Bedford Chambers is one of the streets of London in the WC2E postal area.
| CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE LOCALITY |
 
The Underground Map Added: 8 Dec 2020 00:24 GMT |
Othello takes a bow
On 1 November 1604, William Shakespeare’s tragedy Othello was presented for the first time, at The Palace of Whitehall. The palace was the main residence of the English monarchs in London from 1530 until 1698. Seven years to the day, Shakespeare’s romantic comedy The Tempest was also presented for the first time, and also at the Palace of Whitehall.
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Linda Webb Added: 27 Sep 2021 05:51 GMT |
Hungerford Stairs
In 1794 my ancestor, George Webb, Clay Pipe Maker, lived in Hungerford Stairs, Strand. Source: Wakefields Merchant & Tradesmens General Directory London Westminster 1794
Source: Hungerford Stairs
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Fumblina Added: 21 Feb 2023 11:39 GMT |
Error on 1800 map numbering for John Street
The 1800 map of Whitfield Street (17 zoom) has an error in the numbering shown on the map. The houses are numbered up the right hand side of John Street and Upper John Street to #47 and then are numbered down the left hand side until #81 BUT then continue from 52-61 instead of 82-91.
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TUM Added: 27 Aug 2022 10:22 GMT |
The Underground Map
Michael Faraday successfully demonstrated the first electrical transformer at the Royal Institute, London.
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Roy Batham Added: 7 Jan 2022 07:17 GMT |
Smithy in Longacre
John Burris 1802-1848 Listed 1841 census as Burroughs was a blacksmith, address just given as Longacre.
Source: Batham/Wiseman - Family Tree
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Jeff Owen Added: 20 Mar 2021 16:18 GMT |
Owen’s School
Owen Street is the site of Owen’s Boys’ School. The last school was built in 1881 and was demolished in the early 1990s to make way for the development which stand there today. It was a “Direct Grant” grammar school and was founded in 1613 by Dame Alice Owen. What is now “Owen’s Fields” was the playground between the old school and the new girls’ school (known then as “Dames Alice Owen’s School” or simply “DAOS”). The boys’ school had the top two floors of that building for their science labs. The school moved to Potters Bar in Hertfordshire in 1971 and is now one of the top State comprehensive schools in the country. The old building remained in use as an accountancy college and taxi-drivers’ “knowledge” school until it was demolished. The new building is now part of City and Islington College. Owen’s was a fine school. I should know because I attended there from 1961 to 1968.
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Scott Hatton Added: 11 Sep 2020 19:47 GMT |
Millions Of Rats In Busy London
The Daily Mail on 14 April 1903 reported "MILLIONS OF RATS IN BUSY LONDON"
A rat plague, unprecedented in the annals of London, has broken out on the north side of the Strand. The streets principally infested are Catherine street, Drury lane, Blackmore street, Clare Market and Russell street. Something akin to a reign of terror prevails among the inhabitants after nightfall. Women refuse to pass along Blackmore street and the lower parts of Stanhope street after dusk, for droves of rats perambulate the roadways and pavements, and may be seen running along the window ledges of the empty houses awaiting demolition by the County Council in the Strand to Holborn improvement scheme.
The rats, indeed, have appeared in almost-incredible numbers. "There are millions of them," said one shopkeeper, and his statement was supported by other residents. The unwelcome visitors have been evicted from their old haunts by the County Council housebreakers, and are now busily in search of new homes. The Gaiety Restaurant has been the greatest sufferer. Rats have invaded the premises in such force that the managers have had to close the large dining room on the first floor and the grill rooms on the ground floor and in the basement. Those three spacious halls which have witnessed many as semblages of theatre-goers are now qui:e deserted. Behind the wainscot of the bandstand in the grillroom is a large mound of linen shreds. This represents 1728 serviettes carried theee by the rats.
In the bar the removal of a panel disclosed the astonishing fact that the rats have dragged for a distance of seven or eight yards some thirty or forty beer and wine bottles and stacked them in such a fashion as to make comfortable sleeping places. Mr Williams. the manager of the restaurant, estimates that the rats have destroyed L200 worth of linen. Formerly the Gaiety Restaurant dined 2000 persons daily; no business whatever is now done in this direction.
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Bruce McTavish Added: 11 Mar 2021 11:37 GMT |
Kennington Road
Lambeth North station was opened as Kennington Road and then Westminster Bridge Road before settling on its final name. It has a wonderful Leslie Green design.
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MCNALLY Added: 17 May 2021 09:42 GMT |
Blackfriars (1959 - 1965)
I lived in Upper Ground from 1959 to 1964 I was 6 years old my parents Vince and Kitty run the Pub The Angel on the corner of Upper Ground and Bodies Bridge. I remember the ceiling of the cellar was very low and almost stretched the length of Bodies Bridge. The underground trains run directly underneath the pub. If you were down in the cellar when a train was coming it was quite frightening
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Scott Hatton Added: 30 Jan 2023 11:28 GMT |
The Beatles on a London rooftop
The Beatles’ rooftop concert took place on the rooftop of the Apple Corps building in London. It was their final public performance as a band and was unannounced, attracting a crowd of onlookers. The concert lasted for 42 minutes and included nine songs. The concert is remembered as a seminal moment in the history of rock music and remains one of the most famous rock performances of all time.
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Julian Added: 23 Mar 2021 10:11 GMT |
Dennis Potter
Author Dennis Potter lived in Collingwood House in the 1970’s
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Jessie Doring Added: 22 Feb 2021 04:33 GMT |
Tisbury Court Jazz Bar
Jazz Bar opened in Tisbury Court by 2 Australians. Situated in underground basement. Can not remember how long it opened for.
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Robert smitherman Added: 23 Aug 2017 11:01 GMT |
Saunders Street, SE11
I was born in a prefab on Saunders street SE11 in the 60’s, when I lived there, the road consisted of a few prefab houses, the road originally ran from Lollard street all the way thru to Fitzalan street. I went back there to have a look back in the early 90’s but all that is left of the road is about 20m of road and the road sign.
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Tom Added: 21 May 2021 23:07 GMT |
Blackfriars
What is, or was, Bodies Bridge?
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Richard Roques Added: 21 Jan 2021 16:53 GMT |
Buckingham Street residents
Here in Buckingham Street lived Samuel Pepys the diarist, Charles Dickens and Rudyard Kipling
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| LATEST LONDON-WIDE CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE PROJECT |
Eileen Added: 10 Nov 2023 09:42 GMT |
Brecknock Road Pleating Company
My great grandparents ran the Brecknock Road pleating Company around 1910 to 1920 and my Grandmother worked there as a pleater until she was 16. I should like to know more about this. I know they had a beautiful Victorian house in Islington as I have photos of it & of them in their garden.
Source: Family history
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Added: 6 Nov 2023 16:59 GMT |
061123
Why do Thames Water not collect the 15 . Three meter lengths of blue plastic fencing, and old pipes etc. They left here for the last TWO Years, these cause an obstruction,as they halfway lying in the road,as no footpath down this road, and the cars going and exiting the park are getting damaged, also the public are in Grave Danger when trying to avoid your rubbish and the danger of your fences.
Source: Squirrels Lane. Buckhurst Hill, Essex. IG9. I want some action ,now, not Excuses.MK.
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Christian Added: 31 Oct 2023 10:34 GMT |
Cornwall Road, W11
Photo shows William Richard Hoare’s chemist shop at 121 Cornwall Road.
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Vik Added: 30 Oct 2023 18:48 GMT |
Old pub sign from the Rising Sun
Hi I have no connection to the area except that for the last 30+ years we’ve had an old pub sign hanging on our kitchen wall from the Rising Sun, Stanwell, which I believe was / is on the Oaks Rd. Happy to upload a photo if anyone can tell me how or where to do that!
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Phillip Martin Added: 16 Oct 2023 06:25 GMT |
16 Ashburnham Road
On 15 October 1874 George Frederick Martin was born in 16 Ashburnham Road Greenwich to George Henry Martin, a painter, and Mary Martin, formerly Southern.
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Christine Bithrey Added: 15 Oct 2023 15:20 GMT |
The Hollies (1860 - 1900)
I lived in Holly Park Estate from 1969 I was 8 years old when we moved in until I left to get married, my mother still lives there now 84. I am wondering if there was ever a cemetery within The Hollies? And if so where? Was it near to the Blythwood Road end or much nearer to the old Methodist Church which is still standing although rather old looking. We spent most of our childhood playing along the old dis-used railway that run directly along Blythwood Road and opposite Holly Park Estate - top end which is where we live/ed. We now walk my mothers dog there twice a day. An elderly gentleman once told me when I was a child that there used to be a cemetery but I am not sure if he was trying to scare us children! I only thought about this recently when walking past the old Methodist Church and seeing the flag stone in the side of the wall with the inscription of when it was built late 1880
If anyone has any answers please email me [email protected]
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Chris hutchison Added: 15 Oct 2023 03:04 GMT |
35 broadhurst gardens.
35 Broadhurst gardens was owned by famous opera singer Mr Herman “Simmy”Simberg. He had transformed it into a film and recording complex.
There was a film and animation studio on the ground floor. The recording facilities were on the next two floors.
I arrived in London from Australia in 1966 and worked in the studio as the tea boy and trainee recording engineer from Christmas 1966 for one year. The facility was leased by an American advertising company called Moreno Films. Mr Simbergs company Vox Humana used the studio for their own projects as well. I worked for both of them. I was so lucky. The manager was another wonderful gentleman called Jack Price who went on to create numerous songs for many famous singers of the day and also assisted the careers of Bob Marley and Jimmy Cliff. “Simmy” let me live in the bedsit,upper right hand window. Jack was also busy with projects with The Troggs,Bill Wyman,Peter Frampton. We did some great sessions with Manfred Mann and Alan Price. The Cream did some demos but that was before my time. We did lots of voice over work. Warren Mitchell and Ronnie Corbett were favourites. I went back in 1978 and “Simmy “ had removed all of the studio and it was now his home. His lounge room was still our studio in my minds eye!!
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Sue L Added: 13 Oct 2023 17:21 GMT |
Duffield Street, Battersea
I’ve been looking for ages for a photo of Duffield Street without any luck.
My mother and grandfather lived there during the war. It was the first property he was able to buy but sadly after only a few months they were bombed out. My mother told the story that one night they were aware of a train stopping above them in the embankment. It was full of soldiers who threw out cigarettes and sweets at about four in the morning. They were returning from Dunkirk though of course my mother had no idea at the time. I have heard the same story from a different source too.
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101 The Strand was an art school from 1750 until 1806. 101 Strand, WC2R This shop was one of the first in London to have gas lighting fitted. Ackermann’s Rudolph Ackermann (20 April 1764 in Stollberg, Saxony – 30 March 1834 in Finchley) was an Anglo-German bookseller, inventor, lithographer, publisher and businessman. De Hems De Hems has become a base for London’s Dutch community, serving bitterballen and frikandellen. Houghton Street (1906) A greengrocer’s on the corner of Houghton Street and Clare Market (behind The Strand) in 1906 just before demolition. Leicester Square Leicester Square, while indeed a square, is also the name for a tube station. L’Escargot L’Escargot is one of London’s oldest restaurants. St Giles St Giles is a district of central London, at the southern tip of the London Borough of Camden. The Adelphi The Adelphi is a small district surrounding the streets of Adelphi Terrace, Robert Street and John Adam Street. Tottenham Court Road Tottenham Court Road runs from St Giles’ Circus (the junction of Oxford Street and Charing Cross Road) north to Euston Road. Wyld’s Great Globe Wyld’s Great Globe was an attraction situated in Leicester Square between 1851 and 1862. Adam Street, WC2N Adam Street is named after John and Robert Adam, who built the Adelphi development in the 1760s. Adelphi Terrace, WC2N Adelphi Terrace is named after John and Robert Adam, who built the Adelphi development in the 1760s. Agar Street, WC2N Agar Street is named after George Agar, who built the street in the 1830s with John Ponsonby, Earl of Bessborough Aldwych, WC2B The name Aldwych derives from the Old English eald and wic meaning ’old trading town’ or ’old marketplace’; the name was later applied to the street and district. Andrew Borde Street, W1D Andrew Borde Street was situated opposite the end of Sutton Row and under the Centre Point development. Arne Street, WC2E Arne Street was named after the 18th century composer Thomas Arne, who was born near here. Banbury Court, WC2E Banbury Court is named for Nicholas Knollys, 3rd Earl of Banbury, who owned a house here called Banbury House. Bateman Street, W1D Bateman Street was named for Sir James Bateman, local landowner and Lord Mayor of London in the 1670s. Bedford Street, WC2E Bedford Street was named after local 18th century landowners the Russell family, earls/dukes of Bedford. Bedfordbury, WC2N Bedfordbury is one of the streets of London in the WC2N postal area. Bow Street, WC2B Bow Street was built in the shape of a bow between 1633 and 1677. Bow Street, WC2E Bow Street was first developed by Francis Russell, 4th Earl of Bedford in 1633. Brydges Place, WC2N Brydges Place replaced Taylor’s Buildings in 1904 when the Colloseum was built. Carting Lane, WC2R Carting Lane is thought to be named after the carts that brought goods to and from the wharf formerly located here. Charing Cross Road, WC2H Charing Cross Road is a street running immediately north of St Martin-in-the-Fields to St Giles Circus. Ching Court, WC2H Ching Court is one of the streets of London in the WC2H postal area. Covent Garden, WC2E Covent Garden, is the name of a district, but also the name of the central square which formerly hosted a fruit-and-vegetable market. Cranbourn Street, WC2H Cranbourne Street was named after local landowner the Earl of Salisbury, Viscount Cranbourn (Cranbourne) after the town in Dorset. Crown Court, WC2E Crown Court is one of the streets of London in the WC2B postal area. Dansey Place, W1D Dansey Place is one of the streets of London in the W1D postal area. Drury Lane, WC2B Named from Sir William Drury, Knight of the Garter in Queen Elizabeth’s reign, who owned land on its site. Durham House Street, WC2N Durham House Street was the former site of a palace belonging to the bishops of Durham in medieval times.
Endell Street, WC2H Endell Street, originally known as Belton Street, is a street that runs from High Holborn in the north to Long Acre and Bow Street in the south. Excel Court, WC2H Excel Court is one of the streets of London in the WC2H postal area. Garrick Yard, WC2E Garrick Yard, together with the more familiar Garrick Street to the northeast of here, both took their names from the Garrick Club which commemorates the famous 18th century actor, David Garrick. Hobhouse Court, WC2H Hobhouse Court is named after Sir John Cam Hobhouse, Victorian MP and arts patron. Hog Lane, WC2H Hog Lane was a lane that went from St Giles’ leper hospital (set up in the 12th century) to the monument to Eleanor at Charing Cross. John Adam Street, WC2N John Adam Street is named after John Adam, who built the Adelphi development with his brother Robert in the 1760s. Kean Street, WC2B Kean Street is one of the streets of London in the WC2B postal area. King Street, WC2E King Street is one of the streets of London in the WC2E postal area. Kingsway, WC2A Kingsway is one of the streets of London in the WC2B postal area. Litchfield Street, WC2H Litchfield Street is possibly named after Edward Lee, 1st Earl of Lichfield, who was brother-in-law of Henry FitzRoy, 1st Duke of Grafton and son of Charles II. Long Acre, WC2E Long Acre is one of the streets of London in the WC2E postal area. Maiden Lane, WC2E Maiden Lane runs from Bedford Street in the west to Southampton Street in the east. Manette Street, W1D Manette Street in Soho is named after the character from Dickens’ A Tale of Two Cities. Moor Street, W1D Moor Street is one of the streets of London in the W1D postal area. Neal Street, WC2H Neal Street is one of the streets of London in the WC2H postal area. New Row, WC2E New Row is one of the streets of London in the WC2N postal area. Newport Court, WC2H Newport Court was laid out approximately on the site of the courtyard of Newport House. Newport Place, W1D Newport Place was named after Mountjoy Blount, Earl of Newport (Isle of Wight), who owned a house on Newport Street in the 17th century. Odhams Walk, WC2H Odhams Walk is one of the streets of London in the WC2H postal area. Orange Street, WC2H Orange Street gets its name from William III, Prince of Orange - the reigning king when the street was built. Panton Street, SW1Y Panton Street was named after Colonel Thomas Panton, local property dealer of the 17th century. Parker Mews, WC2B Parker Mews is one of the streets of London in the WC2B postal area. Portugal Street, WC2A Portugal Street was named in honour of Charles II’s Portuguese queen Catherine of Braganza. Robert Street, WC2N Robert Street is named after Robert Adam, who built the Adelphi development with his brother John in the 1760s. Romilly Street, W1D Romilly Street is a small street that runs behind Shaftesbury Avenue and takes its name from lawyer Samuel Romilly. Rose Street, WC2N Rose Street is one of the streets of London in the WC2E postal area. Sardinia Street, WC2B Sardinia Street, formerly Duke Street, was a street that ran from Prince’s Street in the south to the western side of Lincoln’s Inn Fields in the north. Savoy Court, WC2R Savoy Court is one of the streets of London in the WC2R postal area. Savoy Place, WC2N Savoy Place is located at a site originally called Savoy Manor - taking its name from Peter II, Count of Savoy. Savoy Way, WC2R Savoy Way is located on the former site of the Savoy Palace, built for Peter II, Count of Savoy in 1245.
Seven Dials, WC2H Seven Dials was built on the site of the Cock-and-Pie Fields, named for a nearby inn. Shaftesbury Avenue, W1D Shaftesbury Avenue is a major street in the West End of London, named after Anthony Ashley Cooper, 7th Earl of Shaftesbury. Shaftesbury Avenue, WC2H Shaftesbury Avenue was named after Anthony Ashley Cooper, 7th Earl of Shaftesbury, Victorian politician and philanthropist. St Martins Place, WC2N St Martin’s Place is a short stretch connecting Trafalgar Square to the bottom of Charing Cross Road. Strand, WC2E Strand (or the Strand) runs just over 3⁄4 mile from Trafalgar Square eastwards to Temple Bar, where the road becomes Fleet Street inside the City of London. Strand, WC2N Strand begins its journey east at Trafalgar Square. Strand, WC2R Strand is one of the streets of London in the WC2B postal area. Strand, WC2R Strand, as it nears the Aldwych, is home to many London theatres. Suffolk Place, SW1Y The Earl of Suffolk (Thomas Howard) was the reason for the naming of Suffolk Place. Suffolk Street, SW1Y Suffolk Street was named after Thomas Howard, Earl of Suffolk, who owned a stable yard attached to Northumberland House which lay on this site. The Arcade, WC2B The Arcade is one of the streets of London in the WC2B postal area. The Market, WC2E The Market is one of the streets of London in the WC2E postal area. The Piazza, WC2E The Piazza is one of the streets of London in the WC2E postal area. Tower Court, WC2H Tower Court is one of the streets of London in the WC2H postal area. West Street, WC2H West Street is one of the streets of London in the WC2H postal area. Whitcomb Street, WC2H Whitcomb Street - named after William Whitcomb, 17th century brewer and property developer. Wild Street, WC2B Wild Street is one of the streets of London in the WC2B postal area. Wych Street, WC2R Wych Street was near where Australia House now stands on Aldwych - it ran west from the church of St Clement Danes on the Strand to a point at the southern end of Drury Lane. York Buildings, WC2N York Buildings marks a house was built on this site in the 14th century for the bishops of Norwich. Clock House The Coach & Horses is a pub on the corner of Romilly Street and Greek Street. De Hems De Hems has become a base for London’s Dutch community, serving bitterballen and frikandellen.
From fruit and veg to Froo Tan VetchCovent Garden is a district in London on the eastern fringes of the West End, between St. Martin’s Lane and
Drury Lane.
It is associated with the former fruit and vegetable market in the central square, now a popular shopping and tourist site, and the
Royal Opera House, which is also known as
Covent Garden. The district is divided by the main thoroughfare of
Long Acre, north of which is given over to independent shops centred on
Neal’s Yard and
Seven Dials, while the south contains the central square with its street performers and most of the elegant buildings, theatres and entertainment facilities, including the Theatre Royal,
Drury Lane, and the London Transport Museum.
Though mainly fields until the 16th century, the area was briefly settled when it became the heart of the Anglo-Saxon trading town of
Lundenwic. After the town was abandoned, part of the area was walled off by 1200 for use as arable land and orchards by Westminster Abbey, and was referred to as ’the garden of the Abbey and Convent’. The land, now called the
Covent Garden, was seized by Henry VIII, and granted to the Earls of Bedford in 1552. The 4th Earl commissioned Inigo Jones to build some fine houses to attract wealthy tenants. Jones designed the Italianate arcaded square along with the church of St Paul’s. The design of the square was new to London, and had a significant influence on modern town planning, acting as the prototype for the laying-out of new estates as London grew.
A small open-air fruit and vegetable market had developed on the south side of the fashionable square by 1654. Gradually, both the market and the surrounding area fell into disrepute, as taverns, theatres, coffee-houses and brothels opened up; the gentry moved away, and rakes, wits and playwrights moved in.
By the 18th century it had become a well-known red-light district, attracting notable prostitutes. An Act of Parliament was drawn up to control the area, and Charles Fowler’s neo-classical building was erected in 1830 to cover and help organise the market. The area declined as a pleasure-ground as the market grew and further buildings were added: the Floral Hall, Charter Market, and in 1904 the
Jubilee Market. By the end of the 1960s traffic congestion was causing problems, and in 1974 the market relocated to the New
Covent Garden Market about three miles (5 km) south-west at Nine Elms. The central building re-opened as a shopping centre in 1980, and is now a tourist location containing cafes, pubs, small shops, and a craft market called the Apple Market, along with another market held in the Jubilee Hall.
Covent Garden tube station is a Grade II listed building and was opened by Great Northern, Piccadilly and Brompton Railway on 11 April 1907, four months after services on the rest of the line began operating on 15 December 1906.
Like the rest of the original GNP&BR stations, the street level station building and platform tiling was designed by Leslie Green. The station building is a classic red ’Oxblood’ building which has two elevations fronting onto the end of
James Street and
Long Acre. The platform wall was tiled with two shades of yellow and white tiling which formed geometric shapes along with three blank spaces to incorporate the station name. As part of TFL’s investment programme, the ageing tiling dating back from the station’s opening was replaced in 2010 in a like-for-like basis, retaining the look and feel of the platforms.
Covent Garden station is one of the few stations in Central London for which platform access is only by lift or stairs and often becomes congested due to the
Covent Garden area’s popularity with tourists. To control congestion on Saturday afternoons, when the surrounding shopping areas are at their busiest, the station was previously exit only to avoid the risk of dangerous overcrowding of the platforms, but following replacement of the lifts, this restriction has been lifted. There are four lifts which give access to street level, although a final flight of stairs from the lifts to the platforms means that the station is wheelchair inaccessible. Alternatively, there is an emergency spiral staircase of 193 steps (The equivalent to a 15 storey building). During the lift journey a recorded announcement is played asking passengers to have their tickets/passes ready as they exit the lifts and advising where to turn for
Covent Garden’s market.
Image: Chris Ross
