William Lyttle
William Lyttle (1931 – June 2010) was an Irish man who lived at 121 Mortimer Road in De Beauvoir Town, Hackney, London. He became famous for digging an enormous tunnel system under his home and nearby land, earning him the nickname “The Mole Man of Hackney.”
Lyttle moved to London in the mid-1960s after inheriting the property. He was listed as a civil engineer, but there is no evidence he worked in the field. He said he enjoyed digging and wanted a big basement. Over about 40 years, he dug many tunnels on several levels, some up to 18 metres long, with some connected to other tunnels and even a railway line. He dumped the soil he dug in the garden or in rooms of the house. The work caused sinkholes and problems with water and power for neighbors, drawing complaints. The area around his home was designated a conservation area in 1998.
In 2006 Hackney Council evicted him after a court case, and the tunnels were filled with concrete at a cost of about £293,000. Lyttle was ordered to pay, but he died in 2010 before settling the debt. He had a daughter, but authorities could not locate her.
Lyttle rarely spoke to journalists, and a Channel 4 documentary about him was canceled. Artists and writers wrote about him; one photographer described him in mixed terms, noting harsh attitudes but also an interest in creativity. Some called him a local icon of Hackney.
After his death, a fake blue plaque was placed outside the house. The property was sold in 2012 for about £1.2 million to artists Tim Noble and Sue Webster. In 2020, the house—now called Mole House—was renovated by architect David Adjaye to be a home and studio for Webster. The renovation preserved elements of the building’s past, and Mole House won Best Dwelling at the 2021 New London Awards.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 19:27 (CET).