Tucked away behind the glistening lights of West End theatres and the Savoy Hotel lies a secret ‘tent village’ housing 30 homeless people.
In the shadow of the £800-a-night Adelphi, on London‘s Strand, people from Britain and around the world are living in a street encampment.
The Grade II-listed building, home to publications including Vogue and GQ, creates a stark contrast with the series of tents and poverty outside.
Video taken by the Daily Mail shows about 20 tents on the pavement – many of which were placed tactically under a neo-classical archway.
There are migrants, men from Romania, Uganda, a woman from Germany and people from Scotland, northern England and the capital itself.
They live in a long line of tents, with some disappearing off to the heaving streets of the Strand and Charing Cross to beg for money.
Bikes and donated bags of food were spotted outside their temporary homes – with local office workers said to be generous in their donations.
Some men from Romania were unhappy at being approached to discuss their living situation, but other residents were happy to give their story.
Tucked away behind the glistening lights of West End theatres and the Savoy Hotel in London lies a secret ‘tent village’ housing 30 homeless people
Among those dwelling there, for the past two months, is 37-year-old James Williams
Tracy Wood, 42, is a former graphic designer born in Middlesborough who has lived at the site for the past six years.
She told the Mail: ‘Obviously it’s not ideal, but it could always be worse.
‘I moved down here when I was about 22 for work. I designed birthday and greeting cards.
‘About five, six years ago, I lost my job. Got in a bit of a situation, couldn’t pay my rent and ended up down here.
‘I’ve got good people around me, and there’s good organisations out there that are doing the best they can do to help the homeless.
‘There’s a fair amount of support here – that’s why I’ve stayed here.’
Meanwhile, ex-landscape gardener James Williams, 37, has been living in a tent for the past two months.
The British father of three, formerly of Tower Hamlets in east London, said: ‘You get a lot of support here from people here, it’s unreal.
‘I’ve been homeless for eight or nine years but I moved here because there’s a bit more support. People seem nice.
Tracy Wood, 42, is a former graphic designer born in Middlesborough who has lived at the site for the past six years
Video taken by the Daily Mail shows around 20 tents on the pavement – many of which were placed tactically under a neo-classical archway
‘I worry for my health, I have Crohn’s [disease] and one eye. I wouldn’t be able to see properly if somebody targeted me.
‘The council needs a kick up their ass. To be honest with you, if I was a foreigner and I come over in a boat, I’d get a Ferrari and a mansion.
‘But because I’m an Englishman and I was born in this country, nobody wants to help.’
Eric Mutebi, 46, came to the UK from Uganda when he was 10 and later found employment as a removals worker in north west London.
But after losing his job due to illness, he could no longer afford his rent in Kilburn and took to living in a tent. He has lived at this site since 2022.
He gave a harrowing account of freezing conditions in the tents in the winter months.
The father of one told the Mail: ‘This is the safest place you can be while living on the streets. It’s offices everywhere, everybody feels safe.
‘There’s around 30 people living here. They are from all over the world, it’s mostly foreigners.
Another tent resident is Eric Mutebi, 46, who came to the UK from Uganda when he was 10 and later found employment as a removals worker in north west London
In the shadow of the Adelphi Building, on London’s Strand, people from Britain and around the world are living in a street encampment
‘You will find that people who just came to this country, such as migrants, they are prioritised by and given more help with accommodation.
‘Essentially the people who have just landed get priority over those of us who have literally been out here for years. It doesn’t make sense.’
Mr Mutebi says living on the strip is like ‘living in a community’ – but brutal weather conditions lead to outbreaks of sickness among residents.
He said: ‘For the most part we get a warm drink in the morning. People are kind here.
‘Local people don’t complain, they’re office workers. Some of them will come out, sit down, smoke with people, and take break or whatever.
‘You know, some of us are more capable than others. Some people have got mental health and other illnesses. Most of us are just left to our devices.
‘The real challenge is when winter comes. It gets down to minus six degrees and it’s actually colder inside the tents than outside.
‘You get people actually lying in the street blanketed up, trying to stay warm.
Among those living on the street are migrants including men from Romania , Uganda, a woman from Germany – as well as people from Scotland, northern England and the capital itself.
Tracy Wood (left) told the Daily Mail: ‘I’ve got good people around me, and there’s good organisations out there that are doing the best they can do to help the homeless’
‘So now, it’s getting cold and most of are getting sick every night – all you’re hearing is coughing, coughing, coughing, coughing. There’s no one exempt, you know?’
He added: ‘Look around you – somebody needs to be concerned about this picture.
‘To me, that’s my concern. All the tourists come. Why isn’t somebody concerned about the image? Even if they don’t care about us?
‘The reality is, in 2025 this should not be happening. People should not be stuck living in conditions like this. The council needs to act.’
The local authority, in conjunction with a homeless charity, will next month offer residents two weeks in accommodation to help keep them warm.
The insights come after the Mail revealed a ‘shanty town’ of tents has been set up on busy London shopping hub Tottenham Court Road.
And a series of ‘illegal tents’ are set to be removed from Park Lane in central London after Transport for London was granted a possession order to remove them.
The encampment opposite the Hilton Hotel near Hyde Park Corner features about 12 tents.
Shocking footage taken by the Daily Mail shows a ramshackle ‘village’ at the end of Tottenham Court Road in central London
The collection of tents has sprung up in one of the city’s busiest shopping hubs
The court-issued possession order follows a separate order last October which saw about 40 people cleared from the area.
A spokesperson for the Mayor of London said: ‘The Mayor has made clear that no one should have to sleep rough on our streets.
‘Under his leadership, more than 18,000 people have been helped off the streets, but there’s much more to do.
‘That’s why Sadiq has launched a bold new Plan of Action to end rough sleeping for good by 2030 and has provided record funding from City Hall. This includes the single biggest investment of £10 million – more than any London Mayor.
‘The Mayor is delivering new Ending Homelessness Hubs and expanding his Homes off the Streets programme, alongside establishing a prevention phone line and funding more support workers in our communities.
‘Sadiq will continue to work closely with the Government, London councils and the homelessness sector to tackle this crisis as we continue building a fairer London for everyone.’
A Westminster City Council spokesman said: ‘In Westminster we have more people experiencing rough sleeping than any other part of the country – as the heart of the capital, new people appear on our streets every day.
‘Our teams are out on the streets seven days a week to offer help to those who will take it.
‘People end up on the streets for complex reasons, but staying there isn’t an option.
‘The council is in the process of gaining the necessary court order to clear the encampment at Adelphi Terrace, which is not a safe place to live and is disruptive to local people.
‘We will continue to offer people support they need whether this is with housing, addiction, mental health problems to help them move away from homelessness.’