1-8, Saville Row

Eight terraced shops stepped slightly uphill from Alfred Street (No.1) to Bennett Street (No.7), positioned to the rear of the Assembly Rooms. The building dates to the late 18th century with alterations made during the 19th and 20th centuries.

The shops are constructed of limestone ashlar with double-pitched slate mansard roofs featuring moulded chimney stacks positioned to the party walls. The plans are of double depth. The buildings are three storeys tall with attics and basements.

No.1 forms the three-window left terminal of the terrace at Alfred Street and has a facade similar to Nos 16-19 Alfred Street, including a coped parapet and modillion cornice returned over No.2, moulded architraves to upper floor windows (those to the first floor with cornices, though architraves have been removed), and plate glass sashes with lowered sills. The single-window left return has a blind window to the second floor and a six/nine-pane sash with splayed jambs and lowered sills to the first floor. A late 19th-century shop projects from both facades with modillion cornice and fascia curved at the corner. The plate glass shop windows feature turned colonnettes and low moulded sills—three panes to the right and two to the left curving toward set-back glazed double doors with shaped corners to both panes and overlights. Bases to former segmental arches remain visible at the tops of the colonnettes, particularly on No.2 to the left.

No.1A is a three-window range with six/six-pane sash windows to the second floor and similar first floor windows to No.1. The projecting shopfront and fascia continue with segmental arched tops and overlights to two panes to the left and a curved pane to the set-back door. To the far right are Tuscan pilasters flanking steps up to a set-back half-glazed double door with a cobweb fan in the overlight.

No.2 is a single-window range with a six/six-pane tripartite window to the second floor and a 20th-century canted bay to the first floor, resting on a continuation of the projecting shopfront to the right. Shop windows are similar to those of No.1.

No.3 is a single-window range with a plate glass tripartite window to the upper floors, the first floor window having splayed jambs. The projecting canted shop window has a dentil cornice and three plate glass panes with bases for segmental arched tops on colonnettes and railings below to the basement area. The doors are 20th-century work.

No.4 is a two-window range with six/six-pane sash windows to the upper floors, those to the first floor with splayed reveals. To the left is a set-back six-panel door and three-pane overlight. To the right is a 19th-century cornice over a 20th-century double-fronted shop.

No.5 is a single-window range, part of the shop occupied by Nos 5-7. Tripartite windows to the upper floors comprise six/six-panes to the second floor and six/nine panes with lowered sill to the first floor. The projecting shopfront has a cornice to the fascia, curved upper corners to three panes of plate glass, and a moulded sill (restored). To the right is a set-back 20th-century door and overlight. Projecting to the right of the door is the upper part of an elaborate square column with egg-and-dart cornice, inverted scroll console, and part of a recessed panel with fish-scale ornament, along with an iron pole base.

No.6 has a two-window range with six/six-pane sash windows to the upper floors, tripartite to the right. The projecting restored shopfront has a blocked door and overlight to the left under a projecting fascia supported by a cast iron ornamental scroll bracket.

Nos 7 and 8 occupy part of the right return of No.6 Bennett Street. They are four storeys tall including an attic storey, with a three-window range and a stack to the centre. Blind windows are positioned to the left and centre, with plate glass sashes to the right and a cast iron balconette to the first floor. At ground floor level to the left, "SAVILLE ROW" is carved into the platband over a semicircular arch with a plain fanlight to a blocked door. The projecting shop to the right has turned pendants and curved corners to the cornice, leaf caps and bases to colonnettes between plate glass shop windows curved at their corners. Set-back double half-glazed doors have a plain segmental arched fanlight. A complete square column, similar to that of No.5, supports the right corner of the fascia, glazed to the rear with cast iron railings similar to those of the balconette positioned below the sill.

The interiors were not inspected. This is a notable survival of 19th-century shopfronts.