London’s Best Office Spaces – The Links Between London’s Past and the Modern World – Details, episodes & analysis

Whilst we normally speak about buildings with great heritage and history that have been transformed to provide premium office space for the modern world, we thought that we should make an exception for The Shard. Clearly a modern development, The Shard stands dominantly in the historically significant London Bridge district on the southern bank of the Thames. Opened to the public in 2013, The Shard was recognised as the tallest building in the UK and Europe and as a new emblem for London. Today, the striking and iconic building is home to apartments, restaurants, the luxury Shangri-La hotel, a viewing platform, and a 26-floor office complex. Some of these can be seen here - Prestige Offices in The Shard This podcast celebrates the area in which the tower is situated, the unique development and the exceptional modern offices that are available to rent within it.

The podcast episodes that we normally record are focused on historically important properties in London that have had their lives extended by repurposing them as modern offices – this, in our opinion, makes them some of the best office spaces in London. London has, of course, experienced many epidemics over its history as well as other natural disasters but none quite the same as the global Covid-19 pandemic. The pandemic had and is continuing to have devastating, effects for the world’s population for which we have great sympathy. One of the effects of the pandemic was the way that it affected the modern business world and the use of office space. In post-industrial London, a great number of businesses are office-based. Of course, during the lockdowns, offices were closed off to businesses for safety reasons. However, with the use of high-speed domestic broadband, cloud-based technologies and personal computers, smartphones and tablets, many businesses could continue to run with normally office-based staff, working from home remotely. The option to utilise remote homeworking staff has been available to businesses for many decades, however, many never fully adopted it as standard working practice. As lockdowns lift, many businesses are now looking at how they will use physical office space in the future. We wished to record this slightly different episode to talk about the modern concept of hybrid working at, what we think, is a pivotal and historically important time, relating to how businesses will use offices, and specifically to us, the historically important offices, in the future.

The Royal Exchange in the City of London was founded in the 16th century, in 1565, by the merchant Sir Thomas Gresham to act as a centre of commerce for the City. The site was provided by the City of London Corporation and the Worshipful Company of Mercers, who still jointly own the freehold interest of this landmark. It was London’s first purpose-built centre for trading stocks and was modelled on the Bourse in Antwerp - the world’s oldest financial exchange, where Gresham had been based as a royal agent. So, who was Thomas Gresham? Known as the father of English banking, Sir Thomas Gresham the Elder was born in 1519 and was an English merchant and financier who acted on behalf of King Edward VI and Edward's half-sisters - queens Mary I and Elizabeth I. He was born in London and descended from an old Norfolk family, he was the son of Sir Richard Gresham, a leading merchant mercer and Lord Mayor of London, who was knighted by King Henry VIII for negotiating favourable loans with foreign merchants. Gresham was educated at St Paul's School in the City. Following this, he attended the University of Cambridge and was concurrently apprenticed in the Mercers' Company. In 1543 the Mercers' Company admitted Gresham as a liveryman, and later that year he left England for the Low Countries basing himself in Antwerp, where he worked as a merchant whilst acting in various matters as agent for King Henry VIII. In 1551, following some financial mismanagement by the government, Gresham was called upon for his advice and, through some methods that he thought up that would have been seen as somewhat questionable by today’s standards, raised the value of the pound on the Antwerp bourse and subsequently “rescued the pound” for which he was rewarded in various ways by King Edward VI. On the accession of Queen Mary in 1553, Gresham was replaced as advisor by Alderman William Dauntsey. However, Dauntsey's financial operations proved unsuccessful and Gresham was soon re-instated. He professed his desire to serve the Queen, and manifested great adroitness both in negotiating loans and in smuggling money, arms and foreign goods. Not only were his services retained throughout her reign (1553–1558), but besides his salary of twenty shillings per year, he received grants of church lands to the yearly value of 200 pounds... ...Today, businesses from a wide range of sectors can occupy office space at the Royal Exchange – aptly named office provider, Landmark, that was founded in 2000, provides a range of workspace options including private offices, collaborative spaces and meeting rooms. And, on Gresham Street, which was named in 1845, office space provider, The Argyll Club, that was founded in 1998, provides premium flexible office spaces for companies needing space for between 2 and 50 desks. Occupiers here will be neighbours of modern-day business icons such as Eversheds, ING Bank and Investec. Both of these properties with links to Thomas Gresham can be viewed on the link: Prestige Offices – Offices in London with links to Thomas Gresham  Gresham’s legacy can, today, be directly experienced through the buildings that have been modernised to provide office space for the businesses of the modern world. He had commercial property interests in the City and was a pioneer in many areas but he could have never imagined the areas that modern businesses operate in or the business technology used, although he may have possibly imagined the arrangement of several companies operating within one office, as they do within the serviced offices in the Royal Exchange and those on Gresham Street and throughout London  – a format not dissimilar to that used by the Royal Exchange's loyal tenant, Lloyd’s of London.

The striking nine-storey Victoria House in Holborn is built in the neoclassical style and is complete with Portland stone facades. It is actually described as being built in the ‘Néo-Grec’ style which was a Neoclassical revival style of the mid-to-late 19th century that was popularised in during the reign of Napoleon the third who reigned from 1852 to 1870. The Néo-Grec style was inspired by 18th-century excavations at Pompeii and Herculaneum, and became popular in the mid-19th century. The style combined elements of the Graeco-Roman, Pompeian, and Egyptian styles into a richly eclectic blend. The 150,000 sqft property stands dominantly on Bloomsbury Square in the heart of what is known, today, as London's Knowledge Quarter’ due to the presence of multiple educational institutions in the vicinity, in the Midtown district of Central London. It was built for and acted as, for many decades, the head office of the Liverpool and Victoria Friendly Society also known as the Liverpool Victoria Insurance Company. The building was designed by Charles William Long and the northern end of the building was formally opened on the 23rd June 1926 - the official opening of the fully completed building took place 8th August 1932. Although the exterior of the building is largely unchanged, the interior has been extensively modernised, with building works completed in 2003. The interior features of Victoria House that were of historic interest were retained and refurbished to their former glory. Inside, the property retains its original four entrance lobbies faced with Subiaco marble, and ornamental brasswork by the Bromsgrove Guild, some of which bearing the "VH" monogram. The building also retains its original Art Deco ballroom which has been transformed into the magnificent Bloomsbury Ballroom function venue. Incidentally, the Bloomsbury Ballroom featured in the final episode of The Apprentice series ten in 2014 where it was used as the location for the two finalists' business launches. The fascinating building also contains figurative sculptures by Herbert William Palliser, with the group to the west of the building representing the bounty of the natural world, and the group to the east representing navigation and industry. Victoria House was first listed as a Grade II property in 1990 – a listing that is reserved for properties of special interest, warranting every effort to preserve them. The listing documents the Portland stone, the bronze infill panels and copperlite glazing surrounds as well as the green slate mansard roof with dormers.  Other features included in the listing include the central distyle-in-antis Ionic (Erechtheion) portico through the first to fourth floors. The tympanum with a sculpture of a central robed figure with arms outstretched flanked by other figures expressing the bounty of the natural world. The basement dance hall with coloured glass light fittings, door furniture and surrounds in polished steel and radiator grilles embossed with VH monogram. The extensive mahogany panelling to third-floor offices and the central ground floor public area, open through three floors to elaborate coffered suspended ceiling. In 2020, Victoria House was transformed into what the office space company that created it, describe as the largest coworking space in London. Following sensitive restoration, Victoria House now boasts flexible floorplates creating office suites that are suitable for teams of all sizes - from freelancers to global corporations. With its eclectic styling with nods to exploration and discovery, and its relatively recent choice as a venue for a high-profile business competition, it seems the perfect location for modern companies to become victorious in their chosen fields in the 21st Century.

In the area surrounding Chancery Lane Tube station, there is a large cluster of some of London’s most important properties. Indeed, on the map of the area on the Historic England website, it appears that there are almost as many listed buildings as those that are not listed. One of those properties is No.25 Southampton Buildings and this sits in the heart of the Chancery Lane Conservation Area. This area covers just over 6 hectares of the Ward of Farringdon Without and serves to protect the unique architecture within it. Southampton Buildings is one of those properties and has a rich history that dates back centuries. In 1144, the Knights Templar were established in Holborn, on a site to the northern end of what was later to become Chancery Lane. In recent times, archaeological works located the first Knights Templar church at the junction of where Southampton Buildings sits today and High Holborn. The site of the Templar hall and chapel remained in place and varied in ownership until the early 17th century when it was redeveloped by the Earl of Southampton, and the site was named Southampton Buildings. In the mid-17th century, it was then redeveloped into private tenements and was actually the location of one of the earliest coffee-houses of London, with records dating it to 1650. In 1823, Dr Birkbeck founded the Mechanics’ Institution in Southampton Buildings, which later became the London Mechanics’ Institution, and the building was used as a theatre for delivering the lectures of the professors. The London Mechanics’ Institution, the forerunner of Birkbeck College, which is now a part of the University of London, was headquartered at Southampton Buildings until 1884. This part of London, today known as Midtown, is now actually referred to as London’s ‘Seat of Learning’ because it is now home of the London School of Economics (LSE) and University College London (UCL), as well as the British Museum and Inns of Court. The London Patent Office Library was established within Southampton Buildings in 1899 and, in 1902, the headquarter offices of the London Patent Office were established in the building, where it stayed until 1991. The unique commercial property became Grade II* listed in 1989 to conserve its impressive neo-Elizabethan architecture. The listing highlights the range of features from elaborate railings, Flemish gables, Corinthian columns, Doric pilasters and decorative panels used in the library, reading rooms, arbitration rooms and the courts. Today, you will find luxury office space within the fabric of this beautiful commercial property, specifically within the area of the property known as Central Court. Details of these offices can be found on the Prestige Offices website. It is within these, that modern businesses have the opportunity to create their own history within this iconic building.

The eccentric Michelin House sits on Fulham Road in Kensington and its history is as colourful as its façade. It was built in 1911 and was the first permanent UK headquarters and depot of the Michelin Tyre Company. Designed by one of Michelin's employees, the striking building has three large stained-glass windows based on Michelin advertisements of the era, all featuring the Michelin Man, also known as ‘Bibendum’. Bibendum is the official mascot of the Michelin tyre company and was first revealed in 1894. It is one of the world's oldest trademarks and the name of the figure has entered the English language to describe someone wearing comically bulky clothing. Throughout the building, there is a number of decorative tiles depicting motor racing cars, of the same era, that used Michelin tyres. More tiles can be found inside the front of the building, which was originally a tyre-fitting bay for motorists passing through Kensington. People walking into the reception area of the building are today greeted by a mosaic on the floor showing Bibendum proclaiming “Nunc Est Bibendum” which is Latin for “Now is the time to drink". The Michelin company moved out of the building in 1985 and it was purchased by publisher Paul Hamlyn and the restauranteur and retailer Sir Terence Conran, who shared a love for the building. They commenced a redevelopment programme that included the restoration of some the original features. The new development became offices for Hamlyn's company, Octopus Publishing, as well as the Bibendum Restaurant & Oyster Bar, and a Conran Shop. The pair had to search for specialist suppliers to complete the restoration project and to recreate many of the property’s original features – some of the stained glass windows and other features had been removed for safety during the Second World War and replicas were made using original drawings, photos and posters. Known for its decorative design work, what cannot be seen from its exterior or interior design is that Michelin House is an early example of concrete construction in the UK. The building was constructed using Hennebique's ferro-concrete construction system. The system offered great benefits for the creation of clear open spaces which were ideal for efficient tyre storage and also for fire protection. It has been observed that Michelin House is very much like an Art-Deco building - the popular style of the 1930s with its prominent roadside position and its strong advertising images. In this respect, Michelin House was a building twenty years ahead of its time. Michelin House was listed as protected with a Grade II classification on the National Heritage List for England in 1969. Some of the features documented in the listing include the three bay front, octagonal corner turrets, ornamental ironwork and piers, windows headed with words "Michelin Tyre Company Limited Bibendum", and a series of pictorial tile panels on the side elevations and inside the drive-in. The panels represent the racing successes of cars fitted with Michelin tyres between 1900 and 1908, and also Edward VII and Prince George in their Michelin type fitted car. The Michelin Tyre Company’s close association with road maps and tourism guides is also reflected in a number of etchings of the streets of Paris on some of the first-floor windows. The guides that the company is also famous for are still produced today - Michelin Guides are a series of guides by the company and the term normally refers to the annually published Michelin Red Guide which is the oldest European hotel and restaurant reference guide, and awards up to three Michelin stars for excellence to a select few establishments.

Bruton Street is located in Mayfair in the West End of London and has a surprising past. No.17 Bruton Street was once a townhouse that belonged to the Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne and his wife who were the maternal grandparents of Queen Elizabeth II. And it was in this house, at 2.40 am on the 21st April 1926, that the Queen was born. The property has changed significantly over the decades and was bombed during the Second World War. In 2010, the building became the esteemed restaurant, Hakkasan – a restaurant that went on to earn a Michelin star. Diners would only be aware of the royal heritage of the building if they sighted the small placard on the wall that commemorates its history. According to our research, there is actually only one listed building associated with Bruton Street – this is on Bruton Place which runs parallel to Bruton Street. Bruton Place can be accessed from Bruton Street and many buildings have frontages to both streets. 36-40, Bruton Place is a Grade II listed building which is defined as a building that is ‘of special interest, warranting every effort to preserve it’. This means that it is legally protected from being demolished, extended or significantly altered without special permission from the City of Westminster. It was first listed in 1990 and is described as a group of 3 stables with accommodation above – these are now mews houses. Built in the late 19th Century, it is described as being built in red brick with gauged brick dressings and glazed brown brick dados, having tiled gabled roofs, and in the Queen Anne style. The listing details the history of the building stating that ‘this group of former livery stables, designed in the Queen Anne style, was built to serve the elegant residential area of Mayfair. Their survival represents the final chapter in the story of town stables, and they have been subsequently adapted to automobile garage use. Bruton Place retains its scale as a quiet mews street, although most of the other stables have been re-built. This group of 3 survive externally mostly intact, clearly expressing their original function.’ The building is summarized as an ‘externally intact group of three former stables in the Queen Anne style that forms part of a fine late-Victorian stables development, built to serve the elegant residential area of Mayfair.’ Mayfair is now much more of a commercial district of Central London and is now home to hotels, restaurants, boutiques and shops – the district, today, famously represents some of the most expensive residential and commercial real estate in the world. The district also provides high-end office space that is used by an array of occupiers ranging from publishing houses to hedge fund management companies. Bruton Street, itself, provides modern private offices at No.28 where a range of 21st-Century businesses thrive. These offices allow modern businesses to operate at an address with a relatively unknown royal pedigree, providing a graceful and subtle association.

An extraordinary building on Old Bailey sits opposite ‘The Old Bailey’ just steps from the magnificent St Paul’s Cathedral – possibly London’s most iconic historical landmarks. ‘The Old Bailey’, today, is the common term for the Central Criminal Court of England and Wales, which is the most famous criminal court in the land and is named after the street that it dominates. The Old Bailey sits just outside the former western wall of the City of London, and the street it is named after follows the line of the original fortified wall, or ‘Bailey’, of the City. The strategic position between the City of London and the City of Westminster meant the historic court was a suitable location for trials involving people from all over London - north of the Thames, at least. The court that was held in this part of London has roots that date back to the 16th Century and the original medieval court was first mentioned in 1585 – this was destroyed by the Great Fire of London in 1666 and was rebuilt in 1674. In 1734, it was rebuilt again in order to enclose the court and make sessions no longer open to the public – this was to reduce the influence of spectators. The adverse effect of this was that it led to an epidemic of typhus that was started within the property – a property that was also home to a squalid jail. It was rebuilt again in 1774 in an attempt to improve conditions and to reduce the outbreak and transmission of disease throughout the London population. It had been documented that over 100,000 criminal trials were carried out at the Old Bailey between 1674 and 1834. It was renamed the Central Criminal Court in 1834, yet, in 2020, is still referred to as the Old Bailey. The distinctive property at No.15 Old Bailey sits opposite the court and became Grade II* listed in 1998 meaning that it is listed as particularly important building of more than special interest, and is part of a prominent group of properties together with the Central Criminal Court and other commercial properties on Old Bailey. Today, the property provides office space for modern businesses in this popular commercial district of London. Today, this area of Central London is referred to as Midtown – a name that was first used in the mid-2000 and constitutes Bloomsbury, Holborn and St Giles. This area of central London is still synonymous with law, but also high finance and is also referred to as London’s seat of learning due to the educational institutions within it. Within this historical building, there are now over 60 private offices that host a range of 21st-century businesses. The conversion of this property allows businesses of the modern world to experience an important part of London’s judicial and architectural history, but the property also, and this feels poignant in 2020, serves as a reminder of London’s medical history, too.

Its modern name is believed to have roots in the 7th Century and so has long been a part of the City of London’s history. There is also evidence that, before it was christened, it was part of the Roman settlement of ‘Londonium’ with remnants of ancient life being found 10 feet below today’s pavements and bus lanes. Skip forward several centuries and Lothbury found itself playing a part in modern history, too. No.41 Lothbury, specifically, was the home of the National Westminster Bank from the 1830s and it was within its banking hall that a customer, in 1834, cashed the first cheque drawn on a bank in the City of London. Today, the same property has been delicately refurbished to allow modern businesses to operate in the same setting.