WELCOME to the fourth feature of our history series called, 'Ealing REWIND'.

As part of 'Ealing REWIND', we will look back at famous buildings and locations throughout Ealing, talk about their history and how they've evolved over the years.

Today we will look at the home of Ealing's local government, the Town Hall.

Ealing Town Hall was built in 1888 by Hugh Knight, based on the design by Charles Jones.

The task of building the new town hall began two years earlier, in 1886, when the old town hall became too small.

Charles Jones, the council's surveyor and an architect, negotiated the sale of the land on which the town hall now stands.

The land was purchased from the Wood family (Ealing's major landowners) for £500, a fraction of its true value as a sign of a conciliatory gesture following a falling out between the family and the council.

It cost £16,000 to build and was officially opened by the Prince of Wales (the future King Edward VII) on December 15 of that year.

It was designed with similar materials and in a similar style to the previous town hall, however, it was considerably more ambitious than its predecessor.

It was built as the administrative centre of Ealing, with working accommodation for councillors and employees, and became the new council offices in 1894, before becoming the headquarters of the Municipal Borough of Ealing in 1901.

Also housed in the Town Hall was a public library, swimming baths and a fire station in the complex behind the building.

The building was significantly extended to the east in the 1930s.

A new octagonally towered entrance was build, while internally the extension created a new council chamber and a mayor's parlour as well as a new public hall in the basement which became known as the 'Queen's Hall'.

During the Second World War, a wall was built around the town hall to protect it during the blitz, but unlike some other prominent buildings in the borough, it survived relatively unscathed.

When further office space was needed in the 1980s, it was decided not to expand the existing building or to sell it, but to transfer most of the officers to the new building next door – Perceval House – which was built in 1983.

Initially referred to as the 'Civic Centre', it was renamed 'Perceval House' after Spencer Perceval, a former Prime Minister from the 19th century who lived on Elm Grove in Ealing.

Since 2007, the Council Chamber has housed six portraits of important former residents of Ealing, while the Nelson Room holds another two.

Included in these are a portrait of King Edward VII by Henry John Hudson and a portrait of former Prime Minister, Spencer Perceval, by an unknown artist.