Maida Vale
Encyclopedia
Maida Vale is a residential district in West London
between St John's Wood
and Kilburn. It is part of the City of Westminster
. The area is mostly residential, and mainly affluent, consisting of many large late Victorian
and Edwardian
blocks of mansion flats. It is also home to the BBC Maida Vale Studios
.
The Maida Vale area is usually regarded as being bounded by Maida Avenue and the Regent’s Canal in the South, Maida Vale road to the north east, Kilburn Park Road to the north west, and Shirland Road and Blomfield Road to the south west. The southern part of Maida Vale around Paddington Basin
, a junction of two canals with many houseboat
s, is known as Little Venice. The area to the south-west of Maida Vale, at the southern end of Elgin Avenue, was historically known as "Maida Hill", and was a recognised postal district bounded by the Avenues on the west, the Grand Union Canal
on the south, Maida Vale to the east and Kilburn Lane to the north. Parts of Maida Vale were also included within this. The name of "Maida Hill" has since fallen out of use, although has recently been resurrected through the new 414 bus route (which terminates on Shirland road and states its destination as Maida Hill), and a new street market on the Piazza at the junction of Elgin Avenue and Harrow Road.
Just to the east of Maida Vale is St John's Wood
and Lord's Cricket Ground
.
Developed by the Ecclesiastical Commissioners
in the early 19th century as middle class housing, Maida Vale took its name from a public house
named after John Stuart, Count of Maida
, which opened on the Edgware Road soon after the Battle of Maida
, 1806.
In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Maida Vale was a predominantly Jewish district, and Lauderdale Road in Central Maida Vale contains the 1896 Spanish & Portuguese
Synagogue
(a Grade II listed building) and headquarters of the British Sephardi community. The actor Alec Guinness
was born in this road. The first Prime Minister of Israel, David Ben-Gurion
, lived within sight of this synagogue
on Warrington Crescent, and the pioneer of modern computing, Alan Turing
, was born a few hundred yards further down this same road.
Maida Vale tube station
was opened on June 6, 1915, on the Bakerloo Line
.
network radio's recording and broadcast studios. The building is in fact one of the BBC's earliest premises, pre-dating Broadcasting House, and was the centre of the BBC radio news service during the second world war.
The building on Delaware Road houses a total of seven music and radio drama studios, and most famously were home to John Peel
's BBC Radio 1
Peel Sessions, and the BBC Radiophonic Workshop
.
. who lived here from 1862 to 1887. However, this was disputed by Lord Kinross in 1966 and by London Canals. Both assert that Lord Byron
humorously coined the name, which is now applied more loosely to a longer reach of the canal system. Browning's Pool is named after the poet, and is the junction of Regent's Canal
and the Paddington
arm of the Grand Union Canal
.
South Maida Vale is one of London's prime residential areas, and it is also known for its shops and restaurants, as well as the Canal Cafe Theatre
, the Puppet Theatre Barge
, the Waterside Café and the Warwick Castle pub. A regular waterbus service operates from Little Venice eastwards around Regent's Park
, calling at London Zoo
and on towards Camden Town
. Since 1983 the Inland Waterways Association has hosted the Canalway Cavalcade in Little Venice
, Lauderdale Mansions West and Lauderdale Mansions East in Lauderdale Road. Others quickly followed in neighbouring streets: Elgin Mansions (Elgin Avenue) and Leith Mansions (Grantully Road) in 1900, Ashworth Mansions (Elgin Avenue and Grantully Road) and Castellain Mansions (Castellain Road) in 1902, Elgin Court (Elgin Avenue) and Carlton Mansions (Randolph Avenue) in 1902, and Delaware Mansions (Delaware Road) and Biddulph Mansions (Elgin Avenue and Biddulph Road) in 1907.
, situated in Maida Vale, was the school of which Philip Lawrence
was head teacher at the time of his murder in December 1995.
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
between St John's Wood
St John's Wood
St John's Wood is a district of north-west London, England, in the City of Westminster, and at the north-west end of Regent's Park. It is approximately 2.5 miles north-west of Charing Cross. Once part of the Great Middlesex Forest, it was later owned by the Knights of St John of Jerusalem...
and Kilburn. It is part of the City of Westminster
City of Westminster
The City of Westminster is a London borough occupying much of the central area of London, England, including most of the West End. It is located to the west of and adjoining the ancient City of London, directly to the east of the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, and its southern boundary...
. The area is mostly residential, and mainly affluent, consisting of many large late Victorian
Victorian architecture
The term Victorian architecture refers collectively to several architectural styles employed predominantly during the middle and late 19th century. The period that it indicates may slightly overlap the actual reign, 20 June 1837 – 22 January 1901, of Queen Victoria. This represents the British and...
and Edwardian
Edwardian architecture
Edwardian architecture is the style popular when King Edward VII of the United Kingdom was in power; he reigned from 1901 to 1910, but the architecture style is generally considered to be indicative of the years 1901 to 1914....
blocks of mansion flats. It is also home to the BBC Maida Vale Studios
Maida Vale Studios
Maida Vale Studios is a complex of seven BBC studios on Delaware Road, Maida Vale, London.It has been used to record thousands of classical music, popular music and drama sessions for BBC Radio 1, BBC Radio 2, BBC Radio 3 and BBC Radio 4 from 1946 to the present...
.
The Maida Vale area is usually regarded as being bounded by Maida Avenue and the Regent’s Canal in the South, Maida Vale road to the north east, Kilburn Park Road to the north west, and Shirland Road and Blomfield Road to the south west. The southern part of Maida Vale around Paddington Basin
Paddington Basin
Paddington Basin is an area of Paddington, London named after the nearby canal basin.The junction of the Regent's Canal and the Grand Junction Canal is close to this point but the basin itself is the terminus of the Paddington Arm of the Grand Junction Canal. It was opened in 1801...
, a junction of two canals with many houseboat
Houseboat
A houseboat is a boat that has been designed or modified to be used primarily as a human dwelling. Some houseboats are not motorized, because they are usually moored, kept stationary at a fixed point and often tethered to land to provide utilities...
s, is known as Little Venice. The area to the south-west of Maida Vale, at the southern end of Elgin Avenue, was historically known as "Maida Hill", and was a recognised postal district bounded by the Avenues on the west, the Grand Union Canal
Grand Union Canal
The Grand Union Canal in England is part of the British canal system. Its main line connects London and Birmingham, stretching for 137 miles with 166 locks...
on the south, Maida Vale to the east and Kilburn Lane to the north. Parts of Maida Vale were also included within this. The name of "Maida Hill" has since fallen out of use, although has recently been resurrected through the new 414 bus route (which terminates on Shirland road and states its destination as Maida Hill), and a new street market on the Piazza at the junction of Elgin Avenue and Harrow Road.
Just to the east of Maida Vale is St John's Wood
St John's Wood
St John's Wood is a district of north-west London, England, in the City of Westminster, and at the north-west end of Regent's Park. It is approximately 2.5 miles north-west of Charing Cross. Once part of the Great Middlesex Forest, it was later owned by the Knights of St John of Jerusalem...
and Lord's Cricket Ground
Lord's Cricket Ground
Lord's Cricket Ground is a cricket venue in St John's Wood, London. Named after its founder, Thomas Lord, it is owned by Marylebone Cricket Club and is the home of Middlesex County Cricket Club, the England and Wales Cricket Board , the European Cricket Council and, until August 2005, the...
.
Developed by the Ecclesiastical Commissioners
Ecclesiastical Commissioners
Ecclesiastical Commissioners were, in England and Wales, a body corporate, whose full title is Ecclesiastical and Church Estates Commissioners for England. The commissioners were authorized to determine the distribution of revenues of the Church of England, and they made extensive changes in how...
in the early 19th century as middle class housing, Maida Vale took its name from a public house
Public house
A public house, informally known as a pub, is a drinking establishment fundamental to the culture of Britain, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. There are approximately 53,500 public houses in the United Kingdom. This number has been declining every year, so that nearly half of the smaller...
named after John Stuart, Count of Maida
John Stuart, Count of Maida
Sir John Stuart, Count of Maida GCB , was a British Lieutenant-General during the Napoleonic Wars.Stuart was born in Georgia, the son of Colonel John Stuart, superintendent of Indian affairs in the southern district, and a prominent loyalist in the War of Independence...
, which opened on the Edgware Road soon after the Battle of Maida
Battle of Maida
The Battle of Maida on 4 July 1806 saw a British expeditionary force fight a First French Empire division outside the town of Maida in Calabria, Italy during the Napoleonic Wars. John Stuart led 5,200 British troops to victory over about 6,000 French soldiers under Jean Reynier, inflicting...
, 1806.
In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Maida Vale was a predominantly Jewish district, and Lauderdale Road in Central Maida Vale contains the 1896 Spanish & Portuguese
Spanish and Portuguese Jews
Spanish and Portuguese Jews are a distinctive sub-group of Sephardim who have their main ethnic origins within the Jewish communities of the Iberian peninsula and who shaped communities mainly in Western Europe and the Americas from the late 16th century on...
Synagogue
Synagogue
A synagogue is a Jewish house of prayer. This use of the Greek term synagogue originates in the Septuagint where it sometimes translates the Hebrew word for assembly, kahal...
(a Grade II listed building) and headquarters of the British Sephardi community. The actor Alec Guinness
Alec Guinness
Sir Alec Guinness, CH, CBE was an English actor. He was featured in several of the Ealing Comedies, including Kind Hearts and Coronets in which he played eight different characters. He later won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his role as Colonel Nicholson in The Bridge on the River Kwai...
was born in this road. The first Prime Minister of Israel, David Ben-Gurion
David Ben-Gurion
' was the first Prime Minister of Israel.Ben-Gurion's passion for Zionism, which began early in life, led him to become a major Zionist leader and Executive Head of the World Zionist Organization in 1946...
, lived within sight of this synagogue
Synagogue
A synagogue is a Jewish house of prayer. This use of the Greek term synagogue originates in the Septuagint where it sometimes translates the Hebrew word for assembly, kahal...
on Warrington Crescent, and the pioneer of modern computing, Alan Turing
Alan Turing
Alan Mathison Turing, OBE, FRS , was an English mathematician, logician, cryptanalyst, and computer scientist. He was highly influential in the development of computer science, providing a formalisation of the concepts of "algorithm" and "computation" with the Turing machine, which played a...
, was born a few hundred yards further down this same road.
Maida Vale tube station
Maida Vale tube station
Maida Vale tube station is a London Underground station in Maida Vale in inner north-west London. The station is on the Bakerloo Line, between Kilburn Park and Warwick Avenue stations, and is in Travelcard Zone 2....
was opened on June 6, 1915, on the Bakerloo Line
Bakerloo Line
The Bakerloo line is a line of the London Underground, coloured brown on the Tube map. It runs partly on the surface and partly at deep level, from Elephant and Castle in the south-east to Harrow & Wealdstone in the north-west of London. The line serves 25 stations, of which 15 are underground...
.
BBC Studios
Maida Vale is home to some of BBCBBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
network radio's recording and broadcast studios. The building is in fact one of the BBC's earliest premises, pre-dating Broadcasting House, and was the centre of the BBC radio news service during the second world war.
The building on Delaware Road houses a total of seven music and radio drama studios, and most famously were home to John Peel
John Peel
John Robert Parker Ravenscroft, OBE , known professionally as John Peel, was an English disc jockey, radio presenter, record producer and journalist. He was the longest-serving of the original BBC Radio 1 DJs, broadcasting regularly from 1967 until his death in 2004...
's BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation which also broadcasts internationally, specialising in current popular music and chart hits throughout the day. Radio 1 provides alternative genres after 7:00pm including electronic dance, hip hop, rock...
Peel Sessions, and the BBC Radiophonic Workshop
BBC Radiophonic Workshop
The BBC Radiophonic Workshop, one of the sound effects units of the BBC, was created in 1958 to produce effects and new music for radio, and was closed in March 1998, although much of its traditional work had already been outsourced by 1995. It was based in the BBC's Maida Vale Studios in Delaware...
.
Little Venice
Maida Avenue, Warwick Crescent and Blomfield Road, the streets in the south of Maida Vale overlooking Browning's Pool including the section of Randolph Avenue south of Clifton Gardens are known as Little Venice. The name is reputed to have been coined by the poet Robert BrowningRobert Browning
Robert Browning was an English poet and playwright whose mastery of dramatic verse, especially dramatic monologues, made him one of the foremost Victorian poets.-Early years:...
. who lived here from 1862 to 1887. However, this was disputed by Lord Kinross in 1966 and by London Canals. Both assert that Lord Byron
George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron
George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron, later George Gordon Noel, 6th Baron Byron, FRS , commonly known simply as Lord Byron, was a British poet and a leading figure in the Romantic movement...
humorously coined the name, which is now applied more loosely to a longer reach of the canal system. Browning's Pool is named after the poet, and is the junction of Regent's Canal
Regent's Canal
Regent's Canal is a canal across an area just north of central London, England. It provides a link from the Paddington arm of the Grand Union Canal, just north-west of Paddington Basin in the west, to the Limehouse Basin and the River Thames in east London....
and the Paddington
Paddington
Paddington is a district within the City of Westminster, in central London, England. Formerly a metropolitan borough, it was integrated with Westminster and Greater London in 1965...
arm of the Grand Union Canal
Grand Union Canal
The Grand Union Canal in England is part of the British canal system. Its main line connects London and Birmingham, stretching for 137 miles with 166 locks...
.
South Maida Vale is one of London's prime residential areas, and it is also known for its shops and restaurants, as well as the Canal Cafe Theatre
Canal Cafe Theatre
The Canal Cafe Theatre is a 60-seat fringe theatre venue in Little Venice, London, specialising in comedy performances.-Location:The theatre is above the Bridge House pub in Little Venice, on the corner of Westbourne Terrace Road and Delamere Terrace, at the meeting point of the Grand Union and...
, the Puppet Theatre Barge
Puppet Theatre Barge
The Puppet Theatre Barge is a unique, fifty-seat marionette theatre on a converted barge in London. The theatre presents puppet shows for children and adults and is moored in Little Venice throughout the year and in Richmond-upon-Thames during the summer....
, the Waterside Café and the Warwick Castle pub. A regular waterbus service operates from Little Venice eastwards around Regent's Park
Regent's Park
Regent's Park is one of the Royal Parks of London. It is in the north-western part of central London, partly in the City of Westminster and partly in the London Borough of Camden...
, calling at London Zoo
London Zoo
London Zoo is the world's oldest scientific zoo. It was opened in London on 27 April 1828, and was originally intended to be used as a collection for scientific study. It was eventually opened to the public in 1847...
and on towards Camden Town
Camden Town
-Economy:In recent years, entertainment-related businesses and a Holiday Inn have moved into the area. A number of retail and food chain outlets have replaced independent shops driven out by high rents and redevelopment. Restaurants have thrived, with the variety of culinary traditions found in...
. Since 1983 the Inland Waterways Association has hosted the Canalway Cavalcade in Little Venice
Central Maida Vale
Central Maida Vale is characterised by its wide tree-lined avenues, large communal gardens and red-brick mansion blocks from the late Victorian and Edwardian eras. The first mansion blocks were completed in 1897, with the arrival of the identically-designed Lauderdale Mansions SouthLauderdale Mansions South
Lauderdale Mansions South, is a block of 142 apartments in Lauderdale Road, Maida Vale, London W9. Built in 1897, Lauderdale Mansions South was the first of a swathe of mansion flat buildings for the middle classes that spread across central Maida Vale in the 1897-1907 period.The building's...
, Lauderdale Mansions West and Lauderdale Mansions East in Lauderdale Road. Others quickly followed in neighbouring streets: Elgin Mansions (Elgin Avenue) and Leith Mansions (Grantully Road) in 1900, Ashworth Mansions (Elgin Avenue and Grantully Road) and Castellain Mansions (Castellain Road) in 1902, Elgin Court (Elgin Avenue) and Carlton Mansions (Randolph Avenue) in 1902, and Delaware Mansions (Delaware Road) and Biddulph Mansions (Elgin Avenue and Biddulph Road) in 1907.
Blue Plaques in Maida Vale
- Edward ArdizzoneEdward ArdizzoneEdward Jeffrey Irving Ardizzone, CBE, RA was an English artist, writer and illustrator, chiefly of children's books.-Early life:...
(1900–1979), artist, has an English HeritageEnglish HeritageEnglish Heritage . is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport...
blue plaqueBlue plaqueA blue plaque is a permanent sign installed in a public place to commemorate a link between that location and a famous person or event, serving as a historical marker....
in his honour at 130 Elgin Avenue. This is where he lived and worked from 1920 to 1972. - Alan TuringAlan TuringAlan Mathison Turing, OBE, FRS , was an English mathematician, logician, cryptanalyst, and computer scientist. He was highly influential in the development of computer science, providing a formalisation of the concepts of "algorithm" and "computation" with the Turing machine, which played a...
(1912–1954), code breaker and pioneer of computer science was born at 2 Warrington Crescent. - William Friese-GreeneWilliam Friese-GreeneWilliam Friese-Greene was a British portrait photographer and prolific inventor. He is principally known as a pioneer in the field of motion pictures and is credited by some as the inventor of cinematography.-Career:William Edward Green was born on 7 September 1855, in Bristol...
(1855–1921), pioneer of cinematography, developed a camera that took a sequence of pictures on a roll of perforated film moving behind a shutter, lived at 136 Maida Vale from 1888-1891. He later shot the world’s first movie film at his Maida Vale home. - Ambrose Fleming, (1849–1945), English electrical engineer and physicist, and inventor of the wireless valve, at 9 Clifton Gardens.
- David Ben-GurionDavid Ben-Gurion' was the first Prime Minister of Israel.Ben-Gurion's passion for Zionism, which began early in life, led him to become a major Zionist leader and Executive Head of the World Zionist Organization in 1946...
, (1886–1973), the first Prime Minister of IsraelIsraelThe State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
, at 75 Warrington Crescent. - Andreas KalvosAndreas KalvosAndreas Kalvos was a contemporary of Dionysios Solomos and one of the greatest Greek writers of the 19th century. Paradoxically enough, no known portrait of his survives today.-Biography:...
, (1792–1869), Greek writer, at 182 Sutherland Avenue.
Other notable residents
- John Lawrence TooleJohn Lawrence TooleJohn Lawrence Toole was an English comic actor and theatrical producer. He was famous for his roles in farce and in serio-comic melodramas in a career that spanned more than four decades...
(1830–1906), English comic actor lived at 44 Maida Vale. - John MasefieldJohn MasefieldJohn Edward Masefield, OM, was an English poet and writer, and Poet Laureate of the United Kingdom from 1930 until his death in 1967...
(1878–1967), novelist, playwright and Poet Laureate from 1930 to his death, wrote his famous poem The Everlasting Mercy while living at 30 Maida Avenue. - Sir Alec GuinnessAlec GuinnessSir Alec Guinness, CH, CBE was an English actor. He was featured in several of the Ealing Comedies, including Kind Hearts and Coronets in which he played eight different characters. He later won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his role as Colonel Nicholson in The Bridge on the River Kwai...
(1914–2000), Oscar-winning actor was born at 155 Lauderdale Mansions SouthLauderdale Mansions SouthLauderdale Mansions South, is a block of 142 apartments in Lauderdale Road, Maida Vale, London W9. Built in 1897, Lauderdale Mansions South was the first of a swathe of mansion flat buildings for the middle classes that spread across central Maida Vale in the 1897-1907 period.The building's...
, Lauderdale Road. His most well-known feature film roles included Fagin in Oliver TwistOliver TwistOliver Twist; or, The Parish Boy's Progress is the second novel by English author Charles Dickens, published by Richard Bentley in 1838. The story is about an orphan Oliver Twist, who endures a miserable existence in a workhouse and then is placed with an undertaker. He escapes and travels to...
, Sidney Stratton in The Man in the White SuitThe Man in the White SuitThe Man In The White Suit is a 1951 satirical comedy film made by Ealing Studios. It starred Alec Guinness, Joan Greenwood, and Cecil Parker, and was directed by Alexander Mackendrick. It followed a common Ealing Studios theme of the "common man" against the Establishment...
, Colonel Nicholson in The Bridge on the River KwaiThe Bridge on the River KwaiThe Bridge on the River Kwai is a 1957 British World War II film by David Lean based on The Bridge over the River Kwai by French writer Pierre Boulle. The film is a work of fiction but borrows the construction of the Burma Railway in 1942–43 for its historical setting. It stars William...
, George Smiley in Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, SpyTinker, Tailor, Soldier, SpyTinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy is a 1974 British spy novel by John le Carré, featuring George Smiley. Smiley is a middle-aged, taciturn, perspicacious intelligence expert in forced retirement. He is recalled to hunt down a Soviet mole in the "Circus", the highest echelon of the Secret Intelligence...
and Obi-Wan Kenobi in Star Wars Episode IV: A New HopeStar Wars Episode IV: A New HopeStar Wars Episode IV: A New Hope, originally released as Star Wars, is a 1977 American epic space opera film, written and directed by George Lucas. It is the first of six films released in the Star Wars saga: two subsequent films complete the original trilogy, while a prequel trilogy completes the...
. - John InmanJohn InmanFrederick John Inman was an English actor best known for his role as Mr. Humphries in Are You Being Served?, a British sitcom in the 1970s and 1980s. Inman was also well known in the United Kingdom as a pantomime dame....
(1935–2007), the actor best known for his role as Mr. Humphries in Are You Being Served?Are You Being Served?Are You Being Served? is a British sitcom broadcast from 1972 to 1985. It was set in the ladies' and gentlemen's clothing departments of Grace Brothers, a large, fictional London department store. It was written mainly by Jeremy Lloyd and David Croft, with contributions by Michael Knowles and John...
, the British sitcom in the 1970s and 1980s, lived in a mews house in Little Venice for 30 years - Stephen PotterStephen PotterStephen Meredith Potter was a British author best known for his mocking self-help books, and film and television derivatives from them....
(1900–1969), humorist and author of the cult book ‘The Theory and Practice of Gamesmanship; or the Art of Winning Games without Actually Cheating’, lived at 23 Maida Vale in the 1960s. - Vera BrittainVera BrittainVera Mary Brittain was a British writer, feminist and pacifist, best remembered as the author of the best-selling 1933 memoir Testament of Youth, recounting her experiences during World War I and the beginning of her journey towards pacifism.-Life:Born in Newcastle-under-Lyme, Brittain was the...
, writer, lived at 11 Wymering Mansions, Wymering Road - Nancy MitfordNancy MitfordNancy Freeman-Mitford, CBE , styled The Hon. Nancy Mitford before her marriage and The Hon. Mrs Peter Rodd thereafter, was an English novelist and biographer, one of the Bright Young People on the London social scene in the inter-war years...
(1904–1973) co-author of ‘Noblesse Oblige: an enquiry into the identifiable characteristics of the English aristocracy’ which coined the terms ‘U’ and ‘non-U’, lived at 13 Blomfield Road in the 1930s. - Actress Joan CollinsJoan CollinsJoan Henrietta Collins, OBE , is an English actress, author, and columnist. Born in Paddington and raised in Maida Vale, Collins grew up during the Second World War. At the age of nine, she made her stage debut in A Doll's House and after attending school, she was classically trained as an actress...
grew up in Maida Vale. - Mark TurnerMark TurnerMark Turner may refer to:*Mark Turner *Mark Turner *Mark Turner *Mark Turner *Mark Turner , jazz saxophonist...
(Players Please/Kic Pimpz) recorded several early works at Club 131, Randloph Avenue. - Robert SmithRobert Smith (musician)Robert James Smith is an English musician. He is the lead singer, guitar player and principal songwriter of the rock band The Cure, and its only constant member since its founding in 1976...
(1986–Present) front of alternative rockAlternative rockAlternative rock is a genre of rock music and a term used to describe a diverse musical movement that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1980s and became widely popular by the 1990s...
band The CureThe CureThe Cure are an English rock band formed in Crawley, West Sussex in 1976. The band has experienced several line-up changes, with frontman, vocalist, guitarist and principal songwriter Robert Smith being the only constant member... - David GilmourDavid GilmourDavid Jon Gilmour, CBE, D.M. is an English rock musician and multi-instrumentalist who is best known as the guitarist, one of the lead singers and main songwriters in the progressive rock band Pink Floyd. In addition to his work with Pink Floyd, Gilmour has worked as a producer for a variety of...
of Pink Floyd formerly lived there. - Ruth RendellRuth RendellRuth Barbara Rendell, Baroness Rendell of Babergh, CBE, , who also writes under the pseudonym Barbara Vine, is an English crime writer, author of psychological thrillers and murder mysteries....
, Baroness Rendell of Babergh, the English crime novelist lives there. - Jennifer SaundersJennifer SaundersJennifer Jane Saunders is an English comedienne, screenwriter, singer and actress. She has won two BAFTAs, an International Emmy Award, a British Comedy Award, a Rose d'Or Light Entertainment Festival Award, two Writers' Guild of Great Britain Awards, and a Peoples Choice Award.She first came into...
the British actress lived here. - Jarvis CockerJarvis CockerJarvis Branson Cocker is an English musician and frontman for the band Pulp. Through his work with the band, Cocker became a figurehead of the Britpop movement of the mid-1990s. Following Pulp's hiatus Cocker has led a successful solo career...
of Pulp lived here in 1997 - Paul WellerPaul WellerPaul Weller is an English singer-songwriter. Starting with the band The Jam , Weller then went on to branch out musically to a more soulful style with The Style Council...
of the Jam and the Style Council - BjörkBjörkBjörk Guðmundsdóttir , known as Björk , is an Icelandic singer-songwriter. Her eclectic musical style has achieved popular acknowledgement and popularity within many musical genres, such as rock, jazz, electronic dance music, classical and folk...
, IcelandicIcelandersIcelanders are a Scandinavian ethnic group and a nation, native to Iceland.On 17 June 1944, when an Icelandic republic was founded the Icelanders became independent from the Danish monarchy. The language spoken is Icelandic, a North Germanic language, and Lutheranism is the predominant religion...
singer - Davile Matellán, Israel Leal, Aksel, of Spanish pop-rock band Magnética.
- Joe StrummerJoe StrummerJohn Graham Mellor , best remembered by his stage name Joe Strummer, was the co-founder, lyricist, rhythm guitarist and lead vocalist of the British punk rock band The Clash. His musical experience included his membership in The 101ers, Latino Rockabilly War, The Mescaleros and The Pogues, in...
of Punk rock band The ClashThe ClashThe Clash were an English punk rock band that formed in 1976 as part of the original wave of British punk. Along with punk, their music incorporated elements of reggae, ska, dub, funk, rap, dance, and rockabilly...
formerly lived there - Mary HopkinMary HopkinMary Hopkin , credited on some recordings as Mary Visconti, is a Welsh folk singer best known for her 1968 UK number one single "Those Were The Days". She was one of the first musicians to sign to The Beatles' Apple label....
the Welsh pop singer of "Those Were the Days" fame, formerly lived there. - Delia DerbyshireDelia DerbyshireDelia Ann Derbyshire was an English musician and composer of electronic music and musique concrète. She is best known for her electronic realisation of Ron Grainer's theme music to the British science fiction television series Doctor Who and for her work with the BBC Radiophonic Workshop.-Early...
lived in Clifton Villas during her time with the BBC Radiophonic Workshop - Kate MossKate MossKate Moss is an English model. Moss is known for her waifish figure and popularising the heroin chic look in the 1990s. She is also known for her controversial private life, high profile relationships, party lifestyle, and drug use. Moss changed the look of modelling and started a global debate on...
, international fashion model and designer. - Mary PortasMary PortasMary Portas , is an English retail adviser, journalist and television presenter.-Early life and education:Portas was born and brought up in Rickmansworth, Hertfordshire, in a family of five children. Educated at St Joan of Arc Catholic School, Rickmansworth, she looked after her youngest brother...
, Retail adviser, journalist and television presenter - Rosie Huntington-WhiteleyRosie Huntington-WhiteleyRosie Alice Huntington-Whiteley is an English model and actress, best known for her work for lingerie retailer Victoria's Secret and Burberry, and also for her role as Carly Spencer in the 2011 film Transformers: Dark of the Moon, the third installment in the Transformers film series.-Early life...
, model and actress. - Jonathan Rhys-MeyersJonathan Rhys-MeyersJonathan Rhys Meyers is an Irish actor and model.He is best known for his roles in the films Velvet Goldmine, Mission Impossible III, Bend It Like Beckham, Match Point and his television roles as Elvis Presley in the biographical miniseries Elvis, which earned him a Golden Globe for Best Actor,...
, Irish Actor - Steve McFaddenSteve McFaddenSteve McFadden is an English actor, known for his role as Phil Mitchell in the BBC soap opera EastEnders, which he has played since1990.-Early life:...
, Actor in EastendersEastEndersEastEnders is a British television soap opera, first broadcast in the United Kingdom on BBC One on 19 February 1985 and continuing to today. EastEnders storylines examine the domestic and professional lives of the people who live and work in the fictional London Borough of Walford in the East End...
was born and raised in the Maida ValeMaida ValeMaida Vale is a residential district in West London between St John's Wood and Kilburn. It is part of the City of Westminster. The area is mostly residential, and mainly affluent, consisting of many large late Victorian and Edwardian blocks of mansion flats...
area. - Ben MillerBen MillerBennet Evan "Ben" Miller is an English comedian, actor and director. He is perhaps best known as one half of comedy double act Armstrong and Miller, along with Alexander Armstrong. Together the pair wrote and starred in Channel 4 sketch show Armstrong and Miller, and the more recent BBC television...
, comedian and actor
Notable local events
St George's Roman Catholic Secondary SchoolSt George's Roman Catholic Secondary School
St George's Roman Catholic Secondary School is a secondary school situated in Maida Vale, London, England. It made the headlines in December 1995 following the murder of head teacher Philip Lawrence, who was stabbed to death when he tried to break up a fight between the school's pupils and a local...
, situated in Maida Vale, was the school of which Philip Lawrence
Philip Lawrence
Philip Ambrose Lawrence QGM, was a London-based headmaster who was stabbed to death outside the gates of his school when he went to the aid of a pupil who was being attacked by a gang.-Biography:...
was head teacher at the time of his murder in December 1995.