London in Lockdown
A moment in time
Documentary photography from an empty city
Photographs from a moment in time like no other. Locked down for the first time in history, London became a ghost town.
2020 is the year of the global COVID - 19 pandemic. On 23 March the United Kingdom went into lockdown. We were confined to our homes and only allowed outside for a few specific reasons. On May 10 "conditional release" from lockdown started. These images, incredible for their emptiness, were created in the days that followed. Locations normally frequented by thousands of people were empty. Regular visitors to London will realise just how unusual these scenes are.
In mid May few people were visiting these locations. There were no tourists. Shops, bars, hotels and restaurants were closed with many people working from home. There were few cars on the streets or boats on the river.
Piccadilly Circus, Buckingham Palace and the London Eye are tourist hot spots. Trafalgar Square is normally heaving with people and traffic. On the embankment alongside the River Thames you would expect to find thousands of people from all parts of the world. But they were all empty. A lone bus crosses Westminster Bridge at mid day when there would usually be hundreds of tourists. The story is the same at Liberty, Chinatown, Tower Bridge and Shaftesbury Avenue, as well as at Covent Garden, Fleet Street and the City. Hotels and restaurants were closed for business, from the smallest businesses to global brands.
Shoreditch, well known for its street art and murals offered some hope. "Please believe the days will pass". It’s now early July and it seems that they are passing as we all hope they will not return.
Buckingham Palace
Buckingham Palace 17
London - England
Available as a print →
Buckingham Palace 15
London - England
Available as a print →
Buckingham Palace 18
London - England
Available as a print →
The Mall
London - England
Available as a print →
Trafalgar Square
National Portrait Gallery 3
London - England
Available as a print →
Trafalgar Square 11
London - England
Available as a print →
Nelsons Column 15
London - England
Available as a print →
Trafalgar Square 10
London - England
Available as a print →
Piccadilly Circus
Piccadilly Circus 2
London - England
Available as a print →
Piccadilly Circus 1
London - England
Available as a print →
St Pauls Cathedral
The London Eye
The River Thames Path
Battle of Britain Memorial 1
London - England
Available as a print →
The Streets of London
Waterloo Place 2
London - England
Available as a print →
Streets of St James
Mayfair - London
Available as a print →
Elsewhere in London
London Chinatown 2
London - England
Available as a print →
Westminster Abbey 15
London - England
Available as a print →
Tower Bridge 54
London - England
Available as a print →
Royal Opera House Covent Garden 9
London - England
Available as a print →
City of London
Lockdown - London
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Walkie Talkie Building 16
Lockdown - London
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Closed for Business
Liberty 1
London - England
Available as a print →
Shaftesbury Avenue 1
London - England
Available as a print →
Aldwych at Night 1
London - England
Available as a print →
Quite simply, the best photography of London I have ever seen