Most Londoners would recognise West Ham as one of the English Premier League’s most famous football teams, but they probably wouldn’t know much about it as a neighbourhood.
Saying that, East Ham doesn’t even have a major football club to put it on the map, or much else for that matter, although some have earmarked it as one of London’s next ‘up and coming’ areas.
Both East Ham and West Ham are in Newham. In fact, Newham gets its name from both, with the two areas joining forces to create the East London borough in 1965.
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Yet neither East Ham nor West Ham can claim to be Newham’s crown jewel. Since the 2012 Olympics, most people would probably agree that Stratford takes that title, with areas like Canning Town, Forest Gate, Custom House and Plaistow arguably being more well-known to people outside of the borough.
However, one Londoner decided to compare the two, and took to Reddit to ask other Londoners which one they thought was the better Ham, East or West?
Neither received gleaming reviews, but in many people’s eyes West Ham was the clear winner of the contest. One person even claimed that East Ham was so bad it made West Ham ‘look like Monte Carlo’.
However, not everyone agreed with that analogy. Some found it very difficult to decide between the two, with one person saying it’s like choosing between getting gonorrhoea or syphilis’, and another saying being asked if they prefer being hit by a truck or a bus.
East Ham was only given the edge by one person because of its ‘nice Indian and vegetarian restaurants’, while West Ham was chided for not having any toilets at its Tube station.
Another said they would use West Ham to tease and insult their friends who live in West Hampstead, calling it ‘West West Ham’. Meanwhile, someone else noted that East Ham didn’t have a football team.
Shedding some light on the football debate, one said: “Funnily enough the West Ham United football stadium was based in East Ham before they moved it to the Olympic stadium is Stratford. Never quite understood why the team was called West Ham when it was based in East Ham.”
On that note, one Londoner raised the question of whether West Ham could even be considered an area. They said: “West Ham isn't really a place but an area which is a continuation of Stratford, Canning Town or Plaistow depending on which way you're approaching from.”
They added: “I'd define the centre as that bit where the church is which could be really nice but isn't. The station is just an big interchange in no man's land.
“East Ham is really depressing bit is at least a bit more of a place with a proper high street. Also some really good restaurants that you wouldn't find in Time Out. If London continues on the same trend, I would be surprised if in 10 years time, East Ham becomes 'up and coming'.”
However, the Londoner had to give their nod to West Ham as being the better of the two, describing East Ham as ‘depressing’.
They explained: “Trouble is with East Ham, it's depressing currently and you're reliant on the District Line line to get out. And ironically, your quickest way to get out fast is by changing to the Jubilee at West Ham!
“If I were in my 20s with no kids, I'd definitely rather West Ham as it's more central, easier to get away from and a place to put my head down. But as a guy who's nearly 40 - I'd rather leave London than either but I'm on the fence as to which I'd prefer.”
Got a story you think we should be covering? Email ertan.karpazli@reachplc.com
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