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A medieval church set in the surprisingly quiet and
narrow streets near Fenchurch Street station. One of the
most pleasing of the City of London churches, both in its
setting and in its interior. It was far enough east to
escape the ravages of the Great Fire, much to the relief
of Samuel Pepys, whose parish church this was and who
worked in the Navy Office next door. In the 1930s
Betjeman described it as seeming like an East Anglian
country parish church on holiday in the heart of the
City. The church did not, alas, survive the Blitz
similarly unscathed, but the exterior and setting today
appear remarkably similar to postcards and photographs of
the 1920s, set on the corner of Hart Street and Seething
Lane with a polite little public garden behind. Don't
miss the grinning skulls above the gateway.
Since the terrorist bombing of St Ethelburga in 1993, St
Olave is the smallest surviving intact medieval church in
the City. The interior has been carefully restored and
perhaps retains something of its original atmosphere -
indeed, the post-war restoration got rid of the worst of
the middle-brow 19th Century restorations by Arthur
Blomfield and Ewan Christian. Furnishings were brought
out of store from All Hallows Staining and St Katherine
Coleman, two churches in adjacent streets which had been
demolished for building work in the 19th Century. The
glass is now all post-war and by two artists whose
reputations for fine work are firmly established, Arthur
Buss and John Hayward.
Simon Knott, December 2015
location: Hart Street 4/051
status: working parish church
access: open Monday to Friday, services Sunday
                          
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