Purchase of Broadgate House and Eldon House

British Land Co PLC
18 April 2000


NEW ACQUISITIONS BY BRITISH LAND AND
BY BRITISH LAND JOINT VENTURES

British Land has exchanged contracts to purchase the freehold interests of
Broadgate House and Eldon House, Eldon Street, London, EC2 from Standard Life
Investments.
 
The properties are situated within Eldon Street, at either end of a block
adjacent to the Broadgate Estate. Both buildings are fully let at a current
reversionary rent of £1,730,000 per annum and comprise a total of circa 72,000
sq ft of office, retail, public house, wine bar and ancillary space.  The
principal tenants within the buildings are Fitch IBCA, the rating agency, and
Gill Jennings and Every, patent lawyers.  Both tenants' leases run until 2011
with rent reviews due in 2001 and 2004.  The purchase price of £27.50 million
reflects an initial yield of 6.0%, rising to circa 7.50%, and an equivalent
yield in excess of 7.00%.  British Land were represented by Chapman Swabey and
Standard Life by Strutt and Parker.

BL Universal

BL Universal PLC (the joint venture between The British Land Company PLC and
The Great Universal Stores P.L.C.) has purchased the freehold interest in the
Castle Vale Retail Park, Birmingham, from J. Sainsbury Developments Limited. 
The transaction involves a forward purchase at a price close to £50 million,
the development to be completed in approximately six months.  It comprises a
food store and petrol filling station of 80,000 sq ft, with a further 85,000
sq ft of open A1 retail units and a 3,000 sq ft restaurant, together with an
amenity block of 10,500 sq ft.  The site includes 703 car parking spaces. 
Lettings of the six retail warehouse units are well under way, with the
majority now under offer.  Gooch & Webster advised BL Universal and Edgeley
Simpson advised J. Sainsbury Developments.

BL Universal has also exchanged contracts with Axa Sun Life to acquire for £21
million a 66,000 sq ft superstore with petrol filling station let to J.
Sainsbury Plc and a 25,000 sq ft leisure unit let to Gala Holdings Limited,
together with 585 car parking spaces, at New Cross Road, New Cross, London
SE14.  In this transaction Wilkinson Williams advised BL Universal and Knight
Frank advised Axa Sun Life.  This brings British Land's interests in retail
parks to 20 and 2,500,000 sq ft and to 100 superstores/supermarkets.

Tesco British Land

Tesco British Land has completed an extension of 15,308 sq ft to the existing
store at Lisnagelvin and has also bought a petrol filling station on land
adjoining the Ferndown Centre, adding both income and giving the property main
road frontage.

Contacts

John Ritblat, Chairman                    The British Land Company PLC
John Weston Smith, Finance Director       020 7486 4466