Falling between Bromley’s two main train stations (Bromley North and Bromley South) the High Street and surrounds form a pleasant, mostly-residential neighbourhood. With two theatres and a cinema falling within its borders, this suburban area punches above its weight in culture and entertainment. Popular local pubs The Partridge, The Swan and Mitre, and the Barrel and Horn line London Road, are in the north of the sector. The Glades shopping centre provides a wide range of shops, eateries and other amenities all under one roof, while Church House Gardens offer scenic respite from the bustling high street.

Chartered since 1158, Bromley was historically a market town. Its location on a coaching route and more recently on a railway line into London have been central to its economic development – from roots as a farming community to its present-day incarnation as a centre of commerce and retail. HG Wells, ‘the father of science fiction’ was born at Atlas House, 46 (now 172) High Street. He first found his calling as a child, when bedridden with a broken leg in that very house, his father brought him home books from the local library. He went on to pen famous works including The Time Machine, War of the Worlds, and The Invisible Man.

This neighbourhood area featured repeatedly in the TV sketch series Monty Python. In the famous Spam sketch, The Green Midget Café - where every item on the menu was composed of spam in some form - is located in Bromley. In another sketch it was stated that all seven continents are visible from the top of the Kentish Times building (spoiler: they’re not!).

This neighbourhood area also boasts its own Morris team, The Ravensbourne Morris Men.

Though retaining some period facades, much of the architecture on the High Street is uninspiring. However, this is more than compensated for by the plethora of amenities housed in this small stretch, and by the picturesque residential streets that surround it. Residents cite the excellent transport links, housing stock, and range of shops, eateries, and entertainment venues as key attractions to this neighbourhood. In the words of one local mother: ‘it’s a nice quiet area, good community!’.

Plans are afoot to redevelop the high street, following the successful completion of the first phase of the town centre environmental improvement programme, which focussed on Bromley North Village. The scheme aims to encourage street activity and improve the pedestrian experience by planting trees and shrubs, providing more shelter for shoppers, and improving the link to Church House Gardens. Plans involve the creation of a ‘High Street Garden’ between the Elmfield Road end of the street and the Churchill Theatre, as well as the transformation of the area in front of the theatre into a flexible public space to host seasonal events. The council has approved funding for detailed plans, but a programme of implementation is yet to be agreed. More recently the council has also approved a proposal to restore, extend and redevelop the Old Town Hall building for a mixture of residential and comercial uses. This will be joined by the private redevelopment of the Wells House building on Elmfield Road, replacing the 1970s architecture with a contemporary 7/8 story office block.