The Barons blog

We are often asked, what’s the difference between a serviced apartment and a hotel? For us, one of the most important advantages of a serviced apartment is that you can feel properly at home – particularly if you are staying for a few months or longer. While there is something exciting about a hotel when…

If ever there were a time to introduce mindfulness into your life, it is now. As the world grows busier, spins faster, feels crazier and becomes more crowded, it is easy to find yourself running like a hamster in a busy wheel. At 20 The Barons, we’ve started to heed the message that in order…

It was galling enough to watch our lionesses being recently mauled, in true errant-penalty English style (good to see they’ve learned something from the chaps!), by the USA women’s football team. But when the redoubtable US striker, Alex Morgan, celebrated her goal with apparent mockery of true English style (by not only miming the act…

It’s a tricky time to celebrate Britishness, with all that’s going on. Here at 20 The Barons, we like to celebrate British tradition without being stuck in the past, as we also think of ourselves as modern, inclusive and international! So, here’s The Baron’s poetic celebration of the best of British for all our guests,…

As we celebrate seven super years at 20 The Barons, we’d like to give a shout out to the Magnificent Seven serviced apartments where we do everything in our power to make sure all our wonderful guests enjoy a comfortable and relaxing stay. We’re located a short stroll from Twickenham Film Studios, and we’ve welcomed…

  NOT SO LOCAL HEROES Several years ago our owner Ali used to work in book publishing. During that time she produced many books with a wonderful designer who became a close friend. Tessa and Ali worked together on many projects over the years ranging from books on child development to dinosaurs and Scooby Doo!…

LOCAL HEROES Zoran’s Delicatessen is at the heart of St Margarets life. This fabulous fully licensed café offers breakfast, lunch and afternoon meals as well as extensive home dining options. For a breakfast of chorizo and eggs, and the best coffee in town, look no further. Zoran’s cakes are delicious at any time of day…

12 Days of Christmas With Christmas approaching at a gallop worthy of Prancer, it’s time to think not only about shopping for food and gifts, and sending out all those Christmas cards, but also about taking time to relax and enjoy all the many festive events taking place in our neighbourhood. If you’re lucky enough…

We are thrilled to have added a brand new luxury home in a private gated estate at 18 Egerton Drive to our portfolio. We can now enhance our luxury portfolio offering of the properties at 20 the Barons and 9 The Barons with this stunning three-bedroom bespoke town-house. Located one mile from Richmond and on the…

As well as the five apartments in a single mansion block at 20 The Barons, we’ve now added 9 The Barons to our portfolio. We like to feel we’re big enough to offer the security of a community of guests, but sufficiently boutique to provide a bespoke service offering the personal attention of both the…

On December 20th it was five years since we opened our doors to our first guests. We can’t believe how time has flown – and how we’ve grown! We started with just one rather fabulous 2 bed –  The Arlington. We were so proud to have such a beautiful product to offer and to see…

Got the winter blues? Tired of dark days already? We at 20 the Barons always look for ways to brighten up the darkest afternoons, and have gathered a few of our favourite winter events to share with you. There’s so much going on in the area at this time of year, there’s no need to…

Very frequently we take the time to rejoice in our location. A rather lovely ten minute walk from the Barons brings you to the heart of Twickenham. To most people Twickenham says ‘rugby’. And we are fiercely proud of our Rugby heritage. But did you know Twickenham is the centre of the curry world in…

Train carriages were first stationed and repurposed as ‘camping coaches’ in Britain in the Thirties, providing holiday apartments that rarely offered running water or electricity. Today they are back in vogue, but with the emphasis on the sort of luxury The Baron adores. For train-lovers, it is stirring to consider the Pullman carriage as both…

Given current London property prices, I wonder what it might cost today to buy an entire island in the middle of the Thames. At the end of the 1800s, such a prospect was not so remote, and all for less than £7,000. An 1899 newspaper article recalls the lively auction of Eel Pie Island, the…

This walk begins at the Hammertons Ferry Landing, on the Twickenham bank of the Thames below Orleans House Gardens. It is a continuation of the Bridges and Ferries Walk from St Margarets Station to Ham House Ferry Landing, which you can find in Blog 23. Both also work as self-contained walks, offering insights into the…

Much as he adores haunting the corridors of the apartments at 20TheBarons, and whiling away his days with the best of brandy and cigars, The Baron is often to be found researching inspirational places to stay around the world. Succumbing to nostalgia about his flying days, he was delighted to discover a number of aircraft…

April 1st is the anniversary of the tragic death in 1930 of 20-year-old actress Miss Nita Foy, at Twickenham Film Studios. The inquest into her death was reported in the Gloucester Citizen, 5 April 1930, in an article that raises more questions than answers. Despite the verdict, other accounts reveal that the coroner was quite…

Just along the street from our luxury serviced apartments here at 20 The Barons, it is a joy to behold Twickenham Studios once again thriving at the heart of the British film industry. Millions of pounds have been spent in the last two years re-establishing the theatres and stages as a world-leading facility. Equipment has…

Twickenham Studios at Oscars Time The Baron finds it rather wonderful having a film studio as a neighbour, particularly when it’s one of the world’s great film studios, and especially when it’s Oscars season.  There’s something soul-stirring about watching the ceremony while recalling the many previous winners who have employed the technological wonders that continue…

Stumbling over Ghosts: The Baron, having donned his metaphorical deerstalker and set out on the trail to investigate the history of his home at 20 The Barons, has found himself increasingly obsessed with the thrill of the chase. There is something almost compulsive about finding and following the threads into the past that sprout into…

With the release of our accommodation prices for the 2015 Rugby World Cup, 20TheBarons presents a 20-second guide to the 20 national teams who will be testing the airline weight allowance when they arrive on our shores in September 2015. A comparison of each nation’s population makes for interesting reading, but then it’s only XV…

The Cabbage Patch On Halloween, a year from now, the final of the Rugby World Cup will take place at the world’s biggest and most famous rugby stadium. With a hi-tech playing surface enclosed by covered stands, three steepling tiers of seats accommodating 82,000 spectators, a four-star hotel, a health and leisure club and its…

Baron Attenborough of Richmond Upon Thames “Everything is nice about living in Richmond,” Richard Attenborough told Time Out in 2012. Now it is the borough’s turn to pay tribute to one of its greatest residents, who passed away on 25 August 2014 five days short of his 91st birthday. The much-loved actor, director, producer and…

London relocation in the Digital Age: If relocating to London seems a daunting task, it is worth considering how much easier it has become in the digital age to make such a capital move. In The Baron’s heyday, back in the shadows of time, finding the best place to live in London was a question…

“TWENTY bridges from Tower to Kew – Wanted to know what the River knew, Twenty Bridges or twenty-two, For they were young, and the Thames was old And this is the tale that River told.” ― Rudyard Kipling  The River Thames has been at the heart of life in Richmond and Twickenham for centuries. The…

“When there’s hardly no day, Nor hardly no night, There’s things half in shadow, And halfway in light, On the rooftops of London, Coo, what a sight!” The Baron has come over all Mary Poppins, all Chim Chiminey, after indulging in a night on the tiles and discovering that the best way to look at…

With Easter weekend upon us, The Baron’s thoughts have turned to chocolate. He has little time for eggs and rabbits, but will happily employ the holiday as excuse to indulge his addiction to chocolate truffles. And in this, he shares a vice with that most chocolate-infused of children’s authors, Roald Dahl, whose legacy is making…

Sunday 6th April, 2014, at 17.55, is the occasion of the BNY Mellon Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race. With the finishing line a mere 20-minute train ride from 20 The Barons, St Margarets, our resident and ghostly expert The Baron (who has seen all 160 races) offers a 20-stroke guide to charting the waters of one of…

As the credits rolled on the Oscars for another year (and Gravity pulls us all back down to earth eventually), it was a joy for everyone at 20 The Barons to see so many golden statuettes migrating to the trophy cabinets of the West London region’s famous film studios. Gravity, which won 7 Oscars including…

It’s Valentine’s day at 20 The Barons and Cupid’s flight-path soars over London today. The great love god might be surprised to see some of the finest evening celebrations taking place in the city’s museums and galleries: a reminder of the cultural diversity on offer in our fine capital, even on a night more commonly associated…

In this watery winter of drenched discontent The Baron is considering whether we should all commence on the Ark. Counting our lucky stars at The Barons and hoping the skies clear and ground drains for those suffering at the hands of the current flood waters, it is high tide and time to look back on two Twickenham…

The Thames, Fair River “Glide gently, thus forever glide, O Thames! That other bards may see, As lovely visions by thy side As now, fair river, come to me.” ‘Lines written near Richmond, upon the Thames, at Evening’ —William Wordsworth, 1798 What would St Margarets, Twickenham and Richmond be without the seductive curves of the…

The story of St Margarets and the Beatles can be told in three movies with St Margarets at their heart. Filmed at Twickenham Studios, a minute’s walk from 20 The Barons, they also featured location shoots that stamped the area with the Fab Four’s historic boot-prints. In March 1964, the fresh-faced, mop-topped Beatles returned from…

Residents at 20 The Barons are fortunate enough to find themselves at the centre of St Margarets Village, an area that combines the best of two worlds. It has a mainline railway station only 9 miles west of central London, yet retains the local atmosphere, community spirit, independent shops, and friendly pubs and restaurants of…

On 20 December, 20 The Barons celebrated its first birthday. So, how did The Baron and St Margaret mark the occasion? Well, they find nothing more festive than curling up with a glass of Champagne in front of the classic Christmas movie It’s A Wonderful Life, which shares our birthday, having premiered in New York…

20 The Barons celebrates its first birthday this weekend. Here we offer up a choice of cocktails for guests to enjoy their complimentary bottle of bubbly. The TW1 Twickenham Film Studios (TW1) is just around the corner, celebrating their 100th anniversary, so here’s a classic Champagne Cocktail as drunk by Victor Lazlo in Casablanca.   1…

On 20th December, 20 The Barons will celebrate its first birthday, and The Baron is inviting all guests to join us in a complimentary bottle of his favourite ‘bolly’. Here The Baron muses on how Champagne became famous. Fizz is always to the forefront at The Barons, but it’s only in the last 150 years…

The inspiring landscape around St Margarets has for centuries inspired writers, artists and musicians to take up residence. Here’s a list of Top 20 historical artists from 20 The Barons, arranged in chronological order: 1. Geoffrey Chaucer (1343–1400), author of The Canterbury Tales, served in Richmond as the Yeoman of the King’s Chamber. 2. Alexander…

On his daily constitutional (a highly recommended wander east from 20 The Barons, along St Margarets Road, over Richmond Bridge, and on up Richmond Hill), The Baron never fails to be enchanted by a quirk of the local fauna. The first hint of something unusual is a loud screeching from the treetops that takes him…

It is fitting that we call the site of a building its footprint, since its impression provides us with tracks that we may follow into the past. If we could travel back in time 750 years, we would find a riotous gathering raising their tents south of a grand house built by King Henry III’s…

As the temperatures plummet, it is possible to embark on a historical journey without leaving the warmth of 20 The Barons. One needs merely to consider the address to venture beyond the building’s façade into the hidden story of its environs. The Barons derives its name from a key moment in the chronology of England…

The wonderful phrase “The Lungs of London,” describing the green spaces that offer breathing space among the city’s urban sprawl, is attributed to William Pitt the Elder in the 18th Century. It is an evocative expression that has, over the centuries, been used to defend the life-giving green parks and squares against the creep of…

Staying at 20 The Barons, one feels instantly part of a vibrant community. Nowhere is this more apparent than in the crackling atmosphere surrounding the local sporting events on any given Saturday. Last Saturday was a case in point. Setting off from the tranquil surroundings of St Margarets, The Baron could hear the roar of…

At 20 The Barons, if it’s Halloween, it’s all about the pumpkins. While The Baron favours a traditional diamond-toothed interior decoration (dimly lit, so as not to attract the trick or treaters), St. Margaret sees All Hallows as the ideal time to display her artistic nature. Whether you have children or not, there are all…

Halloween is the perfect night to draw the curtains, dim the lights and watch your horror movie of choice in glorious HD goriness. The Baron has selected a suitable Top 20 list of monocle-dropping thrillers and chillers, all of which feature production or post-production work from Twickenham Film Studios. TW1 Studios, as they are known…

Behind St Margarets’ genteel and gentrified façade, there beats a rock ’n’ roll heart. Richmond was the cradle where the jazz baby of the ’50s grew into the rebellious rhythm and blues child of the ’60s, a fact currently being celebrated at the Stables Gallery, Orleans House. The gallery is set in tranquil wooded gardens…

I’m up to my eyes in new kitchen appliances as our new suite at 20 The Barons nears completion. It’s been a long hard winter but today, looking out of the newly dressed window, I catch a glimpse of the sun. And summer is coming. And when it does finally arrive we’ll have another two-bedroom…

We’ve been running 20 The Barons now for six months. It’s hectic but great fun. We are now about to start upgrading a two-bedroom apartment, which means within a month we will have two two-bedroom suites and Hill View Loft, our luxury serviced studio – with a view across the rooftops to Richmond Hill. Hill…

I’m writing this blog from my lovely new office at the bottom of the sunny garden at 20 The Barons. Legions of daffodils are shooting up – is Spring on its way? Talking of Spring makes me think of weddings. Richmond is host to the Wedding Show at the Richmond Hill Hotel on 24 February.…