Things you didn't know about... Acton

The pride of Peckham... in Acton
Nelson Mandela House, where Del Boy, Rodney and Uncle Albert lived in BBC sitcom Only Fools and Horses, was not in Peckham. It was actually Harlech Tower, one of a series of tower blocks named after castles on the sprawling South Acton Estate, the largest housing estate in west London.

Acton has a foot in several camps
Although Acton is mainly within and administered by the London Borough of Ealing, it likes to keep its fingers in a few pies. Part of East Acton, which adjoins White City, is in the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham. And part of South Acton, which rubs along with leafy Chiswick, is actually in the London Borough of Hounslow.

Thank Acton for Waitrose
The supermarket chain owned by John Lewis came into being as an independent shop on Acton Hill in 1904. It gave (part of) its name to posterity; the store was called Waite, Rose & Taylor.

Acton is on track for a record
Acton has more stations than you can shake a sleeper at—Acton Town, North Acton, East Acton, West Acton, South Acton, Acton Central, Acton Mainline, the first four of which are on the London Underground. This abundance of stations gives Acton the distinction of being the only part of London to have all four points of the compass as stations.

Acton used to be a little wishy-washy
Thanks to its exceptionally soft water, Acton had a huge number of laundries serving West End hotels, with around 170 in South Acton at the end of the 19th century. The area became known as Soapsud Island, and Acton Lane was renamed "Wishy-washy Lane".

Who lived in Acton
It's a statement, not a question. British rock band The Who are very much a product of Acton—both the late John Entwistle and Roger Daltrey grew up here (the latter was expelled from Acton Grammar School). Pete Townshend grew up a few streets away in Shepherds Bush, and the late Keith Moon was born at the Central Middlesex Hospital in North Acton.

The stars come out in Acton
British rapper MIA has said that her stage name stands for Missing In Acton, where she grew up. Other famous residents have included Leo Sayer, Sean Connery and Sid James of Carry On fame.