Soho Square — The Mystery Tudor Hut
The mock-Tudor hut in Soho Square, London, is a Grade II listed structure built in 1925 to disguise an underground electricity substation. Laid out in 1681, Soho Square's central half-timbered shed was modeled on an 1870s gardener's hut. During World War II, the subterranean space served as a Blitz bomb shelter accommodating up to 200 people, occupying the original spot of a 1681 statue of King Charles II.
London · from the walk “Soho's Secret Side” · Generated
Soho Square, London W1D 3QD
- Built in 1925, the mock-Tudor hut in London's Soho Square disguises an underground electrical substation.
- During World War II, the subterranean shelter beneath Soho Square accommodated 150 to 200 people during the Blitz.
- Danish sculptor Caius Gabriel Cibber carved the square's original statue of King Charles II in 1681.
- The two-story fake Tudor hut in Soho Square was officially granted Grade II listed status in 1992.
Why was the mock-Tudor hut in London's Soho Square built?
Take a look at that little black-and-white hut sitting right in the middle of the square. Quaint, isn't it? Half-timbered walls, a steep hipped roof... it looks like something straight out of Tudor England. But here's the thing... it's All a disguise.
This hut, sitting in the middle of Soho Square — a square that dates back to sixteen eighty-one — was actually built in nineteen twenty-five. And it wasn't meant for gardening at all. The Charing Cross Electricity Company needed a private, above-ground entrance to its electricity substation directly beneath the square. Being in such a historic part of London, they needed something that wouldn't clash with its surroundings.
So what did they do? They modelled it on a Tudorbethan gardener's hut that had actually stood in the centre of the square back in the eighteen seventies! A fake copy... of a real hut... hiding an electrical substation. Only in London.
Now, that Original hut had its own legend. Rumours surrounded it, including an urban myth that it contained a secret passageway to Buckingham Palace. Almost certainly nonsense — but a wonderful story.
And the secrets go Deeper. Literally. When World War Two and the horrors of the Blitz began, the space beneath this little hut took on a far more important role — as a temporary bomb shelter. Leslie Hardcastle, president of the Soho Society, recalled that the shelter was lined with about twelve inches of brick and had concrete as a roof, and could take about one hundred fifty to two hundred people. Imagine... huddled underground, right beneath where you're standing now.
But before any of this was here, the very spot where that hut sits belonged to a king. The square was originally called King's Square, for King Charles the Second, and his statue — carved by Danish sculptor Caius Gabriel Cibber in sixteen eighty-one — was the centrepiece. Look around... you can still see that battered old statue nearby. In eighteen seventy-five, Thomas Blackwell of Crosse and Blackwell — the condiment firm with premises right here on the square — rescued the crumbling statue and gave it to artist Frederick Goodall, who placed it on an island in his lake at Grim's Dyke. Then the property was purchased by none other than W. S. Gilbert — yes, of Gilbert and Sullivan fame. Lady Gilbert's will directed that the statue be returned, and it was finally restored to Soho Square in nineteen thirty-eight.
So the king came home... but not to his original spot. He was placed a few metres north, because that cute wooden hut had been built on the original site.
Today? About three-quarters of the shed is filled with spades, wheelbarrows, and other gardening tools. In nineteen ninety-two, this two-story hut was listed as a Grade Two structure — officially protected as a building of special historic interest. A fake Tudor shed, hiding an electricity shaft, that doubled as a bomb shelter... now that's a hidden gem.