David Bowie’s Childhood Home in London to Become Tourist Attraction and Heritage Site

The 19th-century cottage where the British rock star spent most of his youth will undergo restoration before opening its doors to the public next year.

David Bowie performs on stage during The Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert at Wembley Stadium in London on April 20, 1992. Dylan Martinez/Reuters

The South London terraced cottage where the late David Bowie grew up, is set to open its doors to the public as the next local heritage site and tourist attraction.

On Jan. 8, the Heritage of London Trust announced the restoration of Bowie’s childhood home, located in the suburb of Bromley, due for completion in late 2027.

The immersive experience will center around Bowie’s 9-foot-by-10-foot bedroom, where he spent most of his time as his musical journey began.

The site will also become host to creative and skills workshops for young people, continuing his legacy of “free creative experimentation.”

“David Bowie was a proud Londoner,” Nicola Stacey, director of Heritage of London Trust, said in a statement. “Even though his career took him all over the world, he always remembered where he came from and the community that supported him as he grew up.

“It’s wonderful to have this opportunity to tell his story and inspire a new generation of young people and it’s really important for the heritage of London to preserve this site.”

The 19th-century railway worker’s home was purchased by the Heritage of London Trust through a generous grant from the Jones Day Foundation, in hopes of restoring it to its original 1960s appearance.

“For the last five years, the Jones Day Foundation has been thrilled to support Heritage of London Trust’s Proud Places program,” Chris Kelly, the foundation’s president, said in a statement.

“The Bowie House project is special because it combines music and heritage in London and will help to preserve the legacy of one of the legends of rock and roll.”

The British rock star lived in the home with his parents between 1955 and 1967 from the age of 8 to 20, and the property remained the family home until 1970.

Curator Geoffrey Marsh, who is guiding the project, hopes to recreate the interior in a way that is reflective of Bowie’s youth.

“It was in this small house, particularly in his tiny bedroom, that Bowie evolved from an ordinary suburban schoolboy to the beginnings of an extraordinary international stardom,” he noted.

The home was the focal point to Bowie’s rise to stardom, where he spend countless hours listening to records, reading books, and writing formative hits including his breakthrough single “Space Oddity.”

“We spent so much time together, listening to and playing music,” musician George Underwood, a lifelong friend of Bowie’s, said in a statement. “I’ve heard a lot of people say David’s music saved them or changed their life.

“It’s amazing that he could do that and even more amazing that it all started here, from such small beginnings, in this house. We were dreamers, and look what he became.”