This neighbourhood is located at the southwestern corner of Bow, being bounded by the linear Mile End Park to the west, Mile End Road to the north, Devons Road to the south and the DLR line between Bow Church and Devons Road to the east. Mile End gets its name from the Jewish community which was once subject to racist Laws mandating that Jews lived at least one mile from the mediaeval walls of the city. In the middle of the Queen Mary university campus lies a Jewish cemetery, one of only two exclusively Sephardic cemeteries left in England. Benjamin D’Israeli was buried at this site - grandfather to Benjamin Disraeli.

Mile End, like the rest of the East End, became a less-than-savoury place to be, with mass poverty and crowded conditions leading to a high crime rate. Though Jack the Ripper is often the most famous (or infamous), he only operated for a very short period of time. The post-war period in the 1950s and 60s saw less mysterious but more widespread organised gangs taking over parts of the area, including Bow. The gangs were known as ‘firms’, the most notorious of which was that of the Kray Twins, simply known as ‘The Firm’. They operated clubs and gambling establishments, and thrived on conflict – mostly with other firms.

The Kray Twins often frequented the area, going from boxers to nightclub owners – covering their illicit activities with a glamorous life in the West End. They were increasingly confident of their ability to escape the law, growing to such an extent where Ronnie Kray shot George Cornell in full view of a whole bar’s worth of occupants, with no witnesses daring to go to the police. Their time would come to an end when Reggie Kray stabbed Jack “The Hat” McVitie, and at the Old Bailey were sentenced to life in prison. Their story has been adapted into numerous films, including the recent Legend in 2015, starring Tom Hardy as both the twins.

Mile End Park was fully opened in 2004, although it has already been in planning stages from the 1940s. The park contains the Green Bridge, also known as the banana bridge, a unique solution to the Mile End road crossing, and has recently been regenerated to be brighter with more natural play areas. The park has won the Green Flag Award numerous times.

A redevelopment project which will provide 142 on the Mile End estate was approved in 2019 and is currently underway. The plans add to, rather than replace, existing buildings by building on the rooftops of the 1970s maisonettes which dominate the area.