Fitzrovia

Throughout the 19th and 20th centuries, the central London area of Fitzrovia has played host to a wide assortment of creatives, from the artists John Constable and Dante Rosetti, to writers and poets such as Dylan Thomas and Patrick Hamilton. Taking up residence in the Fitzroy Tavern, or later The Wheatsheaf public house, the area became renowned for its literary scene, mixed with the dubious characters of North Soho- as the district was also called. The years 1925-40 can be seen as the area's heyday as a hotbed of creatives and criminals. Post-war, the area quietened and many of the regulars ceased to visit as they moved on to drinking holes on Portland Place, conveniently close to the BBC Headquarters. A lasting portrait of Fitzrovia in its prime can be read in Julian Maclaren-Ross's Memoirs of the Forties (1965), where he captures the bohemian spirit of the area at that time.