Mark Lane is an integral piece of corporate London, with Fenchurch Street forming the northern border, down to Great Tower Street (which links to Eastcheap and Byward Street) in the south of the neighbourhood. In the northeast corner of the neighbourhood is London Fenchurch Street railways station. The entire area is surrounded by office buildings – the collection of skyscrapers to the north, the Walkie-Talkie to the west, more modest structures in St. Dunstan to the south. The architectural style is a variety of modern as well as neo-gothic. The roads in the area are fairly wide (2 lanes are typical), and there are less on-street stores, with most of the building façades being reserved for the entrances to the offices above. Overall, the area is a dedicated, no-nonsense centre of commerce for London, with companies such as Zurich and Accenture based in the utilitarian district.

Star Alley is located in a tiny corner to the southeast neighbourhood, just off Mark Lane, a narrow pedestrian lane making an ‘L’-shape. Its name most likely derives from The Star Tavern, located on the site until the 18th century, later replaced by the Horseshoe and Magpie, which disappeared by the mid-19th century. A host of taverns existed in the area prior to this too, including the King’s Head, where in 1554, Princess Elizabeth walked after first attending the church of All Hallows Staining to give thanks for her release from the Tower of London, choosing to eat a portion of pork and peas. The platter which she ate from was on display for many years, but later removed for safekeeping. The tavern changed its name later to Queen’s Head in honour of her visit. The tavern, by then named the London Tavern, was destroyed in 1942.

Princess Elizabeth would later become Queen Elizabeth I. Known as the Virgin Queen, Gloriana, as well as Good Queen Bess, she was the daughter of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn (who would later be executed by Henry VIII). Downgraded from Princess to Lady Elizabeth, stripped of her inheritance, and later imprisoned in the Tower of London on the orders of her Catholic older sister Mary I, she faced a dramatic reversal of fate upon the death of her sister, becoming Queen at 25. Returning England to Protestantism, she would preside over a 45-year period, where the theatre flourished with the works of William Shakespeare, Sir Francis Drake circumnavigated the globe, and England navally triumphed over the Spanish Armada. She died in 1603, childless, and therefore the last monarch of the Tudor dynasty.

Plantation Lane sounds like one of the City’s many small, ancient alleyways – and indeed artefacts dating back to Boudicca’s time have been unearthed on the site. However, the alley only dates back to 2005, designed by Arup Associates, who worked with artists and designers, such as Turner Prize nominee Simon Patterson, throughout the process in order to incorporate light, art, history and architecture into the design of the lane, which bridges Plantation Place (the former site of the London Metal Exchange), and Plantation Place South. Nearby Mincing Lane also has a long history, with links to the East India spice, tea and sugar trade, as well as once being the centre of the British opium trade (accounting for 90% of all transactions). Indeed, in Charles Dickens’ Our Mutual Friend, the lane is described as ‘drug-flavoured… with the sensation of having just opened a drawer in a chemist’s shop’.

The mass of construction as well as largely-empty streets means that the area itself does not offer much beyond the occasional pub and offices above. However, this neighbourhood is located close to key transportation links such as Monument tube station, and London Fenchurch Street railway station. Furthermore, the area’s relatively wide roads make on-street parking possible, a luxury which is not often available in other parts of the City.

There are many on-going and new developments in the area, such as the newly- completed 70 Mark Lane, a Grade-A office space designed for the insurance market. Offering 170,000 square feet of office space, it is typical of the types of construction in the area – with a modern glass façade, as well as roof terraces and other facilities. Planning has also been approved for the redevelopment of the site at 50 Fenchurch street on the northern boundary of the area. Plans detail a 35-storey mixed use commercial development with ground floor retail and a huge green wall extending up past a public terrace garden on the 10th floor.