Thamesmead as a new and better alternative through the eyes of two small children who live in older, dilapidated flats on the other side of the city. The Tavy Bridge area of Thamesmead South, including Southmere Lake, was used as a setting for the Stanley Kubrick film "A Clockwork Orange" and also the play and Channel 4 gay coming-of-age film "Beautiful Thing". British TV Drama "Misfits" was also filmed in Thamesmead. Many scenes take place around Southmere Lake, while Bexley College was once also used as a setting. The estate featured in The Libertines video What Became of the Likely Lads.
Thamesmead indeed, looked impressive at first from a distance. It was provided walkways between its blocks of housing and later between sections in North Thamesmead. The walkways quickly became littered and abused. They were not considered safe places to walk. Pathways set out for people to walk on were put in without regard to how people would wish to get about, so some were ignored in favour of more direct routes over grassed areas. Much of Thamesmead was initially built by the Greater London Council (GLC) for rent to families moving from overcrowded back-to-back Victorian housing (also referred to as slums)