![Holland Road, London W14 - geograph](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/04/Holland_Road%2C_London_W14_-_geograph.org.uk_-_1292519.jpg)
Holland Road is a road in
Kensington,
London
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 ...
, which connects
Kensington High Street with the
Holland Park roundabout. The southernmost section is one-way (northbound only, returning via
Addison Road) and forms part of the
Kensington/
Earl's Court
Earl's Court is a district of Kensington in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in West London, bordering the rail tracks of the West London line and District line that separate it from the ancient borough of Fulham to the west, the ...
one-way system.
Location
The road forms part of the
A3220. To the east is
Addison Road and
Holland Park. To the west is
West Kensington
West Kensington, formerly North End, is an area in the ancient parish of Fulham, in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, England, 3.4 miles (5.5 km) west of Charing Cross. It covers most of the London postal area of W14, includ ...
and
Kensington (Olympia) station
Kensington (Olympia) is a combined rail and tube station in Kensington, on the edge of Central London. Services are provided by London Overground, who manage the station, along with Southern and London Underground. It is in Travelcard Zone 2. O ...
.
Etymology
Like
Holland House
Holland House, originally known as Cope Castle, was an early Jacobean country house in Kensington, London, situated in a country estate that is now Holland Park. It was built in 1605 by the diplomat Sir Walter Cope. The building later passed ...
and Holland Park, the road is named after the
Earls
Earl () is a rank of the nobility in the United Kingdom. The title originates in the Old English word ''eorl'', meaning "a man of noble birth or rank". The word is cognate with the Scandinavian form '' jarl'', and meant "chieftain", particula ...
and
Barons Holland, who owned the estate on which the road was later built.
Architecture
![St John the Baptist Church, Holland Road, London W14 - geograph](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cd/St_John_the_Baptist_Church%2C_Holland_Road%2C_London_W14_-_geograph.org.uk_-_1292622.jpg)
Holland Road is a prominent residential road situated in the district of
Holland Park within the
Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. This partly tree lined boulevard runs roughly north - south and is characterised by its imposing period Victorian architecture. Most of the terraced town houses are 4 or 5 storeys high and feature either painted Italianate stucco or ornate brick facades and retain numerous original features. As with many such very large Kensington townhouses constructed in the 1870s, most of the houses have since been converted into spacious and sought after self-contained apartments.
Part of the southern stretch of the road, between nos. 40 and 94, is also within the
Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea's Holland
conservation area. The architectural style adopted in construction is particularly notable and worthy of preservation because the terrace is essentially classical in its proportions, whilst being Gothic in its ornamentation.
Public transport
Holland Road is especially well served by public transport (zone 2) with
Holland Park,
Shepherds Bush,
Kensington (Olympia), and
High Street Kensington train stations within easy walking distance as well as numerous bus routes passing along the road.
Residents past and present
![Freddie Mercury's Former Home in Holland Road](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/44/Freddie_Mercury%27s_Former_Home_in_Holland_Road.jpg)
The greenery of
Holland Park itself (the public park) is only a five-minute walk away to the east. Famous former residents include
Freddie Mercury, the lead singer of the rock group
Queen
Queen or QUEEN may refer to:
Monarchy
* Queen regnant, a female monarch of a Kingdom
** List of queens regnant
* Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king
* Queen dowager, the widow of a king
* Queen mother, a queen dowager who is the mother ...
. He wrote the classic bestseller
Bohemian Rhapsody
"Bohemian Rhapsody" is a song by the British rock band Queen, released as the lead single from their fourth album, '' A Night at the Opera'' (1975). Written by lead singer Freddie Mercury, the song is a six-minute suite, notable for its lack o ...
whilst living at 100 Holland Road in the 1970s. The front cover from a record album is from a photo session of Queen taken at Mercury's flat in Holland Road.
British solicitor
John Indermaur lived at 114 Holland Road in the early twentieth-century.
Until 2017, the corporate headquarters of
Universal Music
Universal Music Group N.V. (often abbreviated as UMG and referred to as just Universal Music) is a Dutch– American multinational music corporation under Dutch law. UMG's corporate headquarters are located in Hilversum, Netherlands and its ...
were located on the corner of Holland Road and Kensington High Street.
Since 1962, the only showroom of
Bristol Cars has been located on the corner of Holland Road and Kensington High Street. As a result of Bristol Cars' liquidation, the future of the showroom is unknown.
The
Society of Science, Letters and Art, a late 19th century bogus
learned society
A learned society (; also learned academy, scholarly society, or academic association) is an organization that exists to promote an academic discipline, profession, or a group of related disciplines such as the arts and science. Membership m ...
, had its headquarters at Addison House, 160 Holland Road (demolished).
[''Evening Post'', New Zealand, Volume XLV, Issue 132, 7 June 1893, p.2: A bogus literary society]
Retrieved 6 February 2014
References
External links
*
{{coord, 51.5015, N, 0.21246, W, type:landmark_region:GB, display=title, format=dms
Streets in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea
Holland Park