Smithfield and Billingsgate markets to close

[witteringon]

The City of London Corporation has announced that these medieval markets are to be permanently closed by 2028. Smithfield meat market has traded from the same spot for more than 800 years.

[Wadeski]

Its very very wierd how little respect the UK has for heritage...not in an imagined "corn crakes and milkmaids" way but in terms of actual links to the past.

Compare this to Germany, or Italy where commercial history is lived, celebrated....it's very odd.

[kevinon]

I used to live near Smithfield, in Barbican, when it was a thriving, working market. nearly 30 years ago.

All the trade was done at night, so feels like it was a good use of the space. And atmospheric of course. Sad to see it go.

And yes, historic can all too often be applied to a diamond on a crown looted 200 years ago. But Smithfield is more historic IMHO

[wyson]

I don’t know about Billingsgate, but I couldn’t see how Smithfield could survive, its prime real estate. The land would be worth miles more with housing or office use.

Would make more sense to locate markets like this on major arterial roads that are more accessible from around the country anyway.

There has to be a practical element as well.

I wish they would close the houses of parliament down. Would cost far less to preserve that as some sort of museum than refurb it as a working building, retrofitted with modern technologies.

[SmoothCriminal]

It's mental that they've spent over 300 million on the Dagenham dock site and now they've moth balled it and said to all the traders tough titties your out.

No surprise the markets were going to shut down what with the smithfield site already sold for a museum and billingsgate right next to canary wharf but to not provide another site at Dagenham.

Mental

[FilH]

Will miss an early morning run to pick up some cheap decent beef. But won't miss the pain driving at 20mph with very little traffic!


And also gutted at the Dagenham site falling through, would have been a 10min journey for me. I believe my local council ( Havering ) were to blame. As some hundred + year old rule about markets and livestock? Prevented Dagenham having a market, to protect Romfords market.

Romford market wouldn't suffer as not the same and anyway it has completely had its day, and can't see it lasting much longer as it is.

[witteringon]

Sixty years ago, as a teenager working in the City, I often wandered around the Market area in my lunch hour, and it has remained a fond memory.
This is the article that drew my attention to its fate
https://spitalfieldslife.com/2024/11/29/the-closur...

(some of the pictures are a little gory, if you are of a sensitive nature)

[andyA700]

Wadeski said:

Its very very wierd how little respect the UK has for heritage...not in an imagined "corn crakes and milkmaids" way but in terms of actual links to the past.

Compare this to Germany, or Italy where commercial history is lived, celebrated....it's very odd.

I couldn't agree more, I find it both bizarre and depressing.

[MrJuice]

never made it to Smithfielf despite best intentions but I go to Billingsgate regularly. Not so much for the saving but the quality is better than anything available to me locally. Usually stock up for two months at a time ad swing by Beigel Bake on Brick Lane on the way home.

[Mobile Chicane]

I used to love walking through Smithfield on my way to work of a morning. The noise, the smells.

'Real' work, as opposed to my wky media job.