Couple Transform Peckham Shell £220,000 to a Fabulous £825,000 Home
From a Bucket-Loo Shed to a Peckham Palace
When Mark Disley and Alison Fitzpatrick rented Arthur Miller’s[i] daughter’s loft apartment in New York 17 years ago, they fell in love with the space and decided to create something of their own when they came back to London.
After four years of scouring the back streets of South East London in search of the perfect ‘space’, the couple found a disused workshop in Peckham Rye, SE15, once thought to have been where the military’s hats were made.
Alison, 44, a successful fashion stylist[ii], explains: “We bought the empty shell for £220,000 and spent several years creating our home from scratch. We did it in stages, as and when we could scrape the money together for the next stage. We made our first room out of cardboard boxes, and we used a ladder for stairs and a bucket for a W.C.”
Now, 12 years later, the shell has become a stunning mews house that showcases Alison’s phenomenal design talents. It is also home to their children, Luella and Oscar, who were both born in the house.
Alison’s partner, Mark Disley (54) works from home repairing computers. Mark says: “It was my job to work out where the walls, stairs and doors should go and Alison was in charge of the interior design, with her distinctive design flair.
Mark continues: “It was hard work between our day jobs, over several years, but well worth the effort. We love the house and we love the village community in this part of Peckham, where many local people pitched in to help us do the house.
“It is sad to sell it, but we have done so well on the house financially, as well as on Peckham Rye’s rise in value, we want the children to benefit by using the money to buy something bigger so they have more space.”
Becky Munday, Head of Sales at GJM Property says: “This is an exceptional example of a talented couple making the most of transforming an extraordinary property in a fabulous area that is still undergoing gentrification. Capital growth on properties that are both unusual and in areas undergoing gentrification is disproportionately high, so both these two elements together make it a very attractive investment opportunity."
The two bedroom mews house is in Choumert Mews, Peckham Rye, SE15 priced at £835,000. For sales enquiries, telephone GJM Property on: 020 7732 4330 or visit: http://www.gjmproperty.co.uk/property-details/5153
ENDS
Press information or more images: Please contact Julia Arnold at Sky Communications International. Phone 01403 711 639 or email julia.arnold@skycommunications.co.uk
Editors’ Notes and Images
[1] Arthur Miller (1915-2005) was the Pulitzer prize-winning American playwright who wrote Death of a Salesman, A View From the Bridge, The Misfits and The Crucible. Miller was married to Marilyn Monroe and was the father in law of Daniel Day-Lewis
[1] Alison Fitzpatrick is a leading fashion stylist. Her recent work has included children’s fashion shoots for Boden, Marks & Spencer, John Lewis, Mothercare and Debenhams. Her managing agent is www.eramanagement.com
Press Contact:
Julia Arnold
Sky Communications International
44 (0)1403 711 639
julia.arnold@skycommunications.co.uk
