Queen's Crescent, London NW5

On a prominent crescent a short walk from Primrose Hill, this six-bedroom Victorian townhouse has been confidently reconfigured and renovated by award-winning architects Paul Archer Design. Its handsome traditional façade belies a strikingly contemporary extension conceived of three types of brick finishes and frameless glazing, used to highlight the textures and light-enhancing apertures of the design. Queen's Crescent is fantastically located between the bustle of Camden, Kentish Town and the urbane Belsize Park.

The Tour

Formerly two distinct living accommodations, the driving principle of the renovation and extension was to reunite the home into a generous, bright dwelling that foregrounded modernist aesthetics. The internal accommodation now spans over 2,700 sq ft, with the lower-ground floor reincorporated to add a further three bedrooms, a utility room, a shower room and a WC. The lower level has its own front access as well as steps leading up to the garden.

The primary entrance is on the raised ground-floor level, where a wide hallway leads to the living spaces. A reception room at the front and a vivid, laminated-ply kitchen at the rear join through sliding pocket doors which can be left often to form a light-filled open plan. Beyond the kitchen, full-height glazing frames the dining space and leads the eye to the paved garden, accessed by a glazed sliding door. On the first floor is a further formal reception room with an original cast-iron fireplace and wonderful oak parquet, which is present throughout much of the house.

The second floor is given over to the main bedroom suite, thoughtfully conceived to include plenty of built-in joinery and a private bathroom. Tiled in a muted pink palette, the bathroom has a walk-in shower and free-standing bath with black accented hardware. There is also access to the terrace area on this storey, which utilises the Petersen brick of the extension as flooring and repeats the frameless glazing motif here as a balustrade.

The third floor occupies the former loft and has been converted to provide a further bedroom with its own balcony. The room is currently used as a studio or home office and mirrors the lower-ground floor’s use of birch ply flooring to create a contemporary, wide-board feel.

Outside Space

The private walled garden is surrounded by mature trees and pretty shrubbery. Brick planters border along two walls, with paving slabs providing steady grounding for an evening dining spot.

The Area

Queen’s Cresent is a quiet residential road brilliantly situated between the coveted high streets of Belsize Park, Primrose Hill, Camden and Kentish Town.

There is plenty to do in the immediate area. Camden is well known for its world-famous market and wealth of independent restaurants, cafés and venues, including an outpost of plant-based restaurant Mildreds, The Jazz Café, The Roundhouse and iconic gelato parlour Marine Ices. Kentish Town too, has a fantastic and varied high street, which we've written about in greater depth in our Journal.

The iconic music venue Koko is close by and has reopened following an enormous revamp, which includes two stages, a late-night pizzeria and House of Koko; a new four-storey members club with a roof-top bar.

The green open spaces of Primrose Hill park and Primrose Hill Village are a short walk away from an array of restaurants, boutiques, pubs and delis on Erskine Road and Regent’s Park Road. Odette’s, Lemonia and Greenberry Café are just a few of the neighbourhood favourites in this, one of London’s most desirable locations. Likewise, Hampstead Heath with its year-round swimming ponds, Kenwood House and acre upon acre of green, open space is to the north, and can be easily reached on foot from the house. Hampstead Village has a brilliant offering of eateries and shops too, including an outpost of Ottolenghi.

Many of London’s best schools are within close proximity including the Collège Français Bilingue de Londres which teaches the French curriculum, as well as a number of other state and private options.

The house is within walking distance of Kentish Town Station (Northern Line and Thameslink) and Kentish Town West Station (Overground). The Thameslink provides quick services to St Pancras International. Chalk Farm (Northern Line) is equidistant, servicing the other branch of the Northern Line.

Council Tax Band: G