Shaped hedges

Wates Estate is delightfully littered with small open spaces, like this one on Broughton Avenue opposite Mariner Gardens, where the shaped hedges are an unusual and attractive feature.

Scorched

Ham Common Woods looks a different place after several weeks of extreme heat and no rain. The vegetation has either wilted or turned brown making a walk through it more disturbing than delightful.

More planters for Ham Parade

The recycling bins on Ham Parade have never worried that much as it is a cluttered section anyway with the bush shelter, bench, information board and vehicles coming and going from the parking spaces at the end  but I do appreciate that they are unattractive and so the array of new planters around them is to be welcomed.

Another bollard is demolished

There has been another casualty in the never-ending war between bad motorists and the bollards designed to protect us from them. This bollard fell in the line of duty on the corner of Upper Ham Road and Ham Common, an area very familiar with the antics of bad drivers.

Watering Ham Polo ground

On the Ham United Group (HUG) Annual Architectural Tour 2026 of Ham Polo Club we were told repeatedly of the importance of keeping the horses safe and that includes keeping the ground soft enough which they do using this impressive rain-maker.

The water used for this comes directly from the river, under licence, and we were shown the pump that they use. It was just another example of how well run the whole operation is.

Doing something in Church Road

I was only here for a few minutes and that was not enough to work out what was going on but whatever it is it is restricting a large section of Church Road, you can just about see one of the traffic lights in the middle of the picture and the other set were about the same distance away in the other direction.

There were not many workers there which suggests that they might have been setting up and the only significant machine was a small digger suggesting that the road was were the work is being done.

Stables at Ham Polo

The Ham United Group (HUG) Annual Architectural Tour 2026 of Ham Polo Club was a fabulous event where I learned many unexpected things about a place I have walked past hundreds of times. One of those things was that there are around one hundred horses stabled there and this is just one of the blocks of stables where they are kept.

While we there we saw several horses out doing things and behind the scenes it is a busy place. Looking after all those horses are a dozen or so grooms who live on the site.

Greenery and flowers on Ham Lands

The weather station at Kew Gardens recorded zero rain in July for the first time since it started operating 155 years ago, and this shows in the acres of yellow grass that can be seen everywhere. Luckily we still have greenery and flowers in some places in Ham and especially in Ham Lands.

This view brightens up the main crossing from Teddington Lock to Croft Way.

Arena Polo

Wikipedia tells me, "Outdoor or "field" polo is played on a 300-by-160-yard grass field, while indoor or "arena" polo is played on a smaller 300-by-150-foot dirt arena." and it was on the Ham United Group (HUG) Annual Architectural Tour 2026 that I learned of the existence of Arena Polo and that Ham Polo has this arena in the north-east corner of their grounds.

On the border

Borders are often problematic, and the Richmond/Kingston border in Ham is no different. The last boundary changes improved matters but still left us with Sainsbury on Ham Parade calling itself "Kingston Upper Ham Road Local" because it has a KT2 postcode, and the boundary extending down Duke's Avenue so that is can include Malden Oaks.

The latest issue is caused by Richmond Council's decision to stop allowing Lime bikes into the Borough, leading to collections of bikes on the Kingston side of the border as riders discover that they can go no further. The most obvious places for the bikes to collect are on the towpath and on Richmond Road but the problem stretches to places like Horsley Drive in Royal Park Gate.

Tall fence

The small development of House in Kestrel Close and Dukes Avenue were built around thirty years and for all that time the low timber fences have been a prominent feature so the decision of 27 to build something substantial and solid is bit of a surprise.

The Hand & Flower

Firstly, an explanation. I had to crop this photo because the lower part had a reflection of me in it and I could not take another one as this moment has past.

The reason for my keenness to post this is because it shows part of an older sign, now painted over, where the name includes an ampersand. I do not know when that got replaced with "and" but all the photos here going back to 2007 have "and" rather than "&".

Ham House

The final picture from my most recent visit to Ham House is my favourite, which is the view of the back of the house. Always wonderful, the view this time is enhanced by the planting before and on the terrace.

Extensive work on Hand and Flower

The coming soon poster for The Hand and Flower says "beautiful refurbishment underway" and the initial signs are good. When the pub was last refurbished in 2022 that amounted to little more than a fresh coat of paint and it quickly looked shabby, so it is good to see them doing the job properly and going back to the brick.

Draining the lock

The Launch Lock at Teddington Lock is still in the middle of some serious reconstruction work, as it has been since the end of last year, and there is little sign of the work ending any time soon. I wanted to post an update and with everything looking much the same I used the excuse of the lock being drained through the pipe on the left.

Former cricket pavilion

We learned a lot about the history of Ham Polo Club and of their current site on the Ham United Group (HUG) Annual Architectural Tour 2026, including that the section of the their ground nearest the river, and behind their club house, used to be a cricket ground and this rather charming pavilion dates from those days.

New entrance to Little Orchard

The is the new entrance to the rebuilt Little Cottage from Bute Avenue. While not remarkable in itself it is markedly different from the previous entrance which was a gate with railings set back from the road with hedges on either side.

The new solid gate and the lack of greenery in front of the wall makes this a more austere and less welcoming entrance.

Cherry Garden at Ham House

I have posted quite a few pictures of the Cherry Garden at Ham House over the years but never from this angle before, not that I really need an excuse to post another one.

SOLAR sign

Save Our Lands and River (SOLAR) have been campaigning against Thames Water's TDRA (Teddington Direct River Abstraction) scheme for a couple of years and have organised and participated in many events to spread their message. This sign comes from their latest one.

Polo player

We were given a tour of all of the facilities at Ham Polo Club on the Ham United Group (HUG) Annual Architectural Tour 2026 but we skipped this statue so I have no idea who this is or even if it is somebody specific.

Its placement is rather out of the way and I hope that it about to be moved somewhere more prominent, as it deserves.

Kitchen Garden border

While the main beds in the Kitchen Garden at Ham House deservedly attract the most attention the border along the dividing wall is also well worth paying some attention to.

Ham Polo Club canopy

This is a closer look at the canopy on top of the Ham Polo Club pavilion. I took this picture simply because I like the construction.

[This is one of the pictures that I took on the Ham United Group (HUG) Annual Architectural Tour 2026]

Ham Polo Club pavilion

Visiting Ham Polo Club had been on my to-do list for decades (and it was only £2 to go when I first had the idea) so I was glad when the Ham United Group (HUG) Annual Architectural Tour 2026 gave me the unmissable opportunity to go. I will be posting a few pictures of it over the next couple of weeks or so, starting with the familiar pavilion which I had previously only seen from the distant Ham Avenues.

Teddington Lock garden

Teddington Lock is dominated by the extensive works to the Launch Lock, and has been for several months, so it is good to see that the garden there is still looking good.

Dead trees

A few trees were planted along the edge of The Copse by the boundary to the new Clarendon SEND School but the pleas to "Please Water Me" were ignored and they died. 

To be fair, it was somewhat optimistic to expect them to be watered without organising people to do so, particularly when they are not immediately next to any houses. If only there were a local residents association who could do that sort of thing.

The Hand and Flower is coming back (again)

Having been empty and inactive for several months The Hand and Flower is coming back as an independent pub with Thai dining. Similar approaches have been tried in the past without success and I hope that the new venture has better fortune.

It is encouraging that they are keeping the name and I like the new logo with a pink flower.

It will be interesting to see what the balance between food and drinks is but I hope to be using it both as a pub and as a restaurant.

New benches at Ham House

The wide path that runs along the edge of Plats and Wilderness has gained some new benches where you can sit and enjoy the best view of Ham House.

BenForrest in lights

I thought that I had finished covering the extensive refurbishment of BenForrest on Ham Parade and then I got off a 65 late at night and saw this.

Spare bricks

Work has all but finished on Little Orchard (on the south-east corner of Sudbrook Lane and Bute Avenue) and they seem to have quite a few bricks left over, which have been neatly stacked along the Bute Avenue boundary.

Kitchen Garden at Ham House

On this visit to Ham House I was informed that the house was closed for filming and I accepted the new graciously because I knew that already and I had not gone to visit the house, as usual I had gone to visit the gardens.

Despite there having been no rain for what seems like a very long time, the Kitchen Garden looked magnificent. No wonder that there were many people sitting in the outside area of the cafe, I was only upset that I did not have the time to join them. 

Rebuilding 16 Sandy Lane

A week or so ago when I first posted a picture of the rebuilding of 16 Sandy Lane I was thwarted by the green mesh across the front of the property so I was pleased to find on my latest visit, as expected,  that a hole had developed in the mesh allowing me to take this picture of the whole site.

Bird post restored

The metal bollard in Sudbrook Lane that a driver knocked out of place earlier this year has been restored and so has the decorated fake tree attached to it. Birds are again the residents of the tree though I expect this to change from time to time.

Ham House

I have posted many views of Ham House over the years, but never the obvious one, until now. Framing the house with trees and statues is both obvious and effective.

Not the entrance to Ham House

It looks as though some people have confused the entrance to the stables as the entrance to Ham House (understandable given the size, age and grandeur of the entrance) and so there is a sign pointing people in the right direction and this entrance is marked as "Private".

Digging up Craig Road

While the recent road works on Petersham Road and at Ham Cross have caused the most disruption those in Craig Road are quite substantial with various holes having been dug along the length of the road. 

This seems to be a continuation of the pipe replacement work that has been going on intermittently across the area for the last few years. Oddly, neighbouring Lock Road was done way back in 2022.

Through the arched window

It might look like an arched window, and I could not miss the Play School reference, but it is actually a mirror showing you flowers in the front garden of this house in Lock Road, rather than the brick wall of the building behind it.

Petersham Road resurfacing

The closure of Petersham Road over night for resurfacing has caused a few problems with access, which is why I ended up taking this photo at 1:30am while walking home from Richmond because there were no buses.

I presume that this work is necessary but that does not make the regular closures and restrictions on this road any less annoying.

Incidentally, Petersham Road was fully resurfaced in 2014. It may have been done again since then but without me recording it.

Work continues at Gordon House

The work on Gordon House, on Ham Common, has been going on for a long time and it is almost a year since I last posted and update. Finding the fate half open was just the excuse I needed to post another one.

The new garage on the left is the most (only?) noticeable change. Elsewhere the plastic sheeting is still in place at the back of the house.

No Jumping or Diving

There have been a number of different signs warning against jumping and diving on and around Teddington Footbridge for many years and these have been joined by several circular ones, like this one on the steps up from the towpath on the Ham side.

Progress at Harrington Lodge

When work started at Harrington Lodge in Sudbrook Lane last year it was hidden behind plastic sheets and now that they have been removed I am pleased to say that the Lodge looks much as it always did, and most importantly the climbing tree is still intact.

At the moment it is wilder that it was and it has grown up a little at this end compared to what it was in 2009.

Waiting for a garden

I have been following the current phase of work to 31 Ham Farm Road for almost four years (!) and they finally seem to be drawing to a close. Most of the front garden has given way to a hard surface for vehicles  with little space left for vegetation.

The small strip in front of the low wall is actually part of Ham Common and so I presume that this will be replanted as will the small strip of ground the other side of the wall where one tree stands as a reminder of the former garden.

Sandy Lane foundations

Sandy Lane has seen a lot of change in recent years as houses in large plots have been extended or even, as in this case, demolished to make even larger properties.

Annoyingly there is a green narrow mesh screen across the front of the property which my camera gets confused by, focusing on that rather than the works behind, and so all I could get this time was the view from one edge.

Restored cap

When I last posted a picture of a former gate to Beaufort House in Ham Street the work on the pillar on the left looked unfinished and the cap had not been replaced. A month later and it looks completed. 

You cannot tell from here that the brick pillar has been worked on and the cap is back in place. It is only the new slab that suggests that anything has changed.

Battered bollard

It is only a week or so since I noted the new concrete bollards on the bend of Church Road, by the south-east entrance to Ham Common Woods, and one of them has taken a hit already.

Behind Ham Parade

The service road behind the west side of Ham Parade (possibly Warners Lane but sources are inconsistent on that, e.g. it is not named on Ordnance Survey maps) has been the scene of much building over the years  so that it looks something of a mess, so unlike the frontages.

This current work is at the south end and it is too early to tell if it is an extension to a Ham Parade unit or a  separate building.

 

Close to the new works is this building which is a separate habitable one bedroom dwelling. The address for the planning application is 311A Richmond Road despite it facing on to the service road.

Ivy House refreshed

A couple of weeks ago I noted that Ivy House on Upper Ham Road was being repointed and now that the work has finished I am rather impressed. 

At this distance it is hard to see that anything has changed, though the whiteness of the windows suggests that they may  have been repainted not long ago, and it is only when you get closer that the newness of some of the pointing can be seen.

The Hive revealed

For many months the lower part of The Hive on Ham Village Green has been hidden behind boards so I was delighted to find it finally revealed. And the ground floor makes a big difference as it explains why there is a grey arch on the first floor, which had looked out of place.

The Hive sits very comfortably in its Village Green setting and is a welcome addition to the area.

Celebrating Wimbledon

This hedge at the Common end of Ham Street is something of a local landmark and I have posted a picture of it before when the two spheres became Christmas puddings. Their current transformation into tennis balls is stylistically simple but technically difficult as the two curvilinear ovals on each sphere have to be approximately the same size for the effect to work properly.

It is always good to see people making an effort like this to brighten the area even if all it takes is a little bit of white tape.

On entering Petersham Lodge Woods

It is easy to overlook Petersham Lodge Woods as River Lane and the towpath let you pass easily but it is worth making the effort to step inside and this is the serene view you get on entering from River Lane,