Former Midland Bank, 1-3 High Street

The building is a former bank constructed in 1921 in a neoclassical style for London Joint City and Midland Bank. It occupies a corner plot and has an irregular rectangular plan with a curved corner between the High Street and King Street elevations. The other two elevations are hidden by adjacent buildings and a small rear courtyard.

The external walls are a combination of ashlar and stucco, with banded rustication to the upper walls that rest on a plain ashlar plinth. The King Street plinth is slightly lower to accommodate taller windows. Each elevation features deeply recessed, double-height windows with round-headed arches and rusticated voussoirs. Giant Doric columns divide the windows, supporting a moulded entablature with dentil and modillion cornices. The parapet is finished with vase balustrades. A bull-nose entrance is flanked by a three-bay elevation to High Street and a four-bay elevation to King Street. The corner entrance is set within an elaborate doorcase with fluted edges and bay-leaf and floral mouldings, topped by a projecting cornice. The entablature and parapet from the side elevations continue across the curved corner, with the addition of triglyphs to the frieze.

The ground floor contains a long banking hall with a two-position counter towards the east and a small office room against the west wall. A back office runs the width of the building; all these spaces have suspended ceilings and modern finishes. A principal staircase rises near the entrance, while a secondary staircase, with turned timber balusters, is situated at the opposite end. The first floor’s open-plan office has a coffered ceiling with dentil cornices. Originally, this would have been a double-height space, with the inserted first floor now cutting across the tops of the arched windows on the King Street elevation. There are three smaller offices to the west at the top of the principal staircase and a kitchenette to the east. The property incorporates an extensive basement.