Downing Street, Political street in Westminster, United Kingdom.

Downing Street is a short road in Westminster that houses the official residence of the British Prime Minister. The brick-fronted terraced houses appear modest from the outside while government offices and meeting rooms lie behind the facades.

Sir George Downing, a soldier and diplomat under Cromwell and Charles II, built the cul-de-sac between 1682 and 1684 on land by St James's Park, employing Sir Christopher Wren to design the houses. Number 10, originally three houses, was offered to Sir Robert Walpole by King George II in 1732 and has served as the First Lord of the Treasury's residence since 1735.

Photographers gather at the black gate while television cameras often line up to record official announcements and arrivals. The famous door of Number 10 appears in news broadcasts around the world whenever major decisions are made.

Visitors can only view the road from a distance at the end of Whitehall since access has been closed off since the 1980s. Police officers guard the entrance around the clock and check anyone wishing to pass through the gate.

The bricks of Downing Street are yellow, the colour common to London houses; their black appearance comes from centuries of smog and pollution. When restorers cleaned them in the 1960s and 1970s, they painted the bricks black again to keep the street's familiar look.