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London neighbourhood mocked for silly name but super rich locals …

Most Londoners will be familiar with cracking a smile when travelling on the Piccadilly line heading northbound for one key reason. Whether it’s down to immaturity or simply having a sense of humour, it’s hard not to be amused when a particularly serious Tube worker is forced to announce that your train is heading to, you guessed it, Cockfosters! “Yes, it is a silly name – get over it,” is the stony response you are likely to receive for your smirks in the form of silent glances from others in the Tube[1] carriage.

As the Piccadilly line’s[2] northernmost station and the route’s terminus, Cockfosters is one of the most common names to be announced over a Tannoy system at any Tube station with the dark blue line running through it. “This is a Piccadilly line[3] train to… Cockfosters,” blares a cheerful woman’s voice for the ninth time as the exhausted worker makes his journey home from central.

He gets to go to Cockfosters knowing that, far from a joke, the area is in fact one of the most diverse, affluent and up-and-coming places in Greater London. “Let them laugh,” he thinks as he exits onto a thriving high street filled with an ever-growing assortment of high-end shops and restaurants. MyLondon visited Cockfosters as part of our London 365 project, where our reporters will be visiting a different part of our great city every day in 2023

Home to Cypriots, Greeks, as well as large Jewish and Turkish communities, the area has found strength in its diversity. The high street[5] is defined by a perfect blend between traditional businesses and newer ones.

From decade’s old family run butcher’s shops, to rebranded pubs, Cockfosters seems to be in the middle of a very considered renaissance, with the majority of the area’s main thoroughfare littered with independent businesses[6] proudly bearing the neighbourhood’s name. Just opposite Cockfoster Nails, one such business is Kiki’s Butchers, which has been supplying locals[7] with the best chicken, pork and steaks since it opened in 2009. The make-up of the business’s workforce is indicative of the area, with Greek Cypriot co-owner George Theori presiding over a team made up of his compatriots, Albanians, East Europeans and Brits born and raised in Cockfosters.

George, who came to the UK in 1967, is proud of his employee’s reflection of the area’s diversity: “We’ve got English butchers, Albanian butchers, Lithuanian butchers, Greek butchers – we are European.” He told MyLondon[8] that locals respect and admire his shop, which has become embedded as part of the community. “The community round here is excellent,” George said. “People coming in to support us is very common, they are very polite because we have been here for so many years. We came to Cockfosters because of the Greek community, they moved from Palmers Green, Wood Green, Haringey and they moved to this area so we came here.”

George, who came to the UK in 1967, is proud of his employee’s reflection of the area’s diversity

Kiki’s sister shop in Palmers Green, run by George’s brother, has been open 55 years.

One of his employees, Steve Francis, who has been working as a butcher for 30 years, was raised locally and said: “It’s always been a lovely area, its a nice area – everyone’s got money, everyone’s polite, people are friendly. “Because it’s a nice area, everyone is middle class, upper middle if you go down further it’s a rich, rich area, you find when people have money they treat each other better anyway because they don’t have to be fighting each other just to survive they have enough to be comfortable.” Steve says that even traffic wardens treat people better in the area, with people very likely able to talk themselves out of a ticket. “The traffic wardens round here treat people better here than in the poorer areas because people are more likely to lose their rag, people talk to them up here only a few people shout at them.”

The diversity of the area, Kiki’s customer base are from a whole range of backgrounds serving local Jewish people, Cypriots, Greeks and Brits.

Born in Cockfosters, Steve has seen significant changes to the area. “55 years ago I was here, completely different people back then,” he said. “92 per cent would have been half and half English and Jewish, it was 8 per cent if that was other people, a few Italians, a few Greek families – it’s completely changed.

It’s a lot more diverse now, it’s a lot better.” I had a lot of Jewish friends growing up, I had a lot of Black friends growing up, that’s why I think its better now because I had a diversity of people around me.” The diversity of the area, Kiki’s customer base are from a whole range of backgrounds serving local[9] Jewish people, Cypriots, Greeks and Brits. “We get everyone, we cater for everybody,” Steve adds. No one seemed to give two figs about sneering Londoners further down the Piccadilly line[10] mocking the area’s name – they love the neighbourhood too much to care.

The affluent area has plenty of green spaces, nice houses and promising businesses. With house prices varying between GBP800,000 to over GBP3m, in Hadley Park there is certainly a financial barrier to entry to the “up and coming” neighbourhood.

Even traffic wardens treat people better in the area

One local estate agent described it as not only the “endpoint” of the Piccadilly line, but also for many workers from London who have made their fortune and are looking to settle down to family life. She added: “It sort the end of the road, if you made it to Hadley Wood you are done.”

When asked if anyone looking for property in the area had ever had second thoughts about the unusual name she said: “I think you deal with people that live round here and they don’t even associate it with the first part of it and I think because it’s quite affluent and nice people don’t give it a negative meaning.” She explained that the local high street[11] has been a big draw to people in surrounding communities, with the cafes and restaurants increasingly dominating shop fronts. “The business of the high street, they have changed it so that there is a lot of in and out seating. So summertime is all lined up with tables and chairs with people sitting with their fancy cars parked in the street,” she said. “A lot of people flock to the area.

There is a lot of buzz at the weekends especially.” For a place that is supposed to be buzzing at the weekends one thing the high street seems to be sorely lacking is a good old-fashioned boozer. To find a local, you have to walk about 10 minutes down the towards Hadley Wood to the Cock Inn (yes, exactly).

The Cock Inn is a perfect microcosm of the neighbourhood in general

The Cock Inn is a perfect microcosm of the neighbourhood in general – a silly name that seems to be completely lost on locals because of how pleasant it is.

Formerly a Thai restaurant named The Cock and Dragon, it was revived as a pub after it was bought by steakhouse chain Miller and Carter, which restored its name to The Cock Inn (yeah seriously). Defined by its tasteful decor – complete with hardwood tables and plush seats – The Cock Inn is a watering hole for many people who have been regulars for years and lived in the area for decades. Two such people are Steve Sheehan and Kerem Shamlian who moved to the area almost 30 years ago.

The friends say the area has changed “dramatically” since they moved. “It was like a deserted American ghost town 25 years ago,” said Kerem who was born in Victoria and moved from Central after deciding Cockfosters[12] was the best place to raise his kids. The pair have been coming to the pub long enough to see it evolve from The Cock Inn to The Cock and Dragon and back again – and that’s not the only thing that has changed. “The traffic has got a lot worse. There are a lot of coffee shops and new restaurants.

It has changed – whether that’s for the best I don’t know, especially with the traffic. The weekends are outrageous.”

The pair have been coming to the pub long enough to see it evolve from the Cock Inn to the Cock and Dragon and back again

“Don’t get me wrong, apart from the traffic at the weekends, it’s a great place to live,” Kerem added. They said they had never heard of anyone mocking the area for its name and when the name The Cock Inn was pointed out, Steve responded: “Well it’s cock, you know a fighting cock.”

The two seem to have a lot of pride in the area and are brimming with local knowledge and anecdotes. Steve added that Cockfosters[13] used to have a racing track that encircled the area known as “the roundabout” that saw cars speeding around it in the 1940s and 50s – that seemed like traffic both could stomach. Part of the more recent changes to the area is Garett Voecks, who took over a local fishmonger in 2017.

The premises had been a fish shop since 1958 with Garett choosing to keep one of the previous owner’s family members on as an employee. Within months Garett said he was made to feel part of the community. “Everybody was very welcoming – in fact, in the first couple of months of opening customers would bring me bottles of wine. Everyone was very friendly.

“Cockfosters is a nice place. Even since 2017, it has changed a lot, there are a lot more cafes and restaurants that have come into the area. The quality has also improved in terms of the restaurants and stores that are here.

When you compare it to other areas nearby, say Enfield High Street, it’s definitely more higher end restaurants and shops.”

While some may snigger at the station’s wacky name, you can be sure that residents of the area will be laughing all the way to their nice houses

The ex-chef moved from Denver, Colorado to the UK and planned to return to his native US – 15 years later he is still here. Explaining how Denver compared to London he said: “Denver is not very diverse. There is a large Hispanic population and a large Caucasian population, but there are people from all over the world in London and that’s what I really like about it.

“I think there’s a higher percentage of Greek and Turkish and Cypriot or Jewish [compared to other parts of London]. I would estimate that about 40 per cent of my customers are Greek or Cypriot and another 40 per cent that are Jewish and the other 20 per cent are other nationalities. I enjoy the diversity.”

Peeling back the surface of Cockfosters makes it clear that rather than just being a Tube[14] stop at the end of the line with a silly name, it is home to a thriving, diverse and friendly community that truly seems to be getting the best of both worlds in terms of space and transport options into London. With that all being said, where does Cockfosters[15] come from? Some sort of chicken adoption agency?

A hyper-masculine version of the popular beer brand? The etymology of the name is explained as such: “The ‘fosters’ part of the name is apparently derived from an Elizabethan-era variant of the word forester while ‘cock’ is an old word for leader or chief. Cockfosters, then, literally means the home of the chief or head forester.” The name can be found as far back as 1524 and likely refers to three lodges established by the monarch to protect the nearby royal forest of Enfield Chase.

While some may snigger at the station’s wacky name, you can be sure that residents of the area will be laughing all the way to their nice houses, top quality restaurants and wonderful local shops without a care in the world what someone in Manor House thinks. Want more from MyLondon? Enjoying our London 365 project?

Sign up to our tailored newsletters here.[16]

LONDON 365 #90 – Cockfosters

MyLondon visited Cockfosters as part of our London 365 project, where our reporters will be visiting a different part of our great city every day in 2023. Ever wondered what it’s like to live in the part of London furthest from a Tube station? Or in the shadow of one of the world’s busiest airports?

How is gentrification impacting some of London’s neighbourhoods hardest hit by the cost of living crisis? From Brent to Bromley, Hillingdon to Havering, and everywhere in between, the MyLondon[17] team will explore the biggest issues facing Londoners, while celebrating every part of the capital this year. Where should we go next?

Email [email protected][18].

To see all the other neighbourhoods we have visited in 2023, click here[19].

References

  1. ^ Tube (www.mylondon.news)
  2. ^ Piccadilly line’s (www.mylondon.news)
  3. ^ Piccadilly line (www.mylondon.news)
  4. ^ London’s new ’24-hour neighbourhood’ surrounded by skyscrapers where flats will set you back GBP2.4m (www.mylondon.news)
  5. ^ high street (www.mylondon.news)
  6. ^ independent businesses (www.mylondon.news)
  7. ^ locals (www.mylondon.news)
  8. ^ MyLondon (www.mylondon.news)
  9. ^ local (www.mylondon.news)
  10. ^ Piccadilly line (www.mylondon.news)
  11. ^ local high street (www.mylondon.news)
  12. ^ Cockfosters (www.mylondon.news)
  13. ^ Cockfosters (www.mylondon.news)
  14. ^ Tube (www.mylondon.news)
  15. ^ Cockfosters (www.mylondon.news)
  16. ^ here (data.reachplc.com)
  17. ^ MyLondon (www.mylondon.news)
  18. ^ [email protected] (www.mylondon.news)
  19. ^ here (www.mylondon.news)

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