Number 99 And Attached Railings To Areas

Number 99 is a terraced house located on the north side of Great Russell Street, dating from around 1680 to 1700, with a later 19th-century refronting. The exterior is stuccoed, with a rusticated ground floor and a rusticated quoin strip marking the boundary between numbers 99 and 98. Horizontal bands are present at the first and third floor levels.

The house is four storeys high, with a basement and a later added fourth storey. It features five windows across the front, presenting a symmetrical façade. The entrance is marked by a square-headed stone architrave, a console bracketed cornice-hood, double panelled doors and a patterned fanlight. Square-headed and recessed sash windows are set within exposed boxing. A decorative cornice and blocking course completes the exterior. The rear elevation, aside from the added top storey, retains its original character, displaying plum-coloured brickwork with red dressings. It has three windows between closet wings, each with their own north-facing windows on every floor, alongside blind window recesses on the sides. Windows are topped with gauged flat arches, except for the basement and topmost floors where cambered arches are used. Deep stone sills are present, with a pronounced projection of the basement level beneath the central ground floor window, emphasized by a stone bolection moulded architrave, a shaped frieze, and a wood cornice.

The interior layout reflects the characteristic design of an early Georgian town house. A three-bay entrance hall rises through the ground and first floors, featuring a grand staircase of three flights that wraps around a central well. The upper landing is situated on the east side. The staircase is distinguished by twisted balusters on a closed string, with half balusters on the square newels and a moulded handrail. The hall floor is finished with a chequered black and white marble design. Ovolo panelling is present in four heights, with two heights and a dado rail leading to the upper landing, capped with a box cornice. An oval window, overlooking a secondary staircase, is positioned centrally on the north wall. Above the staircase is an unusual ceiling painting on plaster, depicting Bacchus and Ariadne attended by two cupids, set within an architectural landscape of cornices and consoles in perspective. This artwork is attributed to Louis Cheron. A secondary, dog-leg staircase extends from the basement to the third floor, enclosed by a panelled screen and lit by a small light well at the rear. This staircase has twisted balusters to a closed string, half balusters to the square newels, and panelling extending for the full height. The back room on the ground floor, known as the Peacock Room, extends the entire width of the house and is lined with bold, raised bolection moulded panelling, a dado rail and a box cornice. The remainder of the house retains fine panelling and architectural details, albeit with some minor alterations.

Historically, the house has been used for professional purposes since 1820, when it was occupied by the Regents Canal Company, who may have been responsible for the additional storey and the refronting work. The property is attached to railings that define the areas surrounding it.