On The Up

Once the down and dirty end of the line, Walthamstow is London’s latest cool neighborhood

- Nicola Davison

'Waking up in Walthamstow” is something Londoners dread—it means to nod off on the Underground after a night out only to revive at the line’s end. Until recently, it seemed there was little reason to venture the nearly seven miles from the city center to the far-flung district in the northeast. But in the past half decade, Walthamstow has undergone a spectacular renaissance. Greatly diminished are the drugs and drunks, in are the art spaces and artisanal distilleries. As local resident Marcus Bracey put it: “It’s on the up.”