Heavyweight boxer Dereck Chisora lives in Hampstead with his partner and 20-month-old daughter. He tells us what gets him through the day

I’ve lived in north London my whole life. I grew up in Cricklewood, next to Brent Cross. There’s three blocks of flats there, we were on the lower ground floor in the red building. Then from there my mother and I moved to Hampstead Garden Suburb. She’s still there. I never wanted to leave Hampstead after that.

I met my missus, who owns a boutique in Hampstead village and we moved to St John’s Wood, but only for four months. I liked it but it was different from Hampstead – they live life in the fast lane – so we moved back to Hampstead to the house that we’re in now. I’ve got Hampstead Heath right next to me, Golder’s Hill Park nearby. In St John’s Wood you’ve got Regent’s Park, which is beautiful, but it’s different from Hampstead Heath you know, anything goes on the Heath… It’s just much better here. My drive is about 150 yards long so there’s no traffic up here.

Everything I know is north London. I know the back streets of Hampstead, St John’s Wood, Cricklewood, Kilburn. There ain’t no place like north London. I’m being honest. I’ve been to south London, Jesus Christ! The only thing in south London is that they’ve got the whole banking industry at Canary Wharf. If they move that to north London then what is there south of the river? Nothing.

Dereck Chisora will be attending the Charity Boxing Dinner in support of Norwood and the Paskin Children’s Trust on Wednesday, 24 February at the Lancaster London Hotel. Tickets are available at boxingdinner.com / 020 8420 6829 / info@boxingdinner.com