Fitzrovia is one of those hidden districts in London that people often overlook. Developed originally for the upper classes in the 17th Century by lord of the manor Charles Fitzroy, it is nestled between Bloomsbury in the East and Marylebone in the West. “Fitzrovia” did not really come into use as a name for the area until the 1930s.  

Fitzroy lends his name to Fitzroy Square and the Fitzroy Tavern. As the upper classes tended to move away to districts like Mayfair and Belgravia, this area became a magnet for incoming settlers from Germany, Italy and Greece looking to make a living in the furniture trade or the thriving retail and hospitality scenes. The Fitzroy Tavern also became associated with London’s literary scene and Bohemian artistic community. Writers like Dylan Thomas and Virginia Wolf lived or socialised here.