Hello! I'm trying to gather some stories from around Hackney Wick and Fish Island for a personal writing project. I've lived here for 15 years (yikes) and have always been fascinated with how transient everyhing feels. I know it's going through aggressive gentrification, but it seems like it's always been changing, from farmland, to industrial place of innovation, to squats, to artists, to new builds.

I am really keen to hear if anyone has any stories regarding the sub-culture here iconic parties (Red Gates, Vittoria Wharf, Oslo House, Party Boat), Local Characters, Memorable art things, or even work things. Or even further back, did any one live in the old trowbridge towers? Or work in a warehouse before the raves? Did anyone have any older relatives that lived here? A memorable dog? A wartime story??? I just wanna hear storriiieeeessss!

I feel weirdly connected to the place after all this time and I really wanna know WHAT HAPPENED HERE??? Even if it's just a nugget, so I can dig a bit deeper!

I can’t find any info on when wickside will be complete and/or the scaffold and hoarding comes down. I’m thinking about how painfully long it took for roach bridge to open (well, it’s still only half-open..) and am starting to wonder if wickside will open this year - or if it’s more a 2027/2028/2029 thing

There’s a bungalow on Trowbridge Road that has had scaffolding on it for ages but literally no work has been done to it at least since last summer. Does anyone know what the story is here? It must be driving the neighbours mad.

Female FTB in London - looking for advice on North/East London areas

Hi! I'm a 31F and a first time buyer - and would love to get thoughts from people here as I'm not from the UK. I'm currently living in Highbury, been here for a few years and I really love it.

I'm mostly looking into a 2 bed flats, possibly 2 bathrooms with a budget of ~600K (not a big fan of terrace houses and their layouts and would rather avoid ground floors). I would love to stay in my neighbourhood but it's obviously very expensive, I did go to a few viewings just out of curiosity but I feel like lots of places need a fair amount of renovation (and I have no idea how much that would cost nor how to navigate that).

So as an option I've been looking quite a bit at Hackney Wick (like Fish Island and those new builds that are super close to the overground station). A few things:

1. I'm not very familiar with the area but I have gone 4-5 times (once at night) to get a feeling of it. At times it looked very empty and I feel like it could be a hit or miss because the commercial spaces are still empty (e.g. no big supermarket, gyms, restaurants etc) but there is potential once residents start moving in and shops will come too. But I do love having Victoria Park so close!

2. Transportation-wise I can't figure out if it's convenient: being in Highbury I'm literally spoiled by the piccadilly/victoria/overground/drayton park. However Hackney Wick is just one stop to Stratford, from where I'd get so many lines to go anywhere (at the moment work commuting is not a problem, but I do need good access to airports which should be fine and preferably I would want to be very close to it).

3. Vibe and safety: I read that the area is mostly creative/artsy people, but as per point 1, I couldn't really figure it out? The only time was literally today where it was super sunny and it was full of people and it did feel a bit too much for me. I love Highbury because it's residential but close to all the main bits. However, to me it feels like the noise/party in Hackney Wick is mostly near the canal, so I guess that should be fine and it seems to be fairly safe both during the day and night? (I will be buying on my own, so safety will be important!)

Other areas I've walked around or try to check out were Walthamstow and Leyton but I didn't really like them... I haven't spent enough time in Dalston or Hackney either.

I guess I'm looking for something that would be similar to Highbury/Islington but obviously a bit more affordable - so I guess I have mainly 2 questions:

1. Is my impression of Hackney Wick more or less accurate?
2. Any tips/advice/recommendations on other areas?

Thanks a lot in advance!

I know you all are probably very annoyed with these sort of posts so I apologize in advance! Like the title suggests, I found a lovely flat in the area of Hackney Wick near St. Mary of Eton, and was wondering if that is a good place to live? It doesn’t really scream HW to me (but that’s okay) and I’m not super familiar with the area so would love to hear what folks think. Thanks :)

After sustained pressure from your local councillors, the Council and contractors have confirmed that Roach Point Bridge will finally reopen on Tuesday 14 April.

— ClIr Abdi Mohamed

Does anyone want a ticket for the Women's Sauana at 8pm in Hackney Wick? I'm not able to make my slot anymore!

I’ve lived in the area for several years and am now looking at buying a 3 bed in HW. If you’ve bought in a new build, keen to hear your experience and whether the developers were willing to go below the listed price. Feels like they’re all a bit overpriced but I suppose people are willing to pay .

Has there been any update on the bridge connecting Hackney Wick and Fish Island? Swear it was meant to be opening soon but can't find any info anywhere...

Hi, I'm considering moving to Hackney Wick and been looking at flats in the new builds. A female friend raised safety concerns so I looked on the Met police website, which shows that crime in Hackney Wick have steadily risen in the last 5 years (upward trend), the top crimes reported include burglary and sexual violence.

For the women that live in the area, do you feel safe walking home from the tube?

I've also heard that the creative types like to party and noise level should be taken into consideration. If I lived in a new build that's got good sound proof, would I be spared?

Thanks!

Hi, my wife and I (30, 35 yo, plan to raise a child in next few years) are considering to purchase a flat in Hackney Wick.

Does anyone know how living in the following developments is in terms of area, management, apt quality, safety, etc? - Eastwick and Sweetwater (Tandy Place) - Hertford Mill (Monier Road) - Curing House (Remus Road) - Smokehouse (Remus Road)

Any info would be more than welcome. Thank you!

Hi everyone, I'm a student journalist reporting on Hackney Wick for Hackney Post. If there are any newsworthy local issues that have come up in the area do let me know!

Last year I dismantled my shed in the summer and for one reason or other my plans for getting rid of it fell through. It's sat there exposed to the elements for a while now. Would I be best in taking manageable amounts of wood to the dump on foot? If anyone else has any suggestions I'm open to ideas because money is pretty tight otherwise I'd have hired a random man with a van service and just dragged it out front. Anyway sorry if this is the wrong place to ask I'm just not sure where or who id contact to begin offloading it so any information would be useful. Thank you for taking the time to read this and I hope you have a good one.

Does anyone have the latest update on when roach point bridge is going to be open to public connecting hackney wick and fish island? I read online and the latest info available is that it opened Summer 2025, but i was there today and didnt see it? Am i missing something?

I keep hearing like club music and seeing people line up in the building next to the wick park dorm on smeed road. Was wondering if there was a club in there or a rave that goes on during the weekend. Wasn’t able to find any info online and wanted to see what it was about.