White City is a district that can be found to the north of Shepherd’s Bush and to the east of Acton. It’s perhaps best known for being the home to the BBC Television Centre, and football club Queens Park Rangers, who play their home games at Loftus Road.
Up until the beginning of the 20th century, White City was a fairly desolate area made up of farmland and brickfield. Its fortunes changed, however, when the White City Stadium was commissioned to be built to host the Olympic Games in 1908. The stadium closed in 1984 and was demolished in 1985. The site became home to the BBC White City building, which has since been renamed White City Place after the BBC vacated the building in 2013.
Hammersmith & Fulham Council have invested heavily in large-scale regeneration of White City and have extended this opportunity for the local community to benefit. They have contributed to the building of 5,000 new homes, public infrastructure and more than two million square feet of commercial office space. Meanwhile, Westfield London, which opened in 2008, benefitted from a £600 million extension that took its total retail area up to 2.6 million square feet in 2018, making it the largest shopping centre in Europe.
White City is becoming a hub for the life science sector, encompassing an innovation campus from Imperial College, the creative hub White City Place, and thousands of quality new homes.
Who’s there?
Media agency Publicis is moving all UK operations to the BBC’s former White City HQ and will occupy 220,000 square feet over seven floors of the newly renovated centre. E-commerce brand Yoox Net-A-Porter also calls White City home, with offices in The MediaWorks building just off Wood Lane.
In the area…
Late-night spots include members club Bar FM (membership is free!), which actively encourages audience participation – think karaoke, dancing and live jamming sessions – while the Defectors Weld is a decent down-to-earth boozer for good food and drinks at cheerful prices, on the northern-most point of Shepherd’s Bush Green. W12 Studios on Wood Lane is also a good choice for after-work drinks, especially if you’re looking to be entertained – the venue’s rolling music programme regularly showcases different musical talent from across the city.
The vastness of the Westfield London has made White City one of London’s premier retail destinations, but it’s also been a boon to people working in the district, as well as neighbouring Shepherd’s Bush, as it offers a huge array of dining options in a space to rival that of some of central London’s busiest retail districts. Popular options include a shot-in-the-arm sugar hit from Ben’s Cookies to Shawarma and mezze at Shawa.
While Westfield London seems like an obvious to eat and drink your way through, the redeveloped BBC studios, the Television Centre, has become a huge mixed-use destination venue, comprising 950 pied-à-terre living spaces, offices, bars and restaurants, a state-of-the-art gym and spa, and even its own cinema.
Inside the Television Centre are such fast-foodie favourites as Home Slice and Patty&Bun, but we’d whole-heartedly throw our weight behind British-Indian fusion restaurant, Kricket. Its small-plate share-all philosophy is very much on the trend, but it’s their innovative approach to pairing traditional Indian flavours with Western styles that will leave you jaw on the floor – try the Keralan Fried Chicken (KFC) washed down with a cardamom-infused bourbon cocktail for sure.
Hop out to Kricket for Anglo-Indian food
Kricket – Small dishes, big flavours
Westfield White City – a shopping mecca on your doorstep
Eat in or out, the choices are endless
There’s bars a-plenty, including a new Soho House
W12 Studios – new, spacious venues
White City has a new spring in its step
AVERAGE
£474
Private office
£468
Fixed desks
£225
Hot desks
Want to see what the wider neighbourhood has to offer? Why not read our guides for the nearby areas.
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