2 Willow Road, Modern house museum in Hampstead, England
2 Willow Road is a three-story concrete residence in Hampstead, London, with open-plan layouts, large windows, and exposed concrete supports on the facade. A spiral staircase connects the levels and the interior preserves mid-century furnishings with artworks and custom-built furniture pieces.
Ernö Goldfinger designed and built this house in 1939 as part of a row of three modernist houses to demonstrate his architectural ideas. Local residents and writer Ian Fleming opposed the project because of the demolition of older cottages and the unusual building style for Hampstead.
The architect's name inspired the villain in Ian Fleming's James Bond novel after Fleming lived on the same street and protested the house construction. The rooms still display the furnishings Goldfinger and his wife Ursula used themselves, including their collection of modern artworks and handcrafted furniture.
The National Trust organizes guided tours from Wednesday to Sunday at specific times, while visitors can also walk through the rooms unguided in the afternoon. The house sits on a quiet residential street in Hampstead and is well accessible by public transport to Hampstead Underground station.
The house is the first modernist building the National Trust added to its collection and preserves the architect's workspace with original drawings and models. The kitchen still shows the advanced equipment from the 1930s that Goldfinger planned for his wife.
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