White Lion Court, Garrett Street, Islington, London

White Lion Court has had many roles since its Victorian origins; under the working curtilage of the Whitbread Brewery, as a recording studio for Pet Shop Boys, and as homes and studios for a plethora of well-known artists, filmmakers, directors and musicians.

In its current guise it’s a rarefied London warehouse, retaining an industrial past in robust, rustic materials, brought into modernity through the designs of the ever-thoughtful Tashima Studio. Its versatile live/work arrangement provides over 4,400 sq ft of largely lateral space hidden behind large gates and a walled, cobbled courtyard. Situated on this quiet cut-through from Whitecross Street to Golden Lane, between Clerkenwell and Old Street, it is one of Islington’s most secretive and exciting homes.

From the street, the high yellow-stock brick wall and carnivalistically painted doors are a great distraction from what lies behind. A discreet trade door opens within the huge vehicular gates and steps into a deep, partially cobbled courtyard, revealing the concealed facade of the house within. Climbing jasmine encases the inner walls and spills over the high balustrades to provide even more privacy for the upper floors and the first floor terrace.

Storeys of double-glazed Crittall rise above, flecked with coloured panes that cast painterly light within. The wide entrance hall is flanked by enormous studios on either side. To the left, this is currently an office containing a custom-made kitchen at one end, and a doorway to a more intimate room; formerly a recording studio, though it still has its soundproofed walls. The room to the right is another large studio with a shower room, and within the hall is a further shower and WC, and a cloakroom with an air-conditioned AV room.

The sizes of the spaces, the sweeping lateral views between them, and the enormous ceiling heights throughout all serve to distort perspective. Even the glazing is amplified to meet the oversize proportions. Character, texture and light though, in the beams, brick walls and verdant courtyard view, bring comfort to the scale.

The first floor is an exceptional, uninterrupted expanse of over seventeen metres and every bit the piano nobile. The wood of the massive beams overhead is mirrored in the worn warmth of original floorboards. The current owners have employed towering arrangements of Vitsoe shelving against the stairwell and living room wall to absorb and make the most of the soaring volume.

Here, the generosity of space creates definition and separation in the circulations between the zones. The living room spills into space and then the dining room, and then into more space before the kitchen, which is arranged around an island of reclaimed fossil-limestone. South-facing glazing spans the entire southerly aspect and French doors at the near end open onto a c.250 sq ft, south-facing terrace.

In fact, the majority of the building’s glazing fills this southern frontage and the light is never the same; at times brilliant, often aglow, even auroral.

On the second floor there are two bedrooms, both en suite and an open studio/office which could be a further bedroom, as it has been in the past. Towering, vaulted ceilings are clad in white-painted timber and electric rooflights bring more light from above. The principal bedroom occupies the western side of the plan and is arranged around an open dressing room. There is also lots of storage in the cupboards and roof space between the two existing bedrooms.

The Area

White Lion Court is found on Garrett Street, a quiet, commercial lane that runs parallel to Old Street, between Farringdon, Barbican and Old Street roundabout. The area is popular with architects and designers, and is renowned for the quality and variety of its bars, pubs and restaurants, most notably Fergus and Margot Henderson’s St. John and the Michelin-starred Luca for modern Italian cuisine.

The Barbican Centre has a world-class cultural programme of cinema, music, theatre, talks and exhibitions, and is a few minutes’ walk from the house. At the end of the road is Whitecross Street, which holds a weekly lunchtime food market. Exmouth Market is also nearby and has to be one of London’s best food and drink strips with restaurants like Moro and vegan sushi at Ima. It also has some great pubs like The Eagle and The Holy Tavern and bars, like Cafe Kick. Islington’s Upper Street, Shoreditch, Covent Garden and Soho are all within walking distance and offer even more excellent choices for shopping and eating.

Old Street Station is around six minutes’ walk from the house for the Northern Line to King's Cross, Moorgate, Bank and London Bridge. Nearby Barbican offers Circle, Hammersmith and City and Metropolitan Lines. Farringdon runs Thameslink services to Gatwick Airport, Brighton and Bedford and of course, the Elizabeth Line for incredibly fast journeys to Bond Street, Soho and Heathrow.