London is full of loos but many of the publically owned ones, provided (if that is the word) by local councils, are in these fancy concrete boxes where they expect you to pay for a pee. Back in the 1950s, women conducted a campaign to have the 'spend a penny' syndrome abolished & they won.

Now, thanks to economies forced on local councils (largely during the years of the Thatcher Tyranny but not ameliorated by subsequent regimes), this has been whittled away. Someone (& why does it always have to be me) has to provide a directory of free loos in Central London, because, believe me, any children under 50 finding this site, you need more pees as you get older & often, quicker.

Please feel free to e-mail me on this link with any others you know about.

So here it is: the free loo guide:-

EC 2
Barbican Centre. Silk Street just North of London Wall. Loos in the basement.

NW 1
St Pancras Station Euston Road Left side (West) going through the 'shopping mall' before the Euro-check-in
Euston Station Euston Road. Temporary free loos on platform 18.
The Kings Cross Station (actually N1) loos charge 30p. Shame on you, Network Rail.

SE 1
Royal Festival Hall opposite Charing Cross Station on the South Bank, usually open in the daytime but there is nothing helpful about when it is open on the web site.
Tate Modern. South Bank opposite St Pauls Cathedral. On the entry level by the lifts.

SW 1
Tate Britain. Millbank. In the main entrance & down the stairs to the restaurant. Follow the signs from the Manton entrance. Usually opens at 1000.

W 1
John Lewis Oxford Street just West of Oxford Circus Station during store hours on this web page
also British Home Stores next door.
Royal Academy Piccadilly between Piccadilly Circus & Green Park tube stations on the North side. Opening times on this web page.

W 2
Hyde Park. The big Eastern field has a clump of trees in the middle with loos.

WC 1
British Museum Great Russell Street (Bloomsbury) in the Great Court during opening hours see this link
Mary Ward Centre Queen Square South Side, just North of Holborn Tube. Check the web site.
University College Hospital Euston Road, corner of Gower Street. Main lobby on the right hand (West) side.

More general possibilities

Pubs & Strarbucks but the opening hours are very varied & pub landlords tend (with some justification) to get shirty if they catch you. However, in an emergency, one can tolerate that.

Big Hotels

These do not usually notice if you sneak into their ground floor loos. Betty Harris recommends the Ritz (corner of Piccadilly & Green Park).