I lived in London Fields, E8 from 1997 - 2000 and every time I go back, I am blown away by the transformation which has occurred. I will always love the area; it's where I got married, bought my first house, and two of my children were born there. Artists were drawn to it because, at that time, it was relatively affordable as well as central and now it has emerged as one of the most creative and dynamic boroughs in London.
The four venues I am writing about today are all run by the London Borough of Hackney. There are two town Halls and two completely different types and they show off brilliantly the diverse nature of the architectural history of Hackney from the last 250 years. They each have a dedicated events team who can arrange everything for you and are on hand for guidance and advice. They work extensively with a range of fantastic suppliers including caterers, production, audio-visual and florists.
Hackney Town Hall (main picture) offers sumptuous grandeur for weddings in an Art Deco style. The graceful curved staircase leads to the beautifully restored Assembly Hall with a vast array of original features including the imposing 1930's chandeliers and sprung dance floor.
Stoke Newington Town Hall - this is utterly splendid and, like Hackney Town Hall, is one of the best examples of Art Deco glamour around.
It is all wonderfully rich and sumptuous with its dark mahoganies, elegant marble and one of Europe's largest working mirror ball no less!! There are two main chambers; the Council Chamber and the Assembly Hall. Like Hackney, this also has the original sprung dance floor and makes the space a truly magnificent setting for any kind of wedding.
I adore cheese - there isn’t really one I don’t like: hard cheese, soft cheese, blue cheese, washed rind cheese...in fact I decided long ago that on my fantasy desert island, I’d have an endless supply of cheese and biscuits as my luxury - I’d obviously get vastly fat, but no one would see me, so who cares? Plus the fat might keep me warm at night because I’d certainly be rubbish at making a shelter....
Anyway, it’s a fantasy and never going to happen. And nor do I intend to get married again (very happy with the husband I’ve got) but if I were to, I’d have a cheese cake. Not a cheesecake but a tower of cheeses instead of a cake cake. There is the most wonderful shop called Paxton and Whitfield in Jermyn Street (quite famous but for those who don’t know it, I will elaborate). It’s been in business for over 200 years, 100 of those at this shop. They sell a huge range of British and Continental European Cheeses (over 200!) plus delicious hams, biscuits, wine and real ale. And they produce these mouth watering delicious towers of cheeses and call them ‘celebration cakes.’
If you’re looking for a venue of distinction for your London wedding then you should definitely pay a visit to the South London Gallery which offers a distinctive and unique setting for private functions, receptions and corporate events.
We went there recently and were treated to a private tour by events manager Georgina Davey and assistant Liz, who not only gave us some great details about the building’s amazing history (it opened in 1891 and was conceived as a ‘free gallery for the people of South London, which it still continues to be) but also took us round the Victorian main gallery with its beautiful high ceilings. Together with the contemporary design of the gallery’s new extension, they offer a range of spaces for many types of events.??Regarded as one of the most elegant art spaces in London, the Main Gallery is only available to hire on occasional days and evenings throughout the year. This is the space where artists such as Tracey Emin launched their careers and with capacity for 150 seated and 200 standing, the main gallery is an ideal space for a wedding or civil partnership reception, awards ceremony, photo shoot, fully catered dinner or Christmas party.??We were taken through a windy path through the centre of Victorian-designed garden, up to the Clore Studio which opened in June 2010 and has capacity for 60 people. This is great space - its contemporary skylight and fully pivoting doors into the gallery’s rear garden make this fresh, light and airy, and entirely suitable for an urban wedding. We loved the juxtaposition of the old and new elements which run throughout the whole building – a mix of old floorboards and rickety carpentry rubbing shoulders with clean modern lines.