Baker Street

Last updated

Baker Street
Baker Street, W1 - geograph.org.uk - 1752307.jpg
Length0.6 mi (0.97 km)
Location Westminster, London, England
Postal code NW1
Nearest Tube station Underground no-text.svg Baker Street
FromPark Road
To Portman Square
Other
Known for Sherlock Holmes' residence (221B Baker Street)  ·Setting of Gerry Rafferty's hit song  ·
Baker Street area map Baker Street map Open Street Map.jpg
Baker Street area map

Baker Street is a street in the Marylebone district of the City of Westminster in London. It is named after builder William Baker, who laid out the street in the 18th century. The street is most famous for its connection to the fictional detective Sherlock Holmes, who lived at a fictional 221B Baker Street address on the north of the street. The area was originally high class residential, but now is mainly occupied by commercial premises.

Contents

Location

Baker Street is a busy thoroughfare, lying in postcode areas NW1/W1 and forming part of the A41. It used to run south from Regent's Park, the junction with Park Road, parallel to Gloucester Place, meeting Marylebone Road, Portman Square and Wigmore Street. In 2019, the until-then one-way street was changed to accommodate lanes running in both directions.

At the junction with Wigmore Street, Baker Street turns into Orchard Street, which ends when it meets with Oxford Street. After Portman Square the road continues as Orchard Street.

The crossroads of Baker Street and Marylebone Road was historically known as Marylebone Circus, which is still its unofficial name. [1]

History

Baker Street (centre vertically) on an 1875 Ordnance Survey map. Baker Street area Ordnance Survey map 1875.jpg
Baker Street (centre vertically) on an 1875 Ordnance Survey map.

Baker Street was laid out in the 18th century by the builder William Baker, after whom it is named.

19th century

In 1835, the first wax museum of Madame Tussauds was opened on Baker Street. The museum moved, just around the corner, to Marylebone Road in 1884.

Also in 1835 the sculptor James Fillans came to live and work from 82 Baker Street.

Thomas Charles Druce ran the Baker Street Bazaar (which would become Druce & Co. furniture manufacturers) until his death in 1864, and was later subject of the Druce Portland Case.

20th century

Residents of the prestigious mansion block, Chiltern Court on the Regent's Park end of Baker Street include the novelists Arnold Bennett and H. G. Wells who are commemorated with a blue plaque.

In 1940 the headquarters of the Special Operations Executive moved to 64 Baker Street, they were often called the "Baker Street Irregulars" after Sherlock Holmes' gang of street urchins of the same name.

The Beatles' Apple Boutique was based at 94 Baker Street from 1967 to 1968.

A significant robbery of a branch of Lloyds Bank took place on Baker Street in 1971.

For many years the head office of Marks & Spencer, formerly the United Kingdom's largest retailer, was at "Michael House" (named in parallel with the group's "St Michael" brand), 55 Baker Street, until the company relocated to the Paddington Basin in 2004. This was one of the best known corporate buildings in the United Kingdom, and has since been redeveloped as a modern office complex by London & Regional Properties [3] to a design by Make Architects and Expedition Engineering.

A London County Council blue plaque commemorates Prime Minister William Pitt the Younger who lived at 120 Baker Street from 1803 to 1804. [4] British singer Dusty Springfield lived on Baker Street in the 1960s.

21st century

In February 2019, Baker Street was converted from a one-way southbound street to a two-way street. [5] [6] [7]

Buildings

The Seychelles maintains a Consulate at 111 Baker Street. [8]

Transport

The street is served by the London Underground by Baker Street tube station, one of the world's oldest surviving underground stations. Next door is Transport for London's lost property office.

See also

Related Research Articles

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Sherlock Holmes is a fictional detective created by British author Arthur Conan Doyle. Referring to himself as a "consulting detective" in the stories, Holmes is known for his proficiency with observation, deduction, forensic science and logical reasoning that borders on the fantastic, which he employs when investigating cases for a wide variety of clients, including Scotland Yard.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Baker Street Irregulars</span> Fictional characters in Sherlock Holmes stories

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<i>The Great Mouse Detective</i> 1986 American animated mystery film produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation

The Great Mouse Detective is a 1986 American animated mystery adventure film produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and released by Walt Disney Pictures. It is based on the children's book series Basil of Baker Street by Eve Titus and Paul Galdone, and was written and directed by John Musker, Dave Michener, Ron Clements, and Burny Mattinson in their feature directorial debuts. Featuring the voices of Vincent Price, Barrie Ingham, Val Bettin, Susanne Pollatschek, Candy Candido, Diana Chesney, Eve Brenner, and Alan Young, the film's plot follows Basil of Baker Street, a mouse detective who undertakes to help the young mouse Olivia find and save her father from the criminal mastermind and Basil's sworn enemy, Professor Ratigan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">221B Baker Street</span> Address of the fictional detective Sherlock Holmes

221B Baker Street is the London address of the fictional detective Sherlock Holmes, created by author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. In the United Kingdom, postal addresses with a number followed by a letter may indicate a separate address within a larger, often residential building. Baker Street in the late 19th century was a high-class residential district, and Holmes's apartment would probably have been part of a Georgian terrace.

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Gerald Rafferty was a Scottish singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer. He was a founding member of Stealers Wheel, whose biggest hit was "Stuck in the Middle with You" in 1973. His solo hits in the late 1970s included "Baker Street", "Right Down the Line", and "Night Owl".

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<i>Basil of Baker Street</i> Childrens novels by Eve Titus

Basil of Baker Street is a series of children's novels written by Eve Titus and illustrated by Paul Galdone. The stories focus on the titular Basil of Baker Street and his personal biographer Doctor David Q. Dawson. Together they solve the many crimes and cases of the mouse world. Both live in Holmestead, a mouse community built in the cellar of 221B Baker Street, where Sherlock Holmes is a tenant upstairs.

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This is a list of the etymology of street names in the London district of Marylebone. The following utilises the generally accepted boundaries of Marylebone viz. Marylebone Road to the north, Great Portland Street to the east, Marble Arch and Oxford Street to the south and Edgware Road to the west.

The Three Garridebs is a 1937 television presentation that aired on NBC, based on Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's 1924 story "The Adventure of the Three Garridebs". Louis Hector played Sherlock Holmes, the first actor to do so on television.

References

  1. "Forgotten London - Marylebone Circus". Hyde Park Now. Archived from the original on 20 July 2019. Retrieved 20 July 2019.
  2. 1875 Ordnance Survey map, Digimap, 3 April 2018. (subscription required)
  3. Rossiter, James (8 February 2007). "UK developer wins $700m Panama contract". The Times. London. Retrieved 15 July 2011.
  4. "PITT, WILLIAM, THE YOUNGER (1759-1806)". English Heritage. Retrieved 19 October 2012.
  5. Baker Street Transport for London
  6. About Baker Street Two Way Project
  7. Short Hops Buses issue 769 April 2019 page 24
  8. "The London Diplomatic List" (PDF). 14 December 2013. Archived from the original (PDF) on 11 December 2013.
  9. Bunson, Matthew (1994). Encyclopedia Sherlockiana: an A-to-Z guide to the world of the great detective. Macmillan. pp. 16–19. ISBN   978-0-671-79826-0.
  10. Alan Barnes (2002). Sherlock Holmes on Screen. Reynolds & Hearn Ltd. p. 55. ISBN   1-903111-04-8.
  11. "How Danger Mouse became king of the TV ratings". BBC. 11 October 2013. Retrieved 26 November 2018.
  12. Chilton, Martin (5 January 2011). "Gerry Rafferty and his songs of alienation". The Daily Telegraph. London.

Commons-logo.svg Media related to Baker Street at Wikimedia Commons

51°31′12″N0°09′24″W / 51.5200°N 0.1566°W / 51.5200; -0.1566