An American superstar in London

Hollywood star Robert De Niro, who has just purchased a penthouse in London

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LONDON, England (CNN) -- What do you do if you're an American megastar with itchy feet, incurable Anglomania and a spare couple of million dollars to spend? Simple. Move to England and buy an enormous house in an exclusive part of London.

Over the last few years an increasing number of high-profile U.S. celebrities have been property-hunting -- and property-buying -- in Britain's capital.

Among those who have moved to the city in recent years are Hollywood star Tom Cruise -- who owns a house in Dulwich, south-west London, with wife Nicole Kidman -- pop icon Cher, and models Jerry Hall, Marie Helvin and Caprice.

Madonna is currently doing the rounds of London estate agents, while if rumours are to be believed Britney Spears, Dustin Hoffman, Woody Allen and Bob Dylan have all shown an interest in setting up home here.

QUICK VOTE Robert De Niro is the latest American star to buy a home in London. To which U.S. star's London home would you most like an invite? Robert De Niro Jerry Hall Madonna Tom Cruise View Results    CNN.com Europe More news from our Europe edition

The latest U.S. celebrity to jump on the London property bandwagon is film legend Robert De Niro, 57, who recently splashed out £3.25 million ($4.70 million) on a 3,500 square foot (1067 square metre) penthouse in an exclusive riverside development in London's Docklands.

Previously owned by world heavyweight boxing champion Lennox Lewis, the apartment is laid out over two floors, and boasts private landscaped gardens, access to a private gymnasium and fabulous views of the river Thames. De Niro is expected to move in before the end of the year.

There are a whole variety of reasons why London is suddenly proving so attractive to U.S. celebrities.

One of the main motivations would seem to be practical. "The film and music industries are extremely strong in Britain at the moment," says Johnny Bergius of Griffiths Bergius, one of London's premier celebrity estate agents. "London has great recording studios, and is extremely convenient for people who are doing film location work elsewhere in the British Isles."

The city's vibrancy would also appear to be an important selling point. "London is one of the trendiest places in the world right now," says Stephen Lindsay of Knight Frank, another estate agent with a long celebrity client list. "Obviously I'm biased because I live here, and it's true that we don't get the weather.

"It does seem to have become the centre of world culture, however. It's got great music, great films, great transport, great atmosphere. It's basically the place to be."

Bergius agrees: "There's a real scene going on in London at the moment," he says. "There's an extraordinary amount of creativity."

Other factors enticing US celebrities onto the London property ladder include the city's shops, its cosmopolitan population and, according to ex-patriate American writer Cheryl Powell, editor of The American magazine, "that aura of the old mother country."

The main attraction, however, would appear to be security. "London is seen as a safe city," explains property expert Lulu Egerton. "You don't get a murder every six seconds like you do in New York."

While some stars have settled on the margins of the city, or even out of it altogether -- film director Stanley Kubrick spent the last 20 years of his life in a mansion in Harpenden, 25-miles (40 kilometres) north-west of the city -- most choose to settle in one of the exclusive "villages" near the centre.

Particularly popular areas include Chelsea, Kensington, Regents Park and Holland Park. "Basically anywhere that has plenty of greenery," says Bergius.

Also popular, especially since the success of the film of the same name, is Notting Hill in west London.

Although prices for a four-bedroom house in one of these enclaves start at around £3 million ($4.35 million), celebrity-buyers do not, by all accounts, throw their money around carelessly.

"Most of our clients are very considered about price," says Bergius. "It's certainly not the sky's the limit. They're a lot more modest than you would expect."

Nor do international fame and a bulging bank balance necessarily guarantee success on the London housing market.

Madonna, perhaps the most famous of all London house-hunters, has been searching for a property for almost four years, during which time she has been on the books of almost every major estate agent in the city.

"She's the London house-hunter extraordinaire," says Susie Steiner, Property Editor on The Times newspaper, "Although she's more or less given up now because she hates the agents so much."

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Griffiths Bergius
Knight Frank
London Tourist Board

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