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The Foyles Building at 111–119 Charing Cross Road and 1–12
In 2014, the business, still family-owned, moved down the road to 107–109 Charing Cross Road, in a redevelopment of the old Central Saint Martins art school building.
The building, owned by
The Foyles Building at 111–119 Charing Cross Road and 1–12 Manette Street
Manette Street is a small street in the Soho area of London, linking the Charing Cross Road to Greek Street. Dating from the 1690s, and formerly named Rose Street, it is now named after the fictional character of Dr Manette in Charles Dickens' ...
, London, was the flagship store of the Foyles
W & G Foyle Ltd. (usually called simply Foyles) is a bookseller with a chain of seven stores in England. It is best known for its flagship store in Charing Cross Road, London. Foyles was once listed in the '' Guinness Book of Records'' as th ...
bookshop chain from 1929 to 2014, and at one time, the world's largest bookshop. The business moved next door to 107–109 Charing Cross Road in 2014, in a redevelopment of the old Saint Martin's School of Art
Saint Martin's School of Art was an art college in London, England. It offered foundation and degree level courses. It was established in 1854, initially under the aegis of the church of St Martin-in-the-Fields. Saint Martin's became part of ...
building. The building was demolished in 2017.
History
The building was designed by the architects F. Taperell and H. Haase and built from 1927 before opening in 1929. It was at one time claimed to be the world's largest bookshop.William Foyle
William Alfred Westropp Foyle (1885–1963) was a British bookseller and businessman who co-founded Foyles bookshop in 1903 with his brother Gilbert Foyle.
William Foyle was one of the leading London booksellers of the 20th century. In 190 ...
stated that it was "the world's first purpose-built bookshop", (although this is disputed), as well as the world's largest.
In 1932, on hearing that the Nazis were burning books, William Foyle sent Adolf Hitler a telegram asking if he could buy them instead.
During the Second World War, to safeguard the store from the effects of the Blitz
The Blitz was a German bombing campaign against the United Kingdom in 1940 and 1941, during the Second World War. The term was first used by the British press and originated from the term , the German word meaning 'lightning war'.
The Germa ...
, sandbag
A sandbag or dirtbag is a bag or sack made of hessian (burlap), polypropylene or other sturdy materials that is filled with sand or soil and used for such purposes as flood control, military fortification in trenches and bunkers, shielding gl ...
s filled with old books were used, and the roof was "covered" with copies of Hitler's '' Mein Kampf''. In an account in ''The Argonaut
''The Argonaut'' was a newspaper based in San Francisco, California from 1878 to 1956. It was founded by Frank Somers, and soon taken over by Frank M. Pixley, who built it into a highly regarded publication. Under Pixley's stewardship it was c ...
'', "News reels this week are showing a clerk of Foyle's of London stacking copies of Adolf Hitler's ''Mein Kampf'' in place of sand bags on the roof of the store as a protection against air raids!"
In 1940, a bomb which landed in Charing Cross Road itself nearly destroyed the bookshop, and a bridge was built over the large crater, christened "Foyles Bridge" by William Foyle.
In 2014, the business, still family-owned, moved down the road to 107–109 Charing Cross Road, in a redevelopment of the old Central Saint Martins art school building.
Demolition
The building, owned by Soho Estates
Soho Estates is a British property company created by entrepreneur and pornographer Paul Raymond. The holdings of Soho Estates are mainly based in Soho, a district in the West End of London.
Through Soho Estates Holdings Limited and parent com ...
, was due to be demolished in autumn 2016, and replaced by a new 310,000 sq ft, 13-storey (including four basement floors) building, Ilona Rose House. Historic England
Historic England (officially the Historic Buildings and Monuments Commission for England) is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport. It is tasked w ...
, the Victorian Society
The Victorian Society is a UK amenity society and membership organisation that campaigns to preserve and promote interest in Victorian and Edwardian architecture and heritage built between 1837 and 1914 in England and Wales. It is a registered ...
, and SAVE Britain's Heritage
Save Britain's Heritage (styled as ''SAVE Britain's Heritage'') is a British charity, created in 1975 by a group of journalists, historians, architects, and planners to campaign publicly for endangered historic buildings. It is also active on the ...
asked the mayor of London, Sadiq Khan
Sadiq Aman Khan (; born 8 October 1970) is a British politician serving as Mayor of London since 2016. He was previously Member of Parliament (MP) for Tooting from 2005 until 2016. A member of the Labour Party, Khan is on the party's sof ...
, to reject the planned demolition. The building was demolished in 2017.
References
External links
* {{coord, 51.51478, N, 0.13004, W, region:GB_type:landmark, display=title Bookshops in London Charing Cross Road Demolished buildings and structures in London Buildings and structures demolished in 2017