This neighbourhood area corresponds to the area of Whitechapel, being bounded by Whitechapel Road to the north, New Road to the east and the DLR line to the south; to the west the area merges with Aldgate East. Commercial Road splits the area into two horizontally, though Whitechapel Road is the main centre of the neighbourhood area (with a bustling street market lining the pavements), with Whitechapel station being located in the northeast. The area is famously composed of old Victorian and a few Georgian buildings, with old warehouses and churchyards dotting the area, reminiscent of ‘Dickensian’ London. However, today it is also populated with a few newer developments, as the area was heavily bombed during the Blitz. Furthermore the streets themselves are today far wider than they have been stereotyped as in the media, the slums of the past having long given way. The area has become a centre for the British Bangladeshi community, as evidenced by the presence of the East London Mosque. The main streets of Whitechapel Road and Commercial Road are lined with Asian grocery stores, kebab, and fried chicken shops, alongside student accommodations and new business centres.

Whitechapel got its name from, surprise, a white chapel. St Mary Matfelon had stood on the site of today’s Altab Ali Park for centuries, going through many versions, but the first of which was made of white chalk rubble, thus earning the name ‘the white chapel’ by the locals, resulting in the name which dates back all the way to 1344. The area industrialised early – even in the 1400s the manufacturing trades were in full bloom, including brick-and-tile making, lime-burning and woodworking – this tradition persisted up to the 1700s. Throughout the 1800s, however, competition from elsewhere resulted in manufacturing taking a decline in the area, and a dramatic increase in population resulted in the infamous reputation it had during Victorian times. Tight, narrow streets, dark alleys, the infamous Jack the Ripper murders, and cramped living conditions definitely contributed to Charles Dickens’ assessment of east London in his stories. However, at the same time, the abject poverty resulted in new organisations being born – such as the Salvation Army, which was founded on Whitechapel Road, and the Whitechapel Art Gallery, which as one of the first publicly funded art galleries, aimed to democratise art, in particular to the local residents. The Fabian Society of George Bernard Shaw met frequently in Whitechapel, and Lenin often led rallies in the area. The area has been home to new immigrant communities for a long time, from Sephardi and Ashkenazi Jews, to German immigrants, to today’s Bengali community.

The Elephant Man, or Joseph Merrick, was a deformed man who struggled his whole life with his physical disabilities. Having worked for a few years already with limited success due to his worsening condition, he entered into a Victorian workhouse at the age of 17, staying there for 5 years before contacting the showman Sam Torr to be exhibited to the public. He ended up in the Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel, where after touring for a while the head of the hospital raised enough donations from the public to be able to house him in the hospital for life. Joseph Merrick had many talents, however – one of his hobbies was making models of famous sites, one of which can be seen in the Hospital today. His life was adapted into a movie – the Elephant Man, directed by David Lynch in 1980, securing eight Oscar nominations. He died at the age of 27.

As mentioned, the Whitechapel area was a hub of manufacturing in the 1700s, in fact the Great Clock of Westminster was cast at the Whitechapel Bell Foundry formerly located on 32-34 Whitechapel Road – you may know the bell as Big Ben.

Albion Yard on 331 Whitechapel is today a residential building, however it used to employ hundreds of workers, and has the distinction of being the first place in Britain to produce bottled brown ale. The Blind Beggar, an infamous local pub and favourite haunt of the Kray Twins, also preserves some of the area’s old character. It is a popular place for tourists to stop after going on the neighbourhood’s daily Jack the Ripper Tours which start at the exit of Aldgate station and walk you through the streets he once terrorised.

Meanwhile, the Whitechapel Vision Masterplan Supplementary Planning Document, or Whitechapel Vision, has many new plans for the area, from 3,500 new homes by 2025, to adding 5,000 new jobs, 7 new public squares, a new civic hub, cultural centre and several community facilities as well as improving the area’s lively street market.

The Elizabeth Line coming to Whitechapel has benefited an already well-connected area, bringing Heathrow within 35 minutes of the station and Tottenham Court Road within 10 minutes. On top of this, plans to redevelop and merge Shadwell DLR and Overground stations into one larger station will also make travelling through the area easier.

The new Tower Hamlets Town Hall is also set to be completed later in 2022, using the facade of the old grade II listed Royal London Hospital building. Surrounded by new public squares and civic space, this architectural blend of old and new has cost over 100 million pounds and will provide 300,000 sq ft of office space.