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

20 Great Walks From 20 The Barons “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

“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.

The World didn’t end on Friday, so onward and upward and all set for Christmas! St Margarets is looking so festive this year. Thanks to the amazing traders’ association our high street looks like the very essence of Christmas. We’ve bought ‘the bird’ from our local butcher Armstrongs (along with secret recipe sausages), the veg

GOLD FOR THE BARONS! No Olympic gold for us (such brilliant memories of London 2012). But Hurray! We’ve been given a 4-star Gold ‘Quality in Tourism’ award. OPEN FOR BUSINESS After many months of detailed planning and a fantastically busy summer, lots of dust and a few tears, we’re now open for business. We are