A village community has expressed its shock after bulldozers moved in to demolish the former home of a playwright who wrote screenplays for classic films including Dambusters and Goodbye Mr Chips.

The Hampton Wick Association had hoped English Heritage would commemorate writer Robert Cedric Sherriff with a blue plaque on the property, in Seymour Road, Hampton Wick.

But owner Max De Kment called in builders last week to knock the house down and convert it into three two-bedroom flats and six bedsits.

Mr De Kment, of Bournemouth, said he was unaware of its historic background.

The property developer said: “I’ve owned the house for 16 years and nobody has ever brought this to my attention.”

Loretta Howells, director of the RC Sherriff Trust, said: “The house Sherriff lived in for most of his adult life, 'Rosebriars', in Esher, was also pulled down by property developers to build new houses many years ago, so there is now no trace of where this immensely important writer lived and developed.

“There should, at the very least, be a blue plaque at the Hampton Wick site, to commemorate one of its most famous sons.”

Actor John Altman, who played “Nasty Nick” Cotton in Eastenders and has lived in Hampton Wick for 10 years, described the demolition an “abomination”.

He said: “Sherriff was probably one of the most, if not the most well known person to have lived here, and in the world of English literature he was so well known.”

Casting director Lucy Jenkins, who worked on Sherriff’s play Journey’s End at Richmond Theatre, said: “It's terrible. There won't even be a plaque in Sherriff’s name. It is a shame to ignore the only famous nod to Hampton Wick.”

Tommy Flannery-Walker, 59, a teacher, of Seymour Road, said: “It's an absolute disgrace. Not only was it a nice building but it was Hampton Wick's only claim to fame. I think it's dreadful that they are knocking it down and really shocking.”

Another neighbour Mike Stepan, 65, said: “My opinion will depend upon the appearance of the new building to take its place and how many people will live there.

“However, it is undeniable that it is a time of sadness for the history of the area.”

Adam Spencer, a qualified archivist and treasurer of the Hampton Wick Association, added: “We are disappointed without a shadow of a doubt.”

Sherriff was born in the house, which was then called “Rossendale”, in Seymour Road, in 1896.

He won the Military Cross fighting in the First World War and 12 years later wrote the play Journey’s End, starring a young Laurence Olivier, based on his experience in the trenches. Richmond Theatre staged a production in March this year.

Sherriff was jointly nominated for an Academy Award for writing an adapted screenplay for Goodbye Mr Chips, which was released in 1939, and was later nominated for a Bafta for his Dambusters script.

Vince Cable, MP for Twickenham, said: "It is very sad to lose a building with such local historical significance. I would be very supportive of any campaign for a blue plaque to feature on the new development or perhaps the developer would consider naming the property after RC Sherriff.

“It would be a shame if the connection was lost all together."

Richmond Council refused a planning application in 2003 after neighbours raised objections, saying the house was in the Hampton Wick conservation area and of historic importance to the village.

Councillor Virginia Morris, cabinet member for environment at Richmond Council, said: “The council turned down the application and refused permission to demolish this house when it was originally applied for five years ago.

“However, the owner then appealed to the planning inspectorate which allowed the demolition, although our concerns, which broadly mirrored those of local people, were made clear to the inspector.”

Mr De Kment said: “I never even knew it was a sensitive site.”