An alternating patchwork of Victorian and 1930s houses, the Western part of Addiscombe is typically Croydon-esque: diverse, hyper-connected and middle aged. The hum of Croydon – a ten-minute drive away, is familiar, with trains from East Croydon Station leaving to London Victoria, as well as all four Tram link routes serving stops every half mile. The 197 bus route heads towards Peckham from Morland Road. Cherry Orchard Road will satisfy all every-day needs in terms of amenities, showcasing world fast-food places, convenience stores, and pubs. The Trinity School of John Whitgift (sharing the Archbishop’s name with many other local landmarks), Archbishop Tenison’s and the Oasis Academy are all local schools with Ofsted ratings ‘good’ and above. The general impression one takes from the area is well symbolised by the Builders Arms, a red-brick Victorian local pub which served builders working on rail links at the time; it is almost like a homely Croydon’s-little-brother in the making.

Throughout history the area took on starkly contrasting images. Prior to the 18th century, like most of the surrounding areas, Addiscombe was predominantly rural. Visit Herons Croft, a 17th century farm cottage, at 96 Addiscombe Road to get a flavour of this rustic environment the area would present. Pomp and grandeur would grace the lands with the arrival of Addiscombe Place in 1702 – a relic of the short-lived English Baroque architectural style. Accommodating giants such as George III, William Pitt and Peter the Great of Russia, few would associate Addiscombe today with such an epicentre of world power in the 18th century. In 1809, the mansion became a military training school for the East India Company, serving as a bastion of imperialism until its sale in 1863 to developers for £33,600 – the average starting price of a one bedroom flat in the area today.

Just as the imperialist Addiscombe Place would be reduced to a few small lodges, similarly William Makepeace Thackeray (1811-1863) set out to reduce the nobility to a mere caricature, with his satirical novels exposing the vain indulgences of the higher classes. Thackeray’s youth was spent at Addiscombe in the early 19th century. And in the same way that present-day Addiscombe disguises an epic history, David Browse who currently lives here, disguised himself behind the chilling mask of Darth Vader in the original Star Wars trilogy.

Perhaps the most trivial and commonplace feature of British culture today, the sandwich, made significant advances in its development in this small part of the British Isles. The gardener at Addiscombe Place, James MacPhail, detailed an efficient cultivation procedure for one of the main ingredients in his Treatise on the Culture of the Cucumber.

Lower Addiscombe Road, the site of the former East India Company Military Seminary, has had its old residential plots renovated by Mark Fairhurst Architects with large windows and skylights allowing for plenty of natural lighting. New development in the West Addiscombe and East Croydon areas is on the rise. In 2019, L&Q secured planning permission for 137 new homes on land stretching from 30 to 38 Addiscombe Road. The scheme includes 53% affordable housing and will deliver new public realm improvements, including planting, street furniture, and a private courtyard for residents. Stonegate Homes is also awaiting approval on their proposal for a 12 story block providing 93 residential units, including a mixture of 1, 2 and 3 bedroom apartments, as well as plans to provide 717sqm of creative and cultural enterprise centre space at basement, ground and first floor level. The development would occur on a site only 400 metres away from East Croydon Station. In Cherry Orchard Road, the second phase of the Morello development is also underway. When complete, it will be made up of more than 600 flats. Evidently, Addiscombe and Croydon are experiencing a bit of a development boom, even being described by one local as a “poor man’s Manhattan”.