77-635: Yianis Group is a London-based property development and investment company, wholly owned by the Cyprus-born British billionaire, John Christodoulou . Yianis Group owns the London hotels Marriott Canary Wharf and Canary Riverside Plaza Hotel at Canary Wharf . In Manchester , Yianis Group owns the Hilton Manchester Deansgate . After a seven-year legal battle it initiated against the building's owner, North West Ground Rents Limited, part of
154-623: A municipal borough council between 1933 and 1965. The area is now part of the London Borough of Barnet . From 1959 to 1992 the Finchley constituency was represented in Parliament by Margaret Thatcher , UK Prime Minister from 1979 to 1990. Finchley is now included in the new constituency of Finchley and Golders Green . In February 2010, the Green Party held its spring party conference at
231-448: A New York-based Cypriot investor, in a £30 million deal, but talks reportedly broke down over the issue of him having to sell the shares on to Omonia fans after five years, one of at least two clauses in the original management deal with Papastavrou that Christodoulou had sought to scrub. Christodoulou is a critic of Cyprus' lengthy planning process, stating that it is stopping foreign investment. As of May 2024, his estimated net worth
308-461: A diamond mounter before acquiring his first property in 1994. He began his business career in Hatton Garden , starting off as a diamond mounter and then persuading the landlord of a small jewellers to allow him to occupy a workshop by accepting cut-price jewellery repairs as a form of rental income. Within three years, Christodoulou had sold his own diamond business. Christodoulou then moved into
385-424: A muddled hierarchy of command." Similar complaints of estate mismanagement by Christodoulou leaseholders at 1 West India Quay have emerged in a Sunday Times feature on the so-called leasehold property scandal. Leaseholders there have taken legal action against Christodoulou over expensive energy bills, raising concerns that they have been subsidising his commercial interest on the site. In May 2014, they won
462-706: A new gym facility for staff of the Princess Grace Hospital Centre which had been built and paid for by the Foundation. During the pandemic on Cypriot Labor Day "Thank You" snack parcels were delivered to all 9 public hospitals in Cyprus to more than six thousand doctors, nurses and other health care workers from the Christodoulou's foundation. 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine Yianis Group offered two of its hotels for free to home 750 Ukrainian refugees from
539-586: A small museum, the Stephens Collection, which covers the history of the Stephens family, the Stephens Ink company and the history of writing materials. The bequest also included Avenue House Grounds , designed by the leading nineteenth-century landscape gardener Robert Marnock . This has a tearoom, a children's playground, a walled garden and building called The Bothy, a pond and rare trees. A recent attraction
616-694: A station on Long Lane. The artsdepot , a community arts centre including a gallery, studio and theatre, opened in 2004, at Tally Ho Corner, North Finchley. Finchley Film Makers was founded as the Finchley Amateur Cine Society in 1930, making it one of the oldest clubs in the Country. It meets at the Quaker Meeting House in Alexandra Grove, North Finchley. Victoria Park is off Ballards Lane between North Finchley and Finchley Central. It
693-544: A view to impressing on the respondents the appellant’s determination not to back down, whatever the cost and thereby to harass and intimidate some or all of them." The costs order continued: "This litigation is being conducted with the intensity and expense and in the style of commercial litigation … the [Landlord] has full access to the FTT and to the [Upper] Tribunal and appears to be prepared to spend whatever it takes to promote its interests through litigation. The proposed [costs] order
770-447: Is Zivania . The property entrepreneur is also dyslexic and accordingly has a preference for making business decisions over the phone, an in-house solicitor for Yianis Group has told London's High Court. Christodoulou is also a friend of Monaco's Prince Albert . Christodoulou won the "Foreign-based Cypriot Entrepreneur of the Year 2013" award from IN Business Magazine . Christodoulou
847-538: Is a bronze statue of Spike Milligan sitting on a bench. William Hogarth painted his satirical March of the Guards to Finchley in 1750. It is a depiction of a fictional mustering of troops on London's Tottenham Court Road to march north to Finchley to defend the capital from the second Jacobite rebellion of 1745 . A number of fictional characters have been associated with the area, including: The Monty Python's Flying Circus comedy sketch " The Funniest Joke in
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#1732884989349924-529: Is a Jewish cultural centre. It was founded to facilitate Reform and Liberal Jewish institutions, attached to the Movement for Reform Judaism. The Archer , on East Finchley tube station, is a 10-foot-tall (3.0 m) statue by Eric Aumonier of a kneeling archer having just released an arrow. The statue La Délivrance depicts a naked woman holding a sword (and is informally known as the Naked Lady); it stands at
1001-444: Is a large district of north London, England, in the London Borough of Barnet . Finchley is on high ground, 7 mi (11 km) north of Charing Cross . Nearby districts include: Golders Green , Muswell Hill , Friern Barnet , Whetstone , Mill Hill and Hendon . It is predominantly a residential suburb, with three town centres: North Finchley , East Finchley and Finchley Church End (Finchley Central). Made up of four wards,
1078-493: Is a reference to Canary Riverside, where Christodoulou was stripped of day-to-day management control over the property in October 2016, with a professional court appointee installed to act in the best interests of the site. Leaseholders were able to prove fault against CREM, a subsidiary company, that they had suffered over many years due to poor management of the estate, in particular a lack of transparency surrounding how their money
1155-459: Is defamatory and untrue. In December 2022, a property tribunal ruled in the Canary Riverside case that John Christodoulou landlord companies, CREM and Octagon, misappropriated approximately £1.6 million in secret insurance commissions from flat owners. This represented leaseholder overcharging of between £150,000 to £200,000 per annum. The tribunal heard that Westminster Management Services
1232-479: Is not required to punish the appellant but to protect the respondents from its unreasonable conduct". In the appeal hearing, the landlord was reportedly admonished by Deputy Chamber President Judge Martin Rodger KC for an "extremely unattractive" approach to tribunal. Mr Christodoulou had sought to resile from Canary Riverside's management order for independent and transparent estate management and also attempted to force
1309-478: Is on boulder clay or glacial moraine, skirted by a layer of gravel, then the underlying layer of London clay . This roughly triangular gravel line was the most fertile area; hamlets which grew at the three corners evolved into Finchley's early population centres corresponding to the three town centres in the area: The residential areas of West Finchley, in postcode district N3, and Woodside Park , in postcode district N12, centre on their respective tube stations to
1386-810: Is part of the upmarket mixed use Canary Riverside scheme owned by the Yianis Group , to push back against unfair practices by Christodoulou and the government's ending of the eviction ban. Joined by local MP Apsana Begum , the protesters hand-delivered a letter to the Yianis Group headquarters. On 9 November 2020, former shadow home secretary Diane Abbott tabled an early day motion in parliament urging John Christodoulou to negotiate "fair and reasonable rent adjustments" with affected tenants in Somerford Grove. It noted that "far from entering into negotiations, residents have been harassed and spied on". In July 2021, it
1463-510: Is the employing entity of all Yianis Group personnel. Christodoulou and WMS were unable to demonstrate that the payments were legitimate and could not produce any contract with the insurers. The tribunal also heard that WMS was "just told" about the fees payable and the cash was then sent across by Reich, an FCA regulated broker. The tribunal criticized Christodoulou's "complete lack of transparency with leaseholders regarding these commission payments paid since 2010" as "lamentable", while noting
1540-610: Is the parish church, with parts dating from the 13th century. College Farm is the last farm in Finchley; it was a model dairy farm, then a visitor attraction. The Phoenix Cinema in East Finchley with its 1930s art deco façade is one of the oldest purpose-built cinemas in the United Kingdom. The Sternberg Centre for Judaism in the old Manor House (formerly convent and school of St Mary Auxiliatrice) at 80 East End Road in Finchley
1617-923: Is the president of the Monaco and Cyprus Jubilee Sailing Trust. In June 2022, he was awarded a Goodwill Ambassador Award of the Principality of Monaco. Christodoulou received the Holy Humanitarian Cross of the Greek Orthodox Church of Cyprus in July 2022, while in August 2022 he was awarded the Medal of Outstanding Contribution in a ceremony organised by the Presidency of the Republic of Cyprus. In November 2023, Christodoulou
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#17328849893491694-466: Is to expect landlords & tenants to sort difficulties out amongst themselves," and that the story is "exactly why" he is calling on government to "introduce immediate measures to protect tenants who go into arrears" because of the public health emergency. These tenants formed an advocacy group Somerford Grove Renters with the London Renters Union. They were later threatened with legal action by
1771-550: Is £2.5 billion, according to the Sunday Times Rich List 2024 . Christodoulou lives in Monaco with his wife and four children. For his 40th birthday, he acquired a private jet and, when he turned 50, Christodoulou increased the size of his yacht from 50 metres to 74.5 meters. He has a $ 50 million 74m yacht, Zeus , previously owned by Aidan Barclay . He is a supporter of Omonia Nicosia football club. His favourite drink
1848-553: The Hilton Manchester Deansgate where apparently over £1.5 million was raised. It is unclear whether this sum is separate to the £1 million said to have been donated by Christodoulou as the accounts filed with Companies House indicate donations/funds raised since 2017 total £1,285,395. In July 2021, Christodoulou sailed Zeus to Cyprus where the Foundation raised €365,000 to support the island country's disadvantaged children as well as local schools destroyed by wildfires. The Foundation backed King Charles III , then heir apparent to
1925-569: The North Circular Road and on to Finchley. According to the 2011 UK Census in Finchley Church End ward, 67% of the population was White (47% British, 18% Other, 2% Irish), 8% South Asian and 6% Other Asian. The largest religion was Judaism , claimed by 31% of the population, whereas Christians made up 28%. West Finchley ward was 61% White (40% British, 18% Other, 3% Irish), 13% South Asian and 8% Other Asian. St Mary's at Finchley
2002-721: The Qatar Investment Authority . Christodoulou owns 100% of Yianis Group, which owns the London hotels Marriott Canary Wharf and the Canary Riverside Plaza (formerly Four Seasons Canary Wharf). He also owns heritage asset Wool House , a grade II listed former Victorian warehouse in Whitechapel . In 2019, it was reported that the Cyprus-born British freehold tycoon was working on an eco-friendly development on an island off Sardinia . In 2012, several overleveraged hotel-owning Yianis Group interests that came under
2079-575: The Turkish invasion of Cyprus . Tommy Foster Racing sponsorship In March 2022, the Foundation entered into a sponsorship deal with the Tommy Foster Racing team. The team's main driver Tommy Foster is a Cornish racing prodigy. The team competes in the Le Mans Cup and enjoyed a podium finish with third place in the opening 2022 cup. The YCF livery and support for Tommy Foster racing team aligns with
2156-632: The artsdepot in North Finchley. Finchley is on a plateau, 90 metres (300 ft) above sea level 11 km (6.8 mi) north of Charing Cross and 6 km (3.7 mi) south of Barnet . To the west is the Dollis valley formed by Dollis Brook the natural western boundary of Finchley. Mutton Brook forms the southern boundary, joining the Dollis Brook to become the River Brent . Most of Finchley
2233-505: The "unreasonable conduct" of the owner of Yianis Group who, the Upper Tribunal determined, had pursued litigation "conducted with the intensity and expense and in the style of commercial litigation" so as "to harass and intimidate some or all of" the flat leaseholders. In December 2022, a tribunal ruled that £1.6 million in insurance kickbacks and insurance premium tax was not payable by leaseholders at Canary Riverside. It had been heard that
2310-540: The "woefully inaccurate" disclosure originally provided by Reich, which understated its commission by almost half. The decision was reported in the Financial Times as a "rare victory in service charges" for UK leaseholders, a development it suggested lends support to a recent warning by the FCA that freeholders, managing agents and brokers "may be selecting insurance policies that maximize their own remuneration . . . rather than
2387-406: The 18th century Finchley was well known for the quality of its hay, which was the dominant agricultural activity until the second half of the 19th century. North Finchley only began to develop after the enclosure of the common during the 1820s. It formed an ancient parish in the county of Middlesex , originally within the hundred of Ossulstone and later becoming its own urban district , which
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2464-880: The British throne as Prince of Wales, at a charity event in Dumfries House , in Ayrshire, Scotland. COVID-19 pandemic The Foundation funded the distribution of free food packages offered to the homes of 355,000 members of the Cypriot community in the UK for the in need, vulnerable and elderly during the COVID-19 pandemic . It also funded 6,000 individual care packs for the NHS staff at The Royal London Hospital , Whitechapel, London. In 2021, Christodoulou stood alongside Monaco ruler Prince Albert as he opened
2541-693: The Dania Properties name went into administration, which saw Christodoulou lose the grade 2-listed 148 bedroom hotel Marriott Victoria & Albert Hotel in Manchester and the four-AA-star, 895-bedroom Park Inn by Radisson located close to Heathrow Airport . The value of Christodoulou's property holdings increased by 25% in the 12 months to April 2019 to £1.5 billion, due to a buoyant London rental market. In October 2021, Christodoulou had been set to take over Cypriot professional football club Omonia Nicosia from current major stakeholder Stavros Papastavrou,
2618-595: The Mr Christodoulou's landlord companies could not produce gas safety or energy efficiency certificates in addition to not obtaining the property licences required by law and concluded from this that "the Landlord's business practices involved a systematic or institutional neglect of regulatory requirements". In August 2022, the Upper Tribunal in a different case ordered that Mr Christodoulou's landlord company at Canary Riverside, Riverside CREM 3 Limited, pay £67,000 towards
2695-595: The UK government and Michael Gove , the then Secretary of State, commenced legal action against Christodoulou's companies to pay £20.5 million towards remediation of the unsafe blocks of flats they own at Canary Riverside in London Docklands. It marked the first time the UK government has pursued a freeholder landlord for a remediation contribution order under new powers in the Building Safety Act 2022. Finchley Finchley ( / ˈ f ɪ n tʃ l i / )
2772-740: The Ukraine war, for a year. The two hotels in question are the Radisson Blu Hotel in Liverpool and the Palace Park Inn in Southend-on-Sea , Essex. Christodoulou gave support to the UK government's flagship Homes for Ukraine scheme and urged families and businesses everywhere in the UK to "get involved and do their bit". He said he was providing the accommodation for free because "as a child, I know what pain my parents went through", who fled Cyprus due to
2849-689: The Underground New Works Programme (1935–1940), to electrify the lines through Finchley, and connect the Northern line from Archway to East Finchley , via a new tunnel was announced. Much of the work was carried out and East Finchley station was rebuilt, but the project was halted by the second world war . All passenger services from Finchley to Edgware ended in September 1939. Nevertheless, Underground trains began running from central London to High Barnet in 1940, and to Mill Hill East , to reach
2926-571: The World " is set in Finchley. In various episodes of the Channel 4 comedy Peep Show Finchley is used as an on-site shooting location. The background of the cover of Iron Maiden 's second studio album, Killers , depicts Etchingham Court, North Finchley, where artist Derek Riggs lived at the time. The 2013 David Bowie song 'Dirty Boys' on The Next Day album makes reference to Finchley Fair. In birth order Finchley Borough had four twin towns ;
3003-458: The appeal that the landlord "had failed to demonstrate" it was due any more than the £579,039 of the £1,638,709 that they had charged to the estate between 2010 and 2020, with £1,059,570 not payable by the leaseholders. The overcharging represented 65% of the landlord insurance commissions. John Christodoulou Yiannakis Theophani "John" Christodoulou (born 24 May 1965) is a Monaco-based British Cypriot-born billionaire property developer,
3080-522: The approach to Finchley from the south, in a small garden beside Regent's Park Road, just north of Henlys Corner . Transport for London is responsible for transport in Finchley. Finchley has four London Underground stations, all on the High Barnet branch of the Northern line, which serves the West End and City (financial district). Two of London's major roads, the east–west A406 North Circular Road and
3157-468: The area is in the southeast corner of the company's water supply area. EDF Energy Networks is the Distribution network operator licensed to distribute electricity from the transmission grid to homes and businesses in Finchley. Finchley Memorial Hospital, on Granville Road, North Finchley, was a small NHS hospital administered by NHS Barnet, a primary care trust . Built with local donations in 1908 it
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3234-466: The army barracks, in 1941. After the war, the introduction of London's Metropolitan Green Belt undermined pre-war plans and the upgrading between Mill Hill East and Edgware (the ' Northern Heights ' project) was abandoned, although the line continued to be used by steam trains for goods traffic through Finchley, until 1964. From around 1547 Finchley had a parish vestry , which became a local board in 1878, an urban district council in 1895, and finally
3311-539: The benefit of the companies' employees. The funds did not benefit the companies themselves or Christodoulou personally. Neither Christodoulou nor his companies have received any loans from the government. The participation of some of Christodoulou's companies in state support schemes was exclusively for the purpose of supporting employees whose employment was suspended due to pandemic-related restrictions that had been imposed". By contrast, The Times article has not been withdrawn following Christodoulou's legal complaint that it
3388-574: The building trade by taking jobs on construction sites before developing his own buildings with bank finance. He started at 19 with a studio flat in Finchley , north London, and now owns property in London Docklands through his Yianis Group . With circa 2 million square foot of property, Christodoulou is the second largest freeholder in Canary Wharf after Canary Wharf Group , which is jointly owned by Canadian private equity firm Brookfield and
3465-428: The case of Canary Riverside in parliament. It had been claimed that Fitzpatrick's intervention could breach sub judice rules. In April 2020, The Guardian reported that tenants at Olympic House, Simpson House and St John's Court in Somerford Grove, east London, were denied a 20% rent cut, in spite of the COVID-19 pandemic and their allegedly precarious employment situations. The renters are said to have been told by
3542-400: The eponymous philanthropy organisation. The charity commenced in 2017 with donations of £51,842 and in 2018 donations totalled £1,200,559. Fundraising fell significantly in 2019, with just £17,756 raised. In 2020 donations totalled £15,238. Charitable grants made to date are: £260,998 (2018), £112,039 (2019) and £93,199 (2020). He has hosted fundraising events, such as the 2017 Star Ball at
3619-635: The exchequer Alistair Darling was to introduce a new £30,000 a year charge on nondoms who have lived in the country for more than seven years. In October 2021, The Times newspaper reported that the low-profile billionaire property tycoon had covertly claimed millions of furlough money from the taxpayer despite telling a London audience that he was self-reliant through the crisis and criticising those businesses which did need government assistance. Christodoulou's use of shell and foreign incorporated companies to secure up to £6.5 million in taxpayer money occurred despite his public comment that "we borrowed no money from
3696-467: The first 23 of its 47 floors. Yianis Group also own Park Inn Palace, Southend and Radisson Blu, Liverpool . Its head office is based at Westferry Circus , London. The group of companies has been embroiled in the so-called leasehold scandal, having been stripped of control of Canary Riverside in 2016 due to poor financial transparency and block management. In August 2022, a costs order was made against it to protect residents at Canary Riverside against
3773-497: The government … because it shows the wrong sign." After legal letters from Christodoulou's solicitors, Cypriot media outlets Knews, the English edition of Kathimerini Cyprus, and Economy Today apologised to Christodoulou for publishing the Times of London's furlough story and agreed that "it is clear that the funds received by Christodoulou's companies from state support schemes were solely for
3850-491: The legal costs of the independent court-appointed manager and the leaseholders at the site for its "unreasonable" conduct, having instigated a meritless appeal to the Upper Tribunal while conducting the appeal in a manner that was also deemed unreasonable, inexplicably advancing a new legal point at a very late stage in the proceedings that should have been used in the original case, if used at all. The Upper Tribunal determined that "the decision to do so can only have been taken with
3927-515: The lettings agent and alleged harassment and surveillance by agent-hired security guards. After continuing to make public statements about the situation, several tenants received eviction notices in August in what Hackney Mayor Philip Glanville called a " revenge eviction " and "a direct response to [the tenants] seeking greater security for themselves and their neighbours at a time of crisis." On 21 September 2020, around 70 rental and leasehold tenants protested outside Canary Riverside Plaza , which
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#17328849893494004-408: The lettings agent, acting on behalf of the three corporate landlords all "majority owned" by Christodoulou, that the request was "unreasonable" and "unrealistic". The agent had suggested that "any drop in tenants' income would be minimised by a reduction in spending on holidays, entertainment, travel, clothes and lunches." London mayor Sadiq Khan tweeted: "This is a prime example of how unrealistic it
4081-437: The litigation and threats faced by the court-appointed manager at Canary Riverside are "little short of harassment". A former secretary of the 1 West India Quay residents' association has been subjected to a defamation threat by Christodoulou's lawyers, as have more than 100 leaseholders at neighbouring Canary Riverside. In July 2018, his lawyers unsuccessfully sought to prevent the then local MP, Jim Fitzpatrick , from raising
4158-536: The merger between Finchley Football Club (est. 1874) and Wingate Football Club (est. 1946). Although the club is sometimes incorrectly perceived to be exclusively Jewish , it is open to people of every religion and ethnic background. Wingate & Finchley play home games at Summers Lane, N12. The local rugby team is Finchley RFC. Finchley Cricket Club (founded 1832), plays in the Middlesex premier league, at Arden Field, East End Road, N3. Finchley golf club on Frith Lane
4235-534: The north–south A1 meet and briefly merge at Henlys Corner at the southern edge of Finchley. North Finchley bus station is a hub with nine bus routes using bus stops around Tally Ho Corner. There are 17 primary schools in the district. There are seven secondary schools : There is also a secondary special school , Oak Lodge Special School in East Finchley . Woodhouse College in North Finchley , on
4312-487: The organisation's aims to support the physical and mental development of gifted young people, especially those from working class backgrounds. Guinness World Record Christodoulou's business practices have attracted considerable media attention. The Times notes that "his company has been challenged by residents of a luxury development of more than 300 flats who complained they were being charged sky-high service charges and unreasonably high sums for repairs." This
4389-486: The owner of Yianis Group , a privately held company with a portfolio of residential, hotel, retail and leisure properties in the UK and Europe. His Yianis Group employs over 7,000 people in the UK alone. Through Yianis Group, Christodoulou is reportedly one of England's biggest freeholder landlords. According to the Sunday Times Rich List , Christodoulou became a billionaire in 2015. In May 2024, his fortune
4466-415: The policy that offers the best value for the leaseholders". In March 2024, the Upper Tribunal ruled in the appeal that the landlord "had failed to demonstrate" it was due any more than the £579,039 of the £1,638,709 that they had charged to the estate between 2010 and 2020, with £1,059,570 not payable by the leaseholders. The overcharging represented 65% of the landlord insurance commissions. In March 2024,
4543-575: The population of Finchley was 65,812 as of 2011. Finchley probably means "Finch's clearing" or "finches' clearing" in late Anglo-Saxon ; the name was first recorded in the early 13th century. Finchley is not recorded in Domesday Book , but by the 11th century its lands were held by the Bishop of London. In the early medieval period the area was sparsely populated woodland, whose inhabitants supplied pigs and fuel to London. Extensive cultivation began about
4620-454: The publicly quoted Ground Rents Income Fund, over who should be made to pay £8.9m to fund essential remedial works of the external facade, which Yianis Group subsidiary Blue Manchester Limited eventually won at the High Court in 2019, Yianis Group acquired the freehold for a 'nominal' sum. Prior to summer 2021, Yianis Group only had a 999-year lease on the commercial premises at Beetham Tower ;
4697-480: The residential flat leaseholders to pay the £355,000 unpaid debt of a commercial tenant, Virgin Active , which had wiped out rent and service charge arrears at High Court as part of a restructuring and cross-class cram down. Christodoulou has been described as a " tax exile ", and for a number of years lived in the UK enjoying the controversial non-domiciled tax status . He left the UK shortly before then chancellor of
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#17328849893494774-541: The right to form a recognised residents' association, despite Christodoulou having hired a QC and spent £74,000 in trying to block their efforts. In 2022, it was reported that Christodoulou had admitted before a tribunal that he had overcharged the 1 West India Quay flat owners by 26% on utilities, wrongly adding commercial rate VAT and a climate change levy to their bills for heating, cooling and hot water. Christodoulou has also been named in parliament, with former MP for Poplar and Limehouse Jim Fitzpatrick claiming that
4851-518: The security of a lifelong tenancy for renting in a safer neighbourhood to protect him. Christodoulou's refugee background had an impact on his outlook on life and approach to business: "I know what it is like to leave your home and have nothing else. What made me the man I am today is going through the experience of a war and being insecure. I'm still insecure. I can use it as a positive because it's never enough, you always need challenges in life." After leaving school at 16, Christodoulou trained to become
4928-617: The site of the old Woodhouse Grammar School, is one of two colleges in the borough. The local football team Old Finchleians (nicknamed the OFs) formed in 1901 who play home games at The Old Finchleians Memorial Ground in Southover and are members of the Southern Amateur League. Wingate & Finchley plays in the premier division of the Isthmian league . The club was formed in 1991 following
5005-419: The son of the inventor of indelible blue-black ink Dr Henry Stephens . On his death in 1918 he bequeathed the house and its grounds for 'Public enjoyment subject to reasonable rules'. The estate, a private garden to which public access is granted, is now known as Stephens House and Gardens and managed from 2002 on a 125-year lease by Avenue House Estate Trust, an independent charity. It has a visitor centre with
5082-412: The surreptitiously inflated insurance premiums had been for commissions and fees to a freeholder linked company, Westminster Management Services. The tribunal praised the leaseholders' persistence and concluded that had they not bought the action, the information revealing the true scale of secret commissions reaped from the development would not have been obtained. In March 2024, the Upper Tribunal ruled in
5159-478: The time of the Norman conquest . By the 15th and 16th centuries the woods on the eastern side of the parish had been cleared to form Finchley Common . The medieval Great North Road , which ran through the common, was notorious for highwaymen until the early 19th century. St Mary-at-Finchley Church is first recorded in the 1270s. Near the northern gate to the Bishop of London's park, the hamlet of East End, later East Finchley, had begun to develop by 1365. By
5236-407: The vulnerable in Cyprus. Christodoulou is involved in philanthropic endeavours. Inspired by his own childhood, displaced from his homeland as a child, in 2016 he founded the Yianis Christodoulou Foundation (YCF), which seeks to support disadvantaged children and their families in the UK and abroad, with a special focus on poverty alleviation and education. Christodoulou has donated £1 million to
5313-487: The west of the area. Between East Finchley and Finchley Central is Long Lane, which runs parallel to the tube line and is dotted with small shopping parades. The area of London known as 'Finchley Road', around Finchley Road Underground station , is not part of Finchley, but instead refers to a district further south at Swiss Cottage , Camden . The area is named after a section of the A41 road , which runs north to Golders Green and eventually continues to Henlys Corner on
5390-446: Was awarded by the Cypriot government for his charitable work and for his efforts to promote Cyprus abroad during a ceremony in London at the World Travel Market conference. Christodoulou was awarded "Contribution to Society" Award at the Cyprus Diaspora Forum in Limassol March 2024. This accolade recognizes Christodoulou and his Foundation's commitment and contribution to improving the educational environment of students and supporting
5467-423: Was being used. Tribunal judges found that the managing agent Marathon Estates (a company set-up in 2011 by Richard Paul, a chartered accountant and partner at accountancy firm Nyman Libson Paul, to manage the Christodoulou-owned estates of Canary Riverside and 1 West India Quay) "has been unable to produce accurate financial information on time, including budgets and accounts, has not engaged with leaseholders and has
5544-546: Was designed by five-times Open Champion James Braid. Ken Brown, Ryder Cup player and BBC presenter, described it as "The best presented golf course for club play that I have seen in years". Finchley Victoria Bowls and Croquet Club, with two greens and a modern clubhouse in Victoria Park , offers lawn bowls , croquet and pétanque facilities in the summer and year-round social activities. Veolia Water Central Limited , formerly Three Valleys Water , supplies Finchley's water;
5621-468: Was estimated at £2.5 billion, ranking him as the 70th richest person in the UK. Forbes magazine states Christodoulou is the 2545 richest person in the world. Christodoulou was born on 24 May 1965 in Nicosia , Cyprus. He came to London as a boy in 1974, as his family fled the Turkish invasion of Cyprus . Aged 9 when Christodoulou found refuge in the UK, his father declined a council flat , forgoing
5698-557: Was originally Finchley Cottage Hospital, renamed and expanded after the First World War as a war memorial. A modern new hospital on adjacent land opened in September 2012; the old hospital buildings were demolished. London Ambulance Service responds to medical emergencies in Finchley. Policing in Finchley is by the Metropolitan Police Service . Statutory emergency fire service is by London Fire Brigade , which has
5775-486: Was proposed in 1887 to mark Queen Victoria's golden jubilee and opened in 1902 to be Finchley's first public park. It is home to tennis courts and Finchley Victoria Bowling and Croquet Club. There is also a small nature reserve adjacent to the North Circular Road known as Long Lane Pasture . Avenue House in East End Road was built in 1859. In 1874 it was acquired by Henry Charles Stephens , known as "Inky" Stephens,
5852-449: Was reported that a tribunal had ordered Christodoulou to compensate four of his former tenants in Somerford Grove £19,000 for renting them properties as illegal HMOs . In June 2022, the Upper Tribunal heard an appeal by the landlord where the tenants won again, increasing the award to £22,500 and permitting an application for costs due to the landlord withdrawing from the appeal at a "late stage without any explanation". The judge noted that
5929-549: Was then incorporated as a municipal borough in 1933 . It has been part of Greater London since 1965. The Edgware, Highgate and London Railway (later the Great Northern Railway ) reached Finchley in 1867. It ran from Finsbury Park via Finchley to Edgware . The branch from Finchley to High Barnet opened in 1872. In 1905 tram services were established in Finchley, and extended shortly afterwards to Barnet. They were eventually replaced by trolleybuses . In 1933,
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