Balham


Balham is a neighbourhood in south London, England, mostly in the London Borough of Wandsworth with small parts in the neighbouring Borough of Lambeth. The area has been settled since Saxon times and appears in the Domesday Book as Belgeham.

History

The settlement appears in the Domesday Book as Belgeham. Bal refers to 'rounded enclosure' and ham to a homestead, village or river enclosure. It was held by Geoffrey Orlateile. Its Domesday Assets were: 1½ ploughs, of meadow. It rendered : £2.
The Balham area has been settled since Saxon times. Balham Hill and Balham High Road follow the line of the Roman road Stane Street to Chichester –. Balham is recorded in several maps in the 1600s as Ballam or Balham Hill or Balham Manor. The village was within the parish of Streatham. Large country retreats for the affluent classes were built there in the 18th century; however, most development occurred after the opening of Balham railway station on the line to Crystal Palace in 1856.

Second World War air raid

On 14 October 1940 Balham Underground station was badly damaged by air raids on London during World War II. People took shelter in the tube station during the raids. A bomb fell in the High Road and through the roof of the Underground station below, bursting water and gas mains and killing around 64 people. This particular incident was featured in Atonement, a 2001 novel by Ian McEwan. An image of the aftermath is of the No. 88 bus which had fallen into the bomb crater.

Post-war

On the morning of 17 July 1974 a bomb planted by the Provisional IRA exploded near government buildings in Balham, causing substantial damage to buildings. Later that day the group detonated a fatal attack on the Tower of London.

Geography

Balham is overwhelmingly in Wandsworth, with only small parts in the neighbouring Borough of Lambeth and encompasses the A24 north of Tooting Bec and the roads radiating off it. The Balham SW12 postcode includes the southern part of Clapham Park otherwise known as Clapham South and the Hyde Farm area, both east of Cavendish Road and within Lambeth as well as a small detached part of Clapham south of Nightingale Lane, and part of Battersea. The southern part of Balham, towards Tooting Bec, near the 1930s block of Art Deco flats called Du Cane Court and the area to the south of Wandsworth Common, comes under the SW17 postcode. The Heaver Estate lies to the south of Balham in Tooting. The Estate mainly comprises substantial houses, was built in the grounds of the old Bedford Hill House and was the work of local Victorian builder, Alfred Heaver.
Balham is situated between four south London commons: Clapham Common to the north, Wandsworth Common to the west, Tooting Graveney Common to the south, and the adjoining Tooting Bec Common to the east – the latter two historically distinct areas are referred to by both Wandsworth Council and some local people as Tooting Common.
Neighbouring areas are: Battersea, Brixton, Clapham Park, Clapham South, Earlsfield, Streatham and Tooting.

Economy

Balham's town centre has a variety of bars, restaurants and shops including major chains. There are also local services, including independent stores, coffee houses and brasseries. There are two car parks serving the vicinity, one behind the Sainsbury's and one in front of Waitrose.

Demography

Balham is diverse both in terms of economic and cultural demographics with an increasingly professional middle class population.
The Polish population in Balham has hugely increased since 2006, though Balham has been one of the centres of the community in London since World War II. The White Eagle Club is a thriving Polish community centre, and its traditional Saturday night dance draws people from across London. Opposite the White Eagle is The Polish Roman Catholic Church of Christ the King.
The Irish, Portuguese, Somali, Pakistani and Brazilian communities are also well represented.

Landmarks

is an interchange between rail and Underground services, in London fare zone 3. The stations connect Balham to both the City of London and the West End. Balham is one of the underground stations on the Northern Line.
Clapham South Underground station is also technically in Balham, lying exactly at the meeting point of Clapham, Battersea and Balham.
Current bus routes serving the area are the 155, 249, 255, 315, 355 and N155,

Notable people born in Balham

For many years Balham was held up to mockery because of the comedy sketch "Balham, Gateway to the South". Written by Frank Muir and Denis Norden, with Peter Sellers as the narrator, it satirised the travelogues of the day, with their faraway exotic locations, by highlighting the supposed tourist attractions of Balham in postwar austerity Britain. The title's origin most probably alludes to a Southern Railway poster "Gateway to the Continent" dating from 1928 by T D Kerr. In 1979 Micky Dolenz of the Monkees directed a short film based on the sketch with Robbie Coltrane playing multiple roles. It was released for broadcast in 1981. The mockery ceased as Balham house prices soared.

Balham Group

In 1932, the Balham Group, the first British Trotskyist group, was expelled from the Communist Party of Great Britain and formed the Communist League.