LA59 BZD

Ham Parade often sees bad parking but not often at the north-east end where LA59 BZD has chosen to mount the pavement and to block the dropped kerb. It is simply selfish and careless.

New door

A door has suddenly appeared in the wall between Montrose House and Reston Lodge though there is nothing to indicate which of these properties it gives access to.

Preparing for the third Huf Haus

It has taken a while to get past the planning objections but finally we can look forward to getting the third Huf Haus in the area. The site has been cordoned off, demolishing is due in April and the new house should rise in June. I am very much looking forward to it. The current house is nothing special but its replacement will be.

Clearing out more trees

There has been something of a plague of what looks like overzealous tree removal across Ham in recent years and the latest victim of this is Petersham Lodge Woods where several trees have been cut down for reasons that are not obvious.

Attractive entrance

This front door is set some way back from the Petersham Road so is not that obvious even when walking past at a moderate pace. Luckily I make a point of looking out for the less obvious.

Something is happening in Bainbridge Close

Bainbridge Close has something of a mixed history. It was created from former prison land, playing fields I believe, and the far (southern) end became a small gated development of houses that always struck me as being a little sterile.

Then on the junction with Latchmere Close the hideous Latchmere Lodge appeared.

That left a thin strip of land unused and looking unusable, not least because of the substantial trees within it.

Then after several years some boarding appeared, and then got painted white, suggesting that something is indeed going to happen in that space.

St Michaels from the Common

The former St Michael's Convent on Ham Common is mostly hidden from the outside world by mature trees and it is only in Winter that there is any sort of view. I suspect that this will change when the building changes its use as the new residents will want to be able to see the Common. Then it will be interesting to see how much this aspect of the building has changed.

Busy weir

The weir is an important part of the complex that includes the prettier and more accessible Teddington Lock and the more dramatic footbridge so it is easy to overlook it. That would be a shame as industrial chic has its own charm.

There is something going on there at the moment. That is bringing more clutter to the weir and that is just the sort of clutter that I like. 

Behind a new house

I had posted a couple of pictures of the front of this house on Ham Farm Road as it was being created from a garage and wanted to end the story with a view from the back. Luckily a lane leads past it.

I was pleasantly surprised to see the glass wall at the end. There is something similar by the entrance to the golf club that I also like.

Replacing Ham Fruiterers

It has been quite a while since Ham Fruiterers sadly closed and the premises has been shut since then. Finally work has started on rebuilding it for its new role on the Parade.

Camilla Cottage goes private

Having been on the market for as long as I can remember it looks as though Camilla Cottage on Upper Ham Road has new owners and they like their privacy. The front wall is now about twice the height that it was and the front gate has been made solid. It seems odd to me to buy a property that faces Ham Common and then to hide from it.

On the plus side, I quite like the finials (though they may be a touch grand for the house) and the house nameplate is suitably neat and unfussy.

Rescuing a boat

Having recently posted a picture of a sunken boat next to Teddington Footbridge I was lucky enough to be walking over the bridge when several much larger boats arrived to perform a rescue operation.

Demolishing a house in Sudbrook Gardens

I love the permeability of Ham and so I hate places like Sudbrook Gardens that are No Through Roads. The lack of another exit means that I do not walk down there too often but when I head that a house was being demolished I had to go to see it.

The house that is going is right at the end of the road and is right behind Sudbrook Lodge; that is Old Coach House in the top-right of the picture.

Sudbrook Gardens may not go anywhere but I will be visiting it quite often in coming months.

Loft extension in Craig Road

With Spring approaching houses across Ham are sprouting new extensions, including this one in Craig Road which is growing a loft extension. As with other such projects it is the work in progress that interests me as much, if not more so, as the finished result. You have to like the orange ladder.

A few weeks later and the new build started to appear. The new roof looked very new and very red, especially when compared to its semi-detached neighbour.

Cedar Heights from Richmond Park

I have made some less than favourable comments about the appearance of the front of the new house in Cedar Heights and I thought that I would go into Richmond Park to see if the view of the back of the house is any better. It isn't.

It is the simplicity and uniformity of the design that annoys me more than anything else. There is nothing about it that I like.

Green house in Sudbrook Gardens

Many of the houses in Sudbrook Gardens have been substantially rebuilt or remodelled over the years but the first house on the left as you enter the road has remained nicely untouched. The period styling of the house is still quaint and the green paint adds a nice touch.

I dare say that this house's turn for a refresh will come and when it does they will have to work hard to make it look as good as it does now.

A misty morning on Ham Common

Ham Common has many moods and even though I have walked across it or around it thousands of times it still has the capacity to surprise and delight me, as it did on this crisp February morning.

A little extension in New Road

New Road is sort on my way to work (I have various routes to choose from) and that is giving me the opportunity to check the progress of a new extension being built in New Road. This is how it looked on 31 January.

Almost a month later, 25 February, the walls were taking shape and the dimensions of the extension were more obvious. But the main reason that I took this picture was the collection of materials and tools that the construction demanded as they enlivened the scene with interesting shapes and colours.

Bull Meadow

I do not know how official it is but the school playing field in Sandy Lane has been named as Bull Meadow by Richmond Park FC. I have never seen a bull there, and I never expect to, but I like the name and, besides, any name is better than no name.

Minor works to St Andrew's

I wander down Church Street quite often these days, mostly to check on the progress on Richmond Chase (Latchmere House), and on one of my recent walks there I noticed some minor works being done to St Andrew's.

HY59 XRC and YG61 MLL ignore double yellow lines

This section of Parkleys Parade, outside Wendy's Workshop, attracts a lot of bad parkers who are perfectly happy to park on double yellow lines and also block the dropped kerb thereby being an unnecessary annoyance to both pedestrians and motorists. The double yellow lines are there for a reason.

Merlewood gets a new name plate

Back in June 2016 I posted a picture of the new fence at Merlewood in Hazel Lane and noted at the time that the house had a hand drawn name plate on the gate; finally that has been replaced by a neat wood one.

Sunken boat

It gives me great pleasure to walk over Teddington Lock Footbridge twice a day on my way to and from work and I always cross slowly looking both ways to take in the view. On this day the view towards Kingston included a small boat that had lost its long battle against the water.