Why Londoners love a mews

Elegant yet cosy, whimsically pretty and often tucked away on a cobbled alley off the capital’s busiest thoroughfares, London’s mews houses have a unique, timeless allure.

Mews were built in the 18th and 19th centuries as stables and carriage houses for grand homes (many of which have since been lost to the city’s streetscapes), with servants’ quarters above. Impossibly photogenic, they are often pastel-painted, festooned with climbing roses and brimful of character, offering a mix of urban elegance and old-world charm that more than compensates for their petite proportions.

Small wonder, then, that they have captured the heart and imagination of many an A-lister, artist and film-maker. Francis Bacon, Adele, Madonna and Guy Ritchie have all lived in London mews houses, which have had unforgettable big- and small-screen roles – from Keira Knightley’s pink Notting Hill bolthole in the Richard Curtis romcom Love Actually to the South Ken retreat of James Norton’s flawed banker in the BBC’s McMafia. On the even smaller screen, they are catnip for Instagram influencers in search of the perfect backdrop – favourites include St Lukes and Powis Mews in W11, Harley Place in W1 and Kynance Mews in SW7.

For the London house-hunter, the mews also has endless practical appeal. “They are often for sale freehold, without listed status, which offers huge scope and flexibility for buyers to put their stamp on them,” says Charlie Williams, associate director of prime central London residential for Savills. “Many of them retain a garage, a rare perk from when they were converted from housing carriages, and are usually hidden away off busy streets. They are true urban oases with a strong sense of neighbourliness.”

Williams suggests looking at the mews houses in and around Chelsea and South Kensington, as well as Connaught Village in W2. “This under-the-radar neighbourhood on the edge of Hyde Park is full of untapped gems,” she says, “and it’s set to benefit in the long term from the money being pumped into Bayswater’s regeneration.” Expect to pay between £1,400 and £1,900 per sq ft for a mews house here.

Cobbled Bathurst Mews is another excellent option, with foliage-covered facades and an authentic vibe – Hyde Park Stables sits at one end, so horses regularly clip-clop past. Partially renovated two-storey houses with three bedrooms start at £1.9 million: by way of comparison, those in search of that most elusive trophy home, a Grade II listed five-bedroom Georgian house with its original mews to the rear, can expect to pay upwards of £12 million in Marylebone and £17 million-plus in Mayfair or Belgravia.

Once you’ve secured your mews house, approach any renovation and decorative scheme with care. Philippa Thorp, who runs the Sloane Street-based architecture and interiors firm Thorp Design, says it’s vital not to accept any seeming limitations – low ceilings and small windows, for example, which would have suited four-legged residents and their grooms.

“It is often possible to alter the fenestration – raising lintels and widening window sills,” says Thorp, who has several London mews houses in her portfolio. “You can also draw in more light via a laylight, a glazed panel that lies flush to the usually flat roof, positioned above a central staircase.” Getting interior proportions right is key – if a mews ceiling feels low, don’t be afraid to lower the floor by several inches.

Although creating an open-plan space on the ground floor is tempting, it is more satisfying and efficient to have a series of distinct, carefully thought-out rooms. “You want them to feel like lovely little jewels,” Thorp says. “As long as you can get the joinery right, you can fit a surprising amount into a mews house, including storage and a laundry room. Approach it like a Rubik’s Cube and everything will slot into place.”

Thorp’s fellow west London-based designer Katharine Pooley, who raised her two sons in a mews house, says these renovations can be intensely satisfying. “We recently completed a mews project for a family in Chelsea, transforming it with the addition of a basement, rear extension and orangery, and a new wrought-iron and timber curved staircase positioned under an oval skylight.”

When it comes to decor, Pooley cautions against making mews houses overly modernist, as they can have a harsh, empty feel: “I like the rooms to speak the same language, so that you can walk from space to space and experience the same peaceful, calming narrative.” She suggests mixed limestone floors, neoclassical fireplaces and mid-toned timber joinery, with bronze details, antique mirroring, shagreen and embroidered edges to add depth and layering.

Saving the most intriguing touches for inside the house might just keep those Instagrammers at bay, too.

Thorp Design
Katharine Pooley

Pictures from top: colourful mews houses (Getty); a leafy mews in London (Getty); a bright sitting room designed by Katharine Pooley; a little terrace provides a hidden oasis in the city