Shepherd Market is a small business-lined precinct featuring two small squares, one with a northern recess in

Mayfair Mayfair is an affluent area in the West End of London towards the eastern edge of Hyde Park, in the City of Westminster, between Oxford Street, Regent Street, Piccadilly and Park Lane. It is one of the most expensive districts in the world. ...

, 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 ...

, built up between 1735 and 1746 by

Edward Shepherd Edward Shepherd (died 1747) was a prominent London-based English architect and developer in the Georgian period. Architectural work Shepherd worked on the following projects, among others: * Cannons, a house for James Brydges, 1st Duke of ...

on the open ground then used for the annual fair from which Mayfair derives; it does so with the east end of Shepherd Street which is also broad-pavemented. It is between Piccadilly and

Curzon Street Curzon Street is located within the Mayfair district of London. The street is located entirely within the W1J postcode district; the eastern end is north-east of Green Park underground station. It is within the City of Westminster, running ...

and has a village-like atmosphere. It was associated with upmarket prostitutes from its building up until at least the 1980s. In the 1920s, it hosted leading writers and artists such as

Anthony Powell Anthony Dymoke Powell ( ; 21 December 1905 – 28 March 2000) was an English novelist best known for his 12-volume work ''A Dance to the Music of Time'', published between 1951 and 1975. It is on the list of longest novels in English. Powell' ...

Michael Arlen Michael Arlen (16 November 1895 – 23 June 1956), born Dikran Kouyoumdjian ( hy, Տիգրան Գոյումճեան), was a British essayist, short story writer, novelist, playwright, and scriptwriter of Armenian origin, who had his greatest s ...

and

Sophie Fedorovitch Sophie Fedorovitch ( be, Сафія Федаровіч; 3 December 1893 – 25 January 1953) was a Russian-born theatrical designer who worked with ballet choreographer Sir Frederick Ashton from his first choreographed ballet in 1926 until her a ...

Jeffrey Archer Jeffrey Howard Archer, Baron Archer of Weston-super-Mare (born 15 April 1940) is an English novelist, life peer, convicted criminal, and former politician. Before becoming an author, Archer was a Member of Parliament (1969–1974), but did not ...

met

Monica Coghlan Monica Coghlan (3 April 1951 – 27 April 2001) was an English woman at the centre of a scandal that involved British Conservative politician Jeffrey Archer in 1987. Although he won a libel case against the '' Daily Star'' newspaper, which ...

here in the 1980s.

History

The square was fully built up between 1735 and 1746 by

from an open area called Brook Field, through which flowed the Tyburn, and where a May fair was held, from which the surrounding area of

derives its name. A local architect, he was commissioned to develop the site and work was completed in the mid-18th century. It contained paved alleys, a duck pond, and a two-storey market topped by a theatre. Shepherd Market 4

During the 1920s this was a rundown area, popular with writers and artists such as

and

. Arlen rented rooms opposite The Grapes public house and used the public place as the setting for his best-selling 1924 novel ''The Green Hat'', which prompted

to move into the area in 1926. It has been associated with upmarket prostitutes from its building up until at least the 1980s. When

Olivia Manning Olivia Mary Manning (2 March 1908 – 23 July 1980) was a British novelist, poet, writer, and reviewer. Her fiction and non-fiction, frequently detailing journeys and personal odysseys, were principally set in the United Kingdom, Euro ...

and her husband

Reggie Smith Carl Reginald Smith (born April 2, 1945) is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) as an outfielder and afterwards served as a coach and front office executive. He also played in the Nippon Profe ...

lived at 50a, she found the prostitutes "fascinating". In the 1980s, the then deputy

Conservative Party The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right. Political parties called The Conservative P ...

chairman and author

allegedly met the prostitute

in Shepherd Market.

Notable flats

Cass Elliot (Mama Cass) died at Flat 12, 9 Curzon Place (co-fronting Shepherd Market) on 28 July 1974.

Keith Moon Keith John Moon (23 August 19467 September 1978) was an English drummer for the rock band the Who. He was noted for his unique style of playing and his eccentric, often self-destructive behaviour and addiction to drugs and alcohol. Moon grew ...

The Who The Who are an English rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup consisted of lead singer Roger Daltrey, guitarist and singer Pete Townshend, bass guitarist and singer John Entwistle, and drummer Keith Moon. They are considered ...

died at the same flat on 7 September 1978.

Geography

Shepherd Market is between Piccadilly and

. As a street it is long. The

Curzon Mayfair Cinema The Curzon Mayfair Cinema is a Grade II listed building at 37–38 Curzon Street, London W1, built in 1963–66 by H. G. Hammond for Sir John Burnet, Tait and Partners, architects. Historic England have described it as "the finest surviving cin ...

and Al Sultan restaurant punctuate its eastern end, and the transition to residential street: Market Mews, where at right-angles crosses

Hertford Street Hertford Street is a street in central London's Mayfair district. It runs between a junction with Park Lane and Old Park Lane at its western end, to Curzon Street at its north-east end. In 1771, Anne, Duchess of Cumberland and Strathearn marrie ...

Notes and references

;Footnotes ;Citations

External links

ShepherdMarket.co.uk
{{coord, 51.5065, -0.1468, type:landmark_region:GB-WSM, display=title Squares in the City of Westminster Retail markets in London 1735 establishments in England Mayfair