15+ Buildings That Define London Architecture

Sightseeing London’s architecture is one of the most fascinating things to do in London, offering a journey through the city’s history and its most iconic eras. London’s famous landmarks tell unique stories, with many having been rebuilt several times over the centuries. Let’s explore London’s architecture, both historic and modern.

1. Barbican Estate and Barbican Centre 

The Barbican was designed to bring community living into the heart of the city after WWII and is cited as one of London’s most famous examples of Brutalist architecture.

But you don’t have to be a resident to enjoy the talks, film screenings, and other art events that go on at the Barbican Centre.

• Location: Silk St, Barbican, London EC2Y 8DS
• Architect: Chamberlin, Powell, and Bon
• Building Height: Cromwell Tower is 123 m
• Year: Completed 1982
• Style: Brutalist 
• Pro Tip: Even if you're not going to an event, it’s fun to simply visit during the day and walk around.

2. Trellick Tower

Trellick Tower is one of London’s most recognizable Brutalist icons, designed by Ernő Goldfinger and completed in 1972. Standing tall over West London, it was initially controversial for its stark concrete style but is now celebrated as an architectural landmark.

• Address: 5 Golborne Rd, London W10 5UT
• Architect: Ernő Goldfinger
• Building Height: 98 m (31 floors)
• Year: 1972
• Style: Brutalist architecture
• Fun Fact: Trellick Tower has a rich history, and it has been featured in films, books, music videos, and even album art.

3. Battersea Power Station

Battersea Power Station’s brick façade and four towering chimneys make it a stark example of industrial design. Today, it has multiple shops, restaurants, and public spaces.

• Address: Nine Elms, London SW11 8DD
• Architect: Sir Giles Gilbert Scott
• Building Height: Chimneys 50 m
• Year: Built in stages 1929–1955, reopened 2022
• Style: Brick industrial with Art Deco elements
• Fun Fact: Designed by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott, the same architect behind Britain’s red telephone boxes, the power station once generated a fifth of London’s electricity.

4. St. Pancras Hotel and Train Station

St. Pancras Hotel and Train Station is a Gothic Revival jewel that almost faced demolition in the 1960s before a major campaign saved it. Like the rest of London, it’s busy, but you can try to take in the red-brick façade, pointed arches, and dramatic spires. 

• Address: Euston Rd, London N1C 4QP
• Architect: Sir George Gilbert Scott (hotel), William Henry Barlow (station shed)
• Building Height: Hotel clock tower 82 m
• Year: Opened 1868 (station), 1873 (hotel)
• Style: Victorian Gothic
• Fun fact: Nearly demolished in the 1960s before a major preservation campaign saved it.

5. Lee Valley VeloPark

Lee Valley VeloPark is one of the standout legacies of the 2012 London Olympics. It’s nicknamed “The Pringle” because of its curved roof, and it was designed with efficiency and sustainability in mind.

• Location: Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, Abercrombie Rd, London E20 3AB
• Architect: Hopkins Architects
• Building Height: 48 ft (roof height)
• Year: Completed 2011
• Style: Modern / Sustainable architecture
• Fun fact: The track uses 56 km of Siberian pine.

6. London Aquatics Centre

The London Aquatics Centre is another Olympic icon, instantly recognizable for its sweeping wave-like roof. It was designed by Zaha Hadid, the first woman to win the Pritzker Architecture Prize. She was often celebrated for her fluid, futuristic designs. The roof, which spans over 160 meters, was inspired by the fluidity of water itself.

• Location: Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, London E20 2ZQ
• Architect: Zaha Hadid
• Building Height: 45 ft (approx. 15 m roof height)
• Year: Completed 2011
• Style: Modern / Parametric design
• Fun fact: The roof weighs over 3,000 tons yet appears to float gracefully.

7. V&A Museum

The V&A Museum is the world’s largest museum of applied arts, design, and decorative arts. The details lie in the building’s ornate stonework and sculptural detail.

Rooted in Victorian Gothic style, it later expanded with striking modern additions like the Exhibition Road Quarter.

• Location: Cromwell Rd, London SW7 2RL
• Architect: Sir Aston Webb
• Building Height: Varies
• Year: Established in 1852
• Style: Victorian Gothic
• Fun fact: The V&A Museum has the first ever photograph of London.

8. The Blavatnik Building – Tate Modern

The Blavatnik Building – Tate Modern redefined the museum’s presence on the South Bank when it opened in 2017. The perforated brickwork allows shifting patterns of light inside, creating dramatic spaces for contemporary art.

The building is an example of adaptive reuse and sustainable architecture, as the original Bankside Power Station structure was reused in the creation of Tate Modern.

• Address: Bankside, London SE1 9TG
• Architect: Herzog & de Meuron
• Building Height: 65 m
• Year: Opened 2016
• Style: Brutalist
• Fun fact: The building’s angled brick pattern is designed to filter natural light into the galleries, reducing the need for artificial lighting and creating changing shadow patterns inside.

9. The Shard

The Shard’s piercing, sharp glass form was inspired by church spires and ship masts, connecting modern engineering with the city’s historic silhouette. Opened in 2012, it houses offices, restaurants, a hotel, and an observation deck that draws millions of visitors.

• Address/Location: 32 London Bridge St, London SE1 9SG
• Architect: Renzo Piano
• Building Height: 310 m
• Year: Completed 2012
• Style: Neo-futurism / High-tech architecture
• Fun fact: The Shard is the tallest of all London skyscrapers.

10. 30 St. Mary Axe

30 St. Mary Axe, better known as The Gherkin, is one of the most recognizable London skyscrapers. Its curved, aerodynamic form reduces wind load and uses far less energy than a typical office tower. The building’s 41 stories are wrapped in a spiraling pattern of glass panels that maximize natural light.

• Address: 30 St. Mary Axe, London EC3A 8EP
• Architect: Norman Foster (Foster + Partners)
• Building Height: 180 m
• Year: Completed 2012
• Style: Modernist
• Fun fact: Not all the glass is curved, only the very top!

11.The Crystal

The Crystal in the Royal Docks is part of London’s push for sustainable architecture. The building generates much of its own energy through solar power, harvests rainwater for reuse, and uses ground-source heat pumps to control temperature. London City Hall relocated there in 2022.

• Location: Royal Victoria Dock, Kamal Chunchie Way, London E16 1ZE
• Architect: WilkinsonEyre
• Building Height: 21 m
• Year: The Crystal 2012, became City Hall in 2022
• Style: Sustainable modern architecture
• Fun fact: The Crystal was one of the world’s first buildings to achieve both BREEAM Outstanding and LEED Platinum certifications.

12. Lloyd’s Building

Lloyd’s Building is a little different. The building’s staircases, elevators, and service ducts are all placed on the exterior, leaving open, flexible spaces within. Even though it was built in the 80s, it still looks futuristic today.

• Address: 1 Lime St, London EC3M 7HA
• Architect: Richard Rogers (Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners)
• Building Height: 88 m
• Year: Completed 1986
• Style: High-tech architecture
• Fun fact: One of the youngest buildings in the UK to receive Grade I listed status.

13. Westminster Abbey

Westminster Abbey is one of London’s most important Gothic landmarks and a masterpiece of medieval architecture. Founded in the 10th century and largely rebuilt in the 13th century, it has hosted every English and later British coronation since 1066.

Beyond royal weddings and funerals, it’s also a burial site for thousands of notable people, including monarchs, poets, scientists, and statesmen, cementing its role as an archive of British history.

• Address: 20 Deans Yard, London SW1P 3PA
• Architect: Henry of Reyns (primary Gothic phase)
• Building Height: Nave approx. 31m
• Year: Rebuilt beginning in 1245 under Henry III
• Style: Early English Gothic
• Fun Fact: Poet’s Corner in the Abbey honors writers like Chaucer, Shakespeare, and Dickens.

14. Big Ben

Big Ben’s name originally refers to the Great Bell inside rather than the tower itself. It was completed as part of the design for the Houses of Parliament. No doubt you’ve seen its Gothic Revival detailing, whether in the movies or in person.

• Address: Elizabeth Tower, Westminster, London, SW1A 0AA
• Architects: Charles Barry and Augustus Pugin
• Building Height: 96 m
• Year: Completed 1859
• Style: Victorian Gothic Revival
• Fun Fact: Big Ben (the bell) weighs a lot, at 13.7 tons.

15. Shakespeare’s Globe

Shakespeare’s Globe is a faithful reconstruction of the original Elizabethan playhouse built in 1599. Its open-air design, circular shape, and timber-framed structure provide an authentic Shakespearean theatre experience.

The theatre is also a research hub, exploring historical performance practices and Elizabethan staging. Today, it hosts plays, workshops, and exhibitions, letting visitors step back in time while enjoying world-class performances.

• Address: 21 New Globe Walk, London SE1 9DT
• Architect: Theo Crosby (modern reconstruction)
• Building Height: Approx. 20 m
• Year: Rebuilt 1997 (original 1598!)
• Style: Elizabethan timber-framed theatre
• Fun fact: In the evening, there are lights above the Globe theatre that are meant to recreate the impression of daylight.

16. The Royal Exchange

The Royal Exchange’s current neoclassical structure dates to the mid-19th century, but it was officially opened in 1571. Today, its grand portico and Corinthian columns are home to luxury retail and dining destinations.

• Address: Royal Exchange, London EC3V 3LR
• Architect: Sir William Tite (current building)
• Building Height: Approx. 35 m
• Year: 1571
• Style: Neoclassical
• Did you know? The Royal Exchange has survived two devastating fires.

17. Drapers’ Hall

Drapers’ Hall was first established in 1361, and like many other buildings that have been mentioned, it has endured fire and reconstruction. The current interiors reflect grand 19th-century neoclassical design. The 1898–1899 alterations gave it much of the indoor splendor visitors admire today. 

• Address: Throgmorton Ave, London EC2N 2DQ
• Architect: Multiple architects
• Style: Neoclassical
• Fun fact: The building has a rich history, having been created long ago to be the headquarters and meeting place of the Drapers’ Guild, a medieval association of textile merchants.

18. St Paul’s Cathedral

St Paul’s Cathedral was built following the destruction of the previous medieval cathedral in the Great Fire of 1666. The dome, one of the largest in the world, invites visitors to climb to the Whispering Gallery, where unique acoustics carry sound across the curved walls.

• Location: St. Paul’s Churchyard, London EC4M 8AD
• Architect: Sir Christopher Wren
• Building Height: 111 m
• Year: Completed in 1710
• Style: English Baroque with Gothic Influences
• Fun fact: The Stone and Golden Galleries reveal views across the Thames and London skyscrapers.

FAQs about London Architecture

How can I best experience London’s mix of architectural styles?

On foot: Many of London’s most iconic buildings are clustered close together, especially around Westminster and the South Bank. Walking lets you take in details you’d miss otherwise, like hidden courtyards and historic street layouts.

Underground: The fastest way to cover distance. Stations like Westminster, Canary Wharf, and Tottenham Court Road are architectural highlights in their own right.

River services: The London River Bus can help you experience the skyline from the water, with views of bridges, skyscrapers, and historic warehouses along the way.

What’s the best way to explore London’s Victorian Gothic buildings?

Head to St. Pancras Station and the Houses of Parliament. Even if you don’t go inside, the exteriors alone are a sight to see. Look out for guided tours, which often include areas not usually open to the public.

Where can I see medieval London that still survives today?

Visit the Guildhall in the City of London, which still serves civic functions, or Drapers’ Hall, which is occasionally open on special days. Walking around Cheapside Street can also give a sense of the medieval street plan.

Are there good viewpoints for seeing London’s architectural contrasts?

The Golden Gallery at St. Paul’s Cathedral, the Tower Bridge walkways, and the Sky Garden at 20 Fenchurch Street all offer views.

History & Architecture in London

London’s architecture is a story told in stone, steel, and glass, spanning modern skyscrapers as well as iconic Gothic, Victorian, and Brutalist landmarks. We hope this guide will help you discover some of London’s most inventive examples of architecture.

To end your journey on a high note, why not consider pairing your architectural explorations with a show? Our Cirque du Soleil shows in London are a blend of artistry, storytelling, and unforgettable performances.