is a place in the
London Borough Of Sutton .
Cheam is a small but thriving village close to
Sutton . There are two main areas, North Cheam and Cheam Village. North Cheam includes more retail shops and
Supermarket s, whilst Cheam Village and the South of Cheam is more residential.
Cheam's roots can be dated back as far as
1018 , when
Chertsey Abbey owned the area. In the
Domesday Book , the Bishop was holding Cheam to cater for the monks. In the
Middle Ages , Cheam was known for its potteries, and recent excavations have been discovered by archaelogists. In
1538 , part of Cheam was handed over to
Henry VIII . The same year, Henry began work on
Nonsuch Palace , which he decorated fantastically. This was later sold and demolished. In
1801 , the time of the first census, Cheam had a population of 616.
During
World War One , many of Cheam's historic buildings and character were destroyed. Only one major building survived, a small white timber framed cottage, called "Whitehall". The surrounding area of Cheam, originally fields, now became overrun by surburban houses.
Cheam is home to The Lumley Chapel. Situated next to St Dunstan's church, it is the oldest standing building in the
London Borough Of Sutton .
Now Cheam is mainly built up, but still retains Nonsuch Park, also home to a chicken pen, drinking fountain, ice cream shop, and car park. Nonsuch High School for Girls, a notable grammar school, backs onto the park, as does Cheam Park. Cheam Park only extends on Nonsuch Park, with many facilities such as tennis courts, crazy golf, football pitches and a children's playground.
- Harry Secombe used to live in Cheam
- The Sit Com Terry And June was filmed in Cheam
- A scene from the Channel 4 comedy, Peep Show (series 2, episode 3), was filmed in Cheam Park
- In most seasons of the comedy series '' Hancock's Half-Hour '', Tony Hancock lived in Railway Cuttings, East Cheam. The road is fictional.
- There is no such place as 'East Cheam'
- 'North Cheam' and 'Cheam' fall under separate bouroughs and are separate towns.
