Playgroup

King's Cross - an exciting destination

London is a vibrant and exciting place to be at the moment, and no-where more so than Kings Cross. Yep, Kings Cross!

It was a pleasure to be at the opening of Granary Square last week - now one of the largest public spaces in Europe. The square, as big as Trafalgar Square, is a great place to walk through or stop and relax, with the steps to the canal, the benches overlooking the fountains or the copse of trees at the far end.

The square connects the new home of Central St Martins to the first new road in London for 100 years - Kings Boulevard. This is a car-free boulevard and has formed the home for the new Eat Street pop-up food venue, many of whom were offering their street food at the opening. The water fountains, with 1080 jets, create patterns of water from 25,000 gallons of recycled water.

The event included some excellent speeches and a number of dance, juggling and poetry performances to entertain a crowd of approximately 1,500 guests. Free food, drink and music all added to the enjoyment.

I think Granary Square really signifies a change in the area around King’s Cross & St Pancras. It already has been confirmed as a venue to receive the Olympic Flame on the morning before the Games start and will hold a series of Summer events, including the Traction Festival on 14th July. Guests will include Giles Peterson and the excellent Sebastian Tellier (who else could write a piece of music so good that there are seven versions of it on one album; La Ritournelle).

It’s been exciting working on a project to brand a destination in London that is changing so rapidly and we look forward to continuing to do so. Argent, the Kings Cross Business Partnership and all their associated partners are creating a great place to work, explore and stay a while.

Rather than encouraging people to come to the area to seek out hidden gems, I think the whole place will soon be know as a major gem in it’s own right.