The Club was established by W.E. Gladstone in 1882 for the purpose of providing club facilities for Liberal Party campaigners. The architect was Alfred Waterhouse (1830-1905) who used a neo-Gothic style similar to that of the Natural History Museum for the building which was completed in 1887. Its facilities included a dining room a bar, function rooms, a billiards room, a smoking room and reading room, as well as an outdoor riverside terrace.

At the time of its construction the Club was the largest clubhouse ever built; only the Royal Automobile Club of 1910 was larger. It was the first London Club to incorporate a lift and the first to be entirely lit throughout with electric lighting. We will be given a tour of the extremely fine interiors of this Grade I-listed building, followed by a fabulous afternoon tea.

Please not that there is a strict dress code – jacket and tie for men, skirt or dress for women, no jeans, no trainers, no tee shirts.

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