Comyn Ching Triangle, London
1978 – 1985

The Comyn Ching triangle is typical of many central urban sites – an odd-shaped plot, which began as an 18th-century property speculation with a variety of uses and ownerships, and developed as a complex mix of awkward geometries and sub-standard buildings, with most falling into single ownership.

The carefully phased scheme retained the listed buildings on the perimeter, restored their street elevations, and refurbished them for mixed-use occupation. New corner buildings, containing office and residential accommodation, define the edges of the development. The clutter of miscellaneous infill buildings at the centre of the site was removed and replaced by a quiet, hidden courtyard, in which two new office entrances are located.

The resulting site has a clear identity, both new and restored buildings adding to the established grain of the surrounding area, and the scheme has made a significant contribution to the renewal of the Seven Dials area of Covent Garden. Protected from the bustle of Covent Garden, Comyn Ching is an idyllic spot nested within the rich relics of three historic facades.

The main feature of the redevelopment for the ironmongery company, Comyn Ching, was the carving out of the new public courtyard, Ching Court, from a dense triangular site. The rear elevation of the buildings had to be transformed into suitable backdrops for the new public space. New entrances were established to attract the public into and through an area that had previously been private – the courtyard provides a diagonal public route from Seven Dials to Shelton Street. Farrell's fascination was with detail, and how its importance was intensified by the scale and enclosed nature of the courtyard. A series of events and features were used to generate interest at ground level, and reduce the potentially oppressive effect of the narrow courtyard space: three office entrances with large projecting porches arranged against the rear of Monmouth Street, inspired by eighteenth-century design, a rear passage entrance from Shelton Street flanked by large rear windows of shop units, two trees and Lutyens' seat on Mercer Street. Existing terraces were restored and TFP designed three new corner buildings. The scheme contained the traditional diversity of uses found in the city, with one side for residential use, one side for offices and the third with shops on the ground floor and residential use above.

For Farrell, the mixture of old and new, and the variety of uses were the most important features of the scheme – the public courtyard giving a specific identity and focus of activity to this urban block.