A couple who bought their dream home found it came with a neighbour’s giant window which towered over their new garden.
Daniel Cox and Nick Hodgins said they felt like they were being watched at their three bedroomed Edwardian terraced house in Leytonstone, east London, which they bought for £706,550.
The pair decided to tackle the issue head-on by embarking on a garden makeover named “Operation Hide the Window”.
In a TikTok series documenting their efforts, they set about planting a variety of greenery purportedly to block out sight of what they referred to as a previous “porn set” while enhancing their outdoor space.
The window overlooked the property
TikTok/@thehitchcockhouse
Describing their battle for privacy they posted a picture of the run down garden and the dormer window on TikTok with the caption: ‘Okay, so we bought a house in 2022. A neighbour built this horrid extension breaching planning permission with the window. It was built over 10 years ago so we can’t challenge it/get them to remove.’
The pair were celebrating accomplishing their mission as “the monstrosity” has ‘completely disappeared” behind their towering barrier made up of silver birch, maples and fern trees.
A source told MailOnline: “The neighbours think what they have done to brighten up the garden and the locality is wonderful. They have brightened up the area and there hasn’t been a single complaint from the people in the dormer. They haven’t caused any trouble for the house with the huge dormer and window and everyone is happy.”
The window is reportedly the only drawback of the property, having been installed over a decade ago. It was constructed after the owners of a neighbouring shop were denied planning permission to convert their building into a house in 2006.
LATEST DEVELOPMENTS
The garden covered up the window
@thehitchcockhouse
In the following year, local council approval was granted for part of the property to be converted into a flat.
The garden has undergone a complete transformation since then, with an assortment of garden furniture spread across the yard and a multitude of plants added over a two-year period.
Another image charting the progress reveals the window is “still there” but after they put in a pagoda and laid down decking and black and white tiling the couple revealed ‘a slight improvement’.
Further “progress” is being made as the trees reach new heights and they announce they are “almost” there after the window slowly disappears and they add a garden kitchen, a marble topped table and dozens of new plants.
The Spanish-speaking residents of the building with the enormous window declined to comment when approached by MailOnline, but indicated they had no issues with the plants used to conceal the dormer.
Daniel and Nick also chose not to comment when contacted by MailOnline.
Source Agencies
