to make the area fashionable, encouraging the wealthy to build fine houses locally, and bringing industries such as barge-building, boat repair, malt-houses, and wharves for loading and unloading river boats. Pier House Laundry, occupying much of the western end of Thames Road (between Spring Grove and Hearne Road) was built by 1860, becoming one of London's largest laundries; it closed in 1973. In 2016, a fire badly damaged offices in the building. After Fuller, Smith & Turner sold Chiswick's Griffin Brewery in 2019, they moved their registered office to the refurbished building. The diversion of freight traffic to Brentford by the Grand Junction Canal at the start of the 19th century caused Strand-on-the-Green to decline, a process accelerated by the move of the royal family from Kew Palace to Windsor Castle. In the 20th century, Strand-on-the-Green returned to residential use, and by 1932 was called "London's last remaining village". In the Second World War, a parachute mine destroyed 41 houses in Thames Road and Magnolia Road, and badly damaged another 60 on 21 September 1941. In film The 1938 television version of The Constant Nymph is partly set on Strand-on-the-Green, backed by a still image of the river. A 1940 Pathé film documented the riverside pubs, Georgian houses and the river traffic of Strand-on-the-Green at that time; it asserted that at one time, "salmon teemed in the Thames, and London got most of it from Strand-on-the-Green". Scenes from the Beatles' 1965 film Help! were shot in the City Barge pub and around Strand-on-the-Green. Part of the 1969 romantic musical Goodbye, Mr. Chips was filmed at Strand-on-the-Green. Oliver's Island Off Strand-on-the-Green in the River Thames is Oliver's Island, a small wooded eyot. It acquired its name from unsubstantiated rumours that Oliver Cromwell used the island as a hideout and held military councils at the Bull's Head pub during the English Civil War. The City of London's Navigation Committee erected buildings on the island after 1777, and barges were stationed here to collect tolls. Architecture The Strand-on-the-Green conservation area, established in 2018, consists of three "character areas", namely the Strand, the pedestrianised riverside street and its grand houses, including 25 listed buildings; an area of small streets behind the Strand at the western side near Kew Bridge, with many "positive contributors" but no listed buildings; and an area of streets at the eastern end, mainly of "positive contributors" but also 8 listed