This exquisite Grade II-listed Regency townhouse lies on a quiet street in the coveted Connaught Village, in the heart of the Hyde Park Estate and the Bayswater conservation area. Wonderfully preserved and restored, the five-bedroom house’s sympathetic contemporary interventions blend beautifully with the original features. Laid out over five levels, internal accommodation extends to over 2,300 sq ft, with an exceptional level of finish achieved throughout. The house is a short walk from Hyde Park and the countless fashionable shops and restaurants locally in the village and the West End; transport links are exceptional.

Setting the Scene

The Hyde Park Estate was laid out by Samuel Pepys Cockerell, a direct descendent of famed diarist Samuel Pepys, in the 1820s for the Bishop of London (later forming the Church Commissioners for England). Cockerell was also responsible for designing the Pulteney Estate in Bath and, most famously, Sezincote House in Gloucestershire. His designs for the Hyde Park Estate were based on a Georgian model grid pattern and became the standard across much of ‘suburban’ London in the late 1820s.

The Hyde Park Estate remains a secret corner of London’s West End, located a short walk from the glorious tranquillity of Hyde Park. Adding to the village-like quality of the area, two of the best central London stables are located moments away in Bathurst Mews, while horses of the Royal Artillery regularly do their early morning rides down Connaught Street.

Recent exhaustive renovations have reimagined the spaces within this elegant Georgian home, using the finest (primarily British) materials and finishes, including a Plain English Design kitchen, bespoke finish solid oak wood flooring, and beautiful marble bathrooms with brassware by Studio Ore. Ironmongery and electric plates are by Corston Architectural Detail and lighting includes Fritz Fryer and Jim Lawrence designs. Elegant marble chimneypieces and fine plasterwork feature in the principal rooms and cast-iron radiators throughout the house. For more information, please see the History section.

The Grand Tour

Set behind original spearhead wrought-iron railings, this house is laid out over four storeys and a basement. It is built from brown brick in Flemish bond with channelled stucco on the ground floor and a third-floor stucco sill band. A separate iron gate leads down stone steps to the lower-ground floor rooms, and there is a beautiful decorative cast-iron Juliet balcony on the piano nobile.

A black and white tiled path leads to the six-panel front door. This is positioned in a handsome doorcase, with an oculus set in the Regency fanlight resting above a slim architrave. Unlacquered brass furniture and chrome Banham security locks offset the smart black gloss paintwork. Entry is to the private hallway, laid with antique-finish limestone cabochon tiles in a diamond pattern with Belgian blue stone inserts. Walls are painted here and throughout the house in varying shades of 'Portland  Stone' by Little Greene.

The kitchen and dining room are set to the right, and the separate pantry is positioned at the rear of this floor. The kitchen features panelled cupboards painted in 'Relish' by Plain English Design, with Calacatta Monet marble resting atop. These house a butler sink, a Bertazzoni range cooker, a dishwasher and a larder fridge. A Studio Ore lever mixer tap and a pot filler faucet are finished in polished brass, perfectly offsetting the marble. A large sash window allows light to pour in and overlooks a verdant exterior living wall. The room opens through a delicate architrave and wide set wedding doors to the dining area, where a handsome Carrara Gioia marble chimneypiece in a bullseye design creates a centrepiece. The spacious pantry is home to an integrated fridge freezer, laundry facilities, and further cabinetry, providing plenty of storage.

The bipartite drawing room is positioned on the first floor, with exceptional plasterwork and fine wall mouldings framing the spacious elevations. There are three full-height box sash windows with slim panelled shutters, two at the front and one at the rear of the room, meaning it is exceptionally light. Two fine companion bullseye marble chimneypieces are set in each space, with a gas fire in the main seating area. Accessed through slender French doors is a private exterior terrace set off the landing.

The second floor is home to the principal bedroom suite. Sleeping quarters are at the front of the plan, with bespoke cedar-lined wardrobes concealed behind jib doors at the rear of the room. The en suite bathroom features a sculptural freestanding bath by Lusso stone. A separate shower area is encased in vein-matched Arabescato marble with a rainfall shower head; the vanity is formed from the same stone with two under-mounted sinks. Brassware in all the bathrooms is in polished brass by Studio Ore.

At the apex of the house lie two further bedrooms set into the roof’s soaring pitch, featuring expansive glass apertures set within. Both rooms have exquisite en suite bathrooms clad in marble and blush-colour Zellige wall tiles.

The lower-ground floor is accessed from both the main hallway and separately from the street-level stone steps to the front of the house. The ceiling heights and the quality of light are very good, and the two main rooms offer great versatility; each can act as a bedroom or study room. The rear room looks out to the luscious living wall, while the front room looks out to the spacious stone lightwell. Plant is housed in an exterior vault, while there is also an interior vault with extra storage. A shower room is positioned to the rear of this floor. Serving both bedrooms, it is similarly finished with exquisite marble and fittings.

The Great Outdoors

A vertical and wonderfully verdant green wall acts as a visual town garden of sorts. Rising from the lightwell at the rear of the house, it creates a beautiful natural vista from both the lower-ground floor and raised-ground floor rooms, with a particularly lovely aspect from the kitchen.

A peaceful south-facing roof terrace is also positioned on the first floor, accessed through French windows from the main landing. Laid with limestone tiles, it is the perfect spot for morning coffee or evening drinks.

Out and About

Kendal Street is brilliantly located on the ‘Connaught Triangle’ in Connaught Village, moments from the West End by foot and a short cycle or walk through Hyde Park to both Kensington & Chelsea to the south and Notting Hill to the west. In the immediate vicinity, the cafes, restaurants and provisors on Connaught Street and adjacent Porchester Place are particularly popular, with a wonderful community feel and sense of on-street café culture reminiscent of the continent; Le Pain Quotidien and Markus Coffee are especially favoured. Just across Edgware Road to the east is Seymour Place, a quiet street with branches of both Borough Barista and Gail’s bakery.

The wide-open parkland of Hyde Park, London’s finest and largest Royal Park, is less than five minutes’ walk away. It has a boating lake, famed rose gardens, and in the summer months, open-air concerts. Laid out over some 625 acres when included with the adjacent Kensington Gardens (first separated by Queen Caroline in 1728), it is one of London’s eight Royal parks, Grade I-listed, and was originally King Henry VIII’s hunting ground.

Local schools are excellent, with many prep schools within walking distance, including Hope Montessori, Connaught House School, Wetherby Prep School and the ICS International School. Further senior schools are just a short distance away, including Queens College, Westminster School and Francis Holland.

Transport links are exceptional, with Marble Arch (Central line) and Paddington (Hammersmith & City line, Circle line and Metropolitan line) very close to Kendal Street. Paddington also has access to the Elizabeth Line (Crossrail), connecting directly to Heathrow Airport, the City and Canary Wharf to the east. Kings Cross St Pancras, Euston and Victoria stations are also nearby, as is the A40 via the Westway.

Council Tax Band: H