Those living in South Hampstead's Priory Road thought they were seeing double last week, when they woke to find two lamp posts within a metre of one another.

Dr Bernard Cummings, who lives in the street, told this newspaper he was concerned about the impact on the conservation area it sits within.

He said: "I saw the workmen removing the lamp posts and thought I'd let them get on with it.

"I came back a little later, and didn't know what to say - there were still two lamp posts in front of my house."

A Camden Council spokesperson said the work was part of a scheme to replace older street lights with greener and more efficient models.

They added: "Our contractor removed all of the old lamp posts except one, which shares a supply connection with the UKPN network. We have instructed UKPN to complete the transfer of the supply cable from the old lamp post to the new one."

The town hall said the work should be completed in four to eight weeks.