Along Wandsworth Road, a stone's throw from the skyscrapers of Vauxhall on the way to Clapham, is an unassuming house with a small front garden. On the banister leading up to the front door hangs a small sign indicating the property belongs to the National Trust. Back in 1981, Khadambi Asalache saw the house was for sale. Undeterred by its poor condition and its garden used as a menagerie, he decided to purchase it and restore this 1819 building to its former glory. Only this was no ordinary property developer: born in Kenya in 1935, Asalache was a trained architect who had lived around Europe studying art before settling in London in 1960 to pursue his other trade as a writer. After having published two novels and a collection of poems, Asalache joined the civil service, using the 77A bus route to Whitehall to go to work.
Partly to make...