Red cascade

Every autumn the ivy on Langham House, on Ham Common, creates a stunning display of cascading reds.

Working on Langham House

I have been running this blog for so long that some patterns are starting to emerge and one of these is the maintenance of Langham House on the south-west side of Ham Common. I noted maintenance work in 2008 and in 2016, and it is happening again in 2024. You do not have to be a competitor on Only Connect to work out that is every eight years.

Front wall at Langham House

I walked past Langham House, on the south side of Ham Common, while two workmen were busy on the front wall and I made a note to go back a couple of days later to see the end result. They did a great job!

The wall is now a delicious mix of old bricks and new mortar. It has also kept its slight bulge at the far end caused by the tree's attempt, over many years, to escape its confines.

Langham red

The prettiest ivy in Ham in Autumn is on Langham House on Ham Common so here is another picture of it.

Langham House in red

Every Autumn Langham House turns red for a brief moment. It is only a brief moment but it is well worth catching.

Early Autumn

One of the (many) pleasures in walking around Ham is seeing how Autumn changes leaves red in different places at different times. This year Langham House was the first to take the plunge.

Langham House gets a refresh

Langham House has had a bit of a refresh over the Summer and was covered with scaffolding for several weeks. Most of the work was on the roof but the whole house was seen to and the most obvious thing was the repainting of everything white at the front of the house.

Langham House has long been one of my favourites and this refresh has ensured that it will stay that way for a few more years yet.

Autumn colours (2015)

Every year patches of Ham turn red and yellow and while I tell myself that I am not going to take many pictures of Autumn colours I always do. The three photos I've selected were taken on a straight walk along Ham Street and Ham Common.

The first one is of one of the outbuildings at Ham House. The ivy there is always particularly noticeable because there are no other buildings next to it and it faces south-west so catches the sun (when there is some), whereas the other two are on the other side of the road and so see no direct sunlight.

This wonderful example is on one of the short terrace of houses opposite the Ham Brewery Tap. I like the way that the red/yellow ivy is starting to colonise the house to the left of it and the way that it contrasts with the still green ivy to the right of it.

The final example comes from Langham House. The house looked lovely when the ivy was in full leaf but most of it had gone when I took this. One of the remaining fragments to red formed a ring around a window and that was enough to get me reaching for my camera.

Autumn ivy on Langham House (2015)

I know that I have posted pictures of the red ivy on Langham House before but it is such a distinctive landmark on Ham Common each Autumn that it is worth showing it again.

Previously I have taken pictures from the Common side of the road so I thought I would do something different this year and take one from the same side of the road as Langham House looking up at it.

Autumn brings reds to Ham

I might as well give up on giving up on taking Autumnal pictures as every year I end up taking several despite my best intentions not too. This year though I have managed to temper my picture taking a little and selected just three taken during a short walk to sum up the mood and the colour of the season.

Langham House gets featured, not for the first time, because of its wonderful ivy.

Venturing along Ham Street these reds and greens demanded my attention because of the way that they were presented against a plain mottled background.

Further along the road and then off to the side to walk behind Beaufort House, I found a wall of leaves that were each choosing their own time to change producing a mix of colours from light green to dark red.

Ivy on Langham House

Langham House is featured here regularly because I walk past it frequently, it is a very attractive and it changes pleasingly with the seasons. That is three good reasons.

Behind Langham House

The road that runs alongside Langham House, the appropriately named Langham House Close, is private and so I have avoided the temptation to walk down it for several years then Open House London gave me a legitimate excuse to be there, so I went.

The back of Langham House is almost as pretty as the front though it is nothing like as stately without a grand door to set it off. Both sides of the house have a healthy climber covering a lot of the bricks and trying to cover some of the windows.

Langham House Close

Langham House Close is a private development behind Langham House on Ham Common and was built in the late 50s in the modern style of the time. Because it is private and I (generally) respect privacy I have not featured it before but it was part of Open House London and that gave me the chance to go in and look.

The external view of the block closest to Ham Common is, in my opinion, rather lovely with crisp, neat straight lines, contrasting bricks and concrete, and sympathetic landscape.

There are a few blocks in the development and they are well spaced out with landscaping between them. I like the mound too as I think that variations in height are as important as variations in shape and colour.

The brick and concrete theme continues inside the flats too, which must have been a brave statement at the time. A lot of attention was paid to the details of the design as shown by the opening in the wall and the unusual shape of the mantelpiece.

Lost windows

The ivy on Langham House is enjoying the weather and has burst in to rampant life. So much so that the upper windows have all but disappeared.

Langham ivy (2010)

I know that I took a similar picture almost exactly a year ago but the mahogany Autumn ivy on Langham House makes such a bold and proud statement that it is worth a closer look.

Langham ivy (2009)

Langham House is well worth photographing at any time of the year and Autumn leaves are worth photographing in, er, Autumn, so getting the two together is always going to work well.

Water feature

Another chance passing of a door that was open when it is usually closed revealed a water feature in the front garden of the cottage next to Langham House.

Bricks and blossom

The pink blossom is gorgeous by itself but I love the way that it contrasts with the dark brick of Langham House and the way that there are just enough gaps in the blossom for the grandeur of the house to peep through.

Repairs at Langham House

The front of Langham House on Ham Common is covered by scaffolding as the brickwork is being repointed.

Langham House

Langham House is one of the impressive Georgian buildings on the south side of Ham Common.