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Dalston is a district of the London Borough of Hackney in North East London, England. Dalston began as a hamlet within the parish of Hackney, which developed on either side of Dalston Lane. As the area urbanised, the term came to apply to surrounding areas including the old centres of Kingsland and Shacklewell, which are now considered part of Dalston.
The area's best known former resident was Prime Minister Tony Blair who lived in Mapledene Road from 1980-86. Blair famously described Dalston as being on "the wrong side of Kingsland Road", contrasting the then deprived east London neighbourhood with the more fashionable north London districts on the other side of the road, which were favoured by his peers.
The same contrast could not be made today as gentrification has led to a rapid increase in the price of property, with current prices 8% above the London average. The process of change was accelerated by the East London line extension, now part of London Overground. The reopening of Dalston Junction Station on this extension was part of London's successful bid to hold the 2012 Olympics.
The name Dalston is thought to have derived from Deorlaf's tun (farm) in much the same way as nearby Hoxton was named after the farm of "Hoch". The first written record available is from 1294 when the name was written as Derleston.
The village was one of four small villages within the Parish of Hackney (along with Newington, Shacklewell, and Kingsland) that were grouped for assessment purposes, together having only as many houses as the village of Hackney.
John Rocque's map of 1746 shows the village of Kingsland centred on the crossroads at what is now Dalston Junction and the small village of Dalston further east along Dalston Lane. Another clear feature is Roman Ermine Street which now forms most of the western boundary of this area. Ermine Street now has the road number A10 and goes by a number of names, including Kingsland Road as it travels through London.
Around AD 1280 a leper hospital was founded in Dalston by the citizens of London and in AD 1549 it was attached to the chapel of St Bartholomew as an outhouse.
During the 18th and 19th centuries the area changed from an agricultural and rural landscape to urban one. By 1849, it was described as a recently increased suburban village, with some handsome old houses, and by 1859 the village had exceeded its neighbour and, with the railways and continuous building, the village of Kingsland disappeared.
Dalston is known for music, events and its nightlife. Its biggest festival to date began in 2015, Dalston Music Festival. Centred on Gillett Square and 8 clubs in the surrounding area, it was founded by Andrew Bunsell of Dalston Studios.
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