An Oscar-winning director was born in this Croydon home… can you guess who?

• Oscar-winning director was born at South Croydon’s Blenheim Crescent in 1908
• He directed the films Lawrence of Arabia, Doctor Zhivago and A Passage to India
• The two-bedroom flat in Blenheim Crescent is for sale for £325,000 

An Oscar-winning director was born in this South Croydon property that is currently for sale, but can you guess who?

The Englishman directed the films The Bridge on the River Kwai, Lawrence of Arabia, Doctor Zhivago and A Passage to India.

He was also voted the ninth greatest film director of all time in the British Film Institute poll in 2002.

And he has been nominated seven times for the Academy Award for Best Director – which he won twice for The Bridge on the River Kwai and Lawrence of Arabia.

The director who was born at this property for sale in South Croydon’s Blenheim Crescent is Sir David Lean.

He was born on March 25, 1908, to Quaker parents and he was later a pupil at the Quaker-founded Leighton Park School in Reading.

As an adult he worked during the day as an accountant, but spent every evening in the cinema.

In 1927, after an aunt had advised him to find a job he enjoyed, he visited Gaumont Studios where he was given a month’s trial without pay.

He was taken on as a teaboy, promoted to clapper boy, and soon rose to the position of third assistant director.

By the 1950s, Sir David’s films were more infrequent but much larger in scale, and more extensively released internationally.

He had his greatest box-office success with Doctor Zhivago (1965), which as of 2020 is reportedly the ninth highest grossing film of all time adjusted for inflation.

It is a far cry from his humble South Croydon beginnings, where the property is now divided into flats.

It is the ground floor flat that is currently for sale and is on the market for £352,000 via eXp World UK estate agents.

The leasehold flat has two bedrooms and is spread across 697 square feet.

It displays a blue plaque on the front exterior showing that it is the birthplace of Sir David.

There is a large shared garden at the rear of the property, which backs onto Haling Grove Park.

It has good access to transport links, being close to Purley Oaks and Sanderstead stations, which connect to East Croydon mainline station.

From there, central London stations can be reached within 20 minutes.

Daniel Copley, of Zoopla, said: ‘This beautiful contemporary home benefits from high-spec finishes including in-built wardrobes and a beautiful feature fireplace. 

‘The property also has another talking point – the blue plaque on its exterior marks the property as the birthplace of film director David Lean CBE.’