Property

Step out of Shepherd’s Bush tube and you’re immediately on this busy main road which starts opposite the small triangular common and leads on to Uxbridge via Acton, Ealing and Southall. The W12 stretch of Uxbridge Road, located in the borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, with its handsome Victorian terraces on either side, is easily one of the most affordable and appealing neighbourhoods in Zone 2. The area is lively and bustling but, surprisingly, not grubby or intimidating at all and the vibrant mixed community – first-time buyers, young Muslim families and those who have lived here for generations – means it’s refreshingly ungentrified. Feature continues

Uxbridge Road has all the ingredients of a great London high street with some excellent charity shops (Traid at 164 and Age Concern at 110), the obligatory fried chicken joints, kebab shops (good ones) and a lovely old Victorian library. The strong Middle East presence means there’s also no shortage of great Lebanese restaurants, halal butchers, costume shops and colourful Arabic supermarkets.
Shepherd’s Bush market – quainter and quieter than many scruffy street markets in London – runs from Uxbridge Road to Goldhawk Road and sells a mix of Middle Eastern clothing, speciality meats and fish, cut-price lingerie and trainers, cheap electronics and goat and sheepskin rugs.

While there’s not a great deal of green space in the immediate vicinity, the delightful Holland Park is just a 15-minute walk east and Ravenscourt Park is just a ten-minute walk south down Askew Road.

This part of Shepherd’s Bush is sociable, too: relaxed watering hole, The Askew Arms (269 Uxbridge Road, W12; 020 8743 4820) is one of several good pubs. Those after something a bit swankier might prefer The Defector’s Weld (170 Uxbridge Road; 020 8749 0008) with its minimal decor and modern Mediterranean menu.There’s also the opulent venue Bush Hall at 310 (020 8222 6955), built as a dancehall in 1903 and a good spot to catch new bands. The Ginglik comedy club at 1 Shepherd’s Bush Green (020 8749 2310) is also nearby.