Last week, under a gloriously warm, sunny and clear London sky – my London Shoes set off to undertake a blog topic, slightly different from the normal type of stuff Shoes publishes.
For this particular trek out, it was a pleasure to be accompanied by Karen, who I used to work with, albeit briefly, at Barclays East Ham High Street North branch, way back in the mid 1980’s – some 40 odd years ago now.
Like me, Karen is a proud Londoner and shares my passion for its people, places and history. She’s been a loyal ‘Shoes’ follower from the very outset and has accompanied me on a few occasions now.
Anyway – the last time Karen joined me ‘on-the-road’ was about 6 months ago. It was very cold that day – and at that time, I made a point of saying to her that the next time we ‘hit-the-road’ – will only be on a warm sunny day……which is exactly what it was when we met up last week.
So – the subject matter of this Shoes publication is…. ”LONDON – ROOF GARDENS”
Up until now, I was only aware of a couple of public roof gardens in central London – but my research for this topic, highlighted that there are actually quite a few of them in existence.
So, summarised below are 7 ‘Roof Gardens’ that my London Shoes sought out and visited last week:-
**The Sky Garden**
Located down in Fenchurch Street EC3, the 525ft/38 storey high ‘Sky Garden’ is London’s highest roof garden.
It’s tiered viewing decks and impressive floral displays, have attracted more than 12m visitors since it officially opened in 2015 – and its particularly popular with tourists.
Back in 2013 the ‘Sky Garden’ whilst under construction, made the national headlines re: its ‘Death Ray’ incident, when its south facing glass façade acted like a giant magnifying glass, when beams of sunlight deflected off its glass structure, created temperatures of over 90c at ground level. This intense heat began to damage parked cars and other vehicles – even scorching tiles, carpets and other fixtures/fittings of nearby shops.
The ‘Death Ray’ created, lasted approx. 2hrs per day during the peak summer months, and was said to be 6 times stronger than direct sunlight.
Because of its unique unusual shape, the Sky Garden gained the nickname – the ‘Walkie Talkie’ – but during the days of its ‘Death Ray’ phenomenon, the tabloids amusingly referred to it as the ‘Walkie Scorchie’ !!!
It created quite a bit of media interest at the time – to solve this unusual problem – developers set about installing non-reflective screening to the exterior of the part of the building that was causing the issue. This reflective material simply broke up the sun’s rays – making them a lot weaker – and thus solving the problem.
The views from the top of the Sky Garden are amazing – especially when the weather was like it was on the day of London Shoes visit. From the ‘garden’ there’s a 360 degree uninterrupted view of London, not only taking in the obvious landmarks such as The Shard / The Tower of London / St. Pauls etc etc – but you can see right out to Wembley Stadium to the West/ the Crystal Palace Transmitter to the South/Canary Wharf and beyond to the East / Battersea Power Station to the South West – in fact most of North/South/East/West London can be seen – amazing views all round – and well worth a visit (especially when the weather’s good).
**The Garden @ 120**
Still in Fenchurch Street, at no.120 just along the road from the Sky Garden, is “The Garden @ 120” – London’s largest public roof garden.
It opened in 2015 on top of the 15 storey ‘Fen Court’ building.
It’s a 2,800 sq mtr garden full of wisteria, fruit trees and a 200ft long water feature.
Although it’s a lot shorter than it Sky Garden neighbour, it still provides some really good views across London – and, because you’re much closer looking down on the surrounding buildings, it could be argued favourably that it’s a case of ‘less is more’.
From a personal perspective, I prefer ‘The Garden @ 120’ to the Sky Garden – as it’s a proper ‘roof garden’
**Cardinal Place-Roof Garden**
The Cardinal Place-Roof Garden is situated near Victoria Station – on an elevated section of a newly developed retail/restaurant area.
Technically, it’s not really a ‘roof garden’ as such, as its not very high up – but it is on top of a roof, albeit that of a low-level M&S store.
No stunning ‘views’ from this garden – you simply look down upon the retail outlets and all the folk passing through the walkways.
However – a lot of thought and effort has gone into creating a very pleasant and peaceful ‘garden’ area, ideal for office workers or anyone who fancies resting up while having a sarnie and coffee.
There’s plenty of seating throughout the ‘Cardinal Place Roof garden’ – even specially designed shaded area – a well-tended lawn area – some trees and shrubs and there’s even a bug hotel.
As I say, an ideal spot to take the weight off your feet and have a breather – if you’re ever in the Victoria area.
**The Post Building-Roof Garden**
Now – this is a place I never knew existed, until I started doing my research for this trek out – and what a little hidden gem it is too.
This roof garden is located not far from Holborn tube station (the Central Line or Piccadilly Line ie the Red & Blue ones on a standard tube map).
The 7,500 sq ft garden space opened in 2020 and is situated on the roof of an old 1960’s built Royal Mail sorting office – which had been abandoned and derelict for 20yrs before roof garden came along.
The entire building has been redeveloped and now contains offices and some small retail outlets on its ground floor.
Part of the ‘rules’ of the roof garden at its planning stage, was that it was to be a free entry public space for at least 20yrs.
The building is located in Museum Street and from its roof garden you can look right down on the British Museum / St.Pauls Cathedral / the BT Tower plus many more landmarks, particularly of the West End and beyond.
Loads of shrubs and plants are displayed in large planting containers – creating a really quiet comfy vibe – and like any roof garden, when the weather is good, it’s a nice place to be.
**One New Change-Roof Terrace**
Now – here’s another place that I never knew existed – and in fact, I knew very little about the location this roof terrace is situated in, even though I worked just down the road from it for a few years back in the early 2000’s!!
The site of the roof terrace was previously a massive 1960’s built office complex – that was pulled down and redeveloped into a modern glass and steel structured complex – full of offices and retail outlets.
This roof terrace is 6 storey up and was opened in 2010 – and is right up close and personal to St. Paul’s Cathedral – and the reason I knew very little about it was because the entire site was just one massive building site, when I worked down the road in St. Swithins Lane, back in the early 2000’s – so it was a pleasant surprise to see the place as it is today (2026).
There is a restaurant and bar on the roof terrace – and with all its tiered greenery it’s another nice relaxing place for office workers and tourists to take a break and rest up.
**Queen Elizabeth Hall-Roof Garden**
For the next batch of roof garden visits my London Shoes crossed the River (to the ‘Dark Side’) and the first location over there was the Southbank Centre at the 1967 opened, Grade II Listed ‘Queen Elizabeth Hall’ venue.
Built on the former site of a 1951 Festival of Britain tower, the venue hosts classical music, dance, and many other different styles of performances.
The venue’s roof garden officially opened in 2011 – and is another oasis of tranquillity, hidden gem situated bang in the middle of the mentally busy and bustling Southbank.
The garden initially had close connections with the famous Eden Project – and today is maintained by a group of volunteers.
Amongst its greenery is a restaurant and bar – and you can pull up a deck chair – have a drink, have something to eat – and then watch the world go by along the Southbank and the River Thames.
Another hidden gem that my London Shoes never knew existed – and a place I will certainly visit again in the future.
**Canary Wharf-Roof Garden**
Officially known as the Crossrail Place-Roof Garden – this ‘free’ public roof garden is one of London’s biggest ‘floral’ wise and is open daily right up until 9pm at the height of Summer.
It sits on top of the new Canary Wharf-Elizabeth Line Station and is positioned directly on the ‘Prime Meridiam’ line.
I used to work just a few hundred yards from the site, when I worked at the Barclays Bank HQ at 1 Churchill Place in Canary Wharf – and I actually saw this massive construction being built from scratch – it was fascinating to see, especially the construction of its huge timber latticed roof.
It officially opened in 2015 – I retired in 2017, so I didn’t get to experience the benefit of it much back then – but visit it regularly now whenever I up in Canary Wharf.
The garden is full of loads of exotic plants that are arranged according to which hemisphere they are from – for example, Asian plants such as bamboos are to the east, and plants such as ferns from the Americas are to the west.
There are loads of benches and spaces to chill out – and there’s even an amphitheater that regularly hosts music events – one of the best roof gardens around – what’s not to like.
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So – having spent almost 7hrs – clocking up over 27,000 steps, pounding 12 miles of London pavement – Karen (my accomplice for the day) and I were absolutely knackered, and agreed that we were in desperate need of some alcoholic sustenance and a bit of grub – and, there was really only one pub that warranted a visit from us…..’The Ledger Building’ pub in West India Quay.
Now – directly opposite The Ledger Building pub, there used to be a Barclays Bank building ‘Hertsmere House’ (its long been pulled down) apparently to be replaced by a private health clinic.
‘Hertsmere’ was a 3–storey building – one of the very first to be constructed when the massive Canary Wharf development project kicked off in the 1980’s.
During my time working at Canary Wharf I did a couple of stints working out of Hertsmere House – in the offices that were situated above the Barclays Bank branch that operated on the ground floor. Karen also worked at Hertsmere, but in the branch not the offices – and not at the same time as me.
For anyone working at Hertsmere House back in the day, The Ledger Building pub just a few yards across the cobbles, was the place to hang out at lunch times and/or after work – it’s a Wetherspoons pub and therefore by far the cheapest drinking hole in the Wharf area.
The Ledger Building was always my work ‘local’ when I worked at Hertsmere House and Karen said that it used to be hers too – so, it made perfect sense for us to rock-up there for a much-needed liquid refreshments and a bowl of chips.
So – in summary – although it was a looooong Shoes day out, it was an extremely productive one as my London Shoes achieved what we had set out to do, in visiting 7 of London’s public roof gardens, some of which neither Karen or myself, had been to before.
The other plus for this Shoes day out, was the glorious weather we had throughout – perfect meteorological conditions to enjoy the amazing panoramic views across this wonderful capital city of ours.
Anyway – I hope you enjoyed this Shoes blog and its accompanying photos – and maybe you’ll get to check out some of these unique public roof top gardens yourself, if you’re ever ambling around the ‘Smoke’.
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Below are the entire gallery of photos taken to accompany this “London’s Roof Top Gardens” blog article
SKY GARDEN – FENCHURCH STREET -EC3
Located down in Fenchurch Street EC3, the 525ft/38 storey high ‘Sky Garden’ is London’s highest roof garden.
Because of its unique unusual shape, the Sky Garden gained the nickname – the ‘Walkie Talkie’
It’s tiered viewing decks and impressive floral displays, have attracted more than 12m visitors since it officially opened in 2015 – and its particularly popular with tourists.
The views from the top of the Sky Garden are stunning – especially when the weather was like it was on the day of London Shoes visit.
Inside the ‘Sky Garden’
You get a 360 degree uninterrupted view of London from up the top of the Sky Garden
From the Sky Garden you can take in obvious London landmarks such as The Shard / The Tower of London / St. Pauls etc etc
A view from the ‘Sky Garden’ looking West and taking in St. Paul’s Cathedral – the BT Tower and even the Wembley Stadium arch
Inside the ‘Sky Garden’
A view of South London and the Crystal Palace Transmitter in the distance – from the viewing platform of the ‘Sky Garden’ in Fenchurch Street
Looking down at the River Thames, HMS Belfast and Tower Bridge – from the Sky Garden viewing platforms.
Inside the ‘Sky Garden’
The view to the East from the Sky Garden – with the skyscrapers of Canary Wharf in the distance
A view of The Shard – from the ‘Sky Garden’
Inside the ‘Sky Garden’
My London Shoes companion for the day ‘Karen’ & me on the viewing platform of the ‘Sky Garden’ in Fenchurch Street.
“THE GARDEN @ 120” – FENCHURCH STREET – EC3
“The Garden @ 120” – London’s largest public roof garden
Although it’s a lot shorter than it Sky Garden neighbour, it still provides some really good views across London – for example, here’s one of its ‘Sky Garden’ neighbour
‘The Garden @ 120″ roof garden – in Fenchurch Street
There’s a lot of ‘Wisteria’ going on at ‘The Garden @ 120″ roof garden
Although it’s a lot shorter than it Sky Garden neighbour, ‘The Garden @120″ still provides some really good views across London – here’s a photo of the nearby ‘Gherkin’ building
My London Shoes and me – getting a bit of ‘Wisteria Hysteria’ on the viewing platforms of “The Garden @120” – roof garden in Fenchurch Street
‘The Garden@120″ rooftop garden is full of wisteria, fruit trees and a 200 ft long water feature.
Inside the “The Garden@120” – Fenchurch Street
A view from “The Garden@120” rooftop garden – Fenchurchurch Street EC3
Inside the “The Garden@120” – Fenchurch Street
Tower Bridge – from “The Garden@120” rooftop garden – Fenchurchurch Street EC3
Inside the “The Garden@120” – Fenchurch Street
Me and Karen – my London Shoes accomplice for the day – on the viewing platforms of “The Garden@120” – Fenchurch Street – with the ‘Sky Garden’ in the background.
“CARDINAL PLACE-ROOF GARDEN” – VICTORIA SW1
The Cardinal Place-Roof Garden is situated near Victoria Station -on an elevated section of a newly developed retail/restaurant area.
Technically, it’s not really a ‘roof garden’ as such, as its not very high up – but it is on top of a roof, albeit that of a low-level M&S store.
No stunning ‘views’ as such from this garden – However – a lot of thought and effort has gone into creating a very pleasant and peaceful ‘garden’ area, ideal for office workers or anyone who fancies resting up while having a sarnie and coffee.
Shoes accomplice for the day ‘Karen’ – perplexed whilst searching for views from the ‘Cardinal Place-Roof Garden’
There’s plenty of seating throughout the ‘Cardinal Place Roof garden’
My London Shoes & me – at the “Cardinal Place Roof Garden”m – Victoria SW1
The ‘Cadinal Place-Roof Garden’ has a well-tended lawn area – some trees and shrubs and even a ‘bug hotel’.
“THE POST BUILDING-ROOF TERRACE” – NEW OXFORD STREET WC1
“The Post Building-Public Roof Terrace ‘ in Holborn – is a place I never knew existed, until I started doing my research for this blog article – and what a little hidden gem it is too.
This roof garden is located not far from Holborn tube station (the Central Line or Piccadilly Line ie the Red & Blue ones on a standard tube map).
The 7,500 sq ft garden space opened in 2020 and is situated on the roof of an old 1960’s built Royal Mail sorting office – which had been abandoned and derelict for 20yrs before roof garden came along.
One of the ‘rules’ of the Post Building-Roof Garden that was stipulated at its planning stage, was that it was to be a free entry public space for at least 20yrs.
‘Karen’ – checking out the views of London from the ‘Post Building-Roof Terrace’
Up on the ‘Post Building-Roof Terrace’ garden
Me & my London Shoes – taking some ‘snaps’ from the ‘Post Building-Roof Terrace’ garden
A view from the ‘Post Building-Roof Terrace’
Up on the ‘Post Building-Roof Terrace’ garden
Me & my London Shoes – on the viewing platform of the ‘Post Building-Roof Terrace’ –
Up on the ‘Post Building-Roof Terrace’ garden
The building is located near Museum Street, and from its roof garden you can look right down on the British Museum / St.Pauls Cathedral / the BT Tower plus many more landmarks, particularly of the West End and beyond.
My London Shoes looking down from the viewing platform of ‘The Post Building’ – on others in nearby buildings, enjoying a bit of sun
There are loads of shrubs and plants displayed in large planting containers – creating a really quiet comfy vibe – and like any roof garden, when the weather is good, it’s a nice place to be.
A view of the ‘London Eye’ from the ‘Post Building-Roof Terrace’ – London WC1
A view of the ‘Battersea Power Station’ in the distance – from the ‘Post Building-Roof Terrace’ – London WC1
‘The Post Building-Roof Terrace’ garden also has a ‘bug hotel’…..those lucky bugs !!!
Me and Karen – my London Shoes accomplice for the day – up on the viewing platforms of ‘The Post Building-Roof Garden’ in Holborn.
“ONE NEW CHANGE-ROOF TERRACE” – LONDON EC4
The ‘One New Change’ Roof Terrace, is another place that I never knew existed – and in fact, I knew very little about its location even though I worked just down the road from it for a few years back in the early 2000’s!!
The site of the ‘One New Change-Roof Terrace was previously a massive 1960’s built office complex – that was pulled down and redeveloped into a modern glass and steel structured complex – full of offices and retail outlets.
‘One New Change’ is right next door to St. Paul’s Cathedral
The ‘One New Change-Roof Terrace is 6 storey up and was opened in 2010
The ‘One New Change’ Roof Terrace is right up close and personal to St. Paul’s Cathedral
The gardens of the ‘One New Change-Roof Terrace’ – London EC4
A view of the Old Bailey – from the One New Change-Roof Terrace – London EC4
The gardens of the ‘One New Change-Roof Terrace’ – London EC4
The viewing platforms of the ‘One New Change-Roof Terrace’
St. Paul’s Cathedral is that close to the ‘One New Change-Roof Terrace’ – you can almost touch it !!!
There is a restaurant and bar on the roof terrace – and with all its tiered greenery it’s another nice relaxing place for office workers and tourists to take a break and rest up.
Me & my London Shoes up on the ‘One New Change-Roof Terrace’
“QUEEN ELIZABETH HALL-ROOF GARDEN” – SOUTHBANK LONDON SE1
The next ‘Roof Garden’ my London Shoes visited was ‘Saaf’ of the River – at the ‘Queen Elizabeth Hall’ venue on the Southbank
Built on the former site of a 1951 Festival of Britain Tower, the Queen Elizabeth Hall venue hosts classical music, dance, and many other different styles of performances.
The venue’s roof garden officially opened in 2011 – and is another oasis of tranquility, hidden gem situated bang in the middle of the busy and bustling Southbank.
The ‘Queen Elizabeth Hall-Roof Garden’ used to have close connections with the famous Eden Project – and today is maintained by a group of volunteers.
Me & my London Shoes up on the ‘Queen Elizabeth Hall-Roof Garden’
The ‘Queen Elizabeth Hall-Roof Garden’
Just one of the landmark sights to be seen from the viewinjg platforms of The queen Elizabeth Hall-Roof Garden’
Amongst its garden greenery the ‘Queen Elizabeth Hall-Roof Garden’ also has restaurant and bar – and you can pull up a deck chair – have a drink, have something to eat – and then watch the world go by along the Southbank and the River Thames.
The ‘Queen Elizabeth Hall-Roof Garden’
Me & my London Shoes up on the viewing platforms of ‘The Queen Elizabeth Hall-Roof Garden’
The ‘Queen Elizabeth Hall-Roof Garden’
The ‘Queen Elizabeth Hall-Roof Garden’
A couple of unoccupied deck chairs in the ‘Queen Elizabeth Hall-Roof Garden’
But not for long – as me and Karen (my Shoes accomplice for the day) soon bagged them !!!
“CROSSRAIL PLACE-ROOF GARDEN” – CANARY WHARF LONDON E14
The ‘Crossrail Place’-Roof Garden’ sits on top of the Canary Wharf-Elizabeth Line Station and is positioned directly on the ‘Prime Meridian’ line.
Officially known as the Crossrail Place-Roof Garden – this ‘free’ public roof garden is one of London’s biggest ‘floral’ wise and is open daily right up until 9pm at the height of Summer.
The ‘Crossrail Place-Roof Garden’ is full of loads of exotic plants that are arranged according to which hemisphere they are from – for example, Asian plants such as bamboos are to the east, and plants such as ferns from the Americas are to the west.
There are loads of benches and spaces to chill out – and there’s even an amphitheater that regularly hosts music events – one of the best roof gardens around in Shoes opinion.
I used to work just a few hundred yards from the site, when I worked at the Barclays Bank HQ at 1 Churchill Place in Canary Wharf – and I actually saw the massive Crossrail Place construction being built from scratch – it was fascinating to see, especially the construction of its huge timber latticed roof. In this photo you can just make out the Barclays HQ building in the background
Views from inside Crossrail Place-Roof Garden’ – Canary Wharf London E14
Views from inside Crossrail Place-Roof Garden’ – Canary Wharf
Views from inside Crossrail Place-Roof Garden’ – no real panoramic views – but an interesting garden layout
Me &n my London Shoes – inside ‘Crossrail Place-Roof Garden’ – Canary Wharf
Views from inside Crossrail Place-Roof Garden’
Views from inside Crossrail Place-Roof Garden’
Me & my London Shoes – inside Crossrail Place-Roof Garden – the final roof garden location on the ‘to do list’.
THE LEDGER BUILDING-PUB
‘Hertsmere House’ was a 3-storey building – one of the very first to be constructed when the massive Canary Wharf development project all kicked off in the 1980’s. It became a Barclays Bank building with offices upstairs and a bank branch on its ground floor. Between the years 2002 and 2017, I did 2 stints working at Hertsmere House. My accomplice for the day ‘Karen’ – often worked out of the bank branch on the ground floor
A photo from 2017 that I took from my then workplace at the Barclays Bank HQ 1 Churchill Place – looking down on the then ‘Hertsmere House’-with the yellow arrow showing the building’s close proximity to ‘The Ledger Building’-Pub
’The Ledger Building’ pub n West India Quay.
Inside ‘The Ledger Building’ pub – once the administration centre for all the goods coming in and out of West India Dock
An rather fatigued me – thoroughly enjoying a much needed ‘cheeky’ beer – in The Ledger Building pub – having pounded 12 miles of London pavements, tracking down t 7 of London’s public roof gardens.
The thing about The Ledger Building pub (my old ‘work local’) it does do a luverlee drop of Stella
Me & Karen – enjoying a much needed liquid refreshment in The Ledger Building pub at West India Dock – following a tiring but successful day tracking down and visiting 7 of London’s public roof gardens.
Was a fantastic day out weather was perfect and some great news places we have discovered.
Thanks for keeping me company throughout the day, and your help in tracking down some of the lesser known roof garden locations. Looking forward to our next one together.
Cheers Karen
GEOFF (www.londonshoes.blog)
That’s a fascinating set of visits. We’re so lucky in London that the developers have been “persuaded” to add roof gardens to towers and lower buildings. There’s a few more on the drawing board to come too.
Thank you Geoff for all the walking to capture the great photos. I always enjoy your blog too.
Looking forward to the next one,
Mary
Thank you for your kind comments Mary – really appreciate it – and I’m glad you enjoyed the read and photos.
kind regards
GEOFF (www.londonshoes.blog)
Who knew!!
Each roof garden seems to have its own charm, and your the photos are just lovely.
I’m guessing that this might have been a difficult blog to get out there as it obviously involved a lot of work, but it’s worth the effort.
Absolutely fascinating. Always look up, I was told when walking around towns and cities. You never know what you will find
Wow! Amazing!
Great pictures and commentary, thank you. You both definitely deserved the liquid refreshment at the end 😊
Nice work Geoff.
Crossrail has the best gardens, but my favourite of these is the Post Building, simply because it’s not in the city so the views are lower rise.
Despite visiting Southbank Centre regularly over many years, never noticed the signs to the garden (!) so thanks for that one.
I had no idea there were so many. Often visited the Kensington Roof Garden when Richard Branson owned it but it’s now a private members club and no longer open to the public.
I went to Sky Gardens on my probably final visit to London in February it was cold and wet. I used to work in the City in the late 60’s and I couldn’t believe how much it had changed. Didn’t recognise Leadenhall Market where I used to shop for fruit and vegetables.
Great post, thank you Geoff. I have been to 3 out of the 7 featured garden roofs.
Wow fantastic photos thank you so much for taking us on your journey
Fascinating thank you!
Such wonderful photographs thank you so much for posting them. I am from England but now live in Melbourne but have had quite a few trips back home to catch up with family and explore London and other places around the UK. London is still my favourite city so much to see and do and discover new places each visit. Sadly age has caught up with me but in my 10 trips back I’ve always left a full week or more re-discovering London.
Hi Margaret,
I just wanted to thank you for taking the time and trouble to contact my London Shoes website – its comments/feedback like yours that make all the time and effort I put in to my little hobby….all worthwhile.
I’ve attached the link to my London Shoes website, as there are over 600+ blog articles that Ive published to date – so there may be other topics on there that you may find interesting.
Similarly – if there is a place/location/building/street that you would be interested to see what it looks like nowadays, then please do not hesitate to let me know, as I will do my best to photograph it, when out and about on my travels – and thyen email it to you…..its really no problem.
Kind regards
GEOFF (www.londonshoes.blog)
Lovely Geoff , green lungs for the city