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A business event can sometimes be a bit of a stuffy and staid affair.
But with the right venue, that needn’t be the case.
An interesting or off-beat event space can kill two birds with one stone – it hosts your guests and acts as a conversation piece, serving to thaw some of the frostiness you sometimes find when colleagues and new acquaintances meet in unfamiliar surroundings.
That’s why we have scoured the capital to find its most one-of-a-kind event spaces.
Our list includes locations that are suitable for all different kinds of business functions and get-togethers – from fun team-building exercises and networking events to more buttoned-up business powwows and product launches.
1. Disused TfL Ticket Hall, Platforms and Piers
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TfL is always looking for ways to put its assets to work, with paid advertising and not least those bits of its network that have fallen into desuetude and forgotten by all but the most ardent transport buff.
To this end, the transport authority has recently made several of its iconic sites available for hire, including its long-defunct ticket hall at Aldwych and the disused Jubilee line platforms at Charing Cross.
Aldwych hasn’t seen a paying passenger since 1994, but that doesn’t mean it hasn’t been busy. It regularly features in TV series and films (Darkest Hour, Sherlock and Atonement) and can now be hired to host your corporate event.
Over at Charing Cross, the disused platform can also be hired out and comes complete with a Tube train stationed there so guests can have a gander during the event.
Both Aldwych and Charing Cross are ideal for medium-sized gatherings and can accommodate 100 guests each.
Charing Cross and Aldwych offer a time capsule of the Tube’s heyday, but if you’re after a more modern TfL backdrop for your get-together, Bank station on the Waterloo & City line might be more to your liking.
The line is still in operation during the week so the decor and overall aesthetic reflect the contemporary TfL colour scheme and layout.
And if you are feeling adventurous, the transport authority has also recently made available its IFS Cloud Cable Car and several of its piers.
Many of the latter are perfect for intimate events – think drinks receptions and networking functions – but the ones at Blackfriars and Tower Millenium Pier can host larger events and accommodate 300 and 150 guests respectively. Both offer wonderful views of some of the capital’s best real estate, including the Shard and Oxo towers.
TfL’s spaces are ‘dry hire’ – no booze can be served unless you apply to the local authorities for permission to serve alcohol.
Price
A price will be quoted once you have submitted the details of your event using this form.
Contact Info
Address:
TfL Customer Services
9th Floor
5 Endeavour Square
London
E20 1JN
Tel: 0343 222 1234.
Email: exclusivehire@tfl.gov.uk.
Website: https://tfl.gov.uk/info-for/business-and-advertisers/.
2. 26 Leake Street
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If your event needs a gritty urban backdrop then look no further than 26 Leake Street, situated in a warren of graffiti-daubed railway arches under Waterloo Station.
The site is a favourite among bohemian and off-beat types looking for an edgy space in which to launch a new product, conduct a photo shoot or host a networking event.
The graffiti can be switched to reflect the hirer’s branding and corporate message and giant digital message boards outside the venue can be used to drive your message home.
The arches can be hired individually or together, the latter option gives you a whopping 11,000 square feet to play with – space enough for up to 1,200 guests.
There are also several side rooms available, ideal if you need a space to host a breakaway event or a smaller gathering.
You can check out the venue’s floor plan here and its booking form here.
Price
£12,500 – £25,000 per event.
Contact Info
Address
26 Leake Street
7 Addington Street
London
SE1 7RY
Tel: 020 3763 7429.
Website: https://26leakestreet.com/.
3. Thames Ferry
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For some people, the American author Ernest Hemingway suggested, Paris is a moveable feast.
Thanks to Thames Luxury Charters and its trio of ferries, London now is too.
Its boats are ideal for hosting seasonal and festive events such as summer parties and Christmas get-togethers.
And because the fleet is moored at Butler’s Wharf Pier, a short distance from the iconic Tower Bridge, corporates launching a new product have the perfect opportunity to use the pier as an advertising space for their brand or product.
Indeed, both Adidas and Hugo Boss have recently used the ferries and their mooring site as the backdrop when launching new offerings.
Guests can embark at scores of London piers, including Canary Wharf, Westminster and North Greenwich.
The three ferries are:
- Dixie Queen: max capacity up to 620 guests; fine dining up to 432 guests.
- Elizabethan: max capacity up to 235 guests; fine dining up to 140 guests.
- Edwardian: max capacity up to 90 guests; fine dining up to 60 guests.
All the company’s crew are uniformed, meaning you can maintain a professional image throughout your event.
You can find TLC’s booking form here.
Price
Prices start at £3,600.
Contact Info
Address:
Admirals Court
9-10 Copper Row
London
SE1 2LH
Tel: 020 7357 7751.
Website: https://www.thamesluxurycharters.co.uk/.
4. The Bedouin Tent & Garden at St Ethelburga’s Centre
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You can bring a bit of nomadic culture to your event by hosting it in this traditional Middle Eastern stretch tent in Bishopsgate, a short trek from Liverpool Street tube station.
The tent is a truly unique space and is set in the courtyard garden of St Ethelburga’s Centre for Reconciliation and Peace.
It is the ideal location for all manner of colloquies, corporate workshops, and small business meetings.
The tent is woven from goat hair and is hexadecagon (sixteen-sided) in shape, a geometry that is supposed to promote harmony and understanding among its occupants.
Up to 28 people, seated on cushioned benches around the circumference, can occupy the tent at any one time.
All guests are asked to remove their shoes before entering.
The tent’s floor plan can be found here.
Prices
| Bedouin Tent | Half Day (4h) 8 am-12 pm / 1 pm-5 pm | Full Day (9h) 8 am-5 pm | Evening 6 pm-10 pm (and later*) |
| Individual/Small Charity** | £250 | £500 | £350 |
| Small Business/ Large Charity*** | £300 | £600 | £400 |
| Large Business/ Corporate | £400 | £850 | £550 |
Contact Info
Address:
St Ethelburga’s Centre for Reconciliation and Peace
78 Bishopsgate
London
EC2N 4AG
Tel: 020 7496 1610.
Website: https://stethelburgas.org/venue-hire/.
5. The British Library
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A library is perhaps not the first place that springs to mind when you’re planning an event – not least because you run the risk of being shushed should things take a rowdy turn.
But the British Library is no longer simply a set of reading rooms and a dusty book repository – rather, it is a multipurpose building that is equally at home hosting fancy dinners, product launches and board meetings as it is checking out tomes to borrowers.
The library has 16 different rooms and spaces available for hire, many of them named in honour of famous authors.
They include:
- The Executive Suite, which can hold up to 50 guests.
- The Outdoor Terrace, together with the Terrace Restaurant, is ideal for catered events and can host up to 400 diners.
- The auditorium, which can accommodate up to 255 people, is kitted out with facilities for simultaneous translation, film, sound and video presentation.
- The Chaucer Room allows direct access to the auditorium and can serve as a break-out space or green room for speakers and VIPs attending an event in the adjacent auditorium. Up to 50 people can be hosted here.
- The Dickens room can accommodate up to 25 people and has an interactive whiteboard, built-in screen, air conditioning, blackout facilities and soundproofing.
- The theatre is perfect for product launches and branding exercises as it features a state-of-the-art lighting system that can be tweaked to match your company’s branding and corporate colours.
The library is handily situated in the heart of London and served by Euston, St Pancras International and Kings Cross stations.
Prices
From £3,700 per day.
Contact Info
Address:
British Library
96 Euston Road
London
NW1 2DB
Tel: 020 7412 7205.
Website: http://www.bl.uk.
6. Bunker 51
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If you’re looking to run a team-building event and need a cavernous space in which to do it you can’t go wrong with Bunker 51 in Greenwich.
The site boasts 14,000 square feet of space over two arenas and is modelled on a nuclear bunker.
It is an ideal location to host an event that seeks to build team morale and bring co-workers together in a fun environment, with facilities for games of laser tag, paintball and airsoft available on-site.
If you’re looking to host a more cerebral kind of team-building event, the bunker also has a fiendishly tricky escape room, which will force confined colleagues to work together over an hour to liberate themselves.
Price
Prices start at £48 per person for the team-building games.
You can also hire the bunker for filming. Prices start at £120 plus VAT.
Contact Info
Address:
3 Herringham Road
London
SE7 8NJ
Tel: 330 333 8085.
Email: bookings@ultimaterecreation.co.uk.
Website: https://www.bunker-51.com/.
7. The Cheesegrater
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The Leadenhall Building, known to locals as the Cheesegrater, is London’s second loftiest skyscraper, just a few hundred feet shorter than the Shard.
The building’s forty-second floor is home to Landing Forty-Two, a corporate conference space 500 feet above street level, giving unrivalled views of London and its skyline.
Visitors to the floor are whooshed to the event space by the most rapid lift system in Europe.
The floor is hyper-modern and very flexible.
Its 5,000 square feet of space, kitted out with a cutting-edge lighting system and zonal sound installations, is the perfect place to host anything from business breakfasts and brunches to full-on conferences and AGMs.
The venue has already hosted several corporate heavyweights – high-end fashion brand YSL launched its perfume, Black Opium Neon, here and the Chinese tech giant Huawei used the space to host its Huawei Developer Day event.
If you need catering, the in-house team, Moving Venue, will be happy to oblige.
The venue’s booking form can be found here.
Price
Prices start at £9,600 per session.
Contact Info
Address:
122 Leadenhall St
London
EC3V 4AB
Tel: 020 8498 4930.
Email: Info@Landingfortytwo.com.
Website: https://landingfortytwo.com/.
And there you have our top quirky and unusual London Event Space picks, which will certainly ensure that your event goes down in history.
If you think we missed something here, please get in touch with our team and we’ll happily review your suggestions.
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