Brief Outline:

In the heart of suburban south London lies a short street with a long heritage and controversial past. With easy access to it from the local bus and tram network (yes, that’s right, this is a South End with tram access!) the Southend enthusiast will love ticking off South End Croydon as an “I got here by tram.” And with photographic evidence in the local Wetherspoons pub backing up the fact that South End has been a busy commercial street since at least 1905, there’s plenty of history in the air! But even to the modern day, controversy still surrounds the sighting of not only South End signs (those with a space) but also Southend signs (without a space!) Check this craziness out for yourselves with the photo gallery below, where we can assure you that all these photos were taken along the same street! What further adds to the confusion is that the name’s change back and forth as you travel down the street, so it is clearly not two different Southends neighbouring each other (though that would be amazing!) The local tradesmen don’t seem to know which way to turn either, for example, there are local food shops (South Ends) and postal traders (Southends). But while the ASDA board has ummed and arrrhed about the official title and therefore ranking that this Southend/South End should receive, it was the historical evidence and sheer outnumbering of South End to Southend signs that swung it into the South End (2.2) camp. So with the controversy tied up there, what does this South End offer the casual visitor? Well firstly it is clearly characterised by the large number of traders who call this South End home. There is certainly no way you’d go home starving having paid South End Croydon a visit! (okay, unless you went there at 1am on a Sunday morning…) The range includes fish and chip shops, Thai restaurants (Anna’s), Chinese and traditional English pubs. Also important is the range of pies on sale, from the staple Wetherspoons Pub pie (pictured below) to the Post Office pack of Mr Kiplings. What was disappointing, however, was the lack of any pies at the fish and chip shops along the road. This should not however detract from the good number and range of South End (and Southend) signs along the road, and the other facilities such as banking and party shops along the way. Indeed, one could spend many an afternoon tasting the delights of South End Croydon, and it would be heartily recommended. The postcode for this CR0 1BT and you will find 4 South End and 2 Southend signs on the road, plus a number more on the local trader’s windows/signs.

Map:

Find this South End on Google maps

Photos:

Things To Do: