# Kingston Upon Thames - the pros and cons



## Moggy (Apr 7, 2009)

If you would please 

Am thinking Kingston, Hampton, Surbiton, Tolworth, New Malden areas. Have spotted quite a few nice places but have yet to actually view any of them, had a good wonder around central Kingston but not ventured out a bit yet.

Cheers


----------



## _pH_ (Apr 7, 2009)

i grew up round there  

i quite like it, but can be pricey, esp. bits of Surbiton and Hampton


----------



## DeadManWalking (Apr 7, 2009)

GAH!  My old manor, it's terribly Surrey.  Small town mentality.


----------



## Moggy (Apr 7, 2009)

Yeah i've noticed quite a few pricier places but some affordable ones to, have a decent-ish budget to play with. Main thing is finding somewhere within about 3 miles from central kingston so i don't have to commute in to work


----------



## _pH_ (Apr 7, 2009)

I used to cycle from tolworth to kingston to go to school - about 3 miles each way, and relatively easy ride too, if you go the back way up King Charles Road. Tolworth's not the nicest part of Kingston, but it's probably one of the cheapest (relatively speaking)


----------



## Epico (Apr 7, 2009)

I really like Kingston, want to live their myself.

Good train service to Central London via Surbiton station.

Yes, it's a suburb - bit it has more of a character about than most grey suburbs

Has night buses.

Green space on either side (Richmond Park & Bushey)

It's a pricey, granted (that keeps the rif-raf out though  )


----------



## Epico (Apr 7, 2009)

*sorry for the their/there mistake, I can't correct my posts using the plain text skin*


----------



## DeadManWalking (Apr 7, 2009)

Also nice as it's on the river.


----------



## _pH_ (Apr 7, 2009)

Epico said:


> I really like Kingston, want to live their myself.
> 
> Good train service to Central London via Surbiton station.
> 
> ...



get the fuck out of my old manor epico you slaaaaaaaaaag!!! 

you're right though - good transport connections (surbiton is 15 mins from Waterloo), lots of green space - Richmond/Bushy Parks, Canbury Gardens on the river, nice walks along the river to Hampton Court or via Home Park.


----------



## _pH_ (Apr 7, 2009)

DeadManWalking said:


> Also nice as it's on the river.



you can hire boats and piss about going up to teddington lock and back


----------



## boing! (Apr 7, 2009)

I live in Kingston, personally I love it, but I can see why it wouldn't suit everyone. 
Pro's are: nice parks (walking distance to Richmond, Bushy, and Home Park), the river, Canbury Gardens, generally fairly low crime levels, pretty good transport links- trains from Surbiton to London about every 10 minutes.

Cons: Kingston town centre at the weekends is your typical small town full of pissed idiots, although there are some nicer pubs once you get to the outskirts, council tax is very high, quite hard to get back to from central London once you've missed your last trains (night buses have improved a fair bit lately, but its still not great), and its not really the most exciting place in the world all things considered.

For me, it strikes the right balance of being near enough to London to still get to interesting things, but with being quite a calm place to live with trees and stuff.


----------



## Cloo (Apr 7, 2009)

Surbiton is nice - gsv lived there for a year and it was very pleasant. Kingston is similar, but a bit livlier.

Great shopping in Kingston - everything you want, without the west end, but it does mean the centre is  filled with massive soulless mall and one-way system. Good Sainsbury's too, though. Nice eateries along the riverfront, though obviously not cheap.


----------



## upsidedownwalrus (Apr 7, 2009)

my mate used to live in New Malden.  Good if you like korean stuff 

I think he paid quite reasonable rent too, the flat was really nice and it was about 450 each for he and his sister sharing a 2 bedder.


----------



## zenie (Apr 7, 2009)

New Malden is cheap but you'd have to pay me to live there!

Will chat to you when I see you hopefully Moggy, Kingston is nice although I would have thought it might be a bit quiet for you, but quiet can be good. 

The Hamptons are nice, Teddington's nice, it depends how far out of Kingston you'd like to go.


----------



## Moggy (Apr 7, 2009)

Well browsing more places in New Malden the cheaper prices are definitely a plus, what's bad about the area? Starting work smack back in central kingston and working long hours so trying to cut out the time/cost of commuting, hence it needs to be walking/running distance preferably since i'm no cyclist 

Definitely need to do some serious scouting, don't particularly want to end up somewhere really grim just trying to save money. The quiet thing is definitely a plus, trying to cut down on distractions a bit


----------



## _pH_ (Apr 7, 2009)

I never liked new malden. not sure why, just seems to lack something


----------



## zenie (Apr 7, 2009)

_pH_ said:


> I never liked new malden. not sure why, just seems to lack something


 
Its just a void with a very busy A road to the side 

Ask MrsDK she lived in New Malden for a bit


----------



## _pH_ (Apr 7, 2009)

zenie said:


> Its just a void with a very busy A road to the side



much like tolworth then! but i didn't mind living in tolworth. maybe cos it's got a tower. yeah, that'll be it.


----------



## boing! (Apr 7, 2009)

I don't think New Malden is all that bad. Better than Tolworth for sure. It's a short cycle to Kingston, buses to various parts of South London, trains are ok, the main high st isn't too bad for shopping.

Tolworth really does feel out of the way, and looks very grey.


----------



## DeadManWalking (Apr 7, 2009)

There's Charrington Bowl as well in Tolworth


----------



## _pH_ (Apr 7, 2009)

@ boing



new malden doesn't have a tower as good as tolworth though!

tbf, though, i went through tolworth for the first time in about 10 yrs recently, it's gone downhill 

((((((((tobyjug)))))))))

^ the pub, not the poster


----------



## _float_ (Apr 7, 2009)

Sadly Kingston Green Fair is no longer running
http://kingstongreenfair.org.uk/

However just spotted this in the latest Schnews, if it is your sort of thing:


> Ravens Ait, the squatted island in the middle of the Thames in Surbiton (See SchNEWS 670), has sent an urgent call-out to SchNEWS readers to phone, email or write to Kingston Council to help swing the debate as negotiations continue with the local council to secure the island as an eco-community and autonomous space for all. The island continued to be used productively throughout the G20 protests with skill shares, workshops, an eco-cinema, a new permaculture garden, music jams and a kids space set-up to provide a creche for activists during this busy period. A wide range of local groups hope to utilise the space for non-commercial activities and networking and save it from being sold off to property developers and lost forever.
> 
> There is a call-out for people to come and get involved in any way they can – check out the website www.ravensait.org.uk or www.circlecommunity.org or head to the river from Surbiton station and hail the ferryman for a tour round the island and a welcomed stay. To demonstrate solidarity from further afield let the council know how you feel about their plans to sell off historic common land to make some quick cash.
> 
> ...


----------



## DeadManWalking (Apr 7, 2009)

_float_ said:


> Sadly Kingston Green Fair is no longer running
> http://kingstongreenfair.org.uk/




What happened with the Green Fair?  I know the council/police have been trying to get rid of it for years, did they finally get their way?


----------



## berniedicters (Apr 7, 2009)

DeadManWalking said:


> There's Charrington Bowl as well in Tolworth



Well, that's a definite minus point there (I used to be the duty manager of that hole on Fight Night...every Saturday)


----------



## A Dashing Blade (Apr 7, 2009)

Lived in New Malden for years (85-2000). 
1 or 2 ok pubs (Woodies & The Royal Oak), that's it.
Has Waitrose.
Better for transport into/out of central town that either Surbiton or Kingston (as is served by both those lines iyswim)
The bit between the station & Coombe Hill is the nicest area
A couple of great Korean restaurants there.


----------



## Thimble Queen (Apr 7, 2009)

i just wrote a really long post about the pros and cons of kingston life and the computer said no... Rubbishy....

Basically its alright as long as you've got mates to hang out with...

I wouldnt reccomend new malden cos its total no mans land and if your travelling to and from there by bus from kingston its a pain!

Theres some good pubs there and the houses by fairfield park are lush....

Good luck mate


----------



## upsidedownwalrus (Apr 7, 2009)

Oh, and the best speasy groon I've ever been to was right opposite my mate's old flat in new malden.  It was about 3 quid and the servings were too big even for me


----------



## Melinda (Apr 7, 2009)

I like Kingston, its pretty  Excellent shopping too, Bentalls is great and there are a pleasing number of independent shops.  

A nice mix of people and some nice places to eat and drink. I think the university has expanded? 
There certainly seem to be more students about, mostly folk who cant bear being any further away from London than Surrey.


----------



## g force (Apr 8, 2009)

Best skate shop in London too! Kingston's okay as others said on a weekend evening it's your typical small town although to be fair Richmond has gone exactly the same way. 

New Malden is deathly dull.


----------



## dwenfish (Apr 8, 2009)

that's my old manor! grew up in new malden and went to school in hampton...new malden's alright, dunno what mrs dk is talking about with regards to buses, it's piss easy to get to kingston on the 131 or 213 depending on which side of new malden you're in, the side towards coombe hill/ raynes park is posher and green and the other side is little bit more grim looking, it's all pretty dull to be honest, 

canbury gardens down by the river in kingston is nice...

let me know if ye want anymore info...


----------



## nino_savatte (Apr 8, 2009)

_pH_ said:


> I used to cycle from tolworth to kingston to go to school - about 3 miles each way, and relatively easy ride too, if you go the back way up King Charles Road. Tolworth's not the nicest part of Kingston, but it's probably one of the cheapest (relatively speaking)



Aye, Tolworth is a soulless, windswept place. If someone invited me to a night out on on Tolworth Broadway, I would respectfully decline the offer.


----------



## Thimble Queen (Apr 8, 2009)

dwenfish said:


> that's my old manor! grew up in new malden and went to school in hampton...new malden's alright, dunno what mrs dk is talking about with regards to buses, it's piss easy to get to kingston on the 131 or 213 depending on which side of new malden you're in, the side towards coombe hill/ raynes park is posher and green and the other side is little bit more grim looking, it's all pretty dull to be honest,
> 
> canbury gardens down by the river in kingston is nice...
> 
> let me know if ye want anymore info...



The 213 bus would go straight passed me in the morning when I had 9am lectures, it wasn't just cos the bus driver dint like me face, it used to happen to my housemates and other uni friends also...


----------



## DeadManWalking (Apr 8, 2009)

nino_savatte said:


> Aye, Tolworth is a soulless, windswept place. If someone invited me to a night out on on Tolworth Broadway, I would respectfully decline the offer.



But on the other hand it has some great charity shops


----------



## berniedicters (Apr 8, 2009)

nino_savatte said:


> Aye, Tolworth is a soulless, windswept place. If someone invited me to a night out on on Tolworth Broadway, I would respectfully decline the offer.


And it's improved immeasurably! I lived in Tolworth from 1963 (when I was born) to about 1984, and it was a steady decline throughout that time. I remember noticing that 3 out of every 4 people you'd see in Tolworth were elderly, and usually old ladies, and the shops tended to cater appropriately. It was bracketed by a pair of low dives, in the shape of the Toby Jug at one end, and the execrable Red Lion (latterly Sullivan's, and various permutations of Harvester) at the other, both pubs of dubious reputation and even more dubious beer.

When they replaced Fine Fare with Marks, it did seem to signal a bit of an improvement overall, and the place did get somewhat better, albeit fom a low base. I think the "Tolworth Bar & Grill" may have been a mistake - if ever a place was out of place, it was that!

I'm not sure there is a way of making a 1930s suburban high street anything other than bleak, though, beyond knocking it all down and starting again.


----------



## Doctor Carrot (Apr 8, 2009)

I currently live in New Malden and it's not that bad really, although there's fuck all to do round here. 

The Korean population bring lots of nice food shops and restaurants but apart from that it's just a high street next to a busy road.

Having said that the high street does have everything you need on it, I do all my shopping in the hight street now rather than having to venture further afield like I did when I lived in Chessington.

Best part about it is its transport links to Kingston and central London.  I've never had any difficulties getting anywhere and the night bus stops right outside my house


----------



## nino_savatte (Apr 8, 2009)

agnesdavies said:


> And it's improved immeasurably! I lived in Tolworth from 1963 (when I was born) to about 1984, and it was a steady decline throughout that time. I remember noticing that 3 out of every 4 people you'd see in Tolworth were elderly, and usually old ladies, and the shops tended to cater appropriately. It was bracketed by a pair of low dives, in the shape of the Toby Jug at one end, and the execrable Red Lion (latterly Sullivan's, and various permutations of Harvester) at the other, both pubs of dubious reputation and even more dubious beer.
> 
> When they replaced Fine Fare with Marks, it did seem to signal a bit of an improvement overall, and the place did get somewhat better, albeit fom a low base. I think the "Tolworth Bar & Grill" may have been a mistake - if ever a place was out of place, it was that!
> 
> I'm not sure there is a way of making a 1930s suburban high street anything other than bleak, though, beyond knocking it all down and starting again.



The Red Lion has closed; it shut up shop a few years ago and it's been covered in hoardings since I went there last year. There are some useful charity shops and there's a pretty good Tamil owned shop that sells all sorts of fruit and veg. I've never been into the Broadway Bar Cafe but it didn't look very interesting. In fact, it reminded me of a waiting room.

The areas away from the Broadway are pretty genteel in parts. Then there's Berrylands to the east...very pretty.


----------



## nino_savatte (Apr 8, 2009)

DeadManWalking said:


> But on the other hand it has some great charity shops



I've breezed in and out of a couple of them.


----------



## _pH_ (Apr 8, 2009)

nino_savatte said:


> The Red Lion has closed; it shut up shop a few years ago and it's been covered in hoardings since I went there last year.



and TobyJug's been banned....erm....demolished

*gettin' confused between internetz and real life*


----------



## nino_savatte (Apr 8, 2009)

_pH_ said:


> and TobyJug's been banned....erm....demolished
> 
> *gettin' confused between internetz and real life*


----------



## Brother Mouzone (Apr 8, 2009)

Have lived in Tolworth and Surbiton.  

To be honest I loved Surbiton, nice and green, great transport links to Central London, also used to love going to Kingston and catching a bus to Ealing Broadway (bit of a long trip but very pretty through Hampton, Kew etc).   I've really started to miss it recently.  Oh and the The Lamb pub in Surbiton is one of my favourite all time pubs.


----------



## _pH_ (Apr 8, 2009)

Brother Mouzone said:


> Have lived in Tolworth and Surbiton.
> 
> To be honest I loved Surbiton, nice and green, great transport links to Central London, also used to love going to Kingston and *catching a bus to Ealing Broadway* (bit of a long trip but very pretty through Hampton, Kew etc).   I've really started to miss it recently.  Oh and the The Lamb pub in Surbiton is one of my favourite all time pubs.



yeah, me too, 65!

Where's the lamb? don't remember that one.........

Waggon and Horses was a top pub too


----------



## berniedicters (Apr 8, 2009)

nino_savatte said:


> The Red Lion has closed; it shut up shop a few years ago and it's been covered in hoardings since I went there last year. There are some useful charity shops and there's a pretty good Tamil owned shop that sells all sorts of fruit and veg. I've never been into the Broadway Bar Cafe but it didn't look very interesting. In fact, it reminded me of a waiting room.
> 
> The areas away from the Broadway are pretty genteel in parts. Then there's Berrylands to the east...very pretty.


Well, we used to call where I lived Berrylands, but that was a blatant lie   Berrylands was Pine Walk and those of that ilk. Me, I was the wrong side of Surbiton Lagoon, in Moresby Avenue...

Spot on re the Broadway Bar & Cafe - not interesting, and had ideas above its station. I refused to go there after walking in with a hat on and being greeted with "Oi. You. Hat. Off.", repeated until comprehension. Apparently, it impaired the CCTV facilities. Fuck 'em.

I miss my old manor, but it's not Tolworth Broadway, with its several hundred - all equally crap - pizza outlets and several million - similarly useless - charidee shops that calls me back. The Tamil subcontinental grocer was handy, though, especially when I used to live above that there Budgens (please, tell me that's closed down and gone, too...)


----------



## nino_savatte (Apr 9, 2009)

agnesdavies said:


> Well, we used to call where I lived Berrylands, but that was a blatant lie   Berrylands was Pine Walk and those of that ilk. Me, I was the wrong side of Surbiton Lagoon, in Moresby Avenue...
> 
> Spot on re the Broadway Bar & Cafe - not interesting, and had ideas above its station. I refused to go there after walking in with a hat on and being greeted with "Oi. You. Hat. Off.", repeated until comprehension. Apparently, it impaired the CCTV facilities. Fuck 'em.
> 
> I miss my old manor, but it's not Tolworth Broadway, with its several hundred - all equally crap - pizza outlets and several million - similarly useless - charidee shops that calls me back. The Tamil subcontinental grocer was handy, though, especially when I used to live above that there Budgens (please, tell me that's closed down and gone, too...)



Budgens is still there but I think its business has been hit by the opening of the Tesco Metro opposite. 

I got the feeling that some people would say that they lived in Berrylands when they actually live in Tolworth. I suppose it's like Chessington and Hook...where some folk claim that they live in Hook rather than Chessington (now that's a weird place!).


----------



## DeadManWalking (Apr 9, 2009)

_pH_ said:


> yeah, me too, 65!
> 
> Where's the lamb? don't remember that one.........
> 
> Waggon and Horses was a top pub too



The Lambs on Brighton road, opposite the petrol station.  Nice little pub with a great garden.  

Waggon and horses is good too.  

Berrylands stinks, literally, especially in the summer as there's a sewage works there.


----------



## berniedicters (Apr 9, 2009)

nino_savatte said:


> Budgens is still there but I think its business has been hit by the opening of the Tesco Metro opposite.
> 
> I got the feeling that some people would say that they lived in Berrylands when they actually live in Tolworth. I suppose it's like Chessington and Hook...where some folk claim that they live in Hook rather than Chessington (now that's a weird place!).


After the flat-above-Budgens, we bought a house on the other side of the A3 in Warren Drive North (no, not one of the titchy Sunray ones - one of the big semi-detacheds, I was Rich then  ). I laughed at the Estate Agent when they tried to claim _that_ as Berrylands - I remember saying something like "Heh, perhaps you could call it 'South Berrylands', but there's no way you can call the other side of the A3 Berrylands". (apologies to anyone not from the area who won't have a clue what we're on about).

It was our own suburban version of all the Cla'am, St Reatham, and BattERsea nonsense, I suppose.



DeadManWalking said:


> Berrylands stinks, literally, especially in the summer as there's a sewage works there.


Yeah, that could niff when the wind was in the wrong direction.

But I never realised just _how_ green and pleasant Berrylands was until I moved away. It really is a very pretty neck of the woods...especially for suburban London.


----------



## FabricLiveBaby! (Apr 9, 2009)

I like Kingston, pretty much for the reasona already mentioned.  Close to parks, nice pubs by the river, quiet, good shops.

Cons are (as someone else has mentioned) it is pricey.  And the bars at night are typical small town, shoes and shirts drunkeness.  The only place worth going to is Bacchus Bar,  which is very small and dingy, but plays some excellent music and generally draws a nice casual crowd (and don't have a no trainers rule).

Transport is OK but isn't as great as some people are making out.  The train from Kingston takes 30 minutes to get to Waterloo , which is my least favourite terminal as it takes ages to get anywhere from there.  From Surbiton I think it is quicker,  but still only goes to Waterloo.

Hope that helps.


----------



## nino_savatte (Apr 9, 2009)

One of the biggest drawbacks to living in Kingston is the fact that it is in Zone 6. I know that there has been a campaign to have Kingston rezoned but, given the evident greed of Stagecoach, it is unlikely to happen any time soon.

The Kingstonians shot themselves in the foot when they turned down the opportunity to have a tram link.


----------



## nino_savatte (Apr 9, 2009)

agnesdavies said:


> After the flat-above-Budgens, we bought a house on the other side of the A3 in Warren Drive North (no, not one of the titchy Sunray ones - one of the big semi-detacheds, I was Rich then  ). I laughed at the Estate Agent when they tried to claim _that_ as Berrylands - I remember saying something like "Heh, perhaps you could call it 'South Berrylands', but there's no way you can call the other side of the A3 Berrylands". (apologies to anyone not from the area who won't have a clue what we're on about).
> 
> It was our own suburban version of all the Cla'am, St Reatham, and BattERsea nonsense, I suppose.
> 
> ...



I know Warren Drive. And yeah, South Berrylands....good one!


----------



## berniedicters (Apr 9, 2009)

nino_savatte said:


> One of the biggest drawbacks to living in Kingston is the fact that it is in Zone 6. I know that there has been a campaign to have Kingston rezoned but, given the evident greed of Stagecoach, it is unlikely to happen any time soon.
> 
> The Kingstonians shot themselves in the foot when they turned down the opportunity to have a tram link.



Did they?? What, recently? Because if they did, that's the *second* time they've screwed the pooch: the only reason Surbiton has such a good train service is because, when the original line was being built from London out to the South West, Kingston decided it didn't want a nasty, plebby little railway full of common oiks, so it went via Surbiton: Kingston only got its line later, on - effectively - a branch line.



nino_savatte said:


> I know Warren Drive. And yeah, South Berrylands....good one!



I miss that house. We'd Arrived when we bought that place... 

Even my mum was a bit envious, and that's saying something...


----------



## HackneyE9 (Apr 10, 2009)

There's a definite undercurrent of White Flight to Surbiton and Kingston, IMO.


----------



## nino_savatte (Apr 11, 2009)

agnesdavies said:


> Did they?? What, recently? Because if they did, that's the *second* time they've screwed the pooch: the only reason Surbiton has such a good train service is because, when the original line was being built from London out to the South West, Kingston decided it didn't want a nasty, plebby little railway full of common oiks, so it went via Surbiton: Kingston only got its line later, on - effectively - a branch line.
> 
> 
> 
> ...



The tram line went from Croydon to Wimbledon instead. I remember talking to someone about this last year. As you say, it's almost like history repeating itself with the railway station winding up at Surbiton.


----------



## nino_savatte (Apr 11, 2009)

New Malden has a really good bike shop on Kingston Road. I think it was in the process of a name change last time I saw it. It was called Pitfields.


----------



## _float_ (Apr 18, 2009)

DeadManWalking said:


> What happened with the Green Fair?  I know the council/police have been trying to get rid of it for years, did they finally get their way?


Sorry about the delay. I've just seen this post.

I don't actually know what happened, I only found out it was finished when I tried to look up the dates for this year.


----------



## tarannau (Apr 18, 2009)

Kingston always reminds me of Croydon, but with ideas above its station.

Reasonably shopping with a big department store and the usual chains. Nice pubs by the river, but a fair few awful townie pubs and clubs later on. Meh - it's alright for a visit or two, but I'm not drawn there.


----------



## Chz (Apr 20, 2009)

> Kingston always reminds me of Croydon, but with ideas above its station.



I'd agree, these days. Obviously it's a much nicer place historically, but it's the here and now that matters. Kingston is a bit cleaner, Croydon has a much better train service. There are posh bits _around_ Kingston, but they're fairly inaccessible by transport, relatively speaking.


----------



## berniedicters (Apr 20, 2009)

tarannau said:


> Kingston always reminds me of Croydon, but with ideas above its station.
> 
> Reasonably shopping with a big department store and the usual chains. Nice pubs by the river, but a fair few awful townie pubs and clubs later on. Meh - it's alright for a visit or two, but I'm not drawn there.


I'd say that's true now (or was when I was last there regularly, 4 or 5 years ago, but it didn't used to be like that.

I can remember going to Croydon and thinking what a horrible place it was, then seeing Kingston move inexorably closer to exactly the same kind of thing. The rot really set in when they built that awful Bentall Centre - I think Kingston effectively lost its town centre then.


----------

