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Any hopes that Peckham may harbour of shaking off its long-running association in the public's mind with On67 Fools and Horses will no doubt be scuppered by the programme-schedulers' relentless repeats.
No matter: since the mid-1990s the area has been the grateful recipient of millions of pounds of investment from Southwark council, and one corner, at least, has metamorphosed from seedy inner-city hellhole into sought-after arty enclave and unlikely winner at last year's London Tourism Awards. These days, the streets of the Bellenden Road Renewal Area are paved with public art created by well-known local artists. How nice to pop out for a pint of milk and find your route dotted with Antony Gormley's bollards, Tom Phillips's street lights or Zandra Rhodes's shockingpink bus shelter.
The aim of the regeneration was to make the area more pleasant to live in, not to line the greedy pockets of property investors, but demand for homes in Bellenden 'village' has risen by more than 50 per cent since 2000. According to Benjamin Williams of Kinleigh, Folkard & Hayward, as house prices soar in neighbouring Camberwell and East Dulwich, Peckham catches the overspill and so climbs a notch or two higher itself. In the bad old days nearly three quarters of the area's residents wanted to escape its grubby crime-ridden clutches; now affluent incomers — creative types who may even see a residual edginess as an additional attribute — flock to snap up property that is still relatively affordable, though no longer dirt-cheap (you can get a five-bedroom house for under 1500,000 and a two-bedroom flat for under £200,000).
They know that there's much more to Peckham than its unsavoury image: Rye Lane's bustling, almost subcontinental street market is an exhilarating blend of the tacky and the exotic; for a breath of what passes for fresh air, try leafy Peckham Rye, scene of William Blake's first vision and Boudicca's suicide. And towering above the skyline like a giant insect that's wandered off a B-movie set is Will Alsop's award-winning, spindly-legged, copper-clad library.
If you need some respite from all this excitement, or have an eye on the effect of transport links on property prices, rest assured: London Bridge is only eight minutes' away; Victoria a mere 12. What's more, Peckham will be a beneficiary of the East London Line's great push south, should it happen. It's not exactly Notting Hill, but if you're looking for bohemian with a hint of the Bronx, then, in the words of a devoted local, 'I reckon Peckham.'
Lucy Vickery
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