St Giles Circus is a road junction in the St Giles district of the West End of London at the eastern end of Oxford Street, where it connects with New Oxford Street, Charing Cross Road and Tottenham Court Road, which it is more often referred to owing to the location of Tottenham Court Road Underground station directly under the junction. It is near to Soho, Covent Garden, Bloomsbury and Fitzrovia.
The circus derives its name from the nearby church of St Giles-in-the-Fields, after which the area is named. From the Middle Ages until the fifteenth century, gallows were located at St Giles Circus alongside a cage for prisoners, [1] and a cattle enclosure known as St Giles's Pound. The area was an infamous rookery [2] until it was cleared in the mid-19th century with the creation of New Oxford Street parallel to St Giles High Street by clearances. [3]
Tottenham Court Road Underground station was opened in July 1900 as part of the Central London Railway, with the platforms under Oxford Street to the west of St Giles Circus, and the station opening on the south west side of the circus, on Oxford Street. [4] The Charing Cross, Euston and Hampstead Railway joined the station with what is now part of the Northern Line in September 1908, with station entrance on the south east side of the circus. [5] The main station ticket hall was later moved underground, built below the circus in the 1920s. [6] The junction became known as St Giles Circus in 1921. [7]
The area today is dominated by Centre Point Tower, located on the south-east corner on New Oxford Street and Charing Cross Road. Built between 1963 and 1966 by developer Harry Hyams, the brutalist tower was London's first "skyscraper", and is now a Grade II listed building. [3] [8]
St Giles Circus has been since 2009 the site of construction for Crossrail, which have disrupted road flows and led to several buildings being demolished. [9]
The Dominion Theatre is close to the north-east corner, on Tottenham Court Road just above New Oxford Street. The London Astoria theatre was on the south west side. A new theatre to replace the Astoria, @sohoplace, opened in October 2022, the first new West End theatre in half a century. [10] An auditorium/gallery is planned for the south-east corner. [11] [12] [13]
Charing Cross Road is a street in central London running immediately north of St Martin-in-the-Fields to St Giles Circus, which then merges into Tottenham Court Road. It leads from the north in the direction of Charing Cross at the south side of Trafalgar Square. It connects via St Martin's Place and the motorised east side of the square.
The West End of London is a district of Central London, London, England, west of the City of London and north of the River Thames, in which many of the city's major tourist attractions, shops, businesses, government buildings and entertainment venues, including West End theatres, are concentrated.
Tottenham Court Road is an interchange station located in St Giles in the West End of London for London Underground and Elizabeth line services.
Tottenham Court Road is a major road in Central London, almost entirely within the London Borough of Camden.
Oxford Circus is a road junction connecting Oxford Street and Regent Street in the West End of London. It is also the entrance to Oxford Circus tube station.
Oxford Street is a major road in the City of Westminster in the West End of London, running from Tottenham Court Road to Marble Arch via Oxford Circus. It is Europe's busiest shopping street, with around half a million daily visitors, and as of 2012 had approximately 300 shops. It is designated as part of the A40, a major road between London and Fishguard, though it is not signed as such, and traffic is regularly restricted to buses and taxis.
Cambridge Circus is the partly pedestrianised intersection where Shaftesbury Avenue crosses Charing Cross Road on the eastern edge of Soho, central London. Side-streets Earlham, West, Romilly and Moor streets also converge at this point. It is halfway between Tottenham Court Road station, Oxford Street and the centre of Leicester Square, which is southwest of Charing Cross Road via Cranborne Street.
Euston Road is a road in Central London that runs from Marylebone Road to King's Cross. The route is part of the London Inner Ring Road and forms part of the London congestion charge zone boundary. It is named after Euston Hall, the family seat of the Dukes of Grafton, who had become major property owners in the area during the mid-19th century.
Bond Street is an interchange station in Mayfair, in the West End of London for London Underground and Elizabeth line services. Entrances are on Oxford Street, near its junction with New Bond Street, and on Hanover Square.
Warren Street is a London Underground station, located at the intersection of Tottenham Court Road and Euston Road and named after adjoining Warren Street. It is part of the Northern and Victoria lines and although it is relatively used less than a number of neighbouring stations, it provides an interchange between these two lines as well as access to University College Hospital.
Hanover Square is a green square in Mayfair, Westminster, south west of Oxford Circus where Oxford Street meets Regent Street. Six streets converge on the square which include Harewood Place with links to Oxford Street, Princes Street, Hanover Street, Saint George Street, Brook Street and Tenderden Street, linking to Bond Street and Oxford Street.
St Martin's Lane is a street in the City of Westminster, which runs from the church of St Martin-in-the-Fields, after which it is named, near Trafalgar Square northwards to Long Acre. At its northern end, it becomes Monmouth Street. St Martin's Lane and Monmouth Street together form the B404.
London Buses route 176 is a Transport for London contracted bus route in London, England. Running between Penge and Aldwych, it is operated by London Central.
Crossrail 2 is a suspended proposal for a hybrid commuter rail and rapid transit route in South East England, running from nine stations in Surrey to three in Hertfordshire, providing a new North–South rail link across Greater London. It would connect the South West Main Line to the West Anglia Main Line, via Victoria and King's Cross St Pancras. The intent was to alleviate severe overcrowding that would otherwise occur on commuter rail routes into Central London. When first proposed, the hope was for construction to start around 2023, with the new line opening from the early 2030s. The project's cost has been estimated at £31.2 billion.
St Giles is an area in the West End of London in the London Borough of Camden. It gets its name from the parish church of St Giles in the Fields. The combined parishes of St Giles in the Fields and St George Bloomsbury were administered jointly for many centuries; leading to the conflation of the two, with much or all of St Giles usually taken to be a part of Bloomsbury. Points of interest include the church of St Giles in the Fields, Seven Dials, the Phoenix Garden, and St Giles Circus.
The A40 is a major trunk road connecting London to Fishguard, Wales. The A40 in London starts in the City of London and passes through six London Boroughs: Camden, Westminster, Kensington & Chelsea, Hammersmith & Fulham, Ealing and Hillingdon, to meet the M40 motorway junction 1 at Denham, Buckinghamshire.
The A400 road is an A road in London that runs from Charing Cross to Archway in North London. It passes some of London's most famous landmarks.
The London Night Bus network is a series of night bus routes that serve Greater London. Services broadly operate between the hours of 23:00 and 06:00.
Outernet London is an entertainment, arts and culture district opened in 2022 in the West End of London. Named as "London's most visited tourist attraction" by The Times newspaper in 2023, it is the largest digital exhibition space in Europe with the "world's largest LED screen deployment". It is located adjacent to the eastern exit of the new Elizabeth line Tottenham Court Road Underground station, on the southern side of the public square, and it extends to Denmark Street - “Tin Pan Alley”, with St Giles High Street to the east and Charing Cross Road to the west.
@sohoplace is a West End theatre operated by Nimax Theatres. It is on the site of the previous London Astoria, as part of development around the Elizabeth line's Tottenham Court Road station. It is the first purpose-built West End theatre to be opened in 50 years. It opened on 15 October 2022, with a production of the play Marvellous.