Lord’s Cricket Ground - Middlesex Ground Guide

More commonly known just as ‘Lord’s’ or referred to as ‘the home of cricket’, was named after its founder Thomas Lord. Situated in the English capital of London, it is home to many organisations including Marylebone Cricket Club, Middlesex County Cricket Club, the England and Wales Cricket Board, the European Cricket Council and, until August 2005, the International Cricket Council. Despite being home to the oldest sports museum the Lord’s ground is not on its original site – there were three with that name in different locations beforehand. The reason for the relocation of the ground in 1811 to the second location was due to rent increases.

The ground can hold 30,000 spectators. As of December 2013, the ground started a 14-year redevelopment scheme costing £200 million. The historic landmark of the Pavilion is the main survivor from the Victorian era and will be maintained in this new redevelopment. From 2004 to 2005 this Grade II listed building was refurbished for £8 million, to be used for members of Middlesex County Cricket Club including special viewing of the pitch, multiple bars and a members’ shop. The players also use the Pavilion to get change and use a small balcony to watch the game when they are not playing.

Another unique feature of the Lord’s Cricket Ground is the Media Centre. ommissioned in time for the 1999 Cricket World Cup and awarded the RIBA Stirling Prize for architecture, it was the first all-aluminium, semi-monocoque building in the world. This method of architecture refers to the buildings ‘single shell’ that is reinforced with frames that are riveted to the skin, originally used in building boats. he lower tier of the centre provides accommodation for over 100 journalists, and the top tier has radio and television commentary boxes. The centre’s only opening window is in the broadcasting box used by BBC Test Match Special.

One of the most well-known and distinctive features of the Lord’s Cricket Ground is the field itself. With its significant slope – the north-west side of the playing surface is 2.5 metres (8 ft 2 ins) higher than the south-east side – the ball can deviate in bounce, making it easier to move the ball into the right-handed batsmen when bowling from the Pavilion End and vice versa. Like other English fields, the Lord’s field has resulted in considerable loss of play due to rainfall, especially in the outfield. This was partially solved from 2002 to 2003 with the relaying of clay soil.

Despite Lord’s reputation of an international cricket ground, it still faces the problems of the modern world. Its situation in London means that light pollution can affect local residents. In 2009, Westminster City Council approved the use of retractable floodlights to combat light spillage into the nearby homes. These lights come with rules of an 11 pm curfew and 9:50 pm dimming to half lights.

This cricket ground has so much history, yet is keeping up with the 21st century, making it one of the most famous cricket grounds in the world.

Below is a seating plan of Middlesex's Lord’s Cricket Ground:

Lords Cricket Ground offers both a museum and tour for eager Cricket fans. The tour takes you through the whole ground including the Pavillion, Long Room and dressing rooms, among other locations. The prices as of 2020 are as following:

Adult £25
Senior (over 60s) £20
Disabled (carer goes free) £20
Student (ID required) £18
Children (aged 5-15) £16
Family (2 adults & 2 children aged 5-15) £60
Infants (under 5s) Free

You can book a Lords Tour here.

Lord’s Cricket Ground is in the heart of London which is bad news for drivers but great news for tube lovers.

The satnav postcode is NW8 8QN however the ground encourages no one to drive. Driving in London can be a nightmare at the best of times, so trying to get to Lords on a matchday will be difficult, though not impossible. The nearest car park is at Kingsmill Terrace NW8 6AA but spaces run out quickly. St John’s Wood is mainly permit only parking so be careful about where you park if all the car parks are full.

The nearest main line railway station is Marylebone which is just 10 minutes walk from the ground. But honestly, Euston, King’s Cross and St Pancras would all be suitable train stations to use as they are only a tube journey away.

The nearest tube station is St John’s Wood which is just 5 minutes away on the Jubilee line. Baker Street, Warwick Avenue, Marylebone and Edgware Road are all about 15 – 20 minute walk from the ground as well, so there are plenty of options no matter what tube line is available to you.

The closest Airport is Heathrow and is just under an hour tube journey to the ground, making it ideal if you are an overseas day tripper. Other London airports would also be okay to use if you can only get flights from Gatwick or Stansted, as they are connected to the great London travel network. Stansted will take about 1 hour 30 mins, and Gatwick is just over a 1-hour train/ tube journey.