Do You Believe In Life In Wapping? Apartment In Cher’s Old Building For Sale

From Bel-Air mansions to Hawaiian holiday homes, Cher has lived in many glamorous properties throughout her career. But amid the Beverley Hill estates and Hollywood apartments, is one less assuming piece in her portfolio. Far from the glitz and heat of LA, her former London apartment wasn’t based in Hampstead, Mayfair, Kensington or Chelsea… but in Wapping. 

A Luxury Apartment In Cher’s Old Haunt Hits The Market

The History Of Oliver’s Wharf

Following the containerisation of shipping after World War II, the once busy docklands of London fell silent. With the newly expanded ships now too large to chug up The Thames, the docklands quickly grew derelict, putting many locals out of work. In a bid to regenerate the area, in the early 1970s architect Tony Goddard transformed one disused warehouse, Oliver’s Wharf (originally designed by architects Frederick and Horace Francies) into a hip riverside home.

The first Wapping warehouse to be converted into residential dwellings, the project paved the way for the larger docklands’ regeneration. Now a Grade II-listed apartment complex, the Victorian warehouse once specialised in the storage and handling of tea – as vital a commodity in 19th century Britain as it is today. A prime example of Gothic revival architecture, with its brick facade and arched windows, Oliver’s Wharf now stands as a reminder of the site’s rich industrial history.

Despite its less than glamorous past, the redeveloped property soon started catching the eyes of various famous faces: with actor Sir Alec Guiness, Dire Straits’ Mark Knopfler and Cher all having called Oliver’s Wharf home. In an interview with Cliver Anderson on his 1990s chat show, when Cher was asked about her unusual choice of neighbourhood she said: ‘It’s really not handy for anything, but I can rollerblade there. I like my neighbours, we have a chat. There is a pub underneath me and everyone just sort of just leaves me alone.’ While being neighbours to Cher may sound like a dream, the star did unfortunately sell the apartment in 2003. If only we could turn back time, eh?

Step Inside

Located on the third-floor of Oliver’s Wharf, this loft apartment spans 2,300 sqft. With exposed brickwork and original timber beams, the property features a large entrance hall, open-plan kitchen and reception rooms, two bedrooms, two bathrooms and two storage units. Alongside its views of the River Thames, if you want to go all-out Cher, the apartment also includes a fully sound-proofed dedicated music studio. Perfect for the former home of the disco queen, the current apartment is decked out in groovy shades of lime green tiles, a striped rainbow carpet, tangerine leather chairs and graffittied artwork. 

Where Else Has Cher Owned Properties?

Raph_PH, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

Born in El Centro, California, in 1946, the future star was raised in the San Fernando Valley area of Los Angeles. Moving out at the start of her success in 1966, the first home she shared with her former husband (and other half of Sonny & Cher) was a single-level home in Encino, Los Angeles. A year later, Cher and he bought a Bel-Air mansion for around $250,000 (more like $2.5m today); known for its distinct Moorish architecture, the house included intricate tile work, and ornate wood carvings. In 1974, Sonny and Cher then added a Beverley Hills mansion by the name of Owlwood Estate to their portfolio. Spanning around 12,000 sqft, the then $750,000 house was built in 1936 in the Italian Renaissance style, and was formerly owned by actor Tony Curtis. The house reportedly sold for $88m in 2021 (despite being on the market for almost $100m more four years earlier). 

Following Cher’s separation from Sonny in 1975, in a bid for privacy she moved to a secluded house in upper Benedict Canyon, Beverly Hills. Known as her ‘equestrian estate’, the Egyptian-styled property features 14-acres of grounds, a swimming pool, paddock and tennis courts. In the 80s, she then added a snowy mountain retreat in Aspen Colorado to her list of homes, followed in the 90s by a beachfront property in Key Biscayne, Florida.

Expanding her portfolio, in 2004 the star bought up a Hawaiian property in Honolulu for a design and investment project – sat within the Four Seasons resort, it eventually hit the market for $11m in 2019. Two years later, in 2006, Cher nabbed a luxury West Hollywood apartment in Sierra Towers, reportedly home to other stars such as Elton John, Joan Collins and Sandra Bullock. More recently, in 2010, she purchased a Venice Beach apartment worth a humble $1.5m, which was sold for a $500k profit three years later, as well as 3,000 sqft Beverley Hills bolthole for her son Elijah. 

Today, Cher resides in a vast Italian Renaissance-style villa in Malibu, California, designed by Martyn Lawrence Bullard. Boasting seven bedrooms, nine bathrooms, an infinity pool, fountain, meditation room and gym, the grand mansion is her ‘personal sanctuary’. Cher put the Malibu mansion on the market for $85 million, but, failing to sell, put it back up six months later for $10m less. Though it is unknown what happened to the house, it is believed that Cher still lives there today. 

The Oliver’s Wharf apartment is on the market for £3m. Find out more at knightfrank.com