2.7 out of 5.0 stars2.7

A great address and an amazing clubhouse. A historic club—though with very few members—sadly being ruined by jeans-wearing Americans who do not understand clubland culture. Let the NLC serve as a warning to any other club considering relaxing its dress code.

Full name: National Liberal Club
Location: 1 Whitehall Place
Type: Originally a political club, now social. Very exclusive, non-commercial private members’ club
Formed: 1882
Membership requirements: Proposed and seconded by at least two current members. No waiting list.

The National Liberal Club boasts one of the most stunning interiors of all the traditional gentlemen’s clubs in London, impressing visitors long before they walk through the front door. Not only does the club have the most prestigious address of all London clubs—1 Whitehall Place—but the building itself, designed by Alfred Waterhouse (who also designed the Natural History Museum), stands majestically just off the Embankment. Overlooking the Thames and the London Eye, the fortunate members of the National Liberal Club not only enjoy their summer drinks on one of London’s best terraces but also have the city’s best view of the New Year’s fireworks.

Entering through the front doors, you find yourself in the Main Hall, where strict porters gently turn away the curious and American tourists who mistake the club for the neighbouring Royal Horseguards Hotel. However, if you are lucky enough to be allowed further in, you will enter the rotunda with the largest free-standing marble staircase in Europe—an absolutely magnificent piece of design that replaced the old staircase after it was damaged during the war.

As you wander around the club, you can’t help but notice the tilework covering walls, ceilings, and columns throughout the building. Although certainly impressive, the colours and style of the tiles have sometimes drawn comparisons to a very large and heavily decorated public lavatory. The 1st Earl of Birkenhead, famously reprimanded for regularly using the men’s room without being a member, reportedly retorted, “Good God! Is it a club too?”

Jokes aside, the interior of the National Liberal Club is splendid, albeit a bit faded. The Smoking Room, now serving as a members’ sitting room, the Dining Room, the Bar, and the club’s many function rooms are stunning. As you explore the enormous clubhouse, it’s hard to believe that the club was originally even larger, having been forced to sell off parts of the building to the next-door hotel during the challenging times of the ’60s and early ’70s.

Today, the National Liberal Club is open to both political members, naturally of liberal persuasion, and non-political members. If what you’re after is an ultra-traditional club with dark leather sofas, old paintings, and a large smoking room, this used to be as good as it gets. Sadly, a few years ago, the NLC introduced a very relaxed, come-as-you-please dress code. The policy was pushed through against fierce opposition from some of the long-term members; many of the old guard have since resigned.

Since the changes, the NLC has accepted many jeans-wearing members who one might otherwise expect to belong to commercial establishments such as Home House or Onda. As a result, its reputation in clubland has plummeted, and in 2023 the Oxford & Cambridge Club terminated its reciprocal agreement with the NLC after repeated incidents of “unfortunate behaviour.” As one committee member remarked: “It was never about the dress code. It’s about the character of the people you want as your fellow members. If you can’t be bothered to put a tie on, you probably don’t care much for your club.”

Credit, however, where credit is due: the NLC still offers an amazing location, great food, a splendid atmosphere, and a sufficient number of old-timers asleep in the smoking room to give it all a very traditional club feel.

April 2024 update: We have been contacted by a number of current and past members describing massive internal disputes at the NLC. It appears that the dress-as-you-please policy scared away long-time members in favour of people who joined for a year and then left (presumably in search of the next Soho House). As a result, the club’s finances are in a dire state.