Why I live in Harringay: playwright Phoebe McIntosh on being "really spoilt" in her pocket of north London
Actor and playwright Phoebe McIntosh’s solo show Dominoes is about to be published as her first novel. Here’s how she ended up falling for Harringay.
It all started in London. I grew up in Leeds until I was nine, then my whole family relocated to Chiswick. It came full circle when went to ArtsEd drama school in Chiswick and started acting and writing.
We moved to north London by chance. A friend of ours was selling her flat and she wanted someone to rent it until it sold. Otherwise, I don’t think I’d have ventured up north away from west. I was very wedded to Chiswick.
We wanted to stay in the area, so we drifted up from Highbury to more affordable Haringey when we were looking to buy a house in 2018.
My husband and I used to stalk the area at the weekends. We’d find ourselves on Green Lanes in a Turkish restaurant or out along the New River and thought, “This is the place because we end up here a lot.”
Eating and drinking
I basically live at The Dusty Knuckle Bakery on Green Lanes, I think I go in every day. They know my name and they know what I want so I don’t even need to order any more.
The staff are so lovely, and it’s a nice place to sit and think and actually get some writing done.
Green Lanes is Turkish barbers and Turkish restaurants for about a mile. I like Gökyüzü and Selale, so I flit between those two.
I’ve just discovered the bar Brouhaha on Green Lanes, it’s cosy with candles on the tables and later on the DJ comes out. The Salisbury on Grand Parade is nice on a Sunday.
Where I work out
I walk a lot and I run around Downhills Park on the edge of Wood Green and Tottenham.
I do yoga at a studio called Bind on West Green Road. Every now and then they do workshops; I did one recently with a teacher called Hannah and after the yoga she’d made a supper of vegetarian stew and served it to everyone at their mats with sourdough.
To commune with nature
The New River runs through Finsbury Park and carries on all the way to Hertfordshire. It used to bring fresh water from outside London. People walk their dogs and it always feels nice and open.
There’s a cute little nature reserve called the Railway Fields under the bridge by Harringay Green Lanes. They’ve made bug hotels and a wildflower meadow.
For a culture fix
We’re really spoilt. Live music at Jam in a Jar on Green Lanes is handy because it’s just round the corner. You can go up to Ally Pally for concerts.
There’s the Park Theatre on Clifton Terrace by Finsbury Park. Going there to see what’s on is always a treat and I’d love to get a play on there. I go up to Crouch End if I want to see a film.
There’s the Picturehouse cinema on Tottenham Lane and the Arthouse next door for more indie films.
Grocery shopping
When I’m not in The Dusty Knuckle, I’m at Harringay Local Store on Green Lanes. It’s really cute.
They sell bits and bobs of everything, from My Neighbours the Dumpling frozen dumplings in the freezer to fresh fish deliveries, pastries and coffees to chocolates and chilli oil. The staff are lovely and really knowledgeable about wine.
Getting around
I’ve got Turnpike Lane on the Piccadilly line. I go to Finsbury Park sometimes to get the bus. Trains go to Moorgate, Cambridge or Brighton and the station’s just 10 minutes away from me.
Dream street
Mount View Road is on a hill so you have views over the city. The houses are amazing and it feels very villagey round there.
But I’m quite lucky where I am. My house is between two rungs of the Harringay Ladder and our neighbours all get along really well.
Something you see only in Wood Green
You’ve got all the ladder roads, which are residential, then this vein running through called the Harringay Passage.
Some bits are still very Victorian with the Yorkstone paving slabs and stink pipes from the old sewage system.
What’s the catch
There are so many spellings for Haringey. Someone found there were 120 different ways to spell it, but it’s been whittled down to three.
In three words
Harringay, Haringay, Haringey.
Dominoes by Phoebe McIntosh (Penguin) is out now.
Schools
Rhodes Avenue Primary School and Noel Park Primary School are rated outstanding. At secondary level, Alexandra Park School and The Grove both have outstanding ratings.
What it costs
Buying in Wood Green
Average flat price: £407,500
Average house price: £726,240
Renting in Wood Green
Average flat price, pcm: £1,680
Average house price, pcm: £2,600
Source: Hamptons & Land Registry
