A COST-cutting homeowner who pays £50 a month to live in a skip has revealed the best part of his unusual housing arrangement.
Harrison Marshall, 28, moved into the converted eight-yard metal box in Bermondsey, South East London, last month as it was his “only option”.
Now, he has given an online tour where he discusses what life is like in the small metal structure.
In the clip, posted to Twitter, he takes a friend through the property to show viewers how it looks inside.
The unique home cost £4,000 to build over three weeks and only requires £50 in rent.
Harrison said that it provided “a loophole to live in central London for next to no money”.
On the tour, he demonstrates how he has to clamber into the skip, which is topped by a purpose-built, insulated wooden structure, using a small ladder.
The doorway is even complete with a Ring video doorbell.
From there, he shows off the living space, which is decorated with his friends’ artwork and gifts from loved ones.
The kitchen area boasts storage space for his pots, pans, plates and cutlery, as well as what the person filming the video referred to as “the tiniest fridge I’ve seen in someone’s house”.
The bedroom is then in the upper part of the wooden ‘extension‘, wedged between the kitchen ceiling and the roof of the building.
Harrison also has access to a portable toilet, but mostly has to shower at work or the gym.
However, he revealed the best part of life in the skip is his “very friendly neighbours”.
He explained: “Some people have brought me full on hot meals, home cooked meals. So, so nice.”
SKIP INSIDE
Artist Harrison moved into the skip at the start of the year after being unable to find anywhere to rent in the capital.
He returned from a working trip abroad and started looking for a room in 2022.
But he was shocked at the bidding frenzies he saw while room hunting.
Harrison explained: “People were getting hundreds of messages for a single room… it was at the point where if you weren’t willing to put your deposit down the same day as viewing it, you didn’t really stand a chance.
“And so that’s when I started picking up the idea again, about is it actually possible to live in a skip?”
He also made the move as a statement to highlight the devastating toll the cost of living crisis is taking on millions of families across the UK.
He said: “No one should have to live in a skip.
“For me to live in this area, this was the only option for me to do that, which is just mad.”
The Skip House is part of Skip Gallery, a public art initiative intended to create space and opportunity for emerging artists.
Harrison has lived there for about a month now and says he plans to stay for about a year.
However, asked if he would have saved enough to afford his own place by then, he said: “Probably still not no.”
