Strawberry Hill is an affluent area of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames

London Borough of Richmond upon Thames

The London Borough of Richmond upon Thames is a London borough in South West London, UK, which forms part of Outer London. It is unique because it is the only London borough situated both north and south of the River Thames.-Settlement:...

 in Twickenham

Twickenham

Twickenham is a large suburban town southwest of central London. It is the administrative headquarters of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames and one of the locally important district centres identified in the London Plan...

. It is a suburban development situated 10.4 miles (16.7 km) west south-west of Charing Cross

Charing Cross

Charing Cross denotes the junction of Strand, Whitehall and Cockspur Street, just south of Trafalgar Square in central London, England. It is named after the now demolished Eleanor cross that stood there, in what was once the hamlet of Charing. The site of the cross is now occupied by an equestrian...

. It consists of a number of residential roads centered around a small development of shops and serviced by Strawberry Hill railway station

Strawberry Hill railway station

Strawberry Hill railway station is in Strawberry Hill in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames in south west London, and is in Travelcard Zone 5. The station, and all trains serving it, are operated by South West Trains...

. The area's ACORN demographic type

ACORN (demographics)

ACORN is a geodemographic information system categorising all United Kingdom postcodes into various types based upon census data and other information such as lifestyle surveys....

 is characterized as well-off professionals, larger houses, and converted flats. St Mary's University College, Twickenham, the country's oldest Roman Catholic College is situated on Waldegrave Road. Its sports grounds are to be used as a training site for the 2012 Olympics.

Strawberry Hill House

The nineteenth-century development is named after "Strawberry Hill", the fanciful Gothic Revival

Gothic Revival architecture

The Gothic Revival is an architectural movement that began in the 1740s in England...

 villa

Villa

A villa was originally an ancient Roman upper-class country house. Since its origins in the Roman villa, the idea and function of a villa have evolved considerably. After the fall of the Roman Republic, villas became small farming compounds, which were increasingly fortified in Late Antiquity,...

 designed by author Horace Walpole between 1749 and 1776. It began as a small 17th century house "little more than a cottage", with only 5 acres (20,234.3 m²) of land and ended up as a "little Gothic castle" in 46 acres (186,155.6 m²). The original owner had named the house "Chopped Straw Hall", but Walpole wanted it to be called something more distinctive and after finding an old lease that described his land as "Strawberry Hill Shot", he adopted this name.

After a £9 million, two-year long restoration, Strawberry Hill House re-opened to the public in October 2010.

Other attractions

Other local attractions include:

• St Mary's University College, Twickenham
• Radnor Gardens
• Strawberry Hill railway station
  Strawberry Hill railway station
  Strawberry Hill railway station is in Strawberry Hill in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames in south west London, and is in Travelcard Zone 5. The station, and all trains serving it, are operated by South West Trains...
  
  , built in 1873, is an excellent local example of the Victorian era
  Victorian era
  The Victorian era of British history was the period of Queen Victoria's reign from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. It was a long period of peace, prosperity, refined sensibilities and national self-confidence...
  
  railway building boom.

External links

• The Strawberry Hill Residents' Association
• Strawberry Hill Online