Property in London: City living on the Cheap

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The Square Mile has long been a ghost town at weekends, devoid of shoppers and residents. But that's all changing, says Zoe Dare Hall

A glance at the street names - Oat Lane, Bread Street, Poultry - instantly reveals the nature of the trading hub the City of London once was.On Cheapside, which links Paternoster Square - the heart of the financial district - to the Royal Exchange, the remains of pottery shops dating back to AD60 have been found, making this the oldest high street in Britain.

Should you drop by on July 19, the only traffic you are likely to see will be livestock ambling past medieval market stalls en route to St Paul's Cathedral, part of the London Festival of Architecture's plans, along with the Museum of London, to recreate the buzz of the area's past.

The glass and steel towers and sea of pinstripes leave you in little doubt about the kind of marketplace the City has become - a frenetic core of financial activity crammed into the Square Mile.

While much of the glorious architecture of the past remains, with the Wren churches and Georgian buildings alongside towering, shiny modern icons, at weekends the area is a ghost town, with little to lure visitors away from the shops and attractions of the West End.