Piccadilly Circus, London

Piccadilly Circus is a road junction and public space at London's West End, in the City of Westminster. It was built in 1819, to connect Regent Street with the shopping district of Piccadilly. The name "Circus" comes from the Latin, meaning circle, and refers to a circular open space at a street junction. Its status as a major traffic junction made Piccadilly Circus a busy meet up point and a tourist attraction.

Piccadilly Circus is characterised by its neon signs and video advertisement displays. Today, however, only one building carries these advertising hoardings - it is on the northwestern corder, between Shaftesbury Avenue and Glasshouse Street.

To the southwestern side of Piccadilly Circus is the Shaftesbury Monument Memorial Fountain. It was erected in 1892-93, originally at the centre of the Circus, but was moved after World War II to its present position. The fountain commemorates the philanthropic works of Lord Shaftesbury, a famous Victorian politician and philanthropist. The monument is topped with the winged statue of Anteros, the Greek god of selfless philanthropic love, and twin brother to Eros (who was known to the Romans as Cupid). It was the first statue in the world to be cost in aluminium.

The statue was unveiled to an unreceptive public. Some felt that it was inappropriate to site it in the theatre district, a vulgar part of town, while others felt it was too sensual for a memorial to the respectable Earl. Some attempted to rename it The Angel of Christian Charity, in an effort to invent something Christian for the role of Anteros. But that name never gained much popularity. Instead, the public erroneously called it Eros, the Greek god of sensual love, not appropriate to remember the Earl, but quite right for the carnal neighbourhood of Piccadilly Circus.

How to get there

Nearest Tube Station: Piccadilly Circus
Buses: No. 9, 12, 15, 19
Admission: Free Access
Information: Visitor Centre at 1 Lower Regent Street

What to see and do

Piccadilly Circus is at the heart of London. This is the place to watch Londoners. There will be throngs of other tourists around, so while London is a safe city, you should exercise care and look after your belongings when in a crowd. Take photos of the landmark Eros statue.

List of Places in London

More streets in London

To explore more streets across the capital, visit our Streets in London page, where you'll find an interactive map and a growing list of all the streets we've documented so far.

Map of Streets in London

View all the streets that I have documented on Google Maps in this Map of Streets in London.