I’ve lived in nine London boroughs — they all had charm, but only one felt like home

I’ve never enjoyed staying in one place for too long, preferring to move around and explore different areas, which is why during my 19 years of London living, I made a home in nine of the city’s 32 boroughs.

Let me give you a whistle-stop tour of my various abodes in the big city.

First up, my early 20s were spent jumping from New Cross Gate in Lewisham, to Bethnal Green in Tower Hamlets, then onto Elephant and Castle in Southwark.

This was back when underpasses made up the roundabout and the long-gone shopping centre was at the heart of the neighbourhood.

At this point in my life, I was studying and heading straight into my first professional job, travelling across London daily.

Three years in a house share in Ealing followed, before Lambeth and Waltham Forest provided brief homes during turbulent periods of change (read: a big break up).

Mile End was next, another three-year stint in the borough of Tower Hamlets.

Then, I lived in the dream rental flat, mere footsteps from Victoria Park in Hackney, before Clapton, Stoke Newington and Newham’s Canning Town called.

My last London home was Kentish Town, within walking distance of Hampstead Heath, incredible bakeries and good pubs.

While this North London spot was a definite highlight of my time in the capital, it wasn’t my favourite.

Instead, that crown goes to the one and only, Hackney — the place that most felt like home.

‘Immersed in nature — in the heart of London’

Before the pandemic hit, when London rents were high, but not as insane as they are today, I lived in the cutest, tiniest one-bedroom flat on Victoria Park Road.

It had an open-plan kitchen and lounge, just enough space for a small two-person dinner table, huge sash-windows, a windowless bathroom (but, happily, there was a bath) and a small bedroom where I could watch foxes and full moons from bed.

Victoria Park (which, in my opinion, is by far the best park in London) was less than 100 footsteps away, and I would run or walk there most days.

There were a handful of brilliant independent shops, cafes and stores (before it became known as ‘The Village’ and Gail’s moved in), and many of my friends were pretty close by, including my downstairs neighbours, who I would often join for dinner and walks.

I’d look forward to Adana kebabs from the shop that’s long since gone, drinks sat at the bar of The Empress and The Hemmingway and Chambers’ lunches, often enjoyed outside in the sun.

Plus, rent was a good £200 a month less than it goes for now.

I could also swerve travelling by tube completely since my commute was a single bus ride. And once or twice a week, I would run home from work (along the canal in summer and by road in winter).

London Fields lido was also just a 20 minute walk away, ensuring post work swims were always possible. I preferred it best in winter when it was always less crowded and way more magical after dark.

All of these factors, including the adorable flat with its high ceilings and beaming sunlight, conspired to create the perfect living environment where I was content and finally felt at home.

When the pandemic hit, and the streets became deserted, I could stroll around Old Street, Shoreditch, Mile End and Hackney without seeing more than 10 people in a day.

It made me realise that I adored the city, but without the crush and rush of the nine-to-five.

Days and days were spent living slowly, taking long walks down every street I could find and making good food — it made me love Hackney even more, particularly streets like Groombridge Road with its stunning homes.

I’d pick wild rosemary from the bushes growing in Well Street Common, photograph beautiful grand wisteria-covered homes, and lie on the grass beneath Victoria Park’s cherry blossom trees that had erupted into a riot of pink over springtime.

Noticing and being immersed in nature, even in the heart of London without a garden, made me realise how important it was to me.

‘The constant sound of trains ruined sleep’

Of course, I also have some least favourites, and those boroughs without good transport links and sprawling parks remain at the bottom of my list.

Unfortunately, Lambeth’s Tulse Hill wasn’t an area I look back on fondly.

Sandwiched between two railway line tracks, the constant sound of the trains ruined sleep, while the commute that included an often delayed overground train, followed by two tubes, was a killer.

I have fond memories of Lewisham’s New Cross Gate, but I wouldn’t move back there in a hurry. The Old Kent Road was always snarled up with traffic, making getting anywhere on time a chore.

Having since moved out of London and the UK altogether, my fondest memories remain anchored in Hackney as well as Tower Hamlets with glorious Victoria Park at its heart. It really is the best place in town.

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