Coldharbour Lane, SW9

A possible derivation of the Coldharbour Lane name is ’Cool Arbour Lane’, dating from Camberwell’s rural past. According to the ever-reliable Wikipedia, a ’cold harbour’ was an uninhabited shelter for travellers, often along a well-known route. Coldharbour Lane was also formerly known as Camberwell Lane.

Former British Prime Minister John Major lived in a flat at 144 Coldharbour Lane when a child.

In 2003, journalist David Cohen described Coldharbour Lane as “the most dangerous street in the most dangerous borough in London”. The situation has dramatically improved since then.

The road is now a mixture of residential, business and retail buildings – the stretch of Coldharbour Lane near Brixton Market contains shops, bars and restaurants. Along the road between the junctions of Coldharbour Lane and Denmark Hill (Camberwell) and up to Denmark Road lies part of the boundary between Lambeth and Southwark boroughs. The other end of Coldharbour Lane meets Acre Lane in Brixton.




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