Olaf Street, W11
Notting Hill Carnival
Credit: Chris Croome
Olaf Street was once part of ’Frestonia’

Following the construction of the Westway, the portion of Latimer Road south of it, which had been historically considered part of Shepherd’s Bush, was renamed Freston Road after Edward Latymer, a philanthropist from Freston who had left a charitable bequest in 1627.

In 1977, squatters who had been living in buildings earmarked for demolition declared the area the Free and Independent Republic of Frestonia. Facing eviction from the Greater London Council, the squatters applied to join the United Nations and even created their own postage stamps. Actor David Rappaport served as their Foreign Minister, and playwright Heathcote Williams acted as their Ambassador to the United Kingdom.

Frestonia encompassed the area stretching from the start of Bramley Road to Olaf Street, but other nearby streets differed only in that their buildings had already been fully demolished

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