and vibes, each one quite distinct from the other. Sleepy Holland Park itself with its small period streets of family homes; Holland Park ‘proper’, with its magnificent, ornate and vast (10,000sq ft+) wedding cake villas owned over the years by the likes of Beckham, Branson, Paul Allen (Microsoft) and Valentino. It also has strong links with the musical greats; Robbie Williams, Jimmy Page, Simon Cowell to name just a few. Then a walk up the road to Notting Hill and the amazing Garden Squares – Ladbroke Square Gardens, Lansdowne Crescent, Elgin Crescent – all of them vibrant communities in their own right. Moving on, to where gritty Ladbroke Grove meets multi-billionaires and all the history that goes with it – Portobello Road and Westbourne Grove. Move south down towards genteel Kensington, my favourite location for a chap of advancing years (my Notting Hill days are a little behind me!). We touch on the North Western edge of W2, always an area ‘on the up’ but perhaps a little ‘edgy’ in places north of Hyde Park.
Tell us an interesting, lesser known fact about the area:
Pottery Lane, just 50 yards from my office, was one of the most dangerous places in London back in the days when there really were pottery kilns and a racetrack where now sits Hippodrome Mews. Portland Road was discovered recently to be the road with the biggest price differential from one end to the other in the whole of London – ranging from £12m to £250,000, which really is quite a range.
Who else loves the area?
Up until a few years ago there were a lot of American and European bankers and their families but we’re now seeing a resurgence in wealthy young professionals who are upsizing. It’s also an area very popular with creatives, advertisers, musicians and actors. Annie Lennox, Richard Curtis, Sebastian Faulks are all locals.
Where’s the best place to grab a bite to eat nearby?
It has to be Number 6 Portland Road – the little place with the big following (David Cameron is a regular). Otherwise, The Ladbroke Arms, the local pub with the fabulous, if slightly pricey, menu!
What sort of properties are available here?
Come and talk to us at our branch on Portland Road and we’d be delighted to tell you more about the stunning properties we’re marketing at the moment. The area is full of architectural gems and we’d be delighted to help.
