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St. John's, Smith Square

St. John's, Smith Square is a deconsecrated former church in the middle of Smith Square, Westminster, London which is now used as a concert hall.

The church was designed by Thomas Archer and was completed in 1728. It is regarded as one of the finest works of English Baroque architecture, and features four corner towers and monumental broken pediments. It is often referred to as 'Queen Anne's Footstool' because as legend has it, when Archer was designing the church he asked the Queen what she wanted it to look like. She kicked over her footstool and said 'Like that!', giving rise to the building's four corner towers.

The venue is especially notable for being used for the BBC's lunchtime radio concerts.

External link

St John's, Smith Square - official site

Last updated: 05-18-2005 00:36:08