| South Bank | |
|---|---|
 TheLondon Eye on the South Bank at County Hall | |
  South Bank Location withinGreater London | |
| London borough | |
| Ceremonial county | Greater London |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | LONDON |
| Postcode district | SE1 |
| Dialling code | 020 |
| Police | Metropolitan |
| Fire | London |
| Ambulance | London |
| London Assembly | |
| 51°30′29″N0°06′36″W / 51.508°N 0.110°W /51.508; -0.110 | |
TheSouth Bank is an entertainment and commercial area on the south bank of theRiver Thames, in theLondon Borough of Lambeth,central London, England.
The South Bank is not formally defined, but is generally understood to be situated betweenCounty Hall in the west to theOxo Tower on the borough boundary withSouthwark, to the east.[1]
South Bank consists of a narrow strip of riverside land opposite theCity of Westminster and adjoins the Albert Embankment to the west andBankside in theLondon Borough of Southwark to the east. As such, the South Bank may be regarded as akin to the riverside part of an area known previously asLambeth Marsh and North Lambeth.
Throughout its history, it has twice functioned as an entertainment district, interspersed by around a hundred years of wharfs, domestic industry and manufacturing being its dominant use.[2] Change came in 1917 with the construction of County Hall at Lambeth replacing the Lion Brewery.[2]
The name South Bank was first widely used in 1951 during theFestival of Britain. The festival redefined the area as a place for arts and entertainment.[2]
The area's attractions include theCounty Hall complex, theSea Life London Aquarium, theLondon Dungeon,Jubilee Gardens and theLondon Eye, theSouthbank Centre,Royal Festival Hall,National Theatre, andBFI Southbank.
Before the Thames was embanked, this area of Lambeth was often flooded, so the area was slower to develop than the north bank of the Thames.
During theMiddle Ages this area developed as a place of entertainment outside the formal regulation of the City of London on the north bank; this included theatres, prostitution andbear-baiting.[2] By the 18th century the more genteel entertainment of thepleasure gardens had developed.
By the 19th century, however, the usage had shifted to wharfs, domestic industry and manufacturing. The shallow bank and mud flats were ideal locations for industry and docks and went on to develop as an industrial location in a patchwork of private ownership.[2]
In the 20th century usage once again shifted to entertainment. Change began in 1917 with the construction of County Hall, nearNorth Lambeth's Lower Marsh.[2] which replaced the Lion Brewery. ItsCoade stone symbol was retained and placed on a pedestal at Westminster Bridge and is known as theSouth Bank Lion.[2] The construction of County Hall returned the first section of river frontage to public use. This was extended eastwards in 1951 when a considerable area was redeveloped for theFestival of Britain.[2] The area was renamed 'South Bank' as part of promoting the Festival. The legacy of the festival was mixed, with buildings and exhibits demolished to make way forJubilee Gardens, while theRoyal Festival Hall andThe Queen's Walk were retained as part of theSouthbank Centre.[2]The Queen's Walk pedestrianised embankment is part of the Albert Embankment, built not only for public drainage but also to raise the whole tract of land to prevent flooding.[2]
During the years following the festival the arts and entertainment complex grew with additional facilities, including theQueen Elizabeth Hall, and other arts venues opened along the river such as theRoyal National Theatre. In 2000 theLondon Eye opened, adding a large visible attraction to the area.[3][4] The recent developments, particularly the South Bank Place project by Canary Wharf Homes,[5] underscore the ongoing transformation of the South Bank into a vibrant residential and cultural hub, a trend that is set to continue with more riverside projects on the horizon.
The South Bank is not formally defined, but is generally understood to be situated betweenCounty Hall in the west to theOxo Tower on the borough boundary withSouthwark, to the east.[6]
South Bank consists of a narrow strip of riverside land opposite theCity of Westminster and adjoins the Albert Embankment to the west andBankside in theLondon Borough of Southwark to the east.[7] As such, the South Bank may be regarded as akin to the riverside part of an area known previously asLambeth Marsh and North Lambeth.
There are public open space along the riverside, includingBernie Spain Gardens between the London Studios and the Oxo Tower. The gardens were named after Bernadette Spain,[8] a local community activist who was part of theCoin Street Action Group.[9][10]
The South Bank is a significant arts and entertainment district. The Southbank Centre comprises the Royal Festival Hall, the Queen Elizabeth Hall andThe Hayward Gallery. The Royal National Theatre, theLondon IMAX super cinema andBFI Southbank adjoin to the east, but are not strictly part of the centre.
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Polish-British visual chronicler and artistFeliks Topolski was provided a studio under one of the arches of Hungerford Bridge in 1951, where he worked consistently until his death in 1989. Topolski was commissioned to produce a 60ft by 20ft mural under the arch over Belvedere Road for theFestival of Britain, unknowingly painting only two arches up from his eventual studio.[6] Offered to him byDavid Eccles, it was not until 1953 andQueen Elizabeth II's coronation, when the windows from the dismantled annex to Westminster Abbey were repurposed to fit Topolski's studio.[11] Over the years the studio became a central feature of the South Bank, hosting countless people at his 'Open Studio' Fridays from 3pm, with an open door to whosever wished to pop their head in. Now the Studio functions as an archive and exhibition space operated by Topolski Memoir, the charity set up to preserve the artist's legacy.[12]
Topolski was provided with three further arches in 1975 by theGreater London Council (GLC), where he painted his epic 600ft long, 12-20ft high 'Memoir of the Century'. Telling his broad-ranging experience of the 20th century, Topolski painted the work from 1975 until his death, writing that he hoped to die working on it, with a brush in his hand. It remained open until 2006 in its original state, working with students, but, due to its poor condition, underwent a £3,000,000 conservation and renovation program, funded by theHeritage Lottery Fund, private donations and several other grant bodies, and raised by the artist's son,Daniel Topolski.[13][14] Reopened by the Duke of Edinburgh in 2009, the Memoir only ran for a year due to commercial pressures and was converted into the Bar Topolski, where some of Topolski's work can still be seen.[15]
Buskers and street performers perform music, dance, and entertainment at various designated locations along the South Bank, under a licensing system that requires prospective performers to audition and provide a risk assessment and proof of insurance.[16][17]
County Hall was converted intoThe LondonMarriott Hotel County Hall,Sea Life London Aquarium and theLondon Dungeon.
TheOXO Tower Wharf at the eastern end of South Bank, houses Gallery@Oxo, shops and boutiques, and the OXO Tower Restaurant run byHarvey Nichols.
Gabriel's Wharf is a redevelopedwharf on the South Bank, which has been converted into a shopping area.
The London Studios, the former home ofITV faces the Thames andRambert Dance Company have their new studios on Upper Ground. TheOld Vic andYoung Vic theatres are nearby.
TheFlorence Nightingale Museum to nursing, medicine and the Crimean War adjoins the 'district'.
The undercroft of the Queen Elizabeth Hall has been used byskateboarders since the early 1970s. Originally an architectural dead-spot, it became a landmark of British skateboarding culture, but later was under threat, though supported by theLong Live Southbank campaign. Part of the Southbank Centre was turned into shops looking out over the river.
The South Bank was the main scene of the 1952 comedy filmThe Happy Family, set around the Festival of Britain.
Part of the success of the area as a visitor attraction is attributed to the high levels of public transport access. Several major railway terminals are within walking distance of the South Bank, on both sides of the river, includingWaterloo,Charing Cross andBlackfriars. The London Underground has stations on or near the South Bank, from west to east, atWestminster,Waterloo,Embankment, Blackfriars andSouthwark.
The development of theThameslink Blackfriars railway station in the early 2010s, which has access from both the southern and northern side of the river, prompted the additional named signage "for Bankside and South Bank". Accessibility to the north bank is high, with connections made, from west to east, over theWestminster,Golden Jubilee,Waterloo andBlackfriars bridges. The river is utilised as a means of transport with piers along the South Bank at the London Eye, Royal Festival Hall and Bankside.
London/South Bank travel guide from Wikivoyage| International | |
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