Wigmore Street is a street in the

City of Westminster The City of Westminster is a city and borough in Inner London. It is the site of the United Kingdom's Houses of Parliament and much of the British government. It occupies a large area of central Greater London, including most of the West En ...

, in the

West End of London The West End of London (commonly referred to as the West End) is a district of Central London, 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 build ...

. The street runs for about 600 yards parallel and to the north of

Oxford Street 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 ...

between Portman Square to the west and

Cavendish Square Cavendish Square is a public garden square in Marylebone in the West End of London. It has a double-helix underground commercial car park. Its northern road forms ends of four streets: of Wigmore Street that runs to Portman Square in the much ...

to the east. It is named after the village of Wigmore and its

castle A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified r ...

Herefordshire Herefordshire () is a county in the West Midlands of England, governed by Herefordshire Council. It is bordered by Shropshire to the north, Worcestershire to the east, Gloucestershire to the south-east, and the Welsh counties of Monmouths ...

, a seat of the family of Robert Harley,

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, ...

around the time of Queen Anne, who owned land in the area. Numbers 18-22 Wigmore Street, the Brinsmead Galleries, were built in 1892, designed by Leonard V. Hunt for John Brinsmead & Sons piano manufacturers. There are nine showrooms. The well-known

Wigmore Hall Wigmore Hall is a concert hall located at 36 Wigmore Street, London. Originally called Bechstein Hall, it specialises in performances of chamber music, early music, vocal music and song recitals. It is widely regarded as one of the world's leadi ...

concert hall (at No 36 Wigmore Street) was also built by a piano manufacturers, the German company

C. Bechstein Pianofortefabrik C. Bechstein Pianoforte AG (also known as Bechstein, ) is a German manufacturer of pianos, established in 1853 by Carl Bechstein. History Before Bechstein Young Carl Bechstein studied and worked in France and England as a piano craftsman, be ...

in 1899–1901, with a showroom next door. It is located on the north side, just to the east of the junction with

Welbeck Street Welbeck Street is a street in the West End, central London. It has historically been associated with the medical profession. Location The street runs approximately north–south between New Cavendish Street at the northern end, crossing Wigm ...

. For about a hundred years beginning in the late 19th century, Wigmore Street had a great concentration of optometrists, dispensing opticians, makers of ophthalmic instruments, and related professions.See, for instance, the preponderance of Wigmore Street addresses among the advertisers in the January 1958 British Journal of Ophthalmology at http://bjo.bmj.com/content/42/1/local/advertising.pdf

Harley Street Harley Street is a street in Marylebone, Central London, which has, since the 19th century housed a large number of private specialists in medicine and surgery. It was named after Edward Harley, 2nd Earl of Oxford and Earl Mortimer.

and

Wimpole Street Wimpole Street is a street in Marylebone, central London. Located in the City of Westminster, it is associated with private medical practice and medical associations. No. 1 Wimpole Street is an example of Edwardian baroque architecture, comple ...

, famous for their private medical practices, are nearby and have junctions with Wigmore Street. The veteran pharmacy

John Bell & Croyden John Bell & Croyden is a pharmacy located on Wigmore Street, London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England ...

has been located in premises on the street since 1912. Number 95 Wigmore Street was the location of the original offices of the

Beatles The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the developm ...

' Apple Corps in 1968 prior to their move to Savile Row. The nearest tube stations are on Oxford Street, which runs south of and parallel to Wigmore Street: Marble Arch, located to the south-west;

Bond Street Bond Street in the West End of London links Piccadilly in the south to Oxford Street in the north. Since the 18th century the street has housed many prestigious and upmarket fashion retailers. The southern section is Old Bond Street and the ...

to the south, and

Oxford Circus 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. The junction opened in 1819 as part of the Regent Street development under John ...

to the south-east. The corner of Wimpole and Wigmore Streets features in the famous legal case about causing a "

nuisance Nuisance (from archaic ''nocence'', through Fr. ''noisance'', ''nuisance'', from Lat. ''nocere'', "to hurt") is a common law tort. It means that which causes offence, annoyance, trouble or injury. A nuisance can be either public (also "common") ...

" between neighbours - '' Sturges v. Bridgman'' (1879).

References

External links

Streets in the City of Westminster Howard de Walden Estate {{London-road-stub