SE1 is the most colossal anomaly in London. Whereas the rest of the city centre has been subdivided within its postcodes, SE1 remains seemingly too large for the important areas it covers....

SE1 has been a long time arriving. For many years now it has been touted as the up and coming place to live and be seen, but in truth each generation seems to rediscover this colourful underbelly of the capital's centre.

The Festival Hall of 1951, the National Theatre of 1969-76 and Hay's Galleria in 1987 attest to previous makeovers. But things are changing quicker than ever, and the physical manifestations of the changes within our postcode are now impossible to ignore for even the most biased North Londoner.

The London Eye ferris wheel, the conversion of Bankside Power Station into the Tate Art Gallery, the long-awaited reconstruction of Shakespeare's Globe and the technological novelty of Waterloo International are just the most obvious signs of how things have changed.

For all the decline in old industries - the dockside warehouses and the tanneries in particular - SE1 remains a comercial powerhouse, happily draining resources away from the City to a land of more space and (slightly) cheaper rates.

The Financial Times, the Express, IBM, Sainsbury's, Shell Oil, PC Magazines and Independent Television are all now by the river. These are only a few of the big hitters in SE1, and to give this postcode any justice this guide would have to be considerably longer.

The institutions within SE1 include major hospitals (Guy's and St. Thomas's), major train stations, many theatres, the largest cruiser ever built for the Royal Navy, eleven bridges, the new and frankly weird MI6 building and the unforgettable experience that is the Elephant and Castle.

Housing & Area Description
Terraced housing in the west and flats in the east are the dominant theme to this postcode. Bermondsey in the east has seen many of its old industrial and transport sites undergo residential renovation. One vast redevelopment has taken place on the site of the Bricklayers' Arms Goods Station, in the south-east and along the Old Kent Road.

This mostly went on an industrial estate, but 600 late Eighties homes were created on the easternmost section of the site. Warehouses on Bermondsey Street have been undergoing restoration, and a Victorian printing works in Tanner Street and a jam factory by the Bricklayers' roundabout are two of the more esoteric conversions hereabouts.

The section of SE1 between Tower Bridge and Shad Thames, once an area for breweries and livestock, is now as achingly trendy as anywhere in the capital, with hi-tech work units carved out of old warehousing, and the site of the Design and Tea & Coffee Museums.

The west side of Tower Bridge Road now houses the new Greater London Authority building, and to the west of this is the attractive Hay's Galleria, with its shops, eateries and fine riverside views.

Next door is the offices of St. Olave's Wharf, an Art Deco masterpiece. As we reach the Borough, the roads become denser, more ancient, and dominated by the outbuildings of Guy's Hospital and London Bridge train station.

The post-war council blocks of the Tabard Garden Estate are the biggest housing feature, although warehouse conversions continue apace and it is here that the architectural delight of Trinity and Merrick Squares can be found; however, it is within an oasis of modern council blocks to the south and offices to the north. Peabody and Guinness Housing Trust flats become a common sight as we move to Borough tube station and south to Newington and the Elephant.

To the west of Borough High Street is a tourist paradise, with the Clink prison, Southwark Cathedral, the remains of Winchester Palace and the life-size replica of Drake's Golden Hinde. There are also serious financial offices and the old and complicated Anchor pub.

The old fruit & veg Borough Market is still in operation, a hotbed of frantic activity at three in the morning, but succumbing to the changing times and now the incongruous host of a vast sushi bar. The market's days as a popular film backdrop look numbered. Vast changes have been wrought in the area with the arrivals of the Jubilee Line and Thameslink.

Along the river frontage is the Coin Street development, the site now of an annual festival and the outcome of a battle between locals and the council on one hand and commercial interests on the other. The former won, and the rented housing for 1,300 souls created on the site have been a wonderful success. Next door is Gabriel's Wharf, a similar micro-development, but this time for retail outlets.

The National Theatre and the South Bank Centre are here, with their subsidiary attractions, such as the Museum of the Moving Image and the National Film Theatre. The restored Oxo Tower (whose tower lights cheekily overcame the old ordinance that no advertising was to be allowed by the river) and the Millennium Bridge are other notable developments nearby.

This leads west to northern Lambeth and Waterloo Station, to the north and east of which is solid terraced housing, now going for prices beyond what their builders could have imagined. Intense building work has been going on to the east of the station and round the Waterloo roundabout in recent times, with the notable creation of the great glass drum that is the IMAX cinema, boasting Britain's largest cinema screen - 26 metres across.

Railtrack are looking to develop the area further, and the new international terminal can only add fuel to this fire. The terminal is a technological wonder, its breathing glass actually a form of transparent foil, 1% the weight of glass and yet able to carry more weight.

To the west of the station is the old County Hall, site of London government from 1922 to 1986, now a hotel, a block of apartments and an increasingly famous aquarium. To the south of Waterloo is Lower Marsh with its regular market, and the grounds of Lambeth Palace.

There are many work units in this area taking advantage of railway arches, a common sight throughout SE1. Eastwards we pass the Imperial War Museum, housed within the old Bedlam Asylum, and thence to the many buildings of the South Bank University.

All roads lead to the Elephant and Castle. The origin of the phrase is unknown, but what has always been known is its confusion as a road junction. The Luftwaffe provided planners with the chance to unravel this Gordian Knot but the effort was spectacularly bungled in 1961.

Transport
No other postcode can provide so much in the way of transport. Two of London's major train stations (Waterloo/Waterloo East and London Bridge) are here, as are the bridges to three others (Charing Cross, Cannon Street and Blackfriars).

There are seven tube stations - including the shiny new Southwark station - on the Jubilee Line extension that runs west to east through SE1. There are buses that go in every conceivable direction (head to the Elephant for the full effect on this one) and the many roads include the Roman A2 and A3.

For where it is, and for the size it is, no other London postcode is as exciting or rewarding. Just expect a good hunt if you are looking for some prime housing.

Steve Roberts

History


The history of the South Bank, Southwark, The Borough, northern Lambeth and Newington is one of centuries of anti-authoritarian licentiousness. If you were wanted by the law, or just too much of a fun-seeking individual to play the game, this is where you would end up. SE1 's sole concession to establishment powers is Lambeth Palace, home to the Archbishop of Canterbury for over eight centuries.

With the exception of Lambeth Palace, suitably sited opposite the Palace of Westminster, the south bank of the Thames was once the the dumping ground for London's unwanted.

The defence of London Bridge was called the South Work (hence the name) and its legal jurisdiction did not fall within the rest of the city - hence The Borough, the only 'independent' part of old London.

Borough High Street became famous for taverns, the river frontage for brothels (run by the Bishops of Winchester as a nice little earner), the Bethlehem Hospital (or 'Bedlam') coped with the capital's psychiatric cases for seven centuries and the area in general was infamous for prisons, notably the Clink, the King's Bench and the Marshalsea.

In tandem with its lawless and violent reputation, what housing did arise across this sprawling postcode was defiantly plebeian, and sandwiched between an endless array of warehouses.

Steve Roberts.

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