Cris knew instantly that a terraced house was the perfect blank canvas for his creative architectural ideas and imaginative use of space – and he was right. He tore down the walls between the two downstairs living spaces to form one big, light-filled area, and created a large, clean-lined kitchen with crisp, white units, fresh, white walls and invisible appliances. In fact, if it wasn’t for the occasional flash of the shiny steel oven, you’d never guess you were in a kitchen at all.

Upstairs continues in the same contemporary vein, all white walls and unique, modern, touches like the roller-blind wardrobes that maximise the space in the alcoves. But it is at night, that the house truly comes alive. With the glow from the hole-in-the-wall fireplace, the illuminated neon balls and the string of pealights that wind their way through the garden, the look is gutsy, futuristic and brilliantly simple. Just as Cris wanted it.