42, West Cliff

This is a detached town house, now used as offices, likely dating from the early 1840s and subsequently altered. Constructed of red brick in a Flemish bond pattern, with sandstone dressings and a slate roof, it has a double-depth, double-fronted plan. The building is two storeys and an attic, and has a basement. The facade is four bays, with simple pilasters defining them; the outer bays are wider than the inner. It features a stone plinth, a band at the first floor level, a plaster frieze decorated with roundels, a cornice, and bracketed eaves. The doorway, located in the third bay, is sheltered by a shallow porch with panelled square pilasters topped with foliage, an entablature with a dentilled cornice, and a blocking course, supporting an ornamental cast-iron balcony. A tall window sits above the porch, framed by a moulded architrave. Other windows have raised sills and chamfered rectangular lintels, with altered glazing. The roof incorporates a continuous dormer, and there are gable chimney stacks. A one-bay, three-storey addition, matching the style of the main building, is attached to the left-hand side. The rear of the property and its interior have not been inspected. The house is one of the first four built on West Cliff and shares a similar style with numbers 54 and 56.