We take a look at London’s most historic market, and it’s most visited one.
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00:00Hello London, I hope you're enjoying the sunshine wherever you are. With summer fast approaching, we are talking about markets.
00:08However, we're starting off with a historical meat market, Smithfield Market, one of the oldest trading sites in the city and Europe.
00:16Dating back over 800 years, it began as a livestock market, but was formally established in the 12th century when King Edward III granted it market charter.
00:27For centuries, it was the centre of the capital's meat trade.
00:31The current Victorian building, designed by Sir Horace Jones, opened in 1868 and still houses wholesale meat sale today.
00:39But change is on the horizon. In 2024, City of London announced plans to move the Smithfield Market to Billingsgate and Dagenham.
00:48But soaring costs meant that came to a halt and the current market is supposed to close in 2028.
00:54Despite those plans of closure, though, a joint statement from the Smithfield Markets Association and the corporation confirmed that most traders intend to relocate within the M25, while others will transfer their businesses.
01:09Until then, though, the market will remain fully open and operational until 2028.
01:19Once the market closes, it's a historic site and it will be transformed into the new Museum of London, preserving buildings' legacy and its place in the city's story.
01:30Now, while Smithfield represents London's trading past, its history, another market thrives, especially on days like today, Borough Market.
01:39Nestled right beside London Bridge, it's packed with street food, artisanal produce and centuries of history.
01:46So popular, in fact, that multiple tour companies now run daily food walks through it.
01:52So I caught up with a local guide to see why Borough Market is so special.
01:58Yeah, awesome. So we do a tour of Borough Market and Southwark.
02:02The tour is to take you around sort of key food stops in and around the market.
02:08These are places that came in after the market was revived in the early 2000s.
02:12And so it's really good to have people shown around some of our best of British in terms of food.
02:18The thing I also love about doing these tours is the the history and the culture that you weave into it as well.
02:24So it's not just about having a particular kind of food, having your fish and chips or, you know, having some cheeses.
02:31It's about the history and the story behind those things.
02:34It's about the history and the story behind the area as well.
02:37Southwark has a very long history of being sort of a den of iniquity and sort of the seedier side of town.
02:44And so it's nice to introduce guests to a bit of history that they may not learn about if they're going into central London,
02:52where it's all glitzy and glamorous and kings and queens.
02:54You're getting something a little bit different from us.