This point sits at the Old Bailey, London's main criminal courthouse, on the site of old Newgate Prison.
Last reviewed 16 October 2026 · A four-minute read · 170–2024
The short answer
Old Bailey in London is the Central Criminal Court of England and Wales, built on the site of Newgate Prison and named after the old fortified wall that once ran along this stretch of the city. A courthouse has stood here since at least 1585, rebuilt after fire, riot and bomb damage, and remains in daily use for the country's most serious criminal trials.
The Statue of Justice, situated on the roof of The Central Criminal Court, Old Bailey. Previously, the site of Newgate Prison. — 2004 · CAPTAIN ROGER FENTON 9th.WEST MIDDLESEX VRC. 1860 · CC0
1585 to 1774
A courthouse grew up beside Newgate Prison
Old Bailey is the Central Criminal Court of England and Wales, still in daily use for London's most serious criminal trials. The street takes its name from the old bailey, or fortified wall, that once ran along this stretch of the Roman and medieval city.
A courthouse stood here from at least 1585, built next to Newgate Prison to try cases for the Lord Mayor and Sheriffs. The two buildings grew up side by side. Prisoners waiting for trial or execution were held just steps from the courtroom that would decide their fate.
The Great Fire of London destroyed the court in 1666. It was rebuilt in 1674, left open on one side to the weather, a deliberate choice meant to stop the spread of gaol fever, an early name for typhus. In 1734, the building was closed in to keep out the crowds of spectators. That decision backfired badly. In the spring of 1750, gaol fever spread from the prison into the sealed courtroom and killed more than 60 people, including the Lord Mayor and two judges.
The court was rebuilt again in 1774 by the architect George Dance, at a cost of £15,000. During the Gordon Riots of June 1780, a mob broke into Newgate Prison and freed the men held inside, then wrecked furniture in the courtroom next door.
1807
A crowd crush killed dozens outside Newgate
On 23 February 1807, a crowd of about 40,000 gathered outside Newgate Prison to watch a triple execution. A cart collapsed and the crowd surged. Between 27 and 34 people were crushed to death, with 15 more badly hurt. It remains the worst single disaster recorded on this ground.
Public hangings carried on here for another sixty years, from 1783 to 1868, drawing crowds to the street outside the prison wall. In 1820, the last beheading in the country took place outside the Old Bailey, following the execution of the Cato Street conspirators for plotting to murder the entire cabinet. Public executions ended on 26 May 1868, after which hangings moved inside the prison walls, out of sight of the street.
1895 to 1955
Wilde, Crippen and Ellis stood trial here
The court built its reputation on the trials held inside it. Oscar Wilde stood trial here in 1895 for gross indecency and was sentenced to two years of hard labor. In 1910, Dr. Dr Crippen was tried for murdering and dismembering his wife. During the Second World War, William Joyce, broadcaster of Nazi propaganda as "Lord Haw-Haw," was convicted of treason here in 1945 and later hanged.
Ruth Ellis was tried and sentenced to death in 1955 for shooting her lover, becoming the last woman executed in Britain. The Blitz had badly damaged the building a few years earlier; restoration of its Grand Hall was finished in 1952, its walls repainted with scenes commemorating the bombing.
1902 to 1907
A new courthouse rose over the demolished prison
Newgate Prison closed in 1902 and was torn down that same year, clearing the site for a grander court. The architect Edward William Mountford designed the replacement in a heavy, confident style meant to look impressive without excess. Above the main entrance he had carved the words "Defend the Children of the Poor & Punish the Wrongdoer." On the dome, a 12-foot gilded bronze statue of Lady Justice holds a sword and scales. She carries no blindfold, unlike most such figures elsewhere.
King Edward VII opened the finished building on 27 February 1907. It had cost £392,277 and held four courtrooms, since expanded to 19. A fragment of the old Roman city wall survives in the basement, on the same line the fortified bailey once followed. One wall of the demolished prison still stands nearby, around the corner on Amen Court.
1968 to 1983
The Krays, an IRA bomb and Nilsen
Between 1968 and 1972, a new South Block went up behind the original courthouse to handle a growing caseload. The Kray twins were convicted of murder here in 1969 and jailed for a minimum of 30 years, ending their grip on organized crime in London's East End.
On 8 March 1973, the Provisional IRA detonated a car bomb in the street outside. One person died of a heart attack and about 200 were hurt. A shard of glass from the blast is still set into the wall at the top of the main stairs, left there as a marker. Ten years later, in 1983, Dennis Nilsen was given six life sentences here for murdering six men.
2024 to now
A fire forced the building's evacuation in 2024
On 7 February 2024, a fire and reports of explosions at the rear of the building forced about 1,500 people to evacuate. Defendants on remand were sent back to prison and juries went home for the day.
The Old Bailey still sits on the street that gave it its name. It tried its first cases under this name in 1585. It remains the City of London Corporation's own building, maintained at the Corporation's expense, while judges from His Majesty's Courts and Tribunals Service hear trials inside.
The courthouse still stands on Old Bailey, hearing London's most serious criminal trials.
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Ancient
circa 170 AD
Wikidata records a Roman building, built around 170 AD and tentatively identified as an octagonal Romano-Celtic temple, excavated at Old Bailey Street just 81 meters from this spot.
A short walk south, St Bride's Church on Fleet Street anchored a parish recorded as early as 525 AD, the oldest dated jurisdiction found anywhere near this ground.
A courthouse here is first recorded in 1585, built next to Newgate Prison from an endowment linked to Lord Mayor Richard Whittington, and rebuilt after the Great Fire destroyed it in 1666.
In 1679 Allen Roberts was tried at the Old Bailey after his cart ran over and killed a child, William Niccols, in Newgate Street, but witnesses said it was an accident and he was acquitted.
Phoebe Harris, Margaret Sullivan and Catherine Murphy were hanged and then burned at the stake in the Old Bailey for coining, a crime treated as high treason, before the practice ended in 1868.
In spring 1750 typhus spread from Newgate Prison into the adjoining courthouse and killed more than 60 people, including the Lord Mayor Sir Samuel Pennant and judges Sir Thomas Abney and Charles Clarke.
During the anti-Catholic Gordon Riots of June 1780, a mob broke into Newgate Prison and released the prisoners held there awaiting execution, also wrecking the adjoining courtroom.
Between 1783 and 1902, public and later private hangings at this spot killed 1,169 people, 1,120 men and 49 women, with crowds once watching from the street outside.
On 23 February 1807 a huge crowd gathered to watch a triple execution outside Newgate Prison, and a collapsing stall or cart triggered a crush that killed between 27 and 34 people right at this corner of Old Bailey and Newgate Street.
The current Old Bailey, designed by Edward William Mountford, was built on the site of Newgate Prison after its 1902 demolition and officially opened by King Edward VII on 27 February 1907.
On 8 March 1973 the Provisional IRA's Belfast Brigade exploded a car bomb in the street outside the Old Bailey, killing one person and injuring around 200; a shard of glass from the blast is still embedded in the wall at the top of the main stairs.
On 7 February 2024 around 1,500 people were evacuated from the Old Bailey after a fire and reports of five separate explosions at the rear of the building; defendants on remand were sent back to prison.
Newgate Prison stood on the site before the present courthouse; it closed in 1902 and was demolished that same year, clearing the ground for the building that opened in 1907.
What happened at the Old Bailey in 1807?
On 23 February 1807, a crowd of about 40,000 gathered to watch a triple execution outside Newgate Prison. A cart collapsed and the crowd surged, crushing between 27 and 34 people to death and badly injuring 15 more, the worst single disaster recorded on this ground.
Who has been tried at the Old Bailey?
Oscar Wilde was tried there in 1895 and sentenced to two years' hard labour, Dr Crippen stood trial in 1910 for murdering and dismembering his wife, William Joyce was convicted of treason in 1945, Ruth Ellis was sentenced to death in 1955, the Kray twins were convicted of murder in 1969, and Dennis Nilsen received six life sentences in 1983.
When did public executions end at the Old Bailey?
Public hangings at Newgate and the Old Bailey ran from 1783 to 1868, ending on 26 May 1868, after which executions moved inside the prison walls.
Was the Old Bailey ever bombed?
On 8 March 1973, the Provisional IRA detonated a car bomb in the street outside, killing one person of a heart attack and injuring about 200. A shard of glass from the blast remains embedded in the wall at the top of the main stairs.
Who designed the current Old Bailey building?
The architect Edward William Mountford designed the present courthouse, which King Edward VII opened on 27 February 1907 at a cost of £392,277.
