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33 Manor Place in Elephant and Castle has lived many lives. It opened as public baths in 1898 (one of the biggest in London at the time) and a few years later it doubled up as a boxing venue, frequented by the infamous Kray twins. It fell into disuse in the ’90s but then was rescued by a Buddhist group in the ’00s and used as a meditation centre until 2010. Now, it’s been transformed into something else entirely.
Streetwear brand Palace has joined forces with Nike to turn the retired bathhouse into a huge indoor skatepark. And it’s opening next week.
But it’s not just for shredding. The new Manor Place has three target audiences: creatives, skateboarders and football players. So, there are three zones. The centrepiece is The Park, a free-to-use skatepark in what was once the men’s swimming pool. Throughout the year, it’ll host skate jams, girl-only sessions and special event programming. Then, hidden beneath the Park, is the Cage, an underground three-a-side football pitch. You just press a big red button and the central section of the skatepark is mechanically raised on six steel columns to reveal the pitch.
Elsewhere in the hub, the Front Room will be a place for art exhibitions, workshops, panel talks and pop-ups and the Residency will offer studio space to six emerging creatives on a nine-month rotating basis. The studios are freestanding pods made from timber wrapped in crumpled reflective fabric, described as ‘lunar landers’. If that sounds up your street, applications for the next intake will open in spring 2026.
Lev Tanju, Palace’s co-founder and creative director, said: ‘We had an idea of creating a large space for the community that would be about skateboarding and sport, and a space you could generally hang out in.
‘When we spoke about the project, we knew Nike was the only brand in the world that could make something like this happen. We want Manor Place to be something positive for London — a city that has given us so much — and we’re really excited to give something back.’
Lenna Gunning-Williams, an English footballer and Nike athlete, added: ‘Manor Place is important for the next generation because it’s so accessible. It’s going to be a place where people can connect — and it’s not just for footballers, it’s for skaters and creatives too.’
Manor Place will open on Monday, November 11. It’ll be open six days a week and be completely free to enter. You’ll be able to book skating or football sessions on its website.
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