Surbiton

Surbiton is a place in Surrey, England on the suburbs of London, England in the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames. A relatively unremarkable commuter town next to the river Thames, populated with a mixture of Art-Deco courts, spacious and grand late-18th Century town houses blending into a sea of semi-detached 20th century housing estates.

Fortunes changed for the town when plans to build the main rail line down to the south coast through nearby Kingston was rejected by the residents there and placed instead through Surbiton. Kingston, as a result, is now located on a branch line whereas passengers from Surbiton, a smaller town by comparison, can reach central London in one direction and Portsmouth or Southampton in the opposite.

Surbiton's main claim to fame is as an icon of suburbia in such British television programs as The Good Life (starring Richard Briars and Felicity Kendal), and John Sessions' comedy series Stella Street. Other related trivia: the charater from the 80's Sinclair Spectrum computer games Manic Miner and Jet Set Willy was described as a Surbiton resident, and Black Sabbath played at the Surbiton Assembly Rooms, on 19th May 1970.

Nearest places:

• Kingston upon Thames
• Tolworth
• Norbiton
• Teddington
• Hampton
• Petersham
• Twickenham
• Chessington