St. Stephen's Church, Rosslyn Hill

St Stephen’s Church stands on Rosslyn Hill in Hampstead, a steep slope next to the Royal Free Hospital. Built in the Neo-Gothic style by Samuel Sanders Teulon, it once held up to 1,200 worshippers. Teulon called it his ‘mighty church’ and considered it his finest work. The church cost £27,000 to build, far above the original estimate of £7,500. Its external sculptures were carved by Thomas Earp, and the chancel still holds mosaics by Salviati. The foundation stone was laid in May 1869 and the church was consecrated on New Year’s Eve that year. The church has strong links to notable figures. The performer Marie Lloyd Jr. married here in 1907, and the suffragist Margaret Nevinson was buried here in 1932. By the 1960s, subsidence and rising costs forced its closure in 1977. A Grade I listing in 1974 prevented demolition for a hospital car park. Squatters later occupied the decaying building while plans for reuse stalled. After a 1999 lease to the St Stephen’s Restoration and Preservation Trust, the church was restored in three phases with over £4 million raised from grants and donors. Today it stands as a quiet landmark on Hampstead’s skyline. The interior retains Teulon’s bold design and the surviving mosaics. The hillside setting offers views over Hampstead and towards central London.