The insane £540m ghost town that’s a replica of London – 5,700 miles away

A bizarre town looks exactly like an English city despite being 5,700 miles from London.

Thames Town, in China’s Songjiang District, is some 19 miles from central Shanghai. It is an intriguing mix of architectural styles with influences from various British cities.

The project began in 2003, with Shanghai creating several cities inspired by the architecture of other countries, including Gaoqiao, inspired by The Netherlands, and German-style Anting to accommodate its booming population, as per Love Property.

These were built to form part of the “one city”, Songjiang.

But the most famous of the mock is Thames Town, which features London-style canals, imitation Tudor houses, and buildings which owe a heavy debt to landmarks like Chester, Lyme Regis, Bristol and Birmingham.

All the classic British iconography is on show, including old-fashioned red phone boxes, cobbled streets, fish and chip shops, and even a statue of Winston Churchill.

James Ho, the director of Shanghai Henghe Real Estate Co. Ltd., a firm among the five developers behind the town, said in 2006: “Beautiful buildings are always welcomed by customers. … If the building’s style is different from others, it will have its own market. It will be easy to make money, to add profit,” as per NPR.

Two years after the project’s completion, the population remained in the hundreds and had only risen to 2,300 by 2014.

But while it may not have become the residential hub its designers were hoping for, visitors to the city say it’s well worth a visit.

One TripAdvisor reviewer who visited in 2021 said: “I decided to visit Thames Town on a Saturday. It wasn’t very busy, but still busy enough!

“I had to take three subways & a didi to get here! The town is very nice! It really does feel like I’ve stepped back into the UK! Lovely little town to just walk around and escape Shanghai!”

Another reviewer who visited in 2020 said it was “not a ghost town at all”.

“When we arrived, it was crowded with people just enjoying a day there,” they wrote.

“Thames was built beautifully. Lots of couples taking their wedding pics there. Families were taking their dogs for a walk. Great to enjoy the architecture and statues there,” they said.