Anger At 'Bed Under Stairs' To Rent In London

A young graduate with hopes of moving to London has expressed her disgust after a single room costing £500 a month turned out to be a cupboard "under the stairs".

Alex Lomax visited the flat share in Clapham after seeing an advert online – but was left shocked after its description of a "furnished room" seemed a little too generous.

Her pictures show a single mattress wedged in between the walls, with a little bit of room left for a couple of boxes at the back.

The advert, posted on London2Let.com, said the current tenants were "not really looking for somebody that just wants to stay in their room".

The 23-year-old, from Nottingham, has compared the cramped offering to the famous cupboard under the stairs on Privet Drive, where Harry Potter slept in JK Rowling's novels.

She said: "I wish I'd been more angry because it's clearly ridiculous."

On the bright side, the advert also promises easy access to nearby Tube stations.

It is an illustration of what some politicians have described as a "housing crisis" in the capital.

Labour's mayoral candidate, Sadiq Khan, has warned an "entire generation" in London has no chance of owning a home - and claimed thousands are being "forced" out of the city every year because of spiralling prices.