Dalston () is an area of
East London
East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth.
Etymology
As in other languages, the word is formed from the f ...
, in the
London Borough of Hackney
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
. It is northeast of
Charing Cross
Charing Cross ( ) is a junction in Westminster, London, England, where six routes meet. Clockwise from north these are: the east side of Trafalgar Square leading to St Martin's Place and then Charing Cross Road; the Strand leading to the City; ...
. Dalston began as a hamlet on either side of Dalston Lane, and as the area urbanised the term also came to apply to surrounding areas including
Kingsland Kingsland may refer to:
Places
;Barbados
* Kingsland, Barbados (in Christ Church, Barbados Parish)
;Canada
* Kingsland, Calgary, Alberta, a neighborhood
;Australia
* proposed alternative name for the Northern Territory in 1912
;New Zealand
* Kings ...
and
Shacklewell
Shacklewell is a small locality to the east of Roman Ermine Street (now the A10), in the London Borough of Hackney.'Hackney: Shacklewell', in A History of the County of Middlesex: Volume 10, Hackney, ed. T F T Baker (London, 1995), pp. 35–38. ...
, all three of which being part of the
Ancient Parish
In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authority. ...
of
Hackney.
The area has experienced a high degree of gentrification in recent years, a process accelerated by the
East London line extension, now part of
London Overground
London Overground (also known simply as the Overground) is a Urban rail in the United Kingdom, suburban rail network serving London and its environs. Established in 2007 to take over Silverlink Metro routes, (via archive.org). it now serves a ...
, and the reopening of
Dalston Junction railway station
Dalston Junction (pronounced ) is an inter-modal rail and bus transport interchange in Dalston, London. It is located at the crossroads of Dalston Lane, Kingsland Road and Balls Pond Road. The station served by London Overground East London li ...
, part of London's successful bid to host the
2012 Olympics
The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...
.
Bounds
Dalston has never been an administrative unit, and partly for this reason the boundaries are not formally defined. There are generally understood boundaries in the south and west, but less clarity to the north and east. There is an electoral ward of the same name which covers a part of the northwest of Dalston.
Dalston's boundaries (taking in Kingsland and Shacklewell, but not
De Beauvoir Town
De Beauvoir Town is a neighbourhood in east London and is in the London Borough of Hackney, north of the City of London. The area was a part of the Hackney; the Ancient Parish and subsequent Metropolitan Borough that was incorporated into the l ...
, which is also sometimes associated with Dalston) are described with more or less precision below:
* South: Dalston takes
Hackney's southern border with
Shoreditch
Shoreditch is a district in the East End of London in England, and forms the southern part of the London Borough of Hackney. Neighbouring parts of Tower Hamlets are also perceived as part of the area.
In the 16th century, Shoreditch was an impor ...
. Albion Drive forms much of this boundary.
* West: The originally Roman A10 road (under the names, south to north:
Kingsland Road
Kingsland Road is the name given to an East London stretch of the A10 road within the London Borough of Hackney in England. The A10 was originally a Roman Road better known as Ermine Street or sometimes the Old North Road.
The name ''Kingslan ...
, Kingsland High St, Stoke Newington Road) is widely understood as Dalston's western margin. The exception is that both sides of Kingsland High St are included – here Dalston takes Hackney's western boundary as it crosses the A10 to take in a small area bounded by Boleyn Road and the Crossway, to include
Dalston Kingsland Railway Station
Dalston Kingsland railway station is a railway station on the North London Line in London, England. It is in the Dalston area of the London Borough of Hackney, on the western side of Kingsland High Street and opposite Ridley Road Market. The s ...
. The western boundary corresponds with the western side of the E8 postal area with which Dalston is associated, though postcodes are not intended to define districts, and the postal area also takes in areas that are not ever described as part of Dalston.
* North: There is not a tradition of a clear northern boundary with
West Hackney
West Hackney is a district in the London Borough of Hackney, situated on the eastern side of Ermine Street, the major Roman Road better known as the A10.
The area was part of the Ancient Parish and subsequent Metropolitan Borough of Hackney, bu ...
. Dalston's association with the E8 postal area means that its 'sphere of self-identification' does not extend far, if at all, beyond the postcode boundary, and no further north than Farleigh Road.
* East: Between Downs Road and Amhurst Road, the physical barrier of the railway embankment marks the postcode boundary with
Lower Clapton
Clapton is a district of East London, England, in the London Borough of Hackney.
Clapton is divided into Upper Clapton, in the north, and Lower Clapton to the south. Clapton railway station lies north-east of Charing Cross.
Geography and ori ...
. There is little tradition of a boundary with the
central Hackney area except that it is sometimes said that Dalston extends as far as the park at
London Fields
London Fields is a park in Hackney, London, although the name also refers to the immediate area in Hackney surrounding it and London Fields station. It is common land adjoining the Hackney Central area of the London Borough of Hackney. The p ...
.
History
The name Dalston is thought to have derived from ''Deorlaf's tun'' (farm) in much the same way as nearby Hoxton was named after the farm of "Hoch". The first written record available is from 1294 when the name was written as Derleston.
The village was one of four small villages within the
Parish of Hackney (along with
Newington,
Shacklewell
Shacklewell is a small locality to the east of Roman Ermine Street (now the A10), in the London Borough of Hackney.'Hackney: Shacklewell', in A History of the County of Middlesex: Volume 10, Hackney, ed. T F T Baker (London, 1995), pp. 35–38. ...
, and
Kingsland Kingsland may refer to:
Places
;Barbados
* Kingsland, Barbados (in Christ Church, Barbados Parish)
;Canada
* Kingsland, Calgary, Alberta, a neighborhood
;Australia
* proposed alternative name for the Northern Territory in 1912
;New Zealand
* Kings ...
) that were grouped for assessment purposes, together having only as many houses as the
village of Hackney.
John Rocque's map of 1746 shows the village of Kingsland centred on the crossroads at what is now Dalston Junction and the small village of Dalston further east along Dalston Lane. Another clear feature is Roman
Ermine Street
Ermine Street is a major Roman road in England that ran from London (''Londinium'') to Lincoln (''Lindum Colonia'') and York (''Eboracum''). The Old English name was ''Earninga Strǣt'' (1012), named after a tribe called the ''Earningas'', ...
which now forms most of the western boundary of this area. Ermine Street now has the road number A10 and goes by a number of names, including
Kingsland Road
Kingsland Road is the name given to an East London stretch of the A10 road within the London Borough of Hackney in England. The A10 was originally a Roman Road better known as Ermine Street or sometimes the Old North Road.
The name ''Kingslan ...
as it travels through London.
Around 1280 CE a
leper hospital
A leper colony, also known by many other names, is an isolated community for the quarantining and treatment of lepers, people suffering from leprosy. '' M. leprae'', the bacterium responsible for leprosy, is believed to have spread from East Af ...
was founded in Dalston by the citizens of London and in 1549 it was attached to the chapel of St Bartholomew as an outhouse.
During the 18th and 19th centuries the area changed from an agricultural and rural landscape to an urban one. By 1849, it was described as ''a recently increased suburban village, with some handsome old houses'', and by 1859 the village had exceeded its neighbour and, with the railways and continuous building, the village of Kingsland disappeared.
During the 1930s, 1940s and 1960s the area's large Jewish and other minority populations made it a target for provocative rallies by
Oswald Mosley
Sir Oswald Ernald Mosley, 6th Baronet (16 November 1896 – 3 December 1980) was a British politician during the 1920s and 1930s who rose to fame when, having become disillusioned with mainstream politics, he turned to fascism. He was a member ...
and the various organisations he founded. These were actively opposed by many local people, together with organisations such as the
43 Group
The 43 Group was an English anti-fascist group set up by Jewish ex-servicemen after the Second World War. They did this when, upon returning to London, they encountered British fascist organisations such as Jeffrey Hamm's British League of Ex- ...
in the 1940s and the
62 Group
The 62 Group, originally the 62 Committee, was a militant broad-based coalition of anti-fascists in London, headed by Harry Bidney. Based on the earlier 43 Group, it was formed in 1962 largely in response to the resurgence of fascism in Britain ...
from 1962, and this led to a number of violent confrontations, notably in the Ridley Road and Hertford Road areas. A 2014 novel, ''
Ridley Road'', and its
BBC One
BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television bulletins, p ...
TV adaptation uses the clashes as a backdrop to the narrative.
In July 2017 a violent riot broke out on Dalston Road, which had originally started as a demonstration against police violence. Protesters barricaded the spot where a man, who later died at the
Royal London Hospital
The Royal London Hospital is a large teaching hospital in Whitechapel in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is part of Barts Health NHS Trust. It provides district general hospital services for the City of London and Tower Hamlets and spe ...
, had been arrested. The rioters threw fire bombs at police and caused property damage.
Notable buildings
St. Mark's is a large Victorian church primarily built in the period 1864–66 to a design by Chester Cheston. It is reputedly the largest parish church in London, larger than
Southwark Cathedral
Southwark Cathedral ( ) or The Cathedral and Collegiate Church of St Saviour and St Mary Overie, Southwark, London, lies on the south bank of the River Thames close to London Bridge. It is the mother church of the Anglican Diocese of Southwark. ...
, capable of hosting congregations of 1800–2000 people and its great size has earned it the nickname, the "Cathedral of the East End".
The residential area around the church is also of high architectural quality and has accordingly been designated the "St. Mark's Conservation Area".
The
Rio Cinema is a Grade II listed independent Art Deco cinema. It is a popular single-screen cinema located on Kingsland High Street, with a history stretching back over 100 years.
The
German Hospital, locally known as 'The German', is a group of attractive Victorian red brick buildings that were home to a hospital from 1845 to 1987. The hospital was initially founded to cater primarily for London's then large German-speaking community. It eventually became an ordinary
NHS
The National Health Service (NHS) is the umbrella term for the publicly funded healthcare systems of the United Kingdom (UK). Since 1948, they have been funded out of general taxation. There are three systems which are referred to using the " ...
facility before its facilities were merged and moved to
Homerton University Hospital
Homerton University Hospital is a teaching hospital in Homerton in the London Borough of Hackney. It is managed by Homerton University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust.
History
The hospital has its origins in the Homerton Fever Hospital, which op ...
.
Festivals
Dalston is known for music, events and its nightlife. Its biggest festival to date began in 2015, Dalston Music Festival. Centred on Gillett Square and 8 clubs in the surrounding area, it was founded by Andrew Bunsell of Dalston Studios.
Arts and entertainment
![dalston culture house](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3a/Dalston_culture_house.jpg)
Dalston hosts several art and entertainment venues, and has a history as an entertainment centre, with at one time hosting four or five cinemas within a radius of , and the Dalston Theatre, a former
hippodrome
The hippodrome ( el, ἱππόδρομος) was an ancient Greek stadium for horse racing and chariot racing. The name is derived from the Greek words ''hippos'' (ἵππος; "horse") and ''dromos'' (δρόμος; "course"). The term is used i ...
and
music hall
Music hall is a type of British theatrical entertainment that was popular from the early Victorian era, beginning around 1850. It faded away after 1918 as the halls rebranded their entertainment as variety. Perceptions of a distinction in Bri ...
that later became the
Four Aces blues club and the Labyrinth nightclub. The Dalston Theatre was demolished in February 2007, despite an active local campaign to save it. Dalston was also a hub for 1970s and 1980s pub rock venues but these are largely defunct.
Shopping
![ridley road market dalston 1](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2c/Ridley_road_market_dalston_1.jpg)
Established in the 1880s,
Ridley Road Market
Ridley Road Market (known locally as Ridley Road) but often referred to as "Dalston Market" is the central marketplace in Dalston in the London Borough of Hackney. It is opposite Dalston Kingsland railway station, just off the Kingsland High ...
is opposite Dalston Kingsland railway station. Fruit and vegetables, some fairly exotic, are available.
Halal
''Halal'' (; ar, حلال, ) is an Arabic word that translates to "permissible" in English. In the Quran, the word ''halal'' is contrasted with ''haram'' (forbidden). This binary opposition was elaborated into a more complex classification kno ...
butchers cluster around the high street end of the market.
Ridley Road market is reputedly the basis for the one found in the BBC's ''
EastEnders
''EastEnders'' is a Television in the United Kingdom, British soap opera created by Julia Smith (producer), Julia Smith and Tony Holland which has been broadcast on BBC One since February 1985. Set in the fictional borough of Walford in the Ea ...
''. The Kingsland Shopping Centre (formerly Dalston Cross) is just south of Ridley Road Market.
Kingsland Road and the surrounding streets are home to an ever-growing number of boutiques, bars and cafés.
Area profile
![dalston junction 1](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0d/Dalston_junction_1.jpg)
Contemporary Dalston is a lively neighbourhood with an ethnically varied population. Architecturally it is a mixture of 18th- and 19th-century
terraced house
In architecture and city planning, a terrace or terraced house ( UK) or townhouse ( US) is a form of medium-density housing that originated in Europe in the 16th century, whereby a row of attached dwellings share side walls. In the United State ...
s and 20th-century
council estate
Public housing in the United Kingdom, also known as council estates, council housing, or social housing, provided the majority of rented accommodation until 2011 when the number of households in private rental housing surpassed the number in so ...
s. It is currently undergoing rapid
gentrification
Gentrification is the process of changing the character of a neighborhood through the influx of more Wealth, affluent residents and businesses. It is a common and controversial topic in urban politics and urban planning, planning. Gentrification ...
, partly because of the redevelopment of the railway station at
Dalston Junction
Dalston Junction (pronounced ) is an inter-modal rail and bus transport interchange in Dalston, London. It is located at the crossroads of Dalston Lane, Kingsland Road and Balls Pond Road. The station served by London Overground East London li ...
and partly due to the revitalisation of large parts of east London in the build-up to the
2012 Olympics
The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...
. (
Hackney was one of the four host
borough
A borough is an administrative division in various English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely.
History
In the Middle Ag ...
s of the
Games
A game is a structured form of play, usually undertaken for entertainment or fun, and sometimes used as an educational tool. Many games are also considered to be work (such as professional players of spectator sports or games) or art (such ...
.)
Dalston has attracted immigrants for over 100 years; at the turn of the century it was a popular area for newly arrived
Jewish
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
people from
central Europe
Central Europe is an area of Europe between Western Europe and Eastern Europe, based on a common historical, social and cultural identity. The Thirty Years' War (1618–1648) between Catholicism and Protestantism significantly shaped the area' ...
. In the 1950s and '60s, as the Jewish community became more affluent and moved out, they were replaced by a large Caribbean community, which accounts for the wide choice of Caribbean food available in Ridley Road. As the Caribbean community slowly drifted out of Dalston it then became popular with the Turkish, as well as the Vietnamese. Recent arrivals include Poles, judging by the numbers of Polish delicatessens now appearing and other stores catering to Polish tastes.
Fassett Square
''EastEnders'' is a British soap opera created by Julia Smith and Tony Holland which has been broadcast on BBC One since February 1985. Set in the fictional borough of Walford in the East End of London, the programme follows the stories of l ...
was the inspiration for the BBC soap ''
EastEnders
''EastEnders'' is a Television in the United Kingdom, British soap opera created by Julia Smith (producer), Julia Smith and Tony Holland which has been broadcast on BBC One since February 1985. Set in the fictional borough of Walford in the Ea ...
''. Originally, there were plans to film the series there, on location. However, Fassett Square (
Albert Square
Walford is a fictional borough of east London in the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders''. It is the primary setting for the soap. ''EastEnders'' is filmed at Borehamwood in Hertfordshire, towards the north-west of London. Much of the location work i ...
) and Ridley Road Market (Walford Market) were rebuilt on the set in Elstree, near Borehamwood, to have a more controlled filming environment. The idea of Walford stems from Walford Road, and many of the houses on the show use the same exterior design. Coincidentally both
Barbara Windsor
Dame Barbara Windsor (born Barbara Ann Deeks; 6 August 193710 December 2020) was an English actress, known for her roles in the ''Carry On'' films and for playing Peggy Mitchell in the BBC One soap opera, ''EastEnders''.[Tony Holland
Anthony John Holland (18 January 1940 – 28 November 2007) was a British screenwriter, best known as a writer and co-creator (with Julia Smith (producer), Julia Smith) of the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders''.
Early life
Holland was the oldest of ...]
, one of the original creators of the show, lived at different times on the street.
The Hackney Peace Carnival Mural created in 1985, depicts a group of people marching for peace against "the bomb" and has become an important cultural statement from that era. It can be found opposite Dalston Junction Overground station on Dalston Lane. It has also been used on the cover of an album by local group Rudimental.
Music hall
Music hall is a type of British theatrical entertainment that was popular from the early Victorian era, beginning around 1850. It faded away after 1918 as the halls rebranded their entertainment as variety. Perceptions of a distinction in Bri ...
artist
Marie Lloyd
Matilda Alice Victoria Wood (12 February 1870 – 7 October 1922), professionally known as Marie Lloyd (), was an English music hall singer, comedian and musical theatre actress. She was best known for her performances of songs such as " T ...
(1870–1922) used to reside on Graham Road. The house now has a
blue plaque
A blue plaque is a permanent sign installed in a public place in the United Kingdom and elsewhere to commemorate a link between that location and a famous person, event, or former building on the site, serving as a historical marker. The term i ...
.
In April 2009 ''The Guardian'' published an article on Dalston claiming that it was the "coolest" place to live in Britain. In the same year however, sculpture park
The Towers of Hackney was torn down to give way to new buildings.
Transport
Rail
Dalston is on the
London Overground
London Overground (also known simply as the Overground) is a Urban rail in the United Kingdom, suburban rail network serving London and its environs. Established in 2007 to take over Silverlink Metro routes, (via archive.org). it now serves a ...
network, served by three stations:
*
Dalston Kingsland – for London Overground services between
Stratford and
Richmond
Richmond most often refers to:
* Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States
* Richmond, London, a part of London
* Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England
* Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada
* Richmond, California, ...
or
Clapham Junction
Clapham Junction is an urban locality around Clapham Junction railway station in London, England. Despite its name, it is not located in Clapham, but forms the commercial centre of Battersea.
Clapham Junction was a scene of disturbances durin ...
. This provides Dalston with a direct rail link to
Hackney Central
Hackney Central is a sub-district of Hackney in the London Borough of Hackney in London, England and is four miles (6.4 km) northeast of Charing Cross.
The Hackney Central area is focused on Mare Street and the retail areas to the north o ...
,
Highbury & Islington,
Camden Road
Camden Road is a main road in London running from the junction of Camden High Street and Camden Town Underground station up to Holloway Road. It is part of the A503 which continues east as Tollington Road.
History
The route was created and d ...
,
Willesden Junction
Willesden Junction is a railway station in Harlesden, north-west London, UK. It is served by both London Overground and London Underground services.
History
The station developed on three contiguous sites: the West Coast Main Line (WCML) st ...
and destinations in
West London
West London is the western part of London, England, north of the River Thames, west of the City of London, and extending to the Greater London boundary.
The term is used to differentiate the area from the other parts of London: North London ...
.
*
Dalston Junction
Dalston Junction (pronounced ) is an inter-modal rail and bus transport interchange in Dalston, London. It is located at the crossroads of Dalston Lane, Kingsland Road and Balls Pond Road. The station served by London Overground East London li ...
– for London Overground services between Highbury & Islington and either
West Croydon,
Crystal Palace
Crystal Palace may refer to:
Places Canada
* Crystal Palace Complex (Dieppe), a former amusement park now a shopping complex in Dieppe, New Brunswick
* Crystal Palace Barracks, London, Ontario
* Crystal Palace (Montreal), an exhibition building
* ...
,
New Cross
New Cross is an area in south east London, England, south-east of Charing Cross in the London Borough of Lewisham and the SE14 postcode district. New Cross is near St Johns, Telegraph Hill, Nunhead, Peckham, Brockley, Deptford and Greenwich, ...
or Clapham Junction. This gives the area a direct rail connection to
Shoreditch
Shoreditch is a district in the East End of London in England, and forms the southern part of the London Borough of Hackney. Neighbouring parts of Tower Hamlets are also perceived as part of the area.
In the 16th century, Shoreditch was an impor ...
,
Whitechapel
Whitechapel is a district in East London and the future administrative centre of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is a part of the East End of London, east of Charing Cross. Part of the historic county of Middlesex, the area formed ...
,
Canada Water
Canada Water is an area of the Docklands in south-east London. It is named after a freshwater lake and wildlife refuge. Canada Water tube, Overground and bus station is immediately north of the lake, along with Canada Water Library which ov ...
and destinations in
South London
South London is the southern part of London, England, south of the River Thames. The region consists of the Districts of England, boroughs, in whole or in part, of London Borough of Bexley, Bexley, London Borough of Bromley, Bromley, London Borou ...
.
*
Haggerston
Haggerston is a locale in East London, England, centred approximately on Great Cambridge Street (now renamed Queensbridge Road). It is within the London Borough of Hackney and is considered to be a part of London's East End. It is about 3.1 mi ...
– partly in the district, served by London Overground trains between Highbury & Islington and West Croydon, Crystal Palace, New Cross or Clapham Junction.
All stations are in
London fare zone 2
Fare zone 2 is an inner zone of Transport for London's zonal fare system used for calculating the price of tickets for travel on the London Underground, London Overground, Docklands Light Railway and, since 2007, on National Rail services.
Ba ...
, and
Oyster Cards
The Oyster card is a payment method for public transport in London (and certain areas around it) in England, United Kingdom. A standard Oyster card is a blue credit-card-sized stored-value contactless smart card. It is promoted by Transport ...
are valid for travel from Dalston to other destinations in London. Dalston Junction is the busiest station of the three, with 5.677 million passenger entries and exits at the station in 2017–2018.
There is no direct rail link to
Central London
Central London is the innermost part of London, in England, spanning several boroughs. Over time, a number of definitions have been used to define the scope of Central London for statistics, urban planning and local government. Its characteris ...
, and Dalston is not on the
London Underground
The London Underground (also known simply as the Underground or by its nickname the Tube) is a rapid transit system serving Greater London and some parts of the adjacent ceremonial counties of England, counties of Buckinghamshire, Essex and He ...
network. Direct connections to
London's Zone 1 can be found at Hackney Central and Highbury & Islington stations. A
new station in Dalston has been proposed as part of the
Crossrail 2
Crossrail 2 is a proposed hybrid commuter rail and rapid transit route in South East England, running from nine stations in Surrey to three in Hertfordshire, providing a new North–South rail link across Greater London. It would connect the S ...
development.
Buses
Dalston is served by
London Buses
London Buses is the subsidiary of Transport for London (TfL) that manages most bus services in London, England. It was formed following the Greater London Authority Act 1999 that transferred control of London Regional Transport (LRT) bus se ...
on routes 30, 38, 56, 67, 76, 149, 236, 242, 243, 277, 488 and N38. Routes 76, 149, 242, 243 and 277 run 24-hours, daily.
Dalston Bus Garage
Dalston bus garage was a bus depot in Dalston, London, England.
It was opened by Motor Bus Co in 1906, passing with the business to Vanguard Motors in 1907, who in turn sold out to the London General Omnibus Company in 1908. It was built on the ...
on Shrubland Road has been demolished.
Road
Major roads in Dalston include:
*
A10 (
Kingsland Road
Kingsland Road is the name given to an East London stretch of the A10 road within the London Borough of Hackney in England. The A10 was originally a Roman Road better known as Ermine Street or sometimes the Old North Road.
The name ''Kingslan ...
/
Kingsland High Street
The A10 (in certain sections known as ''Great Cambridge Road'' or Old North Road) is a major road in England.
Its southern end is at London Bridge in the London Borough of Southwark, and its northern end is the Norfolk port town of King's ...
) – southbound to
Shoreditch
Shoreditch is a district in the East End of London in England, and forms the southern part of the London Borough of Hackney. Neighbouring parts of Tower Hamlets are also perceived as part of the area.
In the 16th century, Shoreditch was an impor ...
and the
City of London
The City of London is a city, ceremonial county and local government district that contains the historic centre and constitutes, alongside Canary Wharf, the primary central business district (CBD) of London. It constituted most of London fr ...
, northbound to
Tottenham
Tottenham () is a town in North London, England, within the London Borough of Haringey. It is located in the ceremonial county of Greater London. Tottenham is centred north-northeast of Charing Cross, bordering Edmonton to the north, Waltham ...
,
Enfield
Enfield may refer to:
Places Australia
* Enfield, New South Wales
* Enfield, South Australia
** Electoral district of Enfield, a state electoral district in South Australia, corresponding to the suburb
** Enfield High School (South Australia)
...
and
Hertford
Hertford ( ) is the county town of Hertfordshire, England, and is also a civil parish in the East Hertfordshire district of the county. The parish had a population of 26,783 at the 2011 census.
The town grew around a ford on the River Lea, ne ...
.
*
A104 (Balls Pond Road/Dalston Lane) – westbound towards
Green Lanes Green Lanes may refer to:
*A green lane (road), a type of road, usually an unpaved rural route.
*Green Lanes (London), a major road running through north London
*Harringay, a neighbourhood in the London Borough of Haringey
The London Borough of ...
,
Highbury
Highbury is a district in North London and part of the London Borough of Islington
in Greater London that was owned by Ranulf brother of Ilger and included all the areas north and east of Canonbury and Holloway Roads.
The manor house was situ ...
and
Angel
In various theistic religious traditions an angel is a supernatural spiritual being who serves God.
Abrahamic religions often depict angels as benevolent celestial intermediaries between God (or Heaven) and humanity. Other roles include ...
, eastbound to
Hackney Downs
Hackney Downs is a park and an area of historically common land in the Lower Clapton area of the London Borough of Hackney. The name is sometimes also used to apply to the neighbourhood around the park.
Hackney Downs Park
The Downs open space ...
,
Clapton,
Leyton
Leyton () is a town in east London, England, within the London Borough of Waltham Forest. It borders Walthamstow to the north, Leytonstone to the east, and Stratford to the south, with Clapton, Hackney Wick and Homerton, across the River L ...
and
Epping Forest
Epping Forest is a area of ancient woodland, and other established habitats, which straddles the border between Greater London and Essex. The main body of the forest stretches from Epping in the north, to Chingford on the edge of the London ...
.
* A1207 (Graham Road) – eastbound to
Hackney.
* B102 (Southgate Road) – southbound to
De Beauvoir Town
De Beauvoir Town is a neighbourhood in east London and is in the London Borough of Hackney, north of the City of London. The area was a part of the Hackney; the Ancient Parish and subsequent Metropolitan Borough that was incorporated into the l ...
and
Hoxton
Hoxton is an area in the London Borough of Hackney, England. As a part of Shoreditch, it is often considered to be part of the East End – the historic core of wider East London. It was historically in the county of Middlesex until 1889. I ...
.
* B108 (Queensbridge Road) – southbound to
Haggerston
Haggerston is a locale in East London, England, centred approximately on Great Cambridge Street (now renamed Queensbridge Road). It is within the London Borough of Hackney and is considered to be a part of London's East End. It is about 3.1 mi ...
.
Air Pollution
The
London Borough of Hackney
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
measures roadside
air quality
Air pollution is the contamination of air due to the presence of substances in the atmosphere that are harmful to the health of humans and other living beings, or cause damage to the climate or to materials. There are many different types ...
in Dalston, in particular the concentration of
Nitrogen Dioxide
Nitrogen dioxide is a chemical compound with the formula . It is one of several nitrogen oxides. is an intermediate in the industrial synthesis of nitric acid, millions of tons of which are produced each year for use primarily in the producti ...
(NO
2) in the district.
Diffusion tubes which measure the concentration of NO
2 in roadside air show that across Dalston, the local roadside air quality failed to meet the
UK National Objective of 40g/m
3 (micrograms per cubic metre) in 2017.
In 2017, the average roadside NO
2 levels in several key locations in Dalston were:
* Dalston Lane (A104) – 63 μg/m
3
* Kingsland High Street (A10) – 62 μg/m
3
* Kingsland Road (A10) – 52 μg/m
3
* Dalston Library – 39 μg/m
3 (which meets the UK National Air Quality objective)
Cycling
Cycling infrastructure
Cycling infrastructure is all infrastructure cyclists are allowed to use. Bikeways include bike paths, bike lanes, cycle tracks, rail trails and, where permitted, sidewalks. Roads used by motorists are also cycling infrastructure, except whe ...
is maintained and managed in Dalston by the London Borough of Hackney and
Transport for London (TfL).
Several key routes pass through the district, including:
*
Cycle Superhighway 1 (CS1) – an unbroken, signposted route running on residential streets, north–south through Dalston. Northbound, the route carries cyclists to
Stoke Newington
Stoke Newington is an area occupying the north-west part of the London Borough of Hackney in north-east London, England. It is northeast of Charing Cross. The Manor of Stoke Newington gave its name to Stoke Newington the ancient parish.
The ...
,
Seven Sisters and
Tottenham
Tottenham () is a town in North London, England, within the London Borough of Haringey. It is located in the ceremonial county of Greater London. Tottenham is centred north-northeast of Charing Cross, bordering Edmonton to the north, Waltham ...
. Southbound, the route passes through
De Beauvior Town and
Hoxton
Hoxton is an area in the London Borough of Hackney, England. As a part of Shoreditch, it is often considered to be part of the East End – the historic core of wider East London. It was historically in the county of Middlesex until 1889. I ...
''en route'' to
Moorgate
Moorgate was one of the City of London's northern gates in its defensive wall, the last to be built. The gate took its name from the Moorfields, an area of marshy land that lay immediately north of the wall.
The gate was demolished in 1762, b ...
in the
City
A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...
.
*
Quietway 2 (Q2) – an unbroken, signposted route running on quieter streets or
shared-use paths, east–west through Dalston. Westbound, the route runs to
Bloomsbury
Bloomsbury is a district in the West End of London. It is considered a fashionable residential area, and is the location of numerous cultural, intellectual, and educational institutions.
Bloomsbury is home of the British Museum, the largest mus ...
via
Canonbury
Canonbury is a residential area of Islington in the London Borough of Islington, North London. It is roughly in the area between Essex Road, Upper Street and Cross Street and either side of St Paul's Road.
In 1253 land in the area was granted to ...
,
Angel
In various theistic religious traditions an angel is a supernatural spiritual being who serves God.
Abrahamic religions often depict angels as benevolent celestial intermediaries between God (or Heaven) and humanity. Other roles include ...
and
Finsbury
Finsbury is a district of Central London, forming the south-eastern part of the London Borough of Islington. It borders the City of London.
The Manor of Finsbury is first recorded as ''Vinisbir'' (1231) and means "manor of a man called Finn ...
. Eastbound, Q2 runs to
Walthamstow
Walthamstow ( or ) is a large town in East London, east London, England, within the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Greater London and the Historic counties of England, ancient county of Essex. Situated northeast of Chari ...
via
London Fields
London Fields is a park in Hackney, London, although the name also refers to the immediate area in Hackney surrounding it and London Fields station. It is common land adjoining the Hackney Central area of the London Borough of Hackney. The p ...
and
Clapton.
Also nearby, there is a signed cycle route through
Shacklewell
Shacklewell is a small locality to the east of Roman Ermine Street (now the A10), in the London Borough of Hackney.'Hackney: Shacklewell', in A History of the County of Middlesex: Volume 10, Hackney, ed. T F T Baker (London, 1995), pp. 35–38. ...
from
Hackney Downs
Hackney Downs is a park and an area of historically common land in the Lower Clapton area of the London Borough of Hackney. The name is sometimes also used to apply to the neighbourhood around the park.
Hackney Downs Park
The Downs open space ...
to the east, to
Clissold Park
Clissold Park is an open space in Stoke Newington, in the London Borough of Hackney. It is bounded by Greenway Close (to the north), Church Street (south), Green Lanes (west) and Queen Elizabeth's Walk (east); the south-east corner abuts St ...
and
Finsbury Park
Finsbury Park is a public park in the London neighbourhood of Harringay. It is in the area formerly covered by the historic parish of Hornsey, succeeded by the Municipal Borough of Hornsey. It was one of the first of the great London parks ...
to the northwest. The
Regent's Canal
Regent's Canal is a canal across an area just north of central London, England. It provides a link from the Paddington Arm of the Grand Union Canal, north-west of Paddington Basin in the west, to the Limehouse Basin and the River Thames in eas ...
towpath
A towpath is a road or trail on the bank of a river, canal, or other inland waterway. The purpose of a towpath is to allow a land vehicle, beasts of burden, or a team of human pullers to tow a boat, often a barge. This mode of transport ...
passes through neighbouring
Haggerston
Haggerston is a locale in East London, England, centred approximately on Great Cambridge Street (now renamed Queensbridge Road). It is within the London Borough of Hackney and is considered to be a part of London's East End. It is about 3.1 mi ...
, which runs unbroken from
Limehouse
Limehouse is a district in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets in East London. It is east of Charing Cross, on the northern bank of the River Thames. Its proximity to the river has given it a strong maritime character, which it retains throug ...
to Angel, via
Mile End
Mile End is a district of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets in the East End of London, England, east-northeast of Charing Cross. Situated on the London-to-Colchester road, it was one of the earliest suburbs of London. It became part of the m ...
.
Cultural references
![St Mark, Dalston, London E8 - Interior - geograph](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7b/St_Mark%2C_Dalston%2C_London_E8_-_Interior_-_geograph.org.uk_-_1680110.jpg)
* The 2007 film ''
Run Fat Boy Run
''Run Fatboy Run'' is a 2007 comedy film directed by David Schwimmer, written by Michael Ian Black and Simon Pegg, and starring Pegg, Dylan Moran, Thandiwe Newton, Harish Patel, India de Beaufort and Hank Azaria. It was released in the United Ki ...
'' (directed by
David Schwimmer
David Lawrence Schwimmer (born November 2, 1966) is an American actor, director and producer. He gained worldwide recognition for portraying Ross Geller in the sitcom '' Friends'', for which he received a Screen Actors Guild Award and a Prime ...
) was filmed in Dalston (St. Mark's Conservation Area). Dennis (
Simon Pegg
Simon John Pegg (né Beckingham; born 14 February 1970) is an English actor, comedian, screenwriter, and producer. He came to prominence in the UK as the co-creator of the Channel 4 sitcom ''Spaced'' (1999–2001), directed by Edgar Wright. H ...
) stays in a flat on Sandringham Road across the road from St. Mark's Church.
* The second and third series of popular television show ''
The Mighty Boosh
The Mighty Boosh is a British comedy troupe featuring comedians Julian Barratt and Noel Fielding. Developed from three stage shows and a six-episode radio series, it has since spanned a total of 20 television episodes for BBC Three which aire ...
'' takes place in Dalston.
* Dalston Songs is a staged song cycle with seven singers created and composed by
Helen Chadwick
Helen Chadwick (18 May 1953 – 15 March 1996) was a British sculptor, photographer and installation artist. In 1987, she became one of the first women artists to be nominated for the Turner Prize. Chadwick was known for "challenging stereotypic ...
and choreographed by Steven Hoggett. It was based on interviews with people in East London about home and was performed in 2008 at the
Royal Opera House
The Royal Opera House (ROH) is an opera house and major performing arts venue in Covent Garden, central London. The large building is often referred to as simply Covent Garden, after a previous use of the site. It is the home of The Royal Op ...
.
* Dalston is the second of 12 placenames associated with London mentioned in an
overdubbed
Overdubbing (also known as layering) is a technique used in audio recording in which audio tracks that have been pre-recorded are then played back and monitored, while simultaneously recording new, doubled, or augmented tracks onto one or more av ...
choral series on the
Lily Allen
Lily Rose Beatrice Allen (born 2 May 1985) is an English singer-songwriter and actress. She is the daughter of actor Keith Allen and film producer Alison Owen. Her music career began in 2005 when she made some of her vocal recordings publi ...
song "
LDN": "Angel, Dalston, Stockwell, Clapton, Soho, Ladbroke Grove...".
*
Britney Spears
Britney Jean Spears (born December 2, 1981) is an American singer. Often referred to as the " Princess of Pop", she is credited with influencing the revival of teen pop during the late 1990s and early 2000s. After appearing in stage productio ...
recorded the pop video for the song ''
Criminal
In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definitions of", in Can ...
'' in Dalston in September 2011.
* British indie rock band
Razorlight
Razorlight are an English indie rock band, formed in 2002 in London by lead singer and guitarist Johnny Borrell. Along with Borrell, the current line-up of the band is composed of founding members Björn Ågren on guitar and bassist Carl Delemo ...
recorded a song called "Don't go back to Dalston", featured on their debut album ''
Up All Night''.
*
Connan Mockasin
Connan Tant Hosford, better known by the stage name Connan Mockasin and sometimes credited as Connan Hosford, is a New Zealand musician, composer and record producer. Critically acclaimed and described as "a psych-funk oddball...a contrarian", ...
's song "Forever Dolphin Love" mentions Dalston.
* Dalston was featured in an episode of the 1990s Channel 4 comedy series ''
Drop the Dead Donkey
''Drop the Dead Donkey'' is a British television sitcom that was first shown on Channel 4 in the United Kingdom between 1990 and 1998. It is set in the offices of "GlobeLink News", a fictional TV news company. Recorded close to transmission, i ...
'', in which the reconstruction of a fictitious post office robbery is staged, in a 'Crime Watch' type parody.
* The poet
Martina Evans
Martina Evans (born 1961) is an Irish poet and novelist who lives in London.
Biography
Evans (née Cotter) was born in Burnfort, County Cork in 1961, the youngest of ten children. Her parents had a shop, bar and petrol pumps in the village. Her ...
lives in Dalston and has referenced it in some of her poems.
Notable people
*
Tony Blair
Sir Anthony Charles Lynton Blair (born 6 May 1953) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007. He previously served as Leader of th ...
,
Labour
Labour or labor may refer to:
* Childbirth, the delivery of a baby
* Labour (human activity), or work
** Manual labour, physical work
** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer
** Organized labour and the labour ...
politician and former
Prime Minister
A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...
, lived at 59 Mapledene Road 1980–86
*
Martina Evans
Martina Evans (born 1961) is an Irish poet and novelist who lives in London.
Biography
Evans (née Cotter) was born in Burnfort, County Cork in 1961, the youngest of ten children. Her parents had a shop, bar and petrol pumps in the village. Her ...
, poet, lives in Balls Pond Road and has referenced Dalston in some of her poems.
*
Stephen Fry
Stephen John Fry (born 24 August 1957) is an English actor, broadcaster, comedian, director and writer. He first came to prominence in the 1980s as one half of the comic double act Fry and Laurie, alongside Hugh Laurie, with the two starring ...
and
Hugh Laurie
James Hugh Calum Laurie (; born 11 June 1959) is an English actor, comedian, writer, and musician. He first gained recognition for his work as one half of the comedy double act Fry and Laurie with Stephen Fry. The two men acted together in a ...
, performers, shared a house on St Mark's Rise in Dalston in the early 1980s
*
Sam Lee, folk musician and ethnomusicologist
*
Emily Lloyd
Emily Alice Lloyd-Pack (born 29 September 1970), known as Emily Lloyd, is an English actress. At the age of 16, she starred in her debut and breakthrough role in the 1987 film ''Wish You Were Here'', for which she received critical acclaim a ...
, actress
*
Diane Morgan
Diane Morgan (born 5 October 1975) is an English actress, comedian, television presenter, and writer. She is best known for playing Philomena Cunk on Charlie Brooker's ''Weekly Wipe'' and in other mockumentaries, as Liz in the BBC Two sitcom '' ...
, interviewer from Bolton
*
Charles James Martin, director of the
Lister Institute of Preventive Medicine
The Lister Institute of Preventive Medicine, informally known as the Lister Institute, was established as a research institute (the British Institute of Preventive Medicine) in 1891, with bacteriologist Marc Armand Ruffer as its first director, us ...
*
Alan Spenner
Alan Henry Spenner (7 May 1948 – 11 August 1991) was an English bass player who performed with Wynder K. Frog, the Grease Band, Spooky Tooth, ABC, David Coverdale, David Soul, Joe Cocker, Kenny Loggins, Lynda Carter, Peter Frampton, Ted N ...
, bass player with
the Grease Band
The Grease Band was a British rock band that originally formed as Joe Cocker's backing group. They appeared with Cocker during the 1960s, including his performance at the Woodstock Festival in August 1969. The band's name derived from an inter ...
and
Roxy Music
Roxy Music are an English rock music, rock band formed in 1970 by Bryan Ferry—who became the band's lead vocalist and principal songwriter—and bassist Graham Simpson (musician), Graham Simpson. The other longtime members are Phil Manzanera ...
*
Edith Thompson
Edith Jessie Thompson (25 December 1893 – 9 January 1923) and Frederick Edward Francis Bywaters (27 June 1902 – 9 January 1923) were a British couple executed for the murder of Thompson's husband Percy. Their case became a ''cause c ...
, hanged for murder, was born here
*
Rachel Whiteread
Dame Rachel Whiteread (born 20 April 1963) is an English artist who primarily produces sculptures, which typically take the form of casts. She was the first woman to win the annual Turner Prize in 1993.
Whiteread was one of the Young British Ar ...
,
Turner Prize
The Turner Prize, named after the English painter J. M. W. Turner, is an annual prize presented to a British visual artist. Between 1991 and 2016, only artists under the age of 50 were eligible (this restriction was removed for the 2017 award) ...
-winning artist
References
External links
History of Dalston & Kingsland RoadBritish History Online
Bombs dropped on Dalston in the Second World War Bomb Sight.
{{Authority control
Districts of the London Borough of Hackney
Areas of London
Major centres of London