Aug 27th, 2018 : London Fake
 

At 23 and 24 Leinster Gardens, Bayswater, London W2, are 5 story upscale houses like their neighbors.
But they look different, no curtains, no cat on the windowsill, and the windows are all white.
That’s because they’re a lie, a sham, like a Hollywood movie set.

http://cellar.org/2017/fake1.jpg

http://cellar.org/2017/fake2.jpg

The ensuing gap behind the facade left a stretch of railway track open to the elements, which proved to be a handy place for passing locomotives to ‘vent’ off.
It may sound rather rude, but venting was an essential means of keeping the underground tunnels clear of smoke and steam.
The original locomotives on the Metropolitan and District Line were powered by steam, and although they were fitted with condensers, engines still needed open air stretches of track to disperse the fumes.

http://cellar.org/2017/fake3.jpg

Since the new trains don't need to "vent off", I imagine the property would be worth a fortune today.

link

I have never quite understood the willingness of some people to buy very expensive homes in close proximity to a railway line.

However, Leinster Gardens is just north of Kensington Palace, home of Royals (various), so not in area scheduled for urban regeneration. ;)


ETA:

Attachment 64702

Construction of the Metropolitan District Railway, Bayswater, London, c 1867

Link

I remember when they built the new airport outside of New Orleans way out of town. In fact it was a decent drive just to get there. Folks saw the nice highway and decided to build around it. What happened did they view the property wearing earplugs? This is like living on the beach and complaining that a storm washed the house away.