I live on Bermondsey Street, above the Fashion and Textile Museum that I founded. I moved here in 1995, when there was only one pub, one restaurant and one café. I’ve loved every minute.
My great friend Andrew Logan [sculptor, jeweller and performance artist] had his studio around the corner. He saw this building, which was a cash-and-carry warehouse at the time, and said: “Zandra, you’ve always wanted to do a museum — why don’t you get this building?”
I was able to buy it by selling my house in Notting Hill. It was perfect because I could build my textile printing studio down the side. I persuaded top Mexican architect Ricardo Legorreta to redesign it and produce a lovely, colourful building in his style. The bottom part of it is the Fashion and Textile Museum, with one third of it as my studio. It’s fabulous.
I’m proud of being in this area of Bermondsey with so much history, so I do what I can to keep it going.
Eating and drinking
Casse-Croûte on Bermondsey Street is gorgeous. They have the menu up on a board each day, with a choice of three things. You have to book in advance. Now they’ve expanded to their other little restaurant, Pique-Nique, on Tanner Street.
There’s Spanish tapas at Pizarro on Bermondsey Street. Towards the railway on St Thomas Street is Vinegar Yard, which has a market and lots of room outside for eating and drinking.
I never go to pubs — I walk by them, sidestepping into the road. I’m a little hermit in my building.
Where I work out
It’s nice to take walks around this area. If you go through Leathermarket Gardens, the roses are divine. It’s a beautiful little garden.
If you walk to Tower Bridge, there’s Potters Fields Park, which is a dream of wildflowers, with echinacea everywhere. If you get up early to see the sunrise from Tower Bridge, it’s spectacular.
To commune with nature
They’ve developed Potters Fields Park beautifully — it’s lovely to be in. I went there every day during Covid. You’ve got the Bridge Theatre there now, so it’s got a new life of its own.
The pocket gardens outside King’s College’s Greenwood Theatre on Weston Street are another lovely space. They combined with me and we painted the building in the same colours as the museum. We had a top gardener, Joe Swift, design all the gardens.
Grocery shopping
Ideally, I prefer to go to a large Tesco. None of the small shops in this area are stocked well enough. If I’m doing a dinner party, it’s a real problem to get things I need. I have a friend with a car who drives me to Tesco on Old Kent Road or Canada Water. You can also walk to Lidl, which is on Old Kent Road.
Borough Market is, of course, a lively, sightseeing area. I don’t know that you get any bargains, but you get variety. There are stalls with lovely vegetables and fruit, but they are never knowingly underpriced.
For a culture fix
Of course, you’ve got the Fashion and Textile Museum, which has our wonderful Warhol exhibition on at the moment. Also on Bermondsey Street, you’ve got Eames Fine Art Gallery. They have fantastic shows — sometimes they have etchings by Norman Ackroyd, the Constable of today. You’ve also got the White Cube, which has the most stunning Anselm Kiefer exhibition on [until August 20]. It’s not to be missed.
You’ve got wonderful access to London’s historical monuments here. Up the road, there’s HMS Belfast, and the Old Operating Theatre is on St Thomas Street, where they used to do operations with people watching. Can you imagine that? It’s frightening.
The Tate Modern and the Globe Theatre are both within walking distance, as is the Tower of London. In September, we’ll have the Bermondsey Street Festival where they do maypole dancing, dog shows and things like that.
Getting around
I usually go to London Bridge station. The trains are fabulous — it’s only a couple of minutes to Trafalgar Square.
The bus routes are good too. There’s the C10 near Bermondsey Market Square and there are buses that go right into Aldwych at the end of Tower Bridge.
Dream street
Bermondsey Street, which I live on. I’m lucky that it’s a lively street and a lively area with lots of young people - I suppose it keeps you young.
Something you only see in Bermondsey
The Fashion and Textile Museum, which I founded in 2003. To this day, it’s still the only museum in the UK dedicated to showcasing contemporary fashion and textile design.
What’s the catch?
The mayor blocked off the street to cars two or three years ago, and you can’t get down it easily anymore. I think it’s terrible.
In three words
Lively. Young. Historical.
Zandra Rhodes runs the Zandra Rhodes Charitable Foundation, which is cataloguing her vast archive of work. She has collaborated with accessories brand Poppy Lissiman on a collection of eyewear and bags.
Schools
Charles Dickens Primary School, Riverside and Surrey Square Primary School are three of eight nearby primaries rated as outstanding.
For secondaries, Harris Academy Bermondsey, Oasis Academy South Bank and Mulberry School for Girls are among the top options.
What it costs
Buying in Bermondsey
Average flat price: £634,860
Average property price: £818,930
Renting in Bermondsey
Average flat, pcm: £2,580
Average house, pcm: £2,920
