Marylebone stretches from Marylebone Road to Oxford Street and from Edgware Road to Portland Place. Sometimes referred to as Marylebone Village it is in fact predominantly residential and highly desirable sitting as it does just north of the west end.
Park Crescent
Originally named after St Mary's Church (now St Marylebone Parish church) which was built on the bank of the Tyburn River (Tybourn) that ran along what is now known as Marylebone Lane. (This church was dedicated to St Mary the Virgin, by the bourne; the Ty bourne being a stream running from what is now Regent's Park down to the Thames. In course of time the dedication became St Mary le burn, corrupted to St Marylebone and now Marylebone) The history of the Portman family is intertwined with the area as is that of the De Walden family - the De Walden Estate includes at least half of Marylebone today. It is genuinely residential and is the only central London area that has a butchers (Crazy Pig) a fish shop (Fish) and a farmers market at weekends. It has the most Georgian residential property in London. In a sense Marylebone feels like a place that is proud of itself and has a strong local identity. Maybe not quite up there with Mayfair but certainly hard on its heels. One of the reasons for this is undoubtedly the strong involvement of De Walden Estates in maintaining the areas image, particularly in investing in the High Street - ensuring that it competes with the best in the UK.
It wasn't always so - the area was once disreputable and violent and was the site of a famous gallows. Following Georgian development, by the mid 19th century, professionals - especially the medical profession, were attracted to the elegant terraces of Marylebone. In particular Harley Street and Wigmore Street are still centres for them although today many Doctors use each building - as opposed to each being a single residence.
BBC Building
Oxford Street is at the south of Marylebone and retail is an important aspect of the business life of the area. Today, Marylebone high street, much like anywhere in the UK has some stereotypical high street shops, however these are interspersed with a rich array of independent retailers and high end shops. If you tire of browsing there are also some great pubs, restaurants and cafes to revive you. Marylebone High Street is a genuine shopping street and actually rivals many in France for its combination of chic shopping and café society style eating. Many of the cafes have pavement seating and nearly all of the pubs are competitive in terms of styling and menu.
At the north end is the big daddy of the home furnishings and home accessories world. The Conran shop is opposite St Marylebone Church which itself houses a market on Saturdays. Continue south and you will see the 'strength in depth' of the street. Orrery (one of the Conran Group of Restaurants) is next to Bonpoint, posh kids clothes, next to Cath Kidsonwhich is next to 'eat and Two Veg' a modern diner style vegetarian restaurant. This kind of diversity continues all the way down the Street. There are gift stores, a florist, countless cafes, antique shops, chocolate shops, jewelers, Perfumers and more cafes.BBC Radio London is here along with Divertimenti a well stocked kitchen store.
Selfridges
Further down the street is a Patisserie Valerie, a very well stocked Waitrose, a Starbucks and a Tesco Express - as if to prove that Marylebone is also open to the hoi polloi.
On the western side of the high street is Providores an extremely popular modern Spanish tapas bar. This place is such a local 'be seen' destination people practically climb over each other to get a table as it is more than cramped when it is busy. There are three pubs, The Marylebone, Coco Momo, The Prince Regent, Fishworks sells fresh fish in addition to having it's own restaurant, and in the same block is Skandium selling modern Scandinavian furniture.
Marylebone Lane
If you are at all into food then Moxon Street will be a serious find for you. In recent years two great shops have done a lot to make this street a destination. The Ginger Pig butchers and La Fromagerie. The Ginger Pig is the Marylebone outlet for this fast growing empire with its farms in Yorkshire and shops now at five different locations - it fills a very large gap left by the continuing closure of 'old school' butchers in central London. La Fromagerie similarly fills a shopping gap - but - for cheese, Italian, French, white or mouldy you will find it here. As you look out from these shops you will see a car park - at weekends this is a farmers market, not quite up there with Borough Market but nevertheless a good local place to browse for those special ingredients.
On the west side of the car park is the Gunmakers - a very well run pub with a patriotic landlord who never misses a chance to celebrate the English - and Englishness. A great pub for Sunday lunch and for watching sport, and for watching people. Just West of Moxon Street is Paddington Gardens a well kept small 'park' with playground.
There are Regency Squares as well as Georgian in the district. Dorset Square, which was once the home of the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC), Bryanstone and Montague Squares were built around 1810 and are part of the Portman Estate - both Ringo Starr and Jimi Hendrix once lived at a basement flat at 34 Montague Square although not at the same time, incredibly it was later used by John Lennon and Yoko Ono.
Manchester Square to the west of Marylebone High Street is a well - preserved Georgian garden square. Built around 1776 it has at its Northern point Hertford House formerly Manchester House which now houses the Wallace Art Collection. The house and square are part of the Portman Estate. The more modern but recently refurbished off ice building at the north eastern corner of the square was once the headquarters of ICI and then EMI Records. The remainder of the square is still bordered by elegant Georgian houses most of which are now used as offices.
Landmark Hotel
Further west is Portman Square. Built around 1664 and with has a notable building by Robert Adam - Home House on its north side, now a successful private members club. Connecting the square with Cavendish Square is Wigmore Street with the famous Wigmore Hall concert hall. Cavendish Square was again first laid out in the 1700's for the 2nd Earl of Oxford and named after his wife Henrietta Cavendish-Hollace (Harley). It now houses the rear entrance for John Lewis Oxford Street store. Both Harley Street and Wigmore Street run north to Marylebone Road from Wigmore Street giving the entire area an air of respectability. Down these and other immaculately kept streets in Marylebone you will see the finest and most polished brass door furniture ever seen outside a Yorkshire pub!
There are reckoned to be more than 3,000 people employed by the medical profession in Harley Street - a street owned and managed by the De Walden Estate. It was Edward Harley - the 2nd Earl of Oxford and builder of Cavendish square who gave the street its name and built it - it eventually passed to the widow of the 6th Earl of De Walden and into the De Walden Estate. There have been many famous residents including Gladstone and the artist Turner. Queens College for girls is at no 49 Harley Street - an independent girls school founded in 1848.
Wimpole Street runs parallel to Harley Street and is almost as well known for it's associations with the medical profession, it has also had some famous residents, notably Paul McCartney who lived there with Jane Asher from 1964 to 1966.
Baker Street, the central London end of the A41, is famous for one resident over any other. Sherlock Holmes, except of course that Holmes is the creation of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and therefore did not live here at 221b - also a fictional address. Weirdly, being rooted in fiction doesn't deter tourists from coming to have a look at the place. It had the original Madame Tussauds in 1835. Dusty Springfield lived here in the 60's. The street was further immortalised by the singer Gerry Rafferty in 1978 in his hit 'Baker St' as famous for it's sax solo as for its lyric. At the south end of Baker Street is the famous London store Selfridges
Marylebone Lane is a great little street for browsing and eating, Caldesi, 108 Marylebone Lane and The Golden Hinde (a proper retro chippie) are all here. You can also buy a Steinway Piano, some decent shoes and go to the laundry. Here you are untroubled by traffic and escape a little from the more commercial aspects of the High St.
Wallace Collection
The Marylebone area extends beyond the 'village' north of the Marylebone Road to the overground station and as far west as Lisson Grove. Worth mentioning as here is Alfie's antiques market where you can get lost for hours or days looking at fantastic pieces with fantastic prices.
A quick walk from both Regent's Park and Hyde Park, and with much of central London easily accessible on foot Marylebone is hard to beat as a central location. Hoteliers obviously think so - there are over 30 hotels in the area from the simple to the exotic. The Landmark Hotel opposite Marylebone Station is worth a mention, particularly if you would like to rub shoulders with Premiership footballers for whom it is the hotel of choice when staying in London.
There are no real contradictions in Marylebone, property here is highly sought after in streets that have not changed much in their appearance in a couple of hundred years. It is a proper 'village', where you have no need for a car, everything is in walking distance. Well served on its boundaries by public transport, (Baker Street Tube, Regents Park Tube, Bond Street Tube, Oxford Circus Tube, Marble Arch, Marylebone BR), and with good bus routes throughout, it is likely to continue to be one of the premier residential areas in central London for many years to come.
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MARYLEBONE QUICK LINKS
Orrery
Providores
Fishworks
Caldesi
The Golden Hinde
Locanda Locatelli
Eat and Two Veg
108 Marylebone Lane
Black and Blue
Getti
Il Baretto
La Porte Des Indes
Langans Bistro
Villandry
Le Relais de Venise L'entrecote
No 5 Cavendish Sqaure
Rhodes Restaurant
Two Twenty Two - Landmark Hotel
Monkey and Me Thai
rajdoot indian
Indali Lounge
Galvin
Strada
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PUBS |
For a full list of Pubs click here
The Marylebone
Coco Momo
The Prince Regent
Gunmakers
Mason Arms
The Coach Makers
Duke of Wellington
The Temperance
Inn 1888
The Mirror Bar
The Pontefract Castle
Windsor castle
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BARS/MEMBERS CLUBS |
For a full list of Bars Click here
MCC
Home House
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SHOPS/DELIS/CAFES |
The Conran shop
Bonpoint
Cath Kidson
Divertimenti
Patisserie Valerie
Waitrose
Starbucks
Tesco Express
Skandium
The Ginger Pig
La Fromagerie
John Lewis Oxford Street
Selfridges
BBC Radio London
Manchester Square
Wallace Art Collection
Regent's Park - Marylebone Road
Sherlock Holmes museum - Baker Street
The Planetarium - Euston Road
Madam Tussaud's - Euston Road
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SCHOOLS |
Queens College for girls
London Business School
Hampden Gurney C Of E School
Great Beginnings Montessori School
St Marylebone C.E. School
Abercorn School
Christ Church Bentinck Cof E Primary School
St Edward's RC Primary School
St Marys Primary School
Sylvia Young Theatre School
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COLLEGES |
University of Westminster - 35 Marylebone Road
Ray Cochrane Beauty School - 118 Baker Street
Royal College of Ophthalmologists - 17 Cornwall Terrace
Skola International Community School - 4 York Terrace East
Internexus Centre for Language Studies Regent's College - Regent's Park
London School of Fashion - John Princess Street
Marylebone British Rail
Baker Street Underground Jubilee/Hammersmith and City/Circle/Metropolitan/Bakerloo
Bond Street Underground Central/Jubilee Line
Edgware Road Underground Hammersmith and City/Bakerloo/Circle/Jubilee
Regents Park Underground Bakerloo Line
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HOSPITALS |
Western Eye Hospital - Marylebone Road London NW1
Portland Hospital for Women and Children - Marylebone
Princess Grace Hospital - Marylebone
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MUSIC VENUES |
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CINEMAS |
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HOTELS |
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CHURCHES |
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LOCAL AUTHORITIES |
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