County Hall, London

County Hall (sometimes called London County Hall) is a building in London that was the headquarters of London County Council (LCC) and later the Greater London Council (GLC). The building is on the South Bank of the River Thames, with Westminster Bridge being next to it, heading south. It faces west toward the City of Westminster and is close to the Palace of Westminster. The nearest London Underground stations are Waterloo and Westminster. It is a Grade II* listed building.[1]

County Hall
County Hall from Westminster Bridge
LocationLambeth
Coordinates51°30′7″N 0°7′8″W
Built1911–1933
ArchitectRalph Knott
Architectural style(s)Edwardian Baroque style
Listed Building – Grade II*
Designated19 October 1951
Reference no.1358192
Shown in Lambeth

History
County Hall, London, seen from the London Eye
County Hall

The main six storey building was designed by Ralph Knott. It is faced in Portland stone in an Edwardian Baroque style. The construction, which was undertaken by Holland, Hannen & Cubitts,[2] started in 1911 and the building was opened in 1922 by King George V. The North and South blocks, which were built by Higgs and Hill,[3] were added between 1936 and 1939.[4] The Island block was not completed until 1974.[5]

Council Chamber of the LCC, from the majority benches

For 64 years County Hall served as the headquarters of local government for London. During the 1980s the then powerful Labour-controlled GLC led by Ken Livingstone was locked in conflict with the Conservative national government of Margaret Thatcher. Since the Parliament buildings were just across the river from County Hall, the façade of County Hall frequently in more than one year of her tenure served as a billboard for opposition slogans. When the government of Margaret Thatcher abolished the GLC in 1986, County Hall lost its role as the seat of London's government. Talk soon became of what was to happen to the building, and plans to relocate the London School of Economics to the site from its Westminster campus were overruled by Thatcher, seemingly disapproving of further slogans from students. The building remained in use by the Inner London Education Authority (ILEA) until its abolition in 1990 when the building was transferred to the London Residuary Body and eventually sold to private investors. On 21 October 2005, the High Court of England and Wales upheld a bid by the owners of the building, Shirayama Shokusan, to have the Saatchi Gallery evicted on grounds of violating its contract, particularly using space outside of the rented area for exhibits.[6]

The County Hall Island Block, an annex of the main building, was demolished in 2006 to make way for a hotel, the Park Plaza Westminster Bridge. The building, also known as No 1 Westminster Bridge Road, had been disused since 1986 and had become a derelict eyesore.[7]

A blue plaque commemorates the LCC, GLC and the Inner London Education Authority at County Hall.[8]

Attractions

County Hall is the site of businesses and attractions, including the Sea Life London Aquarium,[9] Shrek's Adventure London[10] and the Namco Funscape amusement arcade.[11] Other parts of the building house two hotels (a budget Premier Inn and a 5 star Marriott Hotel).[12]

References
  1. Historic England. "Main block of County Hall (1358192)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 26 April 2020.
  2. Holland & Hannen and Cubitts – The Inception and Development of a Great Building Firm, published 1920, Page 63
  3. 'General introduction', Survey of London: volume 26: Lambeth: Southern area (1956), pp. 1–17. Date accessed: 28 March 2010.
  4. "County Hall Apartments". Archived from the original on 27 September 2009. Retrieved 28 March 2010.
  5. 1 Westminster Bridge Archived 2 June 2015 at the Wayback Machine
  6. "Saatchi Gallery evicted by judge". BBC News. 21 October 2005. Retrieved 8 December 2008.
  7. "Demolition work begins on eyesore". BBC News. 25 May 2006. Retrieved 8 December 2008.
  8. "County Hall A.K.A. The London County Council and the Greater London Council". English Heritage. Retrieved 6 December 2012.
  9. Buchanan, Rhoda (8 April 2009). "A fishy day out at the new London Aquarium". thetimes.co.uk. Times of London. Retrieved 12 June 2011.
  10. "Take the kids to … Shrek's Adventure, London". The Guardian. 7 July 2015. Retrieved 29 February 2020.
  11. "Namco Funscape London". UK Arcade Racers. Retrieved 14 August 2019.
  12. "London Marriott County Hall Hotel Review, Southbank, London". Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 14 January 2019.
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