The British Academy
/ About
Numbers 10 and 11 Carlton House Terrace sit inside John Nash's Grade I terrace above The Mall, home to The British Academy, the UK's national academy for the humanities and social sciences. William Gladstone lived at No. 11 as prime minister; his old dining room and the room that hosted his musical salons are now the Reading Room and the Music Room. The Guinness family took the house on afterwards, and the Union Club used the ground floor as its dining room through the 1920s. Ten rooms are spread across three floors, from a grand first-floor room overlooking St James's Park to three double-height spaces added to the lower ground floor in a 2024 refurbishment by Wright & Wright.
The largest of the rooms, the Beatrice Webb Room & Gallery, opens onto views of Big Ben and Westminster Abbey through its ivory-and-blue plasterwork and takes a standing reception of up to 200. The Council Room hangs paintings on loan from the National Portrait Gallery beneath its original ceiling; its bay-windowed alcove has held a bar for an evening reception as often as a boardroom table for a meeting. In the Barnard Room, a trompe l'oeil ceiling commissioned by the Ridley family was left unfinished when the room became a ward for wounded officers during the war, and the brushwork still stops mid-stroke.
The building takes exclusive hire, from a boardroom lunch for ten guests to a standing reception for 498 across all ten rooms. Every space keeps its period detail: carved ceilings, working fireplaces, sash windows onto the Mall, alongside a fully accessible lift and step-free access throughout.
/ Rooms Available
Beatrice Webb Room & Gallery
PrivateThe largest room in the building, with an ivory-and-blue palette and views over St James's Park, The Mall, Big Ben and Westminster Abbey. Connects through to the adjoining Gallery and Music Room via the No. 11 lobby.
SHAPE Room
PrivateA double-height, pillarless conference space added in the 2024 refurbishment, with low-level staging, a PA system, theatre lighting and a dedicated audio-visual technician for hybrid and streamed events.
Council Room
PrivateA grand, traditional room hung with paintings on loan from the National Portrait Gallery, with an ornate ceiling and bay windows over the terrace gardens. The alcove doubles as a bar for a reception or a focal point for a boardroom table.
Reading Room
PrivateOnce William Gladstone's dining room, with soaring arches and some of the best views of The Mall and St James's Park. Adjoins the Lee Library, which works as a breakout or drinks area.
Barnard Room
PrivateReached by a black marble staircase, with a trompe l'oeil ceiling commissioned by the Ridley family that was left unfinished when the room became a ward for wounded officers during the war. Large windows look down the Mall.
Lecture Room
PrivateA double-height, pillar-free space from the 2024 refurbishment with an LED display wall and hybrid technology, built for lectures, conferences and media presentations. Can combine with the adjoining Wohl Gallery.
Music Room
PrivateDecorated in Louis XVI style with a central carved fireplace and varnished floors built for dancing. Once the centre of Gladstone's musical salons; the adjoining ante-room holds a large bar. Hosts everything from private dinners to receptions and dancing.
Radhakrishnan Room
PrivateA double-aspect room with soaring ceilings and gilt carvings, and a private staircase. Views take in The Mall, St James's Park, the London Eye and Big Ben, with dimmable lighting for evening entertaining.
Wohl Gallery
PrivateA double-height, pillar-free lower ground floor gallery with a neutral, contemporary finish, used for board meetings, exhibitions and press events. Combines with the adjoining Lecture Room and SHAPE Room for larger gatherings.
The Lee Library
PrivateBuilt-in bookcases and a double-aspect window give this room the feel of a relaxed London club room. Once the Union Club's dining room in the 1920s; today it holds books by Academy fellows and sponsored academics.
/ Perfect For
/ Features
AV Equipment
- – Projector
- – LED Screens
- – Microphone
Catering
- – In-House Luxury Dining
Venue Specs
- – Wheelchair Accessible
- – Air Conditioned
- – Wi-Fi
- – Dedicated Events Team
/ Getting Here
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