Leadenhall Market, Victorian market hall in City of London, England
Leadenhall Market is a covered market hall in central London that houses shops, cafes, and restaurants. The glass and iron roof rests on slender columns painted in shades of green, maroon, and cream, while the floor is laid with cobblestones.
A meat and poultry market began operating here during medieval times, initially in the open air. Sir Horace Jones designed the current structure, which was completed in 1881 after a fire destroyed the earlier building.
The name refers to medieval lead roofing that once covered earlier market buildings on this site. Office workers from nearby banks and companies stop here for lunch or after-work drinks, filling the pubs and food counters each weekday.
Access the hall from Gracechurch Street or through shorter passages on Whittington Avenue and Lime Street. Shop hours vary, but the passage itself remains open even when businesses are closed.
Roman remains beneath the cobbles reveal that this spot served as a trading center in ancient times. The hall also appeared as Diagon Alley in several Harry Potter films, attracting visitors from around the world.
Location: City of London
Inception: 1440
Architects: Horace Jones
Made from material: glass, iron, Portland limestone
Website: https://leadenhallmarket.co.uk
GPS coordinates: 51.51270,-0.08350
Latest update: December 4, 2025 23:43
London offers far more than Tower Bridge and Buckingham Palace. Away from the main attractions, numerous sites remain unfamiliar even to many locals. This selection includes the ruins of St Dunstan-in-the-East, where a medieval church has been transformed into a public garden, the Sir John Soane's Museum with its antiquities and architectural fragments, and Dennis Severs' House, a Georgian townhouse preserved as a lived-in time capsule. The collection features gardens such as Isabella Plantation in Richmond Park and Kyoto Garden in Holland Park, historic buildings like the 14th-century Charterhouse and St Bartholomew the Great, London's oldest parish church. It also covers unusual museums including the Old Operating Theatre, Europe's oldest surviving surgical theater, and industrial monuments like Crossness Pumping Station with its Victorian steam engines. Leadenhall Market displays Victorian architecture in the financial district, while God's Own Junkyard in Walthamstow exhibits thousands of neon signs. Other sites range from the BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir Hindu temple in Neasden to Wilton's Music Hall, London's oldest music hall, and the Victorian dinosaur sculptures at Crystal Palace Park. Little Venice presents canals lined with houseboats, the Freud Museum preserves the psychoanalyst's London home, and Keats House commemorates the Romantic poet. These locations provide insights into history, architecture, and culture beyond the standard tourist circuit.
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