It is believed Cricklewood is dialect for “Bent Wood”, describing the shape of the wood which originally existed there. In the second half of the 18th century this area became dominated by the railways which first came through Cricklewood in 1868. Huge yards and sidings were created for the Midland Railway which ran to St Pancras. A village of terraced houses was built for railway workers in the 1860s, and the streets were named after senior railway employees. Before the First World War there was a substantial aircraft building business in Cricklewood. The aerodrome was redeveloped in the 1930s.

I haven’t been to Cricklewood in a long time. But I heard that there was going to be a huge new residential development of old railway sidings, and this was meant to contain houses, flats, and even a new town centre and some parks - which all sounds a bit ambitious. I wonder if it’s happened, and if so, what it’s like?

There are existing residential areas as well. Child’s Hill contains a concentrated collection of blocks of flats. Vernon Court is at the corner of Finchley Road and Hendon Way. In the triangle those roads make with Cricklewood Lane, are Wendover Court and Moreland Court, 1930s red brick mansion blocks. There are other blocks on the other side of Finchley Road, as well as terraces of Victorian houses.

South of Hendon Way and Cricklewood Lane lies the Hocroft Estate, which is a 1970s neo-Georgian development. This now a much sought after are for houses. It comprises roads leading down to Fortune Green, such as Ranulf Road and Farm Avenue.

Cricklewood Central is the area on either side of Cricklewood Lane. The streets between Cricklewood Lane and the Vale contain a variety of house types from Victorian to 1930s. Edwardian two-storey terraces line the roads between the Royal Way and Cricklewood Broadway. On the west side of Cricklewood Broadway, there are small Edwardian houses. Further west still, towards Gladstone Park, there are wider streets with larger detached houses.