Islamic Centre of England

The Islamic Centre of England occupies a Grade II listed former cinema in Maida Vale, London. The building, designed by Edward A. Stone, opened as the Picture Palace in 1913 and later served as a ballroom and bingo club before becoming a mosque. Its copper-topped towers and central dome remain visible from the street. Inside, oak-panelled walls and gilded plaster decorations recall its cinematic past. The centre stands on the ground floor while the Islamic College and Seminary operate nearby in Willesden. The centre was founded in 1995 under Ayatollah Mohsen Araki and opened in 1998. It runs daily congregations of fifty to a hundred worshippers and offers programmes in English, Arabic, Persian and Urdu. Financial records show reserves of £4.4 million in 2016, with grants distributed to Islamic centres across the UK. The governing document requires one trustee to represent Iran’s Supreme Leader. It has hosted interfaith dialogues and participated in public open days. Visitors find a converted auditorium with a small circle of curtained boxes above the stage. The entrance vestibule retains its marble floor and original open fire. A tearoom once sat above the vestibule, now repurposed for community use. The centre also publishes Islam Today, a monthly magazine, and collaborates on a scholarly journal with a publisher in Qom. Its educational arm, the Hawza Ilmiyya of England, trains imams including Mohammad Ali Shomali, who has led the centre since 2014.