Looking at this laden apple tree, you may think “The Writer” and I have been venturing into the countryside, walking through charming villages, visiting the Manor House before feeding the ducks on the pond and and sipping tea from china cups accompanied by WI lemon drizzle cake served on gingham table cloths in the local teashop.(Sorry, got carried away with that last bit). It may surprise you to learn that this sight is actually in the heart of Soho, only a few hundred yards from our front door.

This extraordinary Georgian house is owned by one, David Bieda, who bought it, derelict, in 1993 and lived in it for three years without a bath or indoor lavatory and with only coal fires for heating. The original wooden panelling and shutters were the only things still in reasonable condition

The house was originally owned and lived in by John Meard Junior, Master of the Worshipful Company of Carpenters, who worked with Sir Chrisopher Wren on the wood carvings in St. Paul’s.

Taking on its restoration wasn’t quite a leap in the dark for Bieda, as he had presided over a great deal of restoration work in and around Covent Garden as chairman of the Seven Dials Trust. But the house has 18 rooms and he surely didn’t reckon on the work taking nearly 20 years to complete, even with the grants from English Heritage and Westminster Council.

The house is unique in the area and has yielded some important pieces of architectural information. David and London archeologists were particularly excited to discover two cesspits in the house. This might not sound particularly thrilling, until you read this on his Website, “68 Dean St. A Short History“.

“ Early 18c town houses rarely had sewers and little is known about water and waste management. 68 Dean Street has now provided the first example of a complete waste + water management system of the period. The cesspit for ‘upstairs’ was discovered in the rear vault. A combined servants’ cesspit and soakaway was discovered in one of the front vaults (with a frog hibernating in it). Objects retrieved include a number of long ‘scent’ bottles probably used for washing, a make up set with make up still inside one pot, an early 19c ‘solid rouge’ and in the front an intact port or stout bottle c.1760.”

Nowadays, David lets out the house for film shoots and conducts small tours to help with its upkeep. He’s a familiar figure in Soho and we often encounter him keeping a beady eye on what’s going on. His preferred uniform in recent weeks has been a visor rather than a mask and he and my husband have an ongoing dispute as to whose social distancing is correct. A couple of weeks ago spotting us having breakfast outside a local hotel, he even nipped home for a tape measure to make sure he and “The Writer” were chatting at the correct distance.

The tree has yielded up to 80 apples in the past and, amazingly – and wonderfully – passers-by seem more inclined to smile at such an unexpected sight than to steal them. Last year, he held a Dean Street apple pie party. No chance of one this year, of course and, though he has offered us some apples, they look so beautiful on the tree, I can’t bear to accept.