I went last night to a discussion about the forthcoming London Museum which is due to open some time next year – they are sensibly cagey as to when because it has obviously been a long and immensely complicated building project and there is still much to do, including the installation of all the displays.

I was very impressed. Asif Khan spoke first about the importance and interest of the site which is clearly of great importance, the site of a meat market since the 10th. century and of Bartholomew Fair. Paul Williams of Stanton Williams talked about the long process of the design of the new museum which will occupy two of the old buildings of Smithfield Market: the General Market to the west, apparently with a view through to the railway line, designed by Sir Horace Jones and built between 1879 and 1883; and the Poultry Market to the east which was burnt down in 1958 and reconstructed in a completely different way by Sir Thomas Bennett. They were originally going to occupy the Fish Market to the south, plus the General Market, but this didn’t provide enough space, so the Fish Market has been refurbished and is due to be let through open competition. The Poultry Market part of the project will not open till 2028.

The third speaker was Mell Allwood from Arup who spoke about issues of sustainability. In general, I have not been impressed by the City’s approach to sustainability, but this project has obviously been all about retaining the character and fabric of the existing buildings, led by the conservation architect, Julian Harrap, who, as I know from long experience, is very brilliant.

The fourth speaker (or commentator) was Deyan Sudjic, the former director of the Design Museum who spoke more generally about the changing character of museums.

Two things came across: the scale and ambition of the project; and the fact that it will be very different from a conventional museum, partly because the existing shops round the side of the building have been retained and will be let to partner organisations and because, like the V&A East Storehouse, it will be all about discovery and not so much about traditional display of the collection.

I thought that I might be nostalgic for the old Museum of London, but going into a late 1970s building which has not been occupied for several years was pretty gloomy and I was completely persuaded that the buildings of the new museum have been refurbished with the utmost sensitivity.

Here is an aerial view of the two buildings (Poultry Market to the right):-

This is West Poultry Avenue between the two buildings which will be the point of entry and has been retained as an internal street:-

This is a cross section of the whole:-