Richmond Council has renewed its campaign for the full restoration of Hammersmith Bridge after councillors backed a motion at Council on 14 July calling for the return of public transport and emergency vehicle access.
Members agreed to continue pressing for what they described as a “Better Bridge” that would retain walking and cycling access while restoring buses and emergency services.
Cllr Julia Cambridge spoke in support of the motion. “I hear it said time and again: ‘Hammersmith Bridge is open…….if you happen to be a cyclist, or if you are fit enough and have the time to walk across it. ……..But tell that to the elderly resident who cannot manage the distance. Tell that to the disabled traveller. Tell that to the parent struggling with young children. Tell that to the commuter whose journey has become significantly longer every single day. And, most importantly, tell that to the patient waiting for an ambulance in a borough with no hospital, where every minute of delay can have consequences.”
“For them, Hammersmith Bridge is not open at all.”
During the debate, Cllr Cambridge highlighted the impact on East Sheen residents, saying diverted traffic has contributed to congestion, noise and poorer air quality along the South Circular.
For those of you who were at concerts performed by Basil Alter at All Saints and Christ Church last month, you will want to listen to his recent recordings of Beach’s Romance for Violin and Piano and Vieuxtemps’s Souvenir d’Amerique on Youtube
Could your items be donated, sold, shared or repaired to help reduce waste? There are many local services that make it easy to give your reusable items a new home.
Having made it to Lviv to deliver her ambulance, Lorna Hawthorne has now left the Putin Killing Fields and is back in the relative safety of Poland.
Above and below are photos of the ambulance which Alastair Grant drove to Lviv. It was bombed by a Russian drone after he left. Fortunately the driver suffered only concussion.
The International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Putin in March 2023. In June 2026 it was reported that more than 16,000 civilians had been killed since the Russian invasion. Some might simply call it murder.
The evidence of Russian war crimes continues to pile up.
On 21 June 2026 ESM posted a contribution from a local resident setting out concerns about trees being cut down in Palewell Woods. Without consultation. See
We are still waiting for clarification from the Council about the extent of cutting tress in the Woods and their future plans for the area.
It gets worse. The Council has just cut down a willow tree overlooking Beverley Brook, pictured below.
The Council has responded to questions about the axing by saying the tree was ‘reduced’ because there was a significant amount of decay that could not be left.
It is said that there should have been a notice on the tree advising residents that the works were happening. Did anyone see it?
You can see that there is decay in the tree, which appears to justify some ‘reducing’. The ‘tree team’ presumably has some expertise in dealing with such problems.
But the ‘reduction’ seems to be quite savage. What stops the Council giving advance notice and an opportunity to discuss?
Whether you’re a seasoned musician or just love to jam, come along every second Thursday of the month for an evening of great tunes and community vibes.
✨ Event Highlights: 7:00 PM – Open Mic 8:00 PM – Jam Session 9:00 PM – More Open Mic Performances
Bring your instrument, your voice, or just your love for music! Everyone’s welcome—whether you’re performing or simply enjoying the show.
Questions or Ready to Perform? Contact Patrick at pjboundy2@gmail.com to reserve your spot on the open mic.
Don’t miss the chance to be part of the magic at Sheen Live Jam Night!
Chertsey Court is a large purpose-built complex of apartments erected in the 1930s. It is bordered by the Lower Richmond Road to the south and Clifford Avenue to the west.
The first detailed record of the area is the tithe map of 1837. The western part of the area was owned by General Popham (shown in blue) and the eastern part by Thomas Fitzgerald (shown in yellow). The fields owned by Popham were worked as market gardens – plot 72 was farmed by Thomas Pocock and plot 74 by William Attwood.
Snake Alley divided the two plots. Snake Alley was closed/stopped up in 1841 at the request of Thomas Fitzgerald who said “it afforded a lurking place and place of concealment for depredators and petty thieves”. In the winter Snake Alley was full of mud, and the alley was said to be used by river thieves who ran their goods ashore at the Ship Lane draw dock and took them via Snake Alley towards Richmond.
The sinister reputation attached to Snake Alley persisted into the 20th century. A few yards from the hawthorn hedge dividing the field from the Lower Richmond Road there was a little copse of dense bushes, once a pond. Timid persons would hurry past this spot after dark as it was held to have unpleasant associations. As late as the 1930s it was said a gipsy chief was buried there, or someone taken out of the river to secure the ground for a cemetery.
In 1969 an exorcism took place to rid one of the flats of a ghost or poltergeist. So look out for the gipsy chief!
Plot 77 on the tithe map was pastureland managed by John Williams who probably gave his name to Williams Lane. Watney’s Brewery bought much of Fitzgerald’s land shown on the map in the early 20th century and built Watney Road on plot 77. A scheme to relieve congestion in the southwest approach to London, was approved in 1927. It involved a major new road, the Great Chertsey Road, and the building of new bridges at Kew, Hampton and Chiswick. All three bridges were opened by Edward Prince of Wales on 3 July 1933. They were in addition to the now closed Hammersmith Bridge, which had first been built in 1825.
Chertsey Court was built by the Borough of Barnes in the triangle to the southeast of the new road at a cost of £92,000 and was opened in May 1938. The land had previously been earmarked for a bus garage. Most of the first residents of Chertsey Court were families re-housed from Hampton Square, now an alley off Sheen Lane, which by the 1930s was regarded as unsuitable for habitation.
Sources on Snake Alley
Rambles of Old Wagram (1909) John Eustace Anderson
Alleyways of Mortlake and East Sheen (1983) Charles Hailstone, published Barnes and Mortlake History Society
The date fixed for 22 July 2026 has been cancelled. Mortlake Hall is closing on 20 July until early September, during which time works will be undertaken on the site.
In March 2025 EastSheenMatters met with Barnes Community Gardeners at Chertsey Court, flats with 166 units and over 300 residents.
As can be seen from the photos, working under the auspices of Barnes Common Ltd and assisting Richmond Housing Partnership, they keep the substantial green space looking tidy and full of flowers. They bring people together through gardening and improve the gardens around their homes. They also visit two local primary schools weekly, growing veg with the children.
