Must-see attractions in The West End

  • Queen Victoria Memorial

    The West End

    Not many public buildings of note were built during the first 15 years of the 20th century, apart from the Admiralty Arch (1910) in the Edwardian baroque…

  • London Film Museum

    The West End

    Dedicated solely to the British film industry, the London Film Museum has a heavy focus on the James Bond franchise. You'll see 007 vehicles (more than…

  • Institute of Contemporary Arts

    The West End

    Housed in a Regency building designed by John Nash along the Mall, the untraditional ICA is where Picasso and Henry Moore had their first UK shows. Since…

  • Phoenix Garden

    The West End

    A tiny patch of wilderness in the heart of London’s theatreland, Phoenix Garden is at charming odds with its surrounds. Dotted with small ponds, thick…

  • College Garden

    The West End

    One of the original gardens within Westminster Abbey, the lovely 900-year-old College Garden was used for growing medicinal herbs and foods for the Abbey…

  • Admiralty Citadel

    The West End

    The ivy-covered concrete Admiralty Citadel is a heavily fortified, bomb-proof command and control fortress built for the Royal Navy in 1941 to prepare for…

  • Household Cavalry Museum

    The West End

    This small museum looks at the roles and work of the two regiments of the Queen's Household Cavalry, the Life Guard and the Blues & Royals. The tour is by…

  • Soho Square

    The West End

    At Soho’s northern end, this leafy square is the area’s back garden. It was laid out in 1681, and originally named King’s Square; a statue of Charles II…

  • Brunei Gallery

    The West End

    Part of the University of London's School of Oriental & African Studies (SOAS), this gallery features permanent displays and exhibitions of art from…

  • Leicester Square

    The West End

    Surrounded by cinemas that host regular film premieres (if you're there at the right time, there will be crowds by the red carpet), Leicester Sq is a…

  • Tyburn Tree Memorial Plaque

    The West End

    A plaque on the traffic island at Marble Arch indicates the spot where the infamous Tyburn Tree, a three-legged gallows, once stood. An estimated 50,000…

  • Russell Square

    The West End

    At the heart of Bloomsbury and originally laid out in 1800 by Humphrey Repton, Russell Sq was dark and bushy until a striking facelift early in the new…

  • Bush House

    The West End

    Home of the BBC World Service for more than 70 years, this iconic building at the southern end of Kingsway was built between 1923 and 1935. It has been…

  • Royal Arcade

    The West End

    Running perpendicular to Burlington Arcade between Old Bond and Albermarle Sts is this more recent arcade dating from 1880.

  • Jewel Tower

    The West End

    Once part of the royal Palace of Westminster, the Jewel Tower is the only surviving piece of the 1834 fire that engulfed the structure, and it's one of…