Activists occupied six houses on the Sweets Way estate following a ‘sleepover’ protest.

Comedian and actor Russell Brand joined hundreds of people at the housing estate in Whetstone last night, to oppose the redevelopment which has seen families evicted from their homes. He left early this morning.

Campaign group Sweets Way Resists has occupied an empty house on the estate since last week, and other activists broke into five more empty houses last night.

Housing activist Liam Barrington-Bush, who is involved with Sweets Way Resists, said: “We had some fireworks and there was some music. Then people hung about. At least several dozen stayed the night.

“Residents came together at the end of the night and were overwhelmed to find out the petition has now reached 35,000 signatures. We are pretty excited by that.

“It’s been a pretty hectic period. There’s been a lot of support coming in from different causes, the strength of the community is the primary thing. Russell pledged to keep the fight going. He has really connected with the kids here.”

The houses are owned by property company Annington, which says the estate has been earmarked for demolition for some time and tenants were given ample notice to leave.

In a statement, a spokesman for Annington said: “Annington very much supports the argument for more homes, both in London and elsewhere, although there is a need for development to achieve this.

“It is regrettable when homes need to be demolished, but Annington’s decision to redevelop the estate will see an increase in the number of homes by more than 100 per cent, from 142 to 288, and the inclusion of 20 per cent affordable homes will see a minimum of 59 created where there were none before.”