About
Hall Place and Gardens is one of Greater London's most extraordinary and undervisited historic treasures: a Grade I listed Tudor and Jacobean manor house of exceptional quality set within magnificent formal gardens in the London Borough of Bexley. The house has origins in 1537 when Sir John Champneys, a former Lord Mayor of London, built the first phase of the present structure. A second, contrasting range was added in the early 17th century, creating the remarkable ensemble of black-and-white Tudor chequerboard stonework and later red brick that characterises the building's distinctive exterior today.
The house passed through numerous distinguished owners over the centuries, including the Austen family — relatives of the novelist Jane Austen — before passing to Bexley Borough Council. Following a major programme of restoration and interpretation, the house reopened to visitors under the management of the Bexley Heritage Trust, transforming it into one of the finest historic-house visitor experiences in outer London.
Inside, the house preserves an impressive range of historic interiors. The Great Hall, with its original Tudor roof timbers and heraldic decorations, is a space of considerable grandeur. The upper rooms and galleries contain displays relating to the history of the house, its owners, and the wider Borough of Bexley, incorporating archaeological finds from excavations on the site and the surrounding area. The collections provide a compelling narrative of the manor house's life across five centuries.
The gardens surrounding Hall Place are among the finest in London. The formal topiary garden — featuring the famous crowned Queen's Beasts in clipped yew — is a masterpiece of the topiarist's art and one of the most photographed garden features in the capital. Beyond the topiary, formal herbaceous borders, a restored walled kitchen garden, a sunken garden, and riverside meadows along the River Cray complete a garden experience of exceptional variety and quality.
The gardens are free to enter throughout the year, while the house has a modest admission charge. The combination makes Hall Place an outstanding and accessible day out for families, garden lovers, and history enthusiasts throughout the year.
Categories:
Annual Visitors (2019)
200,000
Plan Your Visit
⏱️ Recommended Visit Duration
📅 Best Times to Visit
Quietest: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday
Busiest: Saturday, Sunday
💡 Weekday mornings in late spring or early summer when the gardens are at their finest
💡 Visitor Tips
- The gardens are free to enter at all times, making Hall Place an excellent destination even if you don't plan to visit the house — the topiary alone is worth the journey.
- Visit in June or July for the herbaceous borders at their peak and the kitchen garden in full production; the late summer and autumn are also stunning.
- Bexley station is just 7 minutes' walk from Hall Place and has regular train services from London Bridge, Charing Cross, and Cannon Street — the site is very accessible without a car.
- The Queen's Beasts topiary is most impressive when viewed from the central axis of the formal garden; take time to walk around all sides of the topiary beds for the full effect.
- The café sources some of its produce from the on-site kitchen garden — seasonal menus change regularly and the cakes are particularly recommended.
- The house can get busy at weekends in summer; if you want a quieter experience of the interiors, aim for a weekday morning.
- Hall Place is an excellent venue for photography — the contrast between the Tudor chequerboard stonework and the Jacobean brick, the topiary, and the riverside meadows provide extraordinary variety.
- Guided tours of the house run at set times and are highly recommended for understanding the building's complex architectural history — check the website for times and booking.
Highlights
The Tudor Great Hall
The centrepiece of the original 1537 range, the Great Hall at Hall Place retains much of its original character with an impressive timber roof, heraldic decorations, and the sense of a space designed to impress. The Hall was the heart of the medieval and Tudor household, where the owner received guests, held feasts, and conducted the business of the estate.
The surviving decorative elements — particularly the carved stonework and heraldic panels — reflect the ambition and status of Sir John Champneys, the former Lord Mayor who built the house.
The Queen's Beasts Topiary
The celebrated topiary garden at Hall Place features the Queen's Beasts — heraldic animals such as the lion, unicorn, griffin, and yale — clipped in yew into the distinctive crowned forms that have become one of the most recognisable garden features in outer London. These remarkable living sculptures require enormous skill and continuous maintenance to keep in their precise forms.
The topiary garden is one of the finest examples of formal garden art in the UK and an absolute must for any visitor to Hall Place.
The Jacobean Extension
The early 17th-century addition to Hall Place creates a striking contrast with the original Tudor stonework: where the first phase used the local black-and-white chequerboard of flint and stone, the later range introduces warm red brick in the Jacobean style. Viewed from the gardens, the conjunction of the two building periods gives Hall Place its unmistakable appearance.
The interior of the Jacobean range includes rooms associated with later owners of the house and contains displays relating to the building's history and architectural development.
The Walled Kitchen Garden
Hall Place's restored Victorian walled kitchen garden is a productive and beautiful space that combines horticulture with history. Divided into formal beds growing a range of heritage vegetables, fruit, herbs, and cut flowers, the kitchen garden operates as a working garden rather than a purely ornamental one.
Seasonal planting and harvesting demonstrations show how such gardens would have functioned in the service of a great house, while the produce contributes to the on-site café.
The garden is particularly beautiful from late spring through to early autumn.
Collections
Hall Place and Gardens' collections encompass the archaeology of the Bexley area from prehistoric times through the medieval and post-medieval periods, documentary history and photographs relating to the Borough of Bexley, and the architectural and decorative fabric of the Grade I listed Tudor-Jacobean house itself.
The gardens — including the celebrated Queen's Beasts topiary, herbaceous borders, and walled kitchen garden — are central to the visitor experience and represent a collection in their own right.
Hall Place Through the Centuries
History of the house and its owners from 1537 to the present day
📍 House galleries
The Story of Bexley
Borough history from prehistoric settlement to the 20th century
📍 Upper gallery
Themes
Time Periods
Current Exhibitions
No current exhibitions. Please check the museum website for updates.