Were a restaurant patio and a bar, a fish market and a food shop opened on the premises of St. Mark's Church in London? No, that's not true: The church was deconsecrated, transformed from sacred to secular use in 1974, and was transformed into a gastronomic hub in 2019.
The claim appeared in a TikTok video (archived here) published by pravda_bel on December 21, 2023, with a caption, translated from Russian into English by Lead Stories staff, that read:
😳 In London in St Mark's church a restaurant patio, a fish market and a food shop were opened. One can buy alcohol too, why not 👌 🤯 A church of almost 1500 square meters and four storeys, is literally full of expensive food. In the midst of it, there is also an altar, a charnel house and ecclesiastic pieces of work. Even the bell tower is renovated, but the bell tolls, probably, only for Christmas sales 🙈
This is what the post looked like on TikTok at the time of writing:
(Source: TikTok screenshot taken on Wed Dec 27 07:48:29 2023 UTC)
A former Anglican place of worship, St. Mark's church was built in London's Mayfair district in 1822 and it was deconsecrated (archived here) in 1974 remaining empty for many years. It was included in the register of English Heritage's "Buildings at Risk."
In 2008, British entrepreneur George Hammer proposed using the building of the former church as a spa and wellness hub, however, he was refused (archived here) permission after campaigns (archived here) were held to preserve the church building.
In July 2014 the building was acquired by Grosvenor Estates, which transformed the former place of worship into a retail and dining destination and renamed it the Mercato Metropolitano, which opened on the premises in 2019.
