On 28th August 1945, flying the broad pendant of Commodore A. L. Poland CB. DSO. DSC., HMS London arrived at Sabang to accept the surrender of the Japanese Imperial Forces in South East Asia. It was on board London that Japanese officers accepted the arrangements for occupation to become effective as soon as the instrument of surrender had been signed at Tokyo. The surrender documents for Sumatra were signed on the Admiral's table by Commodore Poland and Vice Admiral Hirose of the Imperial Japanese Navy.

London returned home from the Far East for the last time in September 1949 and within a few weeks was laid up in the Fal. On 22nd. January 1950 HMS London arrived at Barrow-in-Furness to be broken-up by T. W. Ward bringing to an end 21 years of service.

50 years on Lieutenant Commander Gordon Bruty discovered that HMS London's Admiral's table was in daily use in a conference room at Flag Officer Sea Training (FOST), HMS Drake, Plymouth. Gordon wrote to FOST and was invited to Drake to view the table. How the table got from HMS London to FOST is still a mystery. It can only be surmised that it was "liberated" whilst the London was laid up in the Fal.

In September 2004 Gordon met with Commander Mark Walsh at HMS Drake and in November received an invitation to visit FOST in the New Year. The invitation was at the behest of Rear Admiral Ainsley who had arranged to have a plaque placed near to HMS London's Admiral's table to highlight its historical importance. The invitation was also extended to other "Londoners" and a date fixed for Monday 21st. March 2005.