£2.1m for a house... but no Chelsea scarves or bunting now
SPORTSMAIL REVISITS THE SCENE OF AN ICONIC FA CUP FINAL PICTURE...
CHANGING places, changing faces, changing times. Some 47 years on from Chelsea’s first FA Cup triumph and this iconic snapshot of their past, Sportsmail revisited Slaidburn Street to recreate the image in the present ahead of Saturday’s final against Arsenal.
But just as the club has enjoyed a transformation, so has the street.
It was described by social reformer Charles Booth in 1899 as ‘one of the worst streets in London — drunken, rowdy, constant trouble to police: many broken patched windows, open doors, drink-sodden women at windows’.
It would go on to be the prime hub of Chelsea’s supporter base, with bunting draped between the houses and club flags flying from the windows before that 1970 Cup final against Leeds. Kerbs would be painted blue and white, every measure taken to outdo the surrounding areas.
But today, as Chelsea prepare for their latest tilt at the Cup, it is all rather different. The most recent house to be sold here went for £1.53million and another is on the market for £2.1m. It is a fashionable cul-desac without a shred of Chelsea blue to be seen. Modern London in microcosm.
‘There was a time when the whole street supported Chelsea and now I think it might just be me,’ said Shirley Chanbis. She believes she is the only resident on the street from the celebration party of 1970.
‘I think the rest have sold and left over time. It’s all quite different now. I moved here in 1968 and I remember when we used to paint the kerbs blue, hang the bunting out and the whole street would get into it.
‘They were all mad on Chelsea. My son lives in Australia now and he will come over for the final, but I’m not sure how many of the neighbours now will know Chelsea are in the final.
‘It used to be great here when they won. It’s funny, over the years, that picture has kept popping up from time to time.’
Sally Mudge moved in around 1983. ‘I was never interested in football but when Chelsea won anything it was wonderful here,’ she said. ‘They won a couple of things in the Eighties, whatever they were (the Second Division title in 1984 and 1989) and all the flags were out, people painting things blue. The street has changed a lot over time — it has a very interesting history. You’d have a few villains around these parts and apparently the street was a bit of a hangout for prostitutes. On the corner there used to be a pub where the Rolling Stones went to rehearse. All very lively.
‘By the time I got here it was still very much a community place — doors open, people saying hello to everyone, looking out for each other.
‘Now that side of it has gone. I would say there are a few Hooray Henry types. We all politely nod to one another and sit on our benches outside our front doors with our gins and tonic — but there isn’t a lot of community.’
If Chelsea complete the Double, there are minimal expectations for a rerun of the Slaidburn party on Saturday.