Demographically at the time the seat was almost equally split between housing with gardens (including some flats) and generally depressed, subdivided Victorian property such as in Herne Hill and Tulse Hill elements of the seat where wages were low on the back of a continuing high unemployment rate.
The by-election was held due to the resignation of the incumbent Conservative MP, Walter Greaves-Lord to serve as a High Court judge.
An Independent Conservative candidate was fielded at the by-election by Randolph Churchill, who sponsored Richard Findlay, a member of the British Union of Fascists to stand.
This got no support from the press or from any Members of Parliament, despite Randolph being the son of Winston Churchill.
In September that year, Duncan Sandys became son-in-law of Winston and brother-in-law of Randolph by marrying Diana Churchill.