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Liverpool Street and The City of London

The City of London is a small city within Greater London. It's the historic core of London around which the modern metropolis grew.

Roughly bordered by Liverpool Street, Tower Hill, Blackfriars and Barbican Tube stations, the City's boundaries have remained almost constant since the Middle Ages. It's often referred to as just "the City" or as "the Square Mile", as it's almost exactly 1 square mile (2.6 square kilometres) in area.

London Liverpool Street Station

Liverpool Street station concourse. Photo: David Sables

The Stansted Express train from Stansted Airport drops visitors at Liverpool Street station, right in the heart of London's Square Mile business district. From Liverpool Street, it's very easy to get to other areas of London.

Of course it's not just visitors who end up at Liverpool Street – the station is a bustling hub of peak hour activity as thousands of City workers pass through on their daily commute. You may even recognise the station concourse as the location where several TV and online adverts have been filmed!

Tourist Attractions Near Liverpool Street

Tourist attractions in the City of London that are easily accessible by walking, bus, Tube, or a "Boris bike" ride from Liverpool Street include:

Architecture in the City of London

Within this area, you can see a rich variety of architectural styles. There are many churches by 17th century architect, Sir Christopher Wren, including St Paul's Cathedral, financial institutions from the 18th and 19th centuries, like the Royal Exchange and the Bank of England and 20th century architecture including Old Bailey and the 1960s Barbican Estate. The latter landmark is one of London's principle examples of concrete Brutalist architecture.

Notable recent buildings in the city are the 1980s skyscraper Tower 42, the Lloyd's Building, and London's first eco-friendly skyscraper at 30 St Mary Axe, which is commonly known as the "Gherkin".

Skyscrapers in progress include: the 63-storey Bishopsgate Tower, the 48-storey Leadenhall Building, the 46-storey Heron Tower, and the 72-storey The Shard behind London Bridge Station.

Several hotels and shops have established themselves here, along with London's newest shopping centre One New Change, which opened in late 2009. However, large sections of the City remain very quiet at weekends and it's quite common to find pubs and cafes closed on Saturday and Sunday.