Iconic houses just off Portobello Road painted black to deter influencers

Jun 6, 2025 UK News views: 187

Residents are trying to persuade tourists to be quiet and stop snapping their homes (Picture: Justin Griffith-Williams)

What was once a mecca for influencers could now become a sanctuary for goths.

That’s because people on Lancaster Road in Notting Hill are fed up with tourists taking pictures on their doorsteps.

What draws people to the street,where homes go for upwards of £2 million,is the brightly coloured houses.

But some residents are not happy with living in a postcard so have taken to painting their houses black.

Mike,who lives in a turquoise flat,told Metro the noise from tourists has got so bad that he has had to move his meditation classes to the back of his house.

He said: ‘What is more irritating than anything else is just noise. Tourists work at a different volume level. There will be a group of 70 plus. It sounds like a football match.’

And it’s not just people in the street who have noticed.

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You can access completely fee-free mortgage advice with London & Country (L&C) Mortgages,a partner of Metro. Customers benefit from:– Award winning service from the UK’s leading mortgage broker– Expert advisors on hand 7 days a week– Access to 1000s of mortgage deals from across the marketUnlike many mortgage brokers,L&C won’t charge you a fee for their advice.Find out how much you could borrow onlineMortgage service provided by London & Country Mortgages (L&C),which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (registered number: 143002). The FCA does not regulate most Buy to Let mortgages. Your home or property may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage.A cyclist weaving through a group of Instagram addicts shouted: ‘You are all f**king sheep. These are normal houses.’Mike’s not ready to repaint his flat black like his neighbours. But he’s worried their plan might backfire.For now,Lancaster Road remains a battleground between neighbours and the unstoppable selfie crowd.Instagram users are flocking to Lancaster Road (Picture: Justin Griffith-Williams)The three houses have joined forces to put off the tourists (Picture: Justin Griffith-Williams)The set designer said they run the risk of becoming ‘the new epicentre for goths.’Walking down the street,you can see there are other indications that people are not happy with being a selfie hotspot.Some houses have chains or belt barriers blocking off their front doorsteps.Others have put up signs asking people to be quiet,and others haven’t painted their homes in any colour at all.So what do the tourists think?(left to right) Consuelo,Conrado,Giullermo,Justina and Tete Obeid in front of the still colourful houses on Lancaster Road (Picture: Justin Griffith-Williams)Neighbours pray for rain,when tourists will leave their street alone


(Picture: Justin Griffith-Williams)When we visited Lancaster Road,Tete and Giullermo Obeid were taking pictures with three three children,Consuelo and Justina.The family,visiting from Argentina,went straight to the street after seeing the brightly coloured houses on social media.When asked what they thought about the black houses,they said they liked the new edgy paint just as much.However,most other tourists seemed to avoid taking pictures outside those houses and seemed much more attracted to the colourful ones.A letter has been shared around the street,asking others to join in with the pantone revolt,but whether anyone actually will is yet to be seen.

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