Over canapés of miso aubergine and glasses of Bovet Champagne we heard more about what makes this development of apartments and now townhouses so special – alongside immaculate facilities such as two swimming pools, a cinema, skyloft lounges and 24-hour concierge there are cultural leviathans such as the English National Ballet who have relocated to neighbouring London City Island and a host of other arts’ pioneers.
Goodluck Hope Townhouses launch with SPHERE
Words by
Jemima Sissons
Photography by
Thirsty Photography
7th November 2022
Last week Sphere magazine came together with Ballymore to host a spectacular party at Trinity Art Gallery in the heart of Goodluck Hope - London’s secret island hideaway in the docklands that is rapidly making a name for itself among arts communities and luxury dwellers.
SPHERE hosted the luxury launch of Goodluck Hope Townhouses with Ballymore
Located close to Canning Town station, one guest was heard to remark as they stood atop a penthouse balcony. ‘Is this London or Hong Kong.’ It’s not just the sweeping views of the O2 and Canary Wharf, but you can feel a sense of the ancient here too. As Creative Director Roger Black revealed in a panel hosted by ILN CEO Lisa Barnard, there is the richest of history around here, where 40 acres of shipbuilding saw the creation of the first ever ironclad wooden battleship.
Look down from The Lantern Room (the convivial lounge where residents share drinks, throw Birthdays and come to brainstorm) and you can spot a lighthouse. This used to be where they were built and tested and one still remains today, a little beacon of history.
SPHERE's Lisa Barnard hosted a panel with Goodluck Hope creative director Roger Black
Ballymore started building here in Goodluck Hope in 2017 and today there are 841 apartments (starting from £427,500), offering studio to three-bed dwellings, including 13 new townhouses (starting from £1,120,000), all with access to the unparalleled facilities. ‘There was a narrative of opportunity to move to an island, it caught people’s imagination,’ says Black. ‘It attracts those who want to move to an island and be in London but be apart from London - there is a shared aspiration.’
SPHERE's Lisa Barnard hosted a lovely panel discussion on Goodluck Hope's history and people
Yet for a ‘Castaway Island’ it is surprisingly well connected, with the superfast Jubilee line bringing you here from the now reopened Bond Street in 20 minutes and the Uber Boats by Thames Clippers will start servicing the area in 2023 (until they you pay a boatman £2 to ferry you over to North Greenwich). For Black, it lures people who 'stay here and don’t drift away.’
The ground floor layout of the elegant Townhouses at Goodluck Hope
As for the idea that this is part of the new trendy east, Black feels that the geography has been completely recast: ‘I don’t think we are east anymore… we are in the middle of London now.’ Goodluck Hope also now boasts two new accolades. In the British Home Awards 2022 Goodluck Hope won Development of The Year & Ballymore won Homebuilder of the Year; Goodluck Hope also won “Best New Place to Live” at this year's Building London Planning Awards.
A Townhouse bedroom at Goodluck Hope
Many residents don’t want to leave and feel the strong draw of camaraderie here. For Oriana Shepherd, who runs Hum Yoga on the island, it is ‘quite unique, to be on an island and 20 mins from one of the best cities in the world but find such a calm, chilled vibe.’
Local gallerist Ian Felton agreed that ‘there are various ways to bring a community together and arts is one of them.’ A former artist himself, he has a gallery on the island and talked about the thriving community of 500+ creatives at nearby Trinity Buoy Wharf. ‘ I saw the makers here and wanted to be a part of them,’ he explains of when he first came here in 2005.
The 1565 Club at Goodluck Hope has two pools and a cinema
The new townhouses come with a working space below, many with roof terraces and are all filled with natural light. Although most residents travel by public transport, they also have 150 car parking spaces along with saunas, landscaped gardens, arts festivals and wonderful F & B offerings – we sampled the delicious Cartografie chocolate and Caviar N25 on the night, both companies based here on the island.
A Townhouse study at Goodluck Hope
However, beyond the cafes and the dedicated team of staff, the river views and the plethora of gym classes, what really brings people here is the uniqueness of the place. As Roger Black explained when asked what has most delighted him about the development, ‘here I have come to the realisation that in the post covid world, what really matters is the human condition and fostering a specialness amongst groups of people around which you can wrap an architecture. The metric today is the social success of this place.’
