London, The Unfinished City: Post Building Rooftop Garden

Thursday, March 30, 2023

Post Building Rooftop Garden

Looking down on the British Museum.

One of the newer and free rooftop gardens to open to the public is the one atop the Post building, on Museum Street. Having recently visited Lift 109 at Battersea Power Station and having previously admired the views from the Garden at 120 Fenchurch Street, climbed the 311 steps of the Monument to the Great Fire of London, seen the view from The Shard, peered at St Paul's Cathedral from One New Change and the Switch Room at Tate Modern, among many other places, this rooftop garden was the next logical step.

Looking east.

Although the Post Building is situated on Museum Street the entrance is around the corner on New Oxford Street. It isn't particularly well advertised but I soon found it.

After being allowed entry to the building I was met by an amiable security guard that told me that access to the rooftop garden required some form of identification. For example a driver's licence (I don't drive) or a passport (I only carry that when I am going abroad). The only identification that I had on me was my bank card and a few other items that had my name on them, which he accepted.

With the visitors book signed I passed through the now standard metal detector, while my coat was scanned in an X-Ray machine.

He then ushered me to the lift and told me to press '9'. On entering the lift I realised that the only other button to press, besides nine, was the alarm. I thought about pressing the alarm for 0.68 seconds, before I hit the '9' and travelled smoothly up the building.

I exited the lift into a glass waiting area, turned left and made my way on to the rooftop garden and... WOW! Considering that this roof garden is only nine-storeys up the views were incredible.

An uninterrupted view of the Unfinished City.

The view takes in everything from the northwest around to the southwest. The toilet block and a sealed off area, used by staff in the building, block off the western view, but it was still an incredible vista.

I could see the Wembley Stadium Arch glinting in the morning sun, while the BT Tower stood proud and alone. Highgate and Hampstead hills, the ArcerlorMittal Orbit, in Stratford, beyond the towering skyscrapers of the City of London and Canary Wharf. The Shard looked resplendent and alone, with only One Blackfriars as a neighbour. Looking south I could see the antenna at Crystal Palace, Battersea Power Station and Westminster Cathedral, plus other landmarks in between.

Looking from east to south.

With only a pair of crows and an elderly couple for company the rooftop garden was a very relaxing place to be, on a warm spring morning.

The flower beds were still to bloom, although the cherry trees were covered in blossom.

Blossom.

I could have spent the entire morning and much of the afternoon looking at the views, but there were other places that I wanted to visit Besides, I was getting hungry.

I made my way to the lift and headed down to the lobby. Thanking the guard I made my way around the carousel, which was left as a reminder of the Post Buildings history, and exited the building.