Borough Market 🇬🇧

Borough Market is an expansive food market hall situated in Southwark, London, positioned just south of Southwark Cathedral near the southern terminal of London Bridge along Southwark Street and Borough High Street. Recognized as one of the largest and oldest food venues in the city, the site operates primarily as a retail market for speciality items while retaining historical wholesale functions.

The market site possesses a long heritage, with trading records extending back to at least the twelfth century, alongside historical texts citing Southwark as a major market location as early as 1014. Originally situated adjacent to London Bridge, the venue moved south along the High Street before severe traffic congestion prompted Parliament to abolish it in 1754. Re-established in 1756 across a four-and-a-half-acre site at Rochester Yard, its proximity to the Pool of London wharves helped it become a crucial center for food supply throughout the nineteenth century.

The present market structures were designed in 1851 by Henry Rose, receiving further expansions in the 1860s and an Art Deco entryway along Southwark Street in 1932. Following a period of economic decline in the mid-1990s, the market's governing body shifted its focus toward retail sales. Refurbishments launched in 2001 led to the 2004 re-erection of the Grade II listed South Portico, which was originally part of Covent Garden's Floral Hall. The market layout has also continually adapted to surrounding overhead railway viaducts, allowing trade to continue directly beneath the brick arches.

Today, the retail market is open six days per week and remains closed on Mondays. Merchants travel from various regions of the United Kingdom to trade alongside importers of traditional European products. The market stalls display a wide selection of merchandise, including fresh fruit, vegetables, artisanal products, cheeses, meats, game, baked breads, and pastries. The venue is administered as a legal charitable trust governed by a board of local volunteer trustees.

Beyond its culinary trade, Borough Market and its surrounding roadways have served as filming settings for notable motion pictures, such as Bridget Jones's Diary, Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, and Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. The venue is also accessible for private function hires.

Borough Market in pictures