Severance and Ted Lasso Stars Turn a '70s Time Capsule Into a Colorful London Home

A three-bedroom Victorian in west London's Chiswick, untouched since the 1970s, is now a colorful family home for actors Dichen Lachman and Maximilian Osinski—known for Severance and Ted Lasso respectively—following a renovation led by architect and designer Charlotte Lilford.

The couple found the listing by accident. They were mid-workout at a gym near the house when Lachman spotted the listing for a property a four-minute walk away. "Oh, I will just go have a quick look—I will be right back," Lachman recalls.

It was not love at first sight. Osinski says the house was "the complete opposite" of the joyful home it is today. But Lachman could see the potential, and the couple already knew the right architect: Lilford, a parent at their daughter Mathilda's school, had renovated another house down the street.

How did the renovation unfold?

Lachman took Osinski to see Lilford's completed project on their street for inspiration. Osinski committed to buying the Chiswick house without viewing it. "I thought, If we could have something like this, I would be so happy," Osinski says. "I trusted the end result, and the footprint is the footprint."

The project split into renovation and reimagining. Lilford, a French mother of five who works between London and Paris, extended the loft and ground floor and reworked the 1,779-square-foot layout. She retained Victorian details where possible and reinstated others stripped out over the years.

Her method starts with function, not appearance. "I like designing spaces that are practical," she explains. "I cannot design a space if it makes no sense in terms of the usage."

Why did the couple move from LA to London?

The transatlantic move began as temporary. Osinski landed the role of the flamboyant footballer Zava in Ted Lasso and spent months filming in Richmond, while Lachman was simultaneously filming Severance, in which she plays Gemma Scout and the enigmatic Ms. Casey. The short-term relocation from LA became permanent as the family—Lachman, Osinski, Mathilda, and their dog, Whisky—fell for west London's family feel.

The interiors carry that history. Lachman, born in Kathmandu and raised in Nepal until age seven before the family moved to Adelaide, Australia, brought a 19th-century tapestry that belonged to her Tibetan grandmother. Osinski's collection of Polish circus posters ties the rooms to his own family history, and rugs crafted by Lachman's grandfather remain in the house.

The couple collects Christmas decorations on every trip. "When we go to a new city or country, we always buy a Christmas decoration. I know it is very cheesy and touristy, but our tree is really eclectic now and carries beautiful memories. I think that is what makes a home," Lachman says. Osinski adds: "Our style is not very cookie-cutter, and neither is Charlotte's."

What role did the kitchen and courtyard play?

Lilford designed the kitchen as a hardworking family space rather than a utilitarian zone. "You need kitchens to be practical but pretty because everybody is entertaining in their kitchen," Lilford says. The couple arrived from LA with larger-than-average UK ovens and a substantial range; Lilford fit them into the more compact London footprint.

The compact courtyard is treated as another room. "The smaller the garden, the more money you need to put in it," Lilford says. "You need to make a real splash." That splash is a marble wave mosaic tile pattern from Starel—an outdoor flooring feature that flows inside as well.

How bold did the design get?

Color, wallpaper, marble, mosaic, and Zellige tiling appear throughout, often in concentrated moments—a patterned kitchen corner doubles as a booth. The upstairs movie theater is wrapped in Matières Végétales jungle wallpaper by French design house Élitis. "The Fifth Avenue Hotel in New York was a big inspiration in terms of really leaning into the wallpaper and the color," says Lachman. "I tried to track down some of their wallpaper actually, but it was custom."

If anything, Lilford had to restrain her clients, not push them. "Charlotte is really good at toning us down," Lachman says. "We are good at pushing back in terms of going a bit darker or wilder."

What does the house mean now?

The couple, who met while living in West Hollywood and have been married for more than a decade, travel constantly for work. Lachman spent time in New Zealand earlier this year filming The Legend of Zelda; Osinski has been working closer to home on the hit BBC comedy Ann Droid. The Chiswick house has become their constant.

The property is smaller than the new-build they left behind in California, but it fits a more connected life. "LA is built for cars," Osinski says. "London is very human scale." With neighbors looking after Whisky and Mathilda popping to a friend's house, the house proves smaller can mean richer.