University College London: The Bloomsbury Campus

The first university in London, and the first in England to accept people of all faiths and creeds, University College London occupies a prestigious position in the history of British education. Since its foundation in 1826 and the construction shortly afterwards of the Wilkins Building (its iconic neoclassical building in Gower Street), UCL has been an increasingly influential presence in the capital’s Bloomsbury district, shaping the character of its built environment and acting as a magnet for other academic institutions. Over two hundred years, UCL has expanded to form an extensive campus, its sprawling footprint and varied building stock reflecting growth in student numbers and advances in education, technology and culture.

Having been part of UCL’s Bartlett School of Architecture since 2013, the Survey of London is uniquely placed to offer the first comprehensive account of the university’s buildings and the evolution of its historic Bloomsbury campus. This monograph, published in 2026 to coincide with the bicentenary of UCL’s foundation, provides a new understanding of this significant estate in central London, bringing to light a complex and engaging architectural story with many facets that have been previously overlooked or neglected. It charts a progression in UCL’s architecture from the Greek Revival classicism of the early nineteenth century, through Victorian experimentation and inter-war Neo-Georgian, to post-war Brutalism and today to the high-tech, energy-efficient and adaptable buildings expected of a modern university.

The Survey of London series of volumes is traditionally written by a team of professional historians, the variety of their experiences and range of specialisms bringing an added richness to the text. The UCL monograph has been largely written and edited by Dr Amy Spencer (whose Bartlett PhD thesis was on the architectural history of the UCL campus up to the Second World War) and Colin Thom, Director of the Survey of London. Some chapters and other important contributions to the text were provided by the rest of the Survey team, namely Dr Sarah Dowding, Dr Emily Mann, Dr Rebecca Preston and Dr Aileen Reid.

As well as the scholarly rigour and readability of the text, Survey of London volumes are held in high regard for the quality of their illustrations, many of which are specially commissioned for each research project. All the new architectural drawings, plans and maps for the UCL publication were made by Helen Jones, the Survey’s in-house illustrator, who also designed the volume. 

Thanks to a Bartlett School of Architecture grant, the Survey was able to commission new photography from Chris Redgrave, of Historic England. One of today’s leading architectural photographers, Chris has been contributing to Survey volumes for more than a decade.

Publication

Survey of London, Monograph 19, University College London: The Bloomsbury Campus, edited by Amy Spencer and Colin Thom, published in 2026 by UCL Press.

Significantly, this volume of the Survey of London is the first to be published by UCL Press, marking the return of the series to a university publishing house. The Survey’s transition to UCL Press, the first fully open-access university in the country, will enable this monograph and future volumes to be made freely available online as well as being sold in print.

Visit the UCL Press website, where you can download an open-access version and purchase print copies of the monograph.

Contact

• Dr Amy Spencer
  Send Amy an email
• Colin Thom
  Send Colin an email

Image credit: UCL’s main entrance in Gower Street in 2024, looking towards the portico and dome of the Wilkins Building of 1827–9 (© Chris Redgrave)