Esher is an outlying suburb of London, close to the London–Surrey border; with Esher Commons at its southern end, the town marks one limit of the Greater London Built-Up Area. Elevations range from 10m to 47m above sea level.
Esher has a linear commercial high street and is otherwise suburban in density, with varying elevations, few high rise buildings and very short sections of dual carriageway within the ward itself. Esher covers a large area, between 13 and 15.4 miles southwest of Charing Cross.[n 1] In the south it is bounded by the A3 Portsmouth Road which is of urban motorway standard and buffered by the Esher Commons.
Esher appears in the Domesday Book of 1086 as Aissela and Aissele, where it is held partly by the Abbey of the Cross in Normandy; partly by William de Waterville; partly by Reginald; partly by Hugh do Port; and partly by Odard Balistarius (probably a crossbowman). Its domesday assets were: 14 hides, 6 ploughs and 2 acres (8,100 m2) of meadow. It rendered £6 2s 0d per year to its feudal overlords.[5]
Maurice Gibb of the Bee Gees owned a home called The Firs in Esher, during 1970s–2004 and sold after his death. This is where the hit single "Juliet" was written and recorded by Maurice and Robin Gibb for brother Robin's solo album project in the 1980s.[9]
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle placed the murder of fictional character, Mr. Garcia, in and around Esher in his Sherlock Holmes mystery, "The Adventure of Wisteria Lodge". In the mystery, Dr. Watson described his and Sherlock Holmes' arrival in Esher by stating, "It was nearly six c'clock before we found ourselves in the pretty Surrey village of Esher, with Inspector Baynes as our companion."
The Everyman (formerly Odeon) cinema is a central feature of Esher's High Street with four screens.
Sport
Esher Cricket Club was established in 1863.[16] They play matches in the Esher Park private estate, in New Road and have a youth cricket training and playing squad. The members of the cricket club also wanted to play tennis and established the Esher Lawn Tennis Club in 1889.[17] A second cricket club arrived in 1875 as West End (Esher) Cricket Club.[18]
Esher has a history with horse racing since the purpose-built Sandown Park race course opened in 1875.[19]
In 1881 Esher Leopold football club was established which was formed out of the ashes of the dissolved Weybridge Swallows club. The club played at Sandown Park, close to the racecourse.[20] The club's sole contribution to the national game was its one appearance in the FA Cup, a 5–0 home defeat to the holders, Old Carthusians, in 1881–82,[21] although the club did reach the semi-finals of the Surrey Senior Cup, losing to Reigate Priory.[22] The club continued into the 1883–84 season.[23]
A weekly newspaper, Esher News and Mail, closed down in 2009. Current newspapers include the Surrey Herald: Cobham, Esher and Claygate edition and Living Within monthly magazine/newspaper.
Vantage points include various outcrops of Esher Commons close to Hersham, Cobham and Oxshott for free public use; Esher Place (national training centre of Unite, the union) where a grass garden amphitheatre was built by Lutyens for what was the manor house; the facilities at Sandown Park racecourse and Claremont Landscape Garden.
The proportion of households in the settlement who owned their home outright compares to the regional average of 35.1%. The proportion who owned their home with a loan compares to the regional average of 32.5%. The remaining % is made up of rented dwellings (plus a negligible % of households living rent-free).
^Claremont was originally Esher Episcopi Manor, bought by Sir John Vanbrugh, who built a smaller house for himself, and began to ornament the grounds (Guest's poem 'Claremont' attributes the first improvements to Vanbrugh). The Earl of Clare (created Duke of Newcastle in 1715) bought the property in 1714 on coming of age and called the property after his own title 'Clare Mont.' On his death in 1768 the whole was bought by Lord Clive, who employed Capability Brown to build the present mansion (now Claremont School)
^ abSamuel Lewis, ed. (1848). "Erith – Essex". A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research. Retrieved 7 November 2012.
^ abH.E. Malden, ed. (1911). "Parishes: Esher". A History of the County of Surrey: Volume 3. Institute of Historical Research. Retrieved 7 November 2012.
^Hutchins, Lisa (2001). Esher and Claygate Past. London: Historical Publications. pp. 19, 24. ISBN0-948667-66-4.
^The Annual Register for the Year 1908, p. 146, reads: November. ... On the 2nd, aged 67, Sir Robert Hawthorn Collins, K.C.B., K.C.V.O., tutor of the Duke of Albany (H.R.H. Prince Leopold) and afterwards Comptroller of his household.
The Times, 3 November 1908 p. 11 Obituary reads: Sir Robert Hawthorn Collins, K.C.B., K.C.V.O. died shortly after 1 o'clock yesterday morning at Claremont Palace, Esher...had acted as comptroller of the household of the Duchess of Albany
^England & Wales, National Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Administrations) 1908. Sir Robert Hawthorn Collins of Broom Hill Esher Surrey K.C.B. K.C.V.O. died 2 November 1908 at Claremont Esher aforesaid Probate London 30 December to Henry John Collins solicitor and Edward Arthur Wightwick stockbroker. Effects £40153 11s. 6d