Just under a mile from Croxley Tube station served by the Metropolitan line via Baker Street and Wembley Park is the picturesque village of Lechmore Heath in Hertfordshire.
Letchmore Heath is among those being considered to be crowned the UK’s Town of Culture by The Guardian, with the winning location receiving a cash prize of £3.5 million.
Described by Peter Bradshaw as a “pretty, chocolate-boxy” village and only 10 minutes’ drive from Watford, it’s not hard to see why this spot is getting plenty of positive attention.
What makes it special?
Describing the village, Bradshaw writes: “This pretty, chocolate-boxy place, with its pond, pub and village green on which Morris dancers disport themselves, is a short drive from Elstree Studios and is often used for film and TV shoots.”
Being home to just 500 residents, this quiet village, with its village green and quaint houses, offers locals a quieter place to live whilst being commutable to London via Watford on Overground or Metropolitan line services.
The village dates back to the 12th century, serving as an agricultural settlement for many years, but today many of the houses you see date back to Victorian times, when homes were built to accommodate more residents moving to the area.
One of the area’s most prominent features is its village green, which sits at the centre and is surrounded by cottages, featuring its village pond and war memorial.
Another of its historic landmarks is the Aldenham War Memorial Hall, built between 1919 and 1921 using clay blocks made by volunteers.
The Three Horseshoes, a historic pub that underwent a huge revamp, reopened in 2023, serving modern British fare and remaining a prominent filming location in the village.
Filming spot
With the village being in such close proximity to Elstree Studios, it has become a popular filming location, appearing in a number of films over the years.
It served as the fictional “Midwich” in the 1960 British horror classic Village of the Damnedas well as in the BBC romcom As Time Goes Bystarring Dame Judi Dench and Geoffrey Palmer.
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One of the village’s most significant cultural landmarks is Bhaktivedanta Manor, one of the UK’s most prominent Hindu temples.
The Beatles’ George Harrison purchased this mock-Tudor manor house in the 1970s and gifted it to the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON).
Spanning more than 78 acres, the manor features gardens, an organic farm, a protected herd of cows, and a memorial garden dedicated to Harrison.
The site remains one of the area’s most popular attractions, with more than 1,500 reviews on Google, with one reviewer describing it as a “special and unforgettable place”.
