Southwark Cathedral Reviews Summary

Accessibility & Location

Pros:

• "Right next to London Bridge, travel is easy and you’re next to Borough market too."
• "Adjacent to Borough Market, the most varied and interesting lunch spot in London."
• "And being just across the road from London Bridge station, it is really easy to get to."
• "It is located close to the Borough Market in London and has good access to public transportation."
• "It’s right next to Borough market and you can just go in for free."
• "The cathedral is really close to Borough Market, so you can sort of do both!"
• "Beautiful cathedral just next to the borough market, the shard, and the London Bridge experience."

Cons:

• "However please be aware that if you have limited mobility, then the cathedral staff have deactivated the lift access to the cathedral."
• "It's a rather small church when you actually get in, and without doing any real research, I only spent around 10 minutes here."
• "If you want to explore the cathedral, it is better not visit during service time as parts of the cathedral are closed to visitors."
• "Went there for king college university graduation, I think it wasn't the right location for this type of event."
• "For the price would have expected a cushion (!) and shame people around us no idea how to behave on phones the whole concert (light distracting) and in interval subjecting us to their inappropriate gossip!"
• "We were just having a coffee sitting on a bench near the entrance. A lady with a lanyard and a SANDWICH told us in no uncertain terms that we were not allowed food or drink in the grounds and that we were to leave."
• "Last Sunday (10/12/23) we wanted to go to services with our services dog, as we did on Easter, the men in the door was so rude, that didn't even allowed me to tell they were allowed."

Atmosphere & Experience

Pros:

• "It was stunning to experience the surreal ‘moon’ in such a sacred atmosphere."
• "What a wonderful experience in the cathedral! The musicians were brilliant and it was an amazing atmosphere in the candlelight."
• "A very beautiful building with a sense of peace and God's presence."
• "Beautiful place to slow down on a busy day in London."
• "The service at Southwark Cathedral was superb. It is a beautiful setting with very good acoustics."
• "The choir made a beautiful job of a complex anthem and a lot of lovely service music; clergy led and prayed with eloquent decorum."
• "All solemn hymns performed in such an antiquated cathedral. Just like we listened to songs from heaven."

Cons:

• "The echo is so overpowering in the church that I could hardly hear the sermon sometimes."
• "It was a nice place from the outside, but we tried to visit it twice, but every time, there was some service going on."
• "Those types of event should take place, places like theatres and cinemas."
• "Only downside is you have to pay for a 'license' to be able to take photographs inside and then they still want you to give a contribution to costs."
• "Sadly gift shop wasn't open on a Monday. Needed a Bookmark. Maybe another day."
• "On the other hand it is a slightly odd mishmash of styles and updates and hard to place architecturally, and not big on windows."
• "For £2 you can pick up a photography permit and take pictures inside."

Architecture & History

Pros:

• "Great worship place full of history."
• "Walk in and see the laid up colours of British Regiments, the Roman road from the first century."
• "The original convent dating back to the year 606... Shakespeare's regular spot for prayer and his brother Edmund had his funeral there."
• "The parish church was frequented by William Shakespeare's brother who was buried here in 1607 in an unmarked grave."
• "The first gothic church in London originally going back to 1106."
• "Much of the present building dates from 12th and 13th centuries."
• "The Southwark Cathedral which you see today was mostly constructed during the 13th-15th century and is of classic Gothic design."

Cons:

• "The least that can be said about the place is that it's magical."
• "There were prayers being said when we arrived and no guides were available."
• "Well worth a visit but don't go in preference to St. Paul's."
• "This is a beautiful and well kept cathedral that always seems to be in the shadow of St Pauls."
• "The architecture is incredible and a couple of nods to Shakespeare - a great place to go after a trip to The Globe."
• "A beautiful, well proportioned building. Architecturally interesting, principally due to the use of flint on the outside."
• "On the one hand it is a building with lots of history and on a site that has had continuous use as a place of worship since 606."

Staff & Services

Pros:

• "The staff are helpful the services are always interesting! Loos are clean, which is always nice."
• "If you're going to Borough Market - you might as well pop in here. A beautifully maintained Cathedral with very informative and friendly people on hand to answer any questions."
• "I spoke with the friendly staff who were friendly & willing to answer any question they could about the exhibition."
• "Very nice cathedral hidden next to boroughs market. free entry, lovely gift shop, friendly staff."
• "Guides were polite and helpful."
• "The staff & cathedral clergy 'couldn't have been friendlier'."
• "The staff were so kind. On my first visit, one of the ladies told me the story of the first cathedral cat and pointed out his grave marker in the garden."

Cons:

• "We were just having a coffee sitting on a bench near the entrance. A lady with a lanyard and a SANDWICH told us in no uncertain terms that we were not allowed food or drink in the grounds and that we were to leave."
• "Last Sunday (10/12/23) we wanted to go to services with our services dog, as we did on Easter, the men in the door was so rude, that didn't even allowed me to tell they were allowed."
• "There were prayers being said when we arrived and no guides were available."
• "Great talk by Nadia Bolz-Weber. The staff and clergy were really lovely and it was a great evening."
• "The host, Sophie, was charming and delightful."
• "Sadly gift shop wasn't open on a Monday. Needed a Bookmark. Maybe another day."
• "For the price would have expected a cushion (!) and shame people around us no idea how to behave on phones the whole concert (light distracting) and in interval subjecting us to their inappropriate gossip!"

Unique Features & Attractions

Pros:

• "Do try to look out for Hodge, the cute cat. He lives there and absolutely loves rubs."
• "Tha cat. No doubt about it, the Southwark Cathedral cat is one of the stars!"
• "Many have talked about the beauty of the building. I'm here to talk about the really important stuff-Hodge, the Cathedral Cat."
• "Perhaps the most delightful thing is the resident cat, who has its own significant social media following."
• "It’s pretty big and very elegant inside, and luckily I had a chance to see violinists playing which made this visit more special🥰."
• "There are concerts here as well as art exhibitions."
• "This place has connections with Shakespeare and houses the Tomb of John Gower, poet to King Richard II and Henry IV."