St Martin's Lane is a street in the City of Westminster, which runs from the church of

St Martin-in-the-Fields St Martin-in-the-Fields is a Church of England parish church at the north-east corner of Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, London. It is dedicated to Saint Martin of Tours. There has been a church on the site since at least the mediev ...

, after which it is named, near

Trafalgar Square Trafalgar Square ( ) is a public square in the City of Westminster, Central London, laid out in the early 19th century around the area formerly known as Charing Cross. At its centre is a high column bearing a statue of Admiral Nelson comm ...

northwards to

Long Acre Long Acre is a street in the City of Westminster in central London. It runs from St Martin's Lane, at its western end, to Drury Lane in the east. The street was completed in the early 17th century and was once known for its coach-makers, and la ...

. At its northern end, it becomes Monmouth Street. St Martin's Lane and Monmouth Street together form the B404.

History

The street was first built up in 1610 when Robert Cecil, 1st Earl of Salisbury was granted of land on the street's west side. It was originally known as West Church Lane; the current name dates from 1618. A narrow street with relatively little traffic, St Martin's Lane is home to the

English National Opera English National Opera (ENO) is an opera company based in London, resident at the London Coliseum in St Martin's Lane. It is one of the two principal opera companies in London, along with The Royal Opera. ENO's productions are sung in English ...

at the

Coliseum Theatre The London Coliseum (also known as the Coliseum Theatre) is a theatre in St Martin's Lane, Westminster, built as one of London's largest and most luxurious "family" variety theatres. Opened on 24 December 1904 as the London Coliseum Theatre ...

, as well as two other

theatres Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perform ...

, the

Duke of York's Theatre The Duke of York's Theatre is a West End theatre in St Martin's Lane, in the City of Westminster, London. It was built for Frank Wyatt and his wife, Violet Melnotte, who retained ownership of the theatre until her death in 1935. Designed by th ...

and the

Noël Coward Theatre The Noël Coward Theatre, formerly known as the Albery Theatre, is a West End theatre in St. Martin's Lane in the City of Westminster, London. It opened on 12 March 1903 as the New Theatre and was built by Sir Charles Wyndham behind Wyndham's ...

, second-hand bookshops, antique dealers and high class gentlemen's outfitters. It also has a large number of cafes and a music shop aimed at opera and theatre goers. The theatrical agency set up by

Peggy Ramsay Margaret Francesca Ramsay (27 May 1908 - 4 September 1991) was an Australian-born British theatrical agent.Christopher Stevens ''Born Brilliant: The Life Of Kenneth Williams'', London: John Murray, 2010, p.409 Early life Peggy Ramsay was bor ...

in 1953 was located in Goodwin's Court, an alley leading off the lane. Two pedestrian alleys, St Martin's Court and

Cecil Court Cecil Court is a pedestrian street with Victorian shop-frontages in Westminster, England, linking Charing Cross Road and St Martin's Lane. Since the 1930s, it has been known as the new Booksellers' Row. Early background One of the older thoroug ...

, connect St Martin's Lane with Charing Cross Road have similar usage. In the 18th-century St Martin's Lane was noted for the Academy founded by

William Hogarth William Hogarth (; 10 November 1697 – 26 October 1764) was an English painter, engraver, pictorial satirist, social critic, editorial cartoonist and occasional writer on art. His work ranges from realistic portraiture to comic strip-like ...

and later for premises of cabinet-makers and " upholsterers" such as

Thomas Chippendale Thomas Chippendale (1718–1779) was a cabinet-maker in London, designing furniture in the mid-Georgian, English Rococo, and Neoclassical styles. In 1754 he published a book of his designs in a trade catalogue titled ''The Gentleman and Ca ...

, who moved to better premises there in 1753,

Vile and Cobb Vile may refer to: Characters * Vile (Mega Man X), a character from the Mega Man X game series * Doctor Vile (Dr. Weil), a character from the Mega Man Zero game series * V.I.L.E., a fictional villain group in the ''Carmen Sandiego'' franchise ...

, and

William Hallett William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...

around the corner in Newport Street.

The Salisbury

The Salisbury in Covent Garden was built as part of a six-storey block around 1899 on the site of an earlier pub that had been known under several names, including the Coach & Horses and

Ben Caunt Ben Caunt (22 March 1815 – 10 September 1861) was a 19th-century English bare-knuckle boxer who became the heavyweight boxing champion known as the "Torkard Giant" and "Big Ben". Early life Caunt was born on 22 March 1815 in Hucknall Torkard, ...

's Head; it is both Grade II listed, and on

CAMRA The Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) is an independent voluntary consumer organisation headquartered in St Albans, England, which promotes real ale, cider and perry and traditional British pubs and clubs. With just under 155,000 members, it is ...

's National Inventory, due to the quality of the etched and polished glass and the carved woodwork.

Films

The film ''St Martin's Lane'' (also known as ''

Sidewalks of London ''Sidewalks of London'', also known as ''St Martin's Lane'', ''London After Dark'', and ''Partners of the Night'', is a 1938 British black-and-white comedy drama starring Charles Laughton as a busker or street entertainer who teams up with a ta ...

'', 1938) starring Vivien Leigh, Rex Harrison and Charles Laughton, later formed the basis of the Broadway musical '' Busker Alley''. The street is also prominently featured throughout the 1961 film ''

Victim Victim(s) or The Victim may refer to: People * Crime victim * Victim, in psychotherapy, a posited role in the Karpman drama triangle model of transactional analysis Films and television * ''The Victim'' (1916 film), an American silent film by ...

'', which also has scenes in the Salisbury.

References

Citations Sources * {{Coord , 51, 30, 38, N, 0, 07, 38, W, display=title, type:landmark Streets in the City of Westminster Covent Garden Odonyms referring to religion