.jpeg?width=1200&auto=webp)
Think of historic London and you’ll like a picture a smart row of early Victorian townhouses, or the relative rarity of Georgian architecture.
In reality, little says more of our history than the tanneries, printworks and factories that kept the city humming through decades of industrial progress.
Now highly coveted thanks to renewed demand for light, space and character, such buildings often bear clues to their former lives in features like old signage or loading bay doors.
We’ve found ten one-off London homes with off-beat industrial appeal – including Slazenger’s old tennis ball factory.
South Bermondsey, SE15
£3.995 million
With its stencilled signage and roller door, this industrial build suggests little of its capacious offering from the street. The 3,000 square foot former printworks is arranged around a central courtyard with space for two cars, and the warren-like network of whitewashed rooms are bright and versatile.
Unique Property Company, 020 3987 1739
Brixton Hill, SW2
£1.895 million
The cavernous upper level of this former bakery comes with four bedrooms, as well as a striking timber-clad pitched ceiling, Crittall windows and tons of Victorian tilework. It’s an unusual proposition in a prime spot, with Brixton, Dulwich and Clapham within easy reach.
The Modern House, 020 3834 8558
Barnsbury, N1
.jpeg?trim=20%2C0%2C21%2C0)
£695,000
A well planned one-bedroom flat in a handsome former bookbinding workshop on a sought-after Islington square in the Barnsbury Conservation area. It’s a particularly convenient, with the Tube, Overground and Upper Street independents close by.
Savills, 020 3879 5218
Bethnal Green, E1
£780,000
This charm of this two-bedroom flat, within a former leather tannery towards Spitalfields and Whitechapel, is the exposed brickwork, wood panelling and loading bay doors. But there’s also a host of practical extras, including a communal roof terrace and secure parking.
Urban Spaces, 020 3910 0873
Woolwich, SE18
£2.5 million
Once home to Slazenger’s tennis ball factory, the Edwardian buildings on this 3,500 square foot site have enormous development potential. It was converted into a single home in 1998 but the agent highlights similar offerings that have been turned into attractive flats.
Dexters, 020 8614 1216
Forest Gate, E7
£425,000
This creatively executed flat crowns an old Art Deco sweet factory in a surprisingly residential spot in Forest Gate. it’s a thoroughly modish conversion, with steel worktops, an appealing seating platform and a bedroom on the bright mezzanine.
Story of Home, 020 3907 3760
Clapton, E5
£850,000
A stylish, high-spec live/work apartment in Dehavilland Studios, a striking Art Deco former aircraft factory, overlooking the River Lea. This one-bedroom flat occupies a coveted corner plot and comes with a designated parking space.
The Modern House, 020 3834 8558
Camden, NW1
£925,000
On the ground floor of a turn-of-the-century electrical substation, this two-bedroom apartment sits behind a restored red brick façade and Crittall-style windows. It has a sensible plan, with a second bathroom, and there’s an allocated storage room in the basement.
Goldschmidt & Howland, 020 3907 2589
Hoxton, N1
£1,299,950
Former Edwardian printworks The Factory set the standard for the London warehouse conversion when it was refurbished by Manhattan Loft Corporation in 1999. This two-bedroom apartment includes kitchen cabinetry reclaimed from an old library and an 150-year-old French zinc bathtub.
Circa London, 020 3889 9067
Kentish Town, NW5
£1.195 million
A good-size apartment with airy, neutral interiors in a Victorian warehouse conversion, a few minutes from the Tube and Overground. Highlights include a high-spec Leicht kitchen, a marble bathroom and a separate dining room which could be used as a third bedroom or study.
