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 W1,
Tube: Piccadilly Circus,
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Known around the world for its illuminated neon signs, Piccadilly Circus is essentially a busy, if
somewhat gaudy traffic junction with Regent Street, Piccadilly, Shaftesbury Avenue and Haymarket
branching outward from its centre. Located in the very heart of London, it also serves as the
traditional starting point for many a tourist trip, being not only the gateway to Theatreland but
also West End shopping.
Most famously known for Albert Gilbert's statue of Eros (erected as a memorial
to the anti-child labour reformer, the Earl of Shaftesbury) Piccadilly Circus also plays host to
one of London's largest music outlets - Virgin's
Megastore, along with the sport oriented Lillywhites
department store (now essentially a Sports World outlet. Elsewhere, the brash, loud, youth-oriented London
Trocadero attract scores of
tourists all year round.
 NW1,
Website: www.royalparks.gov.uk,
Tube: Regent's Park/Baker Street/Gt. Portland
Street,
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Undoubtedly the most attractive of London's public open spaces, Regent's Park originally started
life as a royal hunting ground for Henry VIII. However, during the reign of the Prince Regent
(later to become George IV), John Nash was commissioned to gentrify the park, by adding classical
style villas and a pleasure palace for the Prince.
Inside the park's Outer Circle, a network of pathways lead to the picturesque
and immaculately kept Queen Mary's Gardens, while the long and straight Broad Walk runs from
Regent's Park Tube station all the way up to Primrose Hill.
Although the works were never fully completed, it's still easy to appreciate
the grandeur and scale of Nash's master plan. Along with two remaining villas within the Inner
Circle, the park is also bordered by elegant stucco buildings on both its north-eastern and
south-west fringes. In particular, the elegant façade of Chester Terrace and the more
elaborate Sussex Place are both good examples of his architectural flair.
Moreover, Regent's Park also boasts a boating lake, bandstand, tennis courts
and, during the summer, an open-air theatre which stages Shakespearean productions. A must-see on
any visit is The Queen Mary Rose Garden, which as well as being an extremely idyllic and relaxing
spot, is a riot of colour in July and August.
On the western side of Regent's Park is London's Central Mosque, while further
north-west is the popular attraction of London
Zoo. Also nearby (and all served by Baker Street
Tube) are Madame Tussaud's,
The London Auditorium and
Sherlock Holmes
Museum.
 W1, Website: www.regentstreetonline.com, Tube: Piccadilly Circus/Oxford Circus,
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Synonymous with West End shopping, this busy London thoroughfare was originally laid out by John
Nash in 1811. Having already penned the design for Regent's Park, he was also commissioned by the
Prince Regent (who later became George IV) to create a processional avenue linking Carlton House
with a newly designed palace in the park's grounds. Although funding for much of the project later
dried up, Regent Street was eventually completed in 1825. As an early example of modern urban
planning, the route not only served to ease traffic conditions in Charing Cross and the Strand, but
also clearly separated the more upmarket areas of Marylebone and Mayfair from the poorer, immigrant
populated Soho.
Although much of Nash's original design has since been destroyed, the layout
of Regent Street remains intact. Stretching from Mortimer Street in the north, before gently
curving its way down to Piccadilly and on to Pall Mall, it's possible to get an idea of Nash's
master plan by walking down the most popular part of the street known as the Quadrant.
Ironically, although intended to encourage trade, the most distinctive part of
Nash's Quadrant design - the colonnades - were demolished following complaints by merchants over
their shop fronts being obscured. Indeed, seemingly the only "traders" who approved of the
structures were the many ladies of the night who plied their trade in the area. Today, the
buildings which flank the thoroughfare are rather more recent, dating back to the 1920s and being
Art Deco in style.
Still regarded as being more upmarket than Oxford Street (but perhaps less
fashionable than New Bond Street), Regent Street plays host to a number of big name stores
including Liberty, the world-famous
Hamleys toy emporium, Hugo
Boss and Austin
Reed.
Also nearby is Carnaby Street which, during the 1960s, became the centre for
progressive young fashion, while to the north is London's other famous shopping area -
Oxford Street.
Royal Opera Arcade
SW1 Tube: Piccadilly Circus,
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Another creation by John Nash, this time behind what is now Her Majesty's Theatre. The Royal Opera
Arcade was actually the first shopping arcade of its kind in London (beating the nearby Burlington
by a year). Elegant, yet restrained, it today hosts a upmarket gentlemen's outfitters along with Farlows the royally appointed hunting, shooting
and fishing specialists.
 WC1,
Tube: Russell Square,
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As the largest and grandest of London's Georgian squares, its main focal point is the imposing
Russell Hotel, which dominates the entire eastern side. Victorian in style, the hotel (which opened
in 1900) is an ornate, terracotta coloured affair, complete with cherubs, colonnades and a swanky
lobby and bar area inside. Famously associated with T.S. Eliot who worked at a London publishing
house located at No. 24, the square was more recently in the news following complaints by local
residents to the police about gay cruising and nighttime romps in the locality. Amusingly, the gay
pressure group Outrage! who proposed a tolerance zone for such shenanigans claimed that "one third
of Russell Square could be sectioned off with a high fence and thick shrubbery". Ho hum...
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