A rare survival from the Second World War, and occasionally open to the public.
St Leonard’s Court is an attractive, 1930s apartment complex tucked away in a Mortlake (or East Sheen) cul-de-sac. You’d never know it was here, nor give it much thought at all, save for one thing: it regularly pops up in the Open House Festival listings.
Why? It is one of the few places in London to preserve a Second World War bomb shelter. So rare are these leftovers that this one has Grade II-listed heritage status.
The shelter was constructed in 1938-39, when war with Germany already seemed inevitable. Its reinforced concrete roof sits under the grass forecourt. The only signs that something unusual lies beneath are a set of white skylights (which look like drain covers), and a peculiar conical hut (which looks like a gardener’s shed).
In fact, this is the main stairwell down to the bunker. Inside, a set of steep steps lead down to a very narrow corridor. Twin rooms immediately branch off to either side. These are the original shelter spaces, each of which could hold 60 people.
60 very intimately packed people.
Conditions must have been pretty wretched. The sheltering residents could not lay out, but had to squeeze onto benches in the crowded rooms. There they had to sit upright for hours on end, listening to the (hopefully) far-off explosions until the all-clear was given.
Each room came with a toilet, gents in one room and ladies in the other. These were unplumbed chemical toilets, with no lighting save the dim glow from the main chamber. They would not have been pleasant.
At the height of the Blitz, the residents would be spending most nights in these challenging conditions. Few could get any sleep but, in many cases, were then required to work the next day. They needed beds and, happily, an extension was built in 1940 to include sleeping facilities.
It was hardly the Savoy. The triple-tier bunks came with no padding. Residents either brought their own, or curled up on hard boards. 48 bunks were provided, with separate male and female dormitories (though married couples would share a bunk, sometimes with small children). Residents had to pay a small fee (£7 per year) to rent a bunk, but the original seated rooms (now called ‘day rooms’) remained free.
Each room contained an emergency escape route, with simple metal rungs leading up to an aperture. These remain in place, though the surface openings are now fixed shut.
The residents of St Leonard’s Court were lucky. No explosive ever landed in their cul-de-sac. Yet the shelter was well used throughout the eight months of the Blitz. After the war, it was turned to a general storage space.
Today, it’s largely clear of detritus and reasonably well conserved from damp and decay. Local charity Habitats and Heritage have done an excellent job restoring it to the point where the public can visit. What we have, then, is a largely unchanged time capsule, complete with original numbered pegs, shelves, toilets and other fixtures. Nothing quite like it exists in London.
Mortlake is something of a hotbed of curious structures. Across the rail tracks is the old graveyard containing the ‘Bedouin tent’-shaped mausoleum of Sir Richard and Lady Burton. Meanwhile, one of the surviving alcoves from Old London Bridge hides a short walk along Sheen Road, on the Courtlands Estate.
The St Leonard’s Court bomb shelter is open to group bookings via Habitats and Heritage, and is more generally open during Open House Festival each September (you’ve missed the 2026 opening).
