Category: Kingsway, London

Kingsway, London

WH Smith in Kingsway, London – photographed in 1950. Twelve years later in 1962, a 20-year-old Brian Lewis Hopkin Jones (one of the founders of the Rolling Stones) worked here as a counter assistant.
Image: Photographer unknown
Now a Costa Coffee shop, I took this photograph in March 2022.
Image: © TimeViews Steven Miell
A merged version of the two photographs. Use the slider in the centre.

Kingsway, London

Bush House – seen here at the southern end of Kingsway – was commissioned, designed and originally owned by American individuals and companies. Plans for the building were approved in 1919 and it was meant to be a major new trade centre. The building was opened in sections over the years and fully completed in 1935.
When it was opened in 1925, two statues were unveiled at the entrance (not here in this photograph). Later installed, the statues symbolise Anglo-American friendship. The building also has an inscription – ‘To the friendship of English speaking peoples’. Bush House is constructed using Portland Stone and was once described as the most expensive building in the world. For many years it was the location of BBC World Service and is now part of King’s College. Also, to the left, the entrance to a tramway station can be seen.
Image: Photographer unknown

From approximately the same position in March 2022. The trees have come on a lot in the intervening 100 years.
Image: © TimeViews Steven Miell (2022)
A merged version of the two images. Use the slider in the centre.