The reconstruction, in 1857, in the short space of eight months, of the theatre at Covent Garden, which had been destroyed by fire, and the erection in the following year of the Floral Hall adjoining, afford examples of his energy, constructive skill, and artistic ability.

In 1860 Sir Charles Barry died suddenly, and upon Edward devolved the duty of completing his father's works.

The remaining years of his life record a long series of works designed by him, many of them of national magnitude and importance.

He also designed the adjacent Floral Hall, a glass and cast iron structure heavily influenced by the Crystal Palace built for the Great Exhibition of 1851.

The Covent Garden work was hugely influential in Barry's appointment to design the Royal Opera House in Valletta, Malta (1866), bombed by the Luftwaffe during the Second World War.