They were in Dire Straits

Home to Mark Knopfler and the legends that were Dire Straits

Location: 1 Farrer House, Deptford, NW1

Description: And so to sunny Deptford...

The area is named after a ford of the River Ravensbourne, and from the mid 16th century to the late 19th was home to Deptford Dockyard, the first of the Royal Dockyards.

Deptford also has some serious musical connections.

'Dire Straits', the successful British rock group, shared a council flat at this very location, in Farrer House on Deptford's Crossfield Estate in the early days of their career.

Dire Straits were a British rock band, formed by Mark Knopfler (vocals and lead guitar), his younger brother David Knopfler (rhythm guitar and vocals), John Illsley (bass guitar and vocals), and Pick Withers (drums and percussion), and managed by Ed Bicknell, active between 1977 and 1995.

Although the band was formed in an era when punk rock was at the forefront, Dire Straits played a more conventional style, albeit with a stripped-down sound that appealed to audiences weary of the overproduced stadium rock of the 1970s.

In their early days, Mark and David requested that pub owners turn down their sound so that patrons could converse while the band played, an indication of their unassuming demeanor. Despite this oddly self-effacing approach to rock and roll, Dire Straits soon became hugely successful, with their first album going multi-platinum globally.

The band Squeeze lived in Deptford in the late 1970s and recorded on the Deptford Fun City label.

Chris Difford (of Squeeze) briefly lived on the Crossfield Estate in Congers House.

The bands Athlete, Bloc Party and Art Brut originated from 'Deptford Scene'. The Saudis and The Pepys often drink in the Little Crown.