Greater London House

No Art Deco enthusiast worth his salt hasn’t heard about this magnificent building in the Mornington Crescent area of North London. This is one of the best sights in London, yet many people have never heard of it. Most people discover it by chance, while riding on a bus towards the city centre. This building is definitely one of city’s hidden treasures.
Today this building houses offices of number of prominent media and retail companies — ASOS, EMAP, Young & Rubicam.
The building is situated right opposite the Mornington Crescent tube station.
The front façade of the building still holds a name ‘Carreras’, the original owner. The original use of the building was a tobacco factory. It was built in the 1920s, in art deco style, representative of that decade. The whole structure is built in the style of Egyptian cat temple, at the height of Egyptian Art Deco period. Two massive black marble cat statues guard the entrance to the temple. The façade is beautifully decorated and painted in vibrant colours. In fact, the whole building was lovingly restored at the beginning of 1990s, after decades of neglect.
It is a popular object for both amateur and professional photographers.