The FT does its own version of Hello magazine with a tour of Thatcher's old PR man and founder of the controversial (some might say, apparently) Bell Pottinger Group, Tim Bell's Hampstead pad, where he counts Thatcher and Yehudi Menuhin as neighbours.

Bell’s sitting room on the first floor overflows with books: on the shelves, on the tables. This is where he reads and many of the books tell the story of his life and times: first editions dedicated to him by Thatcher, Cecil Parkinson and Jeffrey Archer.

Nothing from Jimmy Wales, apparently.

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There's a "thing" in the Daily Mail about One Direction and Princess Park Manor, in particular Harry Styles and Louis Tomlinson who are said to be on the verge of buying the penthouse once owned by Ashley Cole. The development, next to New Southgate station, is the old Colney Hatch Lunatic Asylum, which - in turn - was once home to John Duffy, who was worse than Ashley Cole.

More interesting than the property story are the comments below the piece... a true Daily Mail-style menagerie of opinions. My favourites, the one from the former asylum employee who warns of the ghosts, and this:

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Don't expect this one to hang around.

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Two men, a woman and a child, once again a property owned by someone who's on holiday, once again a bogus tenancy agreement and, once again, beginning with the owners' possessions being chucked out the window. An ugly business. More here.

Now this is what I call a headline [August 17, 2011]

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Home Bunch - a fun American interior design blog written by somebody who proves not all bloggers have to look like this - has featured a London property in its "Cool or Fool?" Friday feature (in which readers get to slug it out over an interior design "statement"). It's a remarkable home, and the way lovely Luciane found it leads to another interesting website. First off, the place looks like this:

There are a whole load more pictures over on her blog. Okay, to many of you I'm sure this looks like an unusual room; over at the Rat and Mouse HQ, we're just wondering where the rest of the restrain furniture's kept, because... one sexual ragdoll at a time? That's so 2010.

Luciane discovered the property at 1st-Option, a completely addictive site aimed at location scouts. It's packed with fascinating properties, many of them in London, and I suggest you head there right now if you've some time to waste.

Incidentally, the above property is "Wonderland", and it's in NW3.

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It's in Hampstead (Inverforth House), it's already been the subject of a bit of a fuss over a roof terrace hot tub and on the market as a £6,000 a week let. Now, it's for sale, with a guide price of £3.95m. Four bedrooms, double garage, lots of terraces, some extravagant fittings and fixtures and the same bedspread it had two years ago. Go here for the particulars.

Craig David's hot tub - what's he got on his mind? [August 30, 2005]
If these walls could talk... they'd say "re-wind" [October 21, 2009]

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According to the Sunday Telegraph, thespian couple John Alderton and Pauline Collins (who starred together in Upstairs, Downstairs) have been waging a war against the creeping scourge of the underground swimming pool. They've just successfully put the kibosh on a neighbouring banker's plans to knock down and rebuild, but only after putting up with similar redevelopments on the other side. It sounds as if they're in the difficult position of owning a listed Arts & Crafts property surrounded by expendable 50s blocks liable for gutting and rebuilding. More here.

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Remember, we recently revealed how Colonel Gaddafi's controversial son Saif was looking for tenants for his Hampstead Garden Suburb mansion? The property - now part of the family's frozen assets - has apparently been invaded by activists, demanding the proceeds are returned to the Libyan people. They're flying a banner reading "Out of Libya/Out of London". We just hope nobody's paid their deposit.

Your new landlord - Mr Gaddafi [February 22, 2011]

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Or it will be, if it gets approval next month. It's a proposed underground extension to a £9m house on Templewood Avenue, and it will result in a ninefold increase in the property's underground square footage (not overall square footage, as eye-catchingly suggested here). Still, it's enough - two years work - to seriously worry the neighbours and a local conservation group, who suggest it will create a substantial flood risk in the area.

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That's Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, the Colonel's second son, the one who threw some cool parties but appears to have created some uncool controversy for himself after publicly taking a very anti-protest stance. He's only likely to be your landlord, though, if you've a budget that will stretch to almost £10,000 a week, for an 8-bedroom home in Hampstead Garden Suburb. Go here to read about the Gaddafi billions. If you want to be a Gaddafi tenant, go here and view the particulars.

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