Hay's Galleria is a mixed use building in the

London Borough of Southwark The London Borough of Southwark ( ) in South London forms part of Inner London and is connected by bridges across the River Thames to the City of London and London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It was created in 1965 when three smaller council areas ...

situated on the south bank of the

River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...

featuring offices, restaurants, shops, and flats. Originally a warehouse and associated wharf (''Hay's Wharf'') for the port of London, it was redeveloped in the 1980s. It is a Grade II listed structure.

History

Hay's Wharf

Hay's Galleria is named after its original owner, the merchant Alexander Hay, who acquired the property – then a brewhouse – in 1651.History of the Galleria
In around 1840 John Humphrey Jnr acquired a lease on the property. He asked

William Cubitt Sir William Cubitt FRS (bapt. 9 October 1785 – 13 October 1861) was an eminent English civil engineer and millwright. Born in Norfolk, England, he was employed in many of the great engineering undertakings of his time. He invented a type o ...

(who was father-in-law to two of Humphrey's sons) to convert it into a '

wharf A wharf, quay (, also ), staith, or staithe is a structure on the shore of a harbour or on the bank of a river or canal where ships may dock to load and unload cargo or passengers. Such a structure includes one or more berths (mooring locatio ...

', in fact an enclosed dock, in 1856 and it was renamed Hay's Wharf. During the nineteenth century, the wharf was one of the chief delivery points for ships bringing

tea Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by pouring hot or boiling water over cured or fresh leaves of ''Camellia sinensis'', an evergreen shrub native to East Asia which probably originated in the borderlands of southwestern China and north ...

to the Pool of London. At its height, 80% of the dry produce imported to London passed through the wharf, and on this account the wharf was nicknamed 'the

Larder A larder is a cool area for storing food prior to use. Originally, it was where raw meat was larded—covered in fat—to be preserved. By the 18th century, the term had expanded. Now a dry larder was where bread, pastry, milk, butter, or cooked m ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

'. The wharf was largely rebuilt following the Great Fire of Southwark in June 1861 and then continued in use for nearly a century until it was badly bombed in September 1940 during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

. In 1920, the owners of the wharf purchased the shares of

Pickfords Pickfords is a moving company based in the United Kingdom, part of Pickfords Move Management Ltd. The business is believed to have been founded in the 17th century, making it one of the UK's oldest functioning companies, although the similar ...

as part of their Hay's Wharf Cartage Company subsidiary. This subsidiary was sold to the Big Four railways in 1933. The progressive adoption of

containerisation Containerization is a system of intermodal freight transport using intermodal containers (also called shipping containers and ISO containers). Containerization is also referred as "Container Stuffing" or "Container Loading", which is the p ...

during the 1960s led to the shipping industry moving to deep water ports further down the Thames and the subsequent closure of Hay's Wharf in 1970.

Redevelopment

In the 1980s, with the increasing

urban regeneration Urban renewal (also called urban regeneration in the United Kingdom and urban redevelopment in the United States) is a program of land redevelopment often used to address urban decay in cities. Urban renewal involves the clearing out of bligh ...

of the Thames Corridor and nearby London Docklands, the majority of the area was acquired by the St Martin's Property Corporation, the real estate arm of the State of Kuwait. The easterly end of the site was developed as London Bridge City of which Hay's Galleria' forms part. The decision was made to retain the dock and to restore its tea and produce warehouses surrounding it to provide office accommodation and shops. The dock gates were permanently closed, the 'impounded' area of the dock was covered with a floor to the sill of the wharf-sides and the entire space was enclosed with a glass roof designed by the young architect Arthur Timothy while he worked with Michael Twigg Brown Architects. This scheme was implemented by

Twigg Brown Architects Twigg Brown are a London-based architecture practice. Their notable projects include the Hay's Galleria as part of the overall Twigg Brown masterplan for London Bridge City and the Grosvenor Waterside development in Chelsea for Grosvenor. Compe ...

as part of their masterplan for the renewal strategy. In a fountain at the centre of the Galleria is a 60 ft moving bronze sculpture of a ship, called 'The Navigators' by sculptor David Kemp, unveiled in 1987 to commemorate the Galleria's shipping heritage. The entire construction of the Galleria, Cottons, No 1 London Bridge and Thames river wall rebuild was managed and completed by Laing Management Contracting. The development was supported by the

London Docklands Development Corporation The London Docklands Development Corporation (LDDC) was a quango agency set up by the UK Government in 1981 to regenerate the depressed Docklands area of east London. During its seventeen-year existence it was responsible for regenerating an a ...

. After its completion and opening in 1987, Hays Galleria became the first new visitor attraction of that period on the south of the river.

Activities

Office tenants have included the UK social work regulator, the

General Social Care Council The General Social Care Council (GSCC) was a non-departmental public body of the Department of Health in the United Kingdom which was the regulator of social workers and social work students in England between 2001 and 2012. It set down codes of ...

, and the

Social Care Institute for Excellence The Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE; pronounced 'sky') is a UK charity and improvement agency. SCIE shares knowledge about what works in practice across social care, social work and beyond, covering adults’, families’ and children ...

. The pub at the riverside entrance, 'The Horniman at Hay's', is named to commemorate one of the main tea-producing companies associated with the trade here. Due to its location on the southern

Thames Path The Thames Path is a National Trail following the River Thames from its source near Kemble in Gloucestershire to the Woolwich foot tunnel, south east London. It is about long. A path was first proposed in 1948 but it only opened in 1996. The ...

, its panoramic views over the

City of London The City of London is a city, ceremonial county and local government district that contains the historic centre and constitutes, alongside Canary Wharf, the primary central business district (CBD) of London. It constituted most of London f ...

from the riverside, and the location between London City Hall and

Southwark Cathedral Southwark Cathedral ( ) or The Cathedral and Collegiate Church of St Saviour and St Mary Overie, Southwark, London, lies on the south bank of the River Thames close to London Bridge. It is the mother church of the Anglican Diocese of Southwar ...

, Hay's Galleria is visited by many tourists and local workers. For 20 years it housed a year-round market - the Hays Galleria Market, which operated seven days a week. It had a resident artist, and for more than 2 decades, it was home to several permanent independent traders, long-term tenants of St Martins Property Corporation selling souvenirs, touristic apparel, and jewellery from traditional barrows positioned in fixed locations in the Galleria. On 8 October 2010, on the orders of CBRE, the managing agents, the barrows were removed. The barrows were reinstated under the new managing agents post 2014, and as at 22 August 2017 there are 8 barrows operating in the Galleria.

Transport

* River services:

London Bridge City Pier London Bridge City Pier (also known as London Bridge Pier and City Pier) is situated on the south bank of the River Thames in London, UK, close to London Bridge. It serves as the main pier for the City of London and City Hall, former headqua ...

(Commuter service) * Tube/National Rail:

London Bridge station London Bridge is a central London railway terminus and connected London Underground station in Southwark, south-east London. It occupies a large area on three levels immediately south-east of London Bridge, from which it takes its name. The m ...

References

External links

*
Hay's GalleriaTwigg Brown Architects
Architects for the regeneration of London Bridge City, including refurbishment of Hays Galleria Architects *Timothy Associates Architects. * * * * {{coord, 51.5058, -0.0837, display=title, region:GB_scale:2000 Retail buildings in London Grade II* listed buildings in the London Borough of Southwark Grade II listed buildings in the London Borough of Southwark Redeveloped ports and waterfronts in London London docks Tourist attractions in the London Borough of Southwark St Martins Property Group Privately owned public spaces