St Peter's Italian Catholic Church

St. Peter's Italian Church was built on the initiative of St. Wincenty Pallotti, founder of the Pallottine congregation, which has been in charge of the temple to this day. At the time of consecration in 1863, it was the only church in Great Britain built in the form of a basilica. The architect Francesco Gualandi from Bologna modeled the body of the church on the Roman basilica of San Crisogono.

Gualandi wanted to build a basilica that could hold 3,400 people, with an impressive portico. Lack of funds forced numerous changes in the original design - the current building is estimated at 2000 people. Noteworthy is the interior furnishings, including above all the pulpit of Sicilian marble, terracotta sculptures of the Evangelists, an oil painting from 1640 depicting the death of Saint. John the Baptist, by Alessandro Turchi, and a 17th-century Neapolitan nativity scene.

The highest part of the temple is the 33-meter bell tower, which was added in 1891. Its bell, weighing more than four tons and having a diameter of 228.5 cm, gained the name "The Steel Monster".