Through The Garden Gate

Opposite Thai Emerald, the restaurant I showed the other week (the one with the elephants on the roof), is this residential building, Chelsea Court. The red brick building dates from 1869 and was built as St Mary's Hall, the Female Training College; part of St Paul's College. It then became known as the Shaftesbury Hall and was a venue for arts events, exhibitions and theatre. I went there once to visit an exhibition on Science and Rocks. I was still at school then and the exhibition must have been something to do with part of the curriculum. It's not something I would be interested in seeing now! The building is now surrounded by new apartments and forms part of Chelsea Square. The redevelopment of the Hall took place in the early 1990's and the apartments within are some of the most expensive in the heart of town. I wouldn't mind a pad there, as long as it didn't involve science or rocks!