UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson is keen to resurrect the nation’s tourism industry and London Mayor Sadiq Khan, for once, agrees. This bipartisan stance is not a surprise given the dire facts and figures about the dwindling arts, culture and heritage sectors during the pandemic. A key driver in the return of overseas visitors is the unique appeal of its architecture, linked, as it is, to the UK’s fascinating history. We take a closer look at the buildings and structures from as far back as the Norman period, still standing in the capital. Russian Marriage Agency In Israel

NORMAN 

In 1066 AD, William of Normandy invaded Britain, slaying King Harold who had seized the throne after the death of Edward the Confessor. He quickly stamped his authority by building the Tower of London, an imposing and formidable fortress – a highly-visible symbol of his power, which struck fear into his Saxon subjects. Master masons from Normandy did much of the work.

Norman architectural features include small windows, austere and functional large, thick walls, semi-circular arches and huge pillars. Interestingly, the rounded arches on the windows are a Romanesque feature. 

Photo credit Amy Leigh Barnard

From its enduring aesthetic, one can see that its hefty structure served to protect William’s interests from Anglo-Saxon insurgencies. The Tower also has Tudor structures: the Queen’s House and the chapel of St Peter ad Vincula built in the 16th century when Henry VIII was executing his wives in the Bloody Tower.

There are other great examples of Norman architecture beyond the Tower. Pay a visit to All Saints West Ham Parish Church in Stratford, East London for a more hybrid example. Constructed in 1135, many of the Norman features have been lost over the centuries to late medieval, Tudor and Victorian restorations. However, some of the Norman walls remain. Its landmark tower was built around the time of the Battle of Agincourt in 1415.

GOTHIC

Westminster Abbey is a magnificent example of Gothic architecture. Its first major restoration was in the 11th century under Edward the Confessor, credited as being the founder of the Abbey. However, it was still only a moderately-sized Norman church. But in the mid 13th century, Henry III gave it a major makeover in the Gothic style fashionable in French cathedrals and it is essentially the Westminster Abbey we see today. Signature features include pointed window arches, rib vaults and flying buttresses. Also, it’s no surprise that the UK’s highest Gothic vault can be found in the Abbey.

Photo credit Zaymuel – Unsplash

BAROQUE

Sir Christopher Wren (1632 – 1723) was one of Britain’s greatest architects. Tasked with rebuilding St Pauls after the Great Fire of London in 1666, he constructed a fittingly magnificent Baroque cathedral. Its famous dome is a world-recognised landmark on Ludgate Hill in the City of London. 1600 – 1700 was a tumultuous and topsy turvy century for England’s Stuart royal family but King Charles II shored up his reign and undersigned Wren’s vision. Showing as much staying power as the Stuarts, St Pauls even survived World War 2 bombing.

Photo credit Catalin Bot – Unsplash

TUDOR

The Chancery Lane and Holborn areas have many timber-framed Tudor buildings particularly in the historic law centres such as the Inns of Court in Holborn and Staples Inn, Chancery Lane. These Inns are stamped with much of the same authentic quality. Certainly, Staples Inn wouldn’t have changed much since the sixteenth century when Elizabeth I entertained the likes of Sir Walter Raleigh and Sir Francis Drake. Any Victorian-era restructuring was minimal – and certainly, the fronts are Tudor constructions. 

GEORGIAN/PALLADIAN

Head to Somerset House on The Strand for a stunning example of a combination of Georgian and Neoclassical architecture. It was once Elizabeth I’s Tudor Palace but in 1775 it was demolished and Somerset House built on the site. Therefore, it’s of the Georgian era but has a Palladian design in the style of sixteenth-century Venetian architect Andrea Palladio. However, the quadrangle buildings are also unmistakenly Georgian. The Royal Academy of Arts was based here in an age when Rococo and Neoclassical art flourished in Europe and Admiral Horatio Nelson was in his ascendency. 

Photo credit Robert Bye

VICTORIAN

Victorian architecture covers a wide area, tied, as it is, to the political, economic, cultural and societal shifts of the period. The Palace of Westminster (later the Houses of Parliament) was first constructed in 1097 AD. As you can imagine, there was no parliament building then as any kind of democracy was still centuries away. But work began on the new building in 1840. This new palace was featured in paintings by Monet. He spent time in London from 1899-1901 capturing its landmarks on canvas.  

Photo credit Paul Silvan

BRUTALIST

South Bank’s blocky Brutalist architecture gives this arts and culture centre an almost dystopian futuristic look recognised all over the world. The Royal Festival Hall,  National Theatre, Queen Elizabeth Hall and Hayward Gallery all have that inimitable Marmite look – you either love it or hate it. Prince Charles made some rather unflattering comments but even he will agree that its unusual look gives the area some character and brings tourists to the capital.

LITTLE VENICE

There’s some debate as to which of the great poets gave Little Venice its name – Robert Browning or Lord Byron. However, the Romantic bards picked up on the tranquil, picturesque surroundings and compared it favourably with the gondola city of Venice. And you can see why they rated this West London canalside oasis so highly. It makes everyone’s top ten must-visit list.

Watch the world go by in one of the waterside eateries such as the perfectly-named Waterside Cafe, an adapted moored barge known locally as ‘the floating cafe’. Where better to chill out, take in the natural surroundings and de-stress? Ducks, swans, wellness practitioners, canoeists, joggers – it all happens here but in a zen-like mode where you’re hardly aware of them. A serving of the cafe’s Famous Waterside Cream Tea will compliment this downtime, as will the summer favourite of strawberry jam and English clotted cream scones.

Little Venice. Photo credit – Uwe Aranas

PADDINGTON BASIN

Another canalside oasis – just along the water from Little Venice – and it has a longer stretch of waterside eateries. Moored restaurant barges of the likes of The Grand Duchess, British Shellfish Company, The Cheese Barge and May Green offer dining on upper deck terraces in the glorious sunshine. Of the many canalside bar-eateries on this sun-soaked slip of West London waterway, Vagabond wine bar stands out – and not just because it takes up a huge section of Paddington canalside. It’s a specialist wine merchant with a selection of 120 wines to enjoy . Bondi Green is so over-flowing with flowers and shrubbery it looks like Kew Gardens has come to Paddington and Gail’s artisan bakery-cafe is a popular bring-your-laptop work space.

May Green floating restaurant, designed by Pop Artist Sir Peter Blake. He designed The Beatle’s Sgt Peppers album cover.

WEST INDIA QUAY

Trade ships from the West Indies docked here to offload their sugar cargo during the slave trade and the Victorian warehouses still exist today. It’s an interesting architectural mix – futuristic-looking office blocks and bridges sit alongside centuries-old, historic buildings. You’ll find a street market here lunchtimes Weds – Fri and KERB street food sellers serving from parked wagons.

And, yes, restaurants and cafes. Brown’s Brasserie has decently-priced two and three-course meals. The sirloin steak sandwich with horseradish mayonnaise and truffle oil will not disappoint with a light leafy side dish. Alternatively, Burger & Lobster, Doner & Gyros, The Sipping Room and Rum and Sugar are cheek-by-jowl along the quay. And check out the amazing views of the quay and next door’s Canary Wharf skyline!

Amazing quayside views

CANARY WHARF

Mercato Metropolitan food court, Wood Wharf is your first stop in Canary Wharf for that special green spot with eye and mind-pleasing riverside aesthetics. Frecso’s melt-in-your-mouth Neopolitan Pizza fresh from a wood-fire oven will have you wolfing down those dough edges you usually discard. No joke! Badiani’s divine gelato are a taste of heaven – try the pineapple and ginger sorbet. But they may melt quicker than you can eat them in the searing summer sun if you’re dining al fresco. Also, Lebanese, dim sum, katsu, poké and Indian food counters. The atmos and ethos is ‘lay back and chill out’. The food court provides sun lounger-style bean bags by the river as well as conventional indoor and outdoor tables and seating.

The new Water Pavillions development on Water Street is an architectural dream with two magnificent floating pavilion restaurants  on the river catching the eye. Hawksmoor is a steak restaurant to impress for that date out with a difference. It’s pretty spacious with seating for 150 diners –  and room for 120 more in the Lowback Bar and along the riverside terrace. So, yeh, you can’t get more riverside al fresco than Hawksmoor’s floating restaurant!

Canary Wharf

SOUTHBANK

Truffle burgers, fish and chips, artisan sweets and cakes served out of food wagons – it all depends on what you fancy! And you can grab a latte or cappuccino and work from your laptop at the Royal Festival Hall’s Riverside Terrace Cafe. At the weekends there’s  a pop up market and delicious Ethiopian vegan streetfood from Ethiopique.  If you’re not fussed about being right next to the river then Ping Pong restaurant serves some delectable dim sum dishes and has al fresco tables. If you want to see a film first, BFI Southbank has riverfront dining on the ground floor and a cocktail lounge-style Balcony Bar with tables overlooking the river. Free Wifi!

MAYFAIR OF THE THAMES

If dining on a 1927 luxury steamship yacht moored along the Thames sounds appealing, then Yacht London is custom-made for dining with a difference. Elegant, art deco charm and stunning views; the London Eye and South Bank are just across the river. Yacht London is easily found at its regular spot on the north bank in an area known as the Mayfair of the Thames. The gangplank walk to the yacht is especially winding and anticipatory. Ramping up the tastebuds in more ways than one.

Yacht London

REGENTS CANAL – HAGGERSTON

Arepa‘s name gives you a bit of a clue as to what’s on the menu at this Venezuelan restaurant. Obviously, it’s not just a one item menu devoted solely to Venezuela’s savoury dough wrap. Hang out here and you can watch the barges breeze past along Regent’s Canal while dipping into staple favourites such as Yuca cassava chips and mouth-watering mains such as Pabellon Criollo, which is a shredded beef, rice and black bean dish.

Arepa & Co

RIVER LEA – HACKNEY WICK

Floating restaurant Barge East will be celebrating its 5th anniversary on June 18th so expect a festival of fun with live music from the New York Brass Band, DJs and, of course, delectable dining on a 120-year-old Dutch barge. There’s seating on the upper deck with panoramic views of the River Lea and more tables on the riverside gardens.

BANKSIDE

Head Bankside and you’ll be spoilt for choice, regardless of whether you’re looking for a lunch time option during a tourist jaunt or an evening hang out after work. The likes of the Tate Modern often go on after dark and visitors spilling out at closing time often choose to enjoy splendid views of St Paul’s Cathedral across the river from the Founders Arms. It’s a landmark pub in this arts and culture-focused corner of Southwark and perfectly placed to catch the footfall from Bankside Gallery, the Tate Modern and Shakespeare’s Globe theatre.

Here’s some of the most eye-catching. Do you recognise any?

Also read A Closer Look at South Bank’s Brutalist Architecture

In the early 1950s, the desire for a new beginning after the war and Churchill’s demand for a new look meant that its construction was driven by an unstoppable avant-garde aesthetic with little respect for the past. So by the 1960s, a ‘brutally’ dystopian look emerged.

However, Brutalism wasn’t meant to be a derogatory term but comes from the French beton brut (raw concrete). But never was a term so fitting for its bulky, hard-edged aesthetic. Daily Mail readers voted the Hayward Gallery, the ugliest building in Britain and Prince Charles wasn’t too complimentary about South Bank buildings either. Comparisons with nuclear power stations were bandied about. Ultimately, Brutalism’s rejection of the past and its unusual look maKe it one of the most hated architectural forms this country has ever known.

National Theatre, designed by Denys Lasdun

Having said that, opinions remain mixed. A Radio Times poll revealed the National Theatre was in the top 5 hated and loved buildings in the UK. Designed by Sir Denys Lasdun, it’s a landmark concrete cathedral of performing arts and true to the vision of the overseeing London County Council architects, who were so left-field they would go on to found the Archigram neo-futuristic movement.

Also, few can argue that the reinforced concrete blocks and sci-fi B-movie walkways give South Bank a distinct character incomparable with anywhere in the capital, making it an easily found, iconic culture spot for tourists, creatives and couples seeking a romantic riverside walk with a difference. One might also argue that its appeal would fade significantly without the polarising Brutalist architecture.

Brutalism as an aesthetic was birthed from 1950s futurism, however Brutalism’s own future on South Bank is not so clear. Only the Grade 1 listed Royal Festival Hall and Grade II listed National Theatre are protected from the bulldozers. The 2017 refurbishment of the Queen Elizabeth Hall, Purcell Room and Hayward Gallery was just a touch up job that retained the reviled-loved exterior. And the heritage calendars of the likes of the National Trust still promote tours of its Brutalist sites so don’t expect any demolishion orders just yet!

Also see South Bank’s Brutalist Architecture in Photos and Festival of Brexit

Britain’s past Great Exhibitions were held as landmark events to showcase the nation’s arts and technology. The post-Brexit Festival of Britain and Northern Ireland planned for 2022 will be inevitably tied to the contentious EU referendum which paved the way for Boris Johnson’s 2019 election victory. But how will such a nation-dividing issue impact the 2022 event and how will it compare to past Great Exhibitions which were staged to bring the nation together? What’s Hot London? looks back on these historic national trade fairs which the PM wishes to emulate.

The Great Exhibition of 1851

Prince Albert spearheaded this grand, international exhibition of design and technology – the world’s first in such magnitude and scope. He wanted an event weighty enough to make global headlines and cement Britain’s place as a Victorian powerhouse and he demanded that it be incomparable to anything previous. He sought an exhibition showcasing mankind’s technological and cultural apex as a species and not just Britain’s talents.

Prince Albert appointed writer, artist and architect Henry Cole to make good on his vision and they agreed upon a specially-built glass cathedral magnificent enough to show off this extravagant royal commission which would become the world’s first international trades fair. Cole was the editor of the Journal of the Arts and also on the council for the Society of Arts so a respected figure in Victorian Society. Joseph Paxton set about designing a fittingly magnificent enormous glass building of 33 million cubic feet to be constructed in Hyde Park. The centrepiece was an equally massive crystal glass fountain with scented waters.

‘Vast, strange new and impossible to describe.” Charlotte Bronte, on her visit to the Great Exhibition of 1851

Critics were concerned about hordes of foreigners flooding into the country and with them incurable diseases. Also, Victorian environmentalist complained that trees would be cut down. None of this deterred Prince Albert.

Britain led the world in steam engines and machine tools and this ingenuity was proudly displayed alongside the more eccentric gadgetry which would come to characterise the quirky side of Victorian innovation and technology. It lasted from May 4^th to October 16^th and over 6 million visited and it made a profit of £106,000 pounds which was invested in the Victoria and Albert Museum with the trusty Henry Cole at the helm again.

1951 Festival of Britain

This event was launched to lift a battle-scarred and dispirited post-WW2 Britain. Six years of rationing and austerity meant the nation were due a tonic and the ruins left untouched for years needed more than just a lick of paint. It was an opportunity to show off the nation’s architects during the rebuilding. Labour cabinet minister Herbert Morrison consulted with PM Clement Attlee on a national exhibition of arts, science and technology timed to mark the centenary of the 1851 Great Exhibition. It lasted 5 months and had over 2,000 events.

The main event was held at South Bank and the architectural makeover was stunning with 27 acres of bombed out buildings cleared for this new site. There was an emphasis on a future Britain and the International Modernist restructuring was overseen by architect Hugh Casson.

Crowds flocked to hi-tech, futuristic attractions on South Bank such as the BFI’s Telekinema to watch 3D movies and see televisions for the first time. 9 million visitors attended the South Bank exhibition. South Bank was the star attraction but there were events nationwide and 25 million Brits participated in some way. But there were many critics who thought it too futuristic and experimental – not to mention a waste of public money at a time when the pound had devalued and the nation was burdened with war debt.

As with the Festival of Brexit, politics reared its head and new PM Winston Churchill condemned it as a socialist experiment and ordered every trace of it to be removed from South Bank once the event was over. He saved the 2,900 seater Royal Festival Hall from the bulldozers – but that building alone. It’s protected to this day as the first Grade 1 listed post-war building. The South Bank was transformed into the arts and culture complex which remains today;  the Royal Festival Hall, The National Theatre, National Film Theatre, Queen Elizabeth Hall and the post-exhibition brutalist architecture the most prominent attractions.

South Bank today.  From Festival of Britain to Skater Park. Photo credit – Jelleke Vanooteghem

These two previous festivals were, essentially, unifying vehicles which showcased Britain’s talent and technology. They were timed to distract from adversity and mend any divisions in the nation. However, the 2022 festival has already been dubbed the festival of Brexit by critics – a name that the media has readily taken to, making its aim as a unifying force an uphill one. Already, Remainers in the arts and culture community have shown hostility to the £120 million project even before its tenets have been announced.

“And, just as millions of Britons celebrated their nation’s great achievements in 1951, we want to showcase what makes our country great today.” – Former PM, Theresa May

Planned in the same year as the Queen’s platinum Jubilee, it is without doubt aimed at restoring British pride. Former PM Theresa May’s dream of a showcase of arts, business, technology and sport was never so contentious even as she was being hurriedly deposed because of her Brexit failings. Johnson has his eye on the surge in tourism and trade similar to the spike after the 2012 Olympics but needs to look beyond the economic benefits. Hopefully, with former Remainer Nicky Morgan at the helm of the Department of Digital, Culture, Media and Sport these divisions may be resolved in a timely manner if she can reconcile her own conflicting views on Brexit.