Normally, visitors to the Supreme Court next to Westminster Abbey are at the last chance saloon for whatever legal case they are arguing, but on Friday afternoons, the general public are also allowed in for a look around as well. Technically, the public are allowed in to attend court cases, as justice is open to the public to see, but this article is about the heritage tours instead.
The Supreme Court’s exterior looks properly ancient but is in fact barely 100 years old – as one the last of the great gothic-revival buildings, and was originally the Middlesex Guildhall. It was converted into the Supreme Court in 2005 when it was decided that the highest court in the land shouldn’t sit inside the House of Lords.
The tours take in the courtrooms, the workings of the Supreme Court, the background to its creation and some of the famous cases that have been heard there.
There’s also an exhibition space in the basement to visit.
Tours take place on Fridays at 2pm and last around an hour. They cost £10 per person, and at the time of writing, are sold out until the middle of March, so if you’re interested, it’s better to book a ticket sooner, as there’s evidently a long waiting list.
You can book tickets here.
During the summer months, they also offer tours on Tuesday and Thursday at 11am if that’s more convenient, and the building is usually open for London Open House weekend in September.
You can also visit the exhibition at any time, but then you miss out on the tours of the rest of the building.
“and was originally the Middlesex Guildhall”, i.e. the town hall for the county of Middlesex which – at the time – came right up to the north bank of the Thames (excluding the City of London). This is why there is for example a ‘Middlesex St’ at the very edge of the City (now part of Petticoat Lane market) and was a ‘Middlesex House of Correction’ or prison in Clerkenwell. And worth noting that, between its periods as town hall and supreme court, the same building was for many decades one of London’s crown courts.