Marylebone is one of the most dynamic places to live in London. Constantly changing and improving from as far back as it was called “The workshop of Mayfair” until now having quickly been named super chic and affluent. But one thing this quiet and hidden neighbourhood in the centre of London has maintained is a strong village and community feel. You will observe everything from young families to locals who have lived in Marylebone for over 50 years, the young and older flock here for all their various needs. Being quite well hidden there is an exclusive feeling to Marylebone attracting small boutiques and exquisite restaurants of all types. With Regents Park to the north and Mayfair and Hyde Park to the south, there is no doubt of the strong location bringing interest from all walks of life from all over the world.
If you wander the streets of Marylebone during the day, you will see it bustling with professionals, artists, food enthusiasts and even the odd tourist with its many historical buildings and stories. Not to mention the school kids who are often treated to playtime in Paddington Gardens or the private Park Crescent garden Square just off Regents Park, sports day is regularly held in Regents Park along with other events such as the Frieze Art Fair (www.friezelondon.com) and the Taste London Food Festival (www.london.tastefestivals.com) a long way away from the days King Henry the VIII used the land where Regents Park now stands as his own private hunting grounds and deer park.
There is a vast array of restaurants, bespoke patisseries, a fantastic local butcher (The Ginger Pig - www.thegingerpig.co.uk) and what we would call a cheese emporium at La Fromagerie (www.lafromagerie.co.uk) both across the road from the weekly Sunday Farmers Market (www.lfm.org.uk/markets/marylebone/) there is no shortage of foodies and lunchers indulging in the wonderful flavours Marylebone has to offer.
Once evening falls, you will notice a steady calm in Marylebone which is very rare in London, usually found in a leafy village deep in the countryside. However whilst the residential parts of Marylebone are extremely tranquil and the roads eerily quiet, the bars and various restaurants are busy with interesting, idiosyncratic and eccentric people. New hotspot such as Andre Balazs’ Chiltern Street Firehouse (www.chilternfirehouse.com) all just as popular as the smaller and more personal restaurants and bars such as Casa Becci, Zoom, Fairuz and Il Baretto all on Blandford Street and the historical Golden Hinde Fish and Chips. Otherwise for a fantastic burger make sure to stop by Tommy’s Burger Joint or for a very quick in and out steak and chips at Relais De Venis. All this surrounded by traditional and gastro pubs and bars such as The Golden Eagle and The Marylebone.Overall Marylebone is very welcoming and a hotspot for Londoners and visitors alike. A place where you never quite know who you are rubbing shoulders with.
Marylebone retains its period charm with buildings dating back from as early as the 1600’s when it was only a small village, it is even mentioned as The Manor of Tyburn in the Domesday Book (1086) with a population of around 50 people which would have been situated to the north of the expanding city of London that we know so well today as central London. As well as being home to some of London’s most picturesque garden squares and public gardens that are off the beaten track you will find some of central London’s finest period architecture with Georgian houses, Victorian terraces and mansion blocks with exquisite interiors. The name Marylebone arrived from a church dedicated to St Mary, represented now by St Marylebone Parish Church (Completed in 1817); the original church was built on the bank of a small stream or "Bourne", called the Bourne or Tyburn, starting in what is now Swiss Cottage, eventually running along what is now Marylebone Lane which preserves its curve of the stream, some shops along the lane still get flooded to this day. The outflow of the stream is released into the River Thames at Vauxhall Bridge. The church and the surrounding area later became known as St Mary at the Bourne which, over time, became shortened to its present form, Marylebone.
It is a common misunderstanding that the name is a corruption of Marie la Bonne (French for "Marie/Mary the good") which lends to the romantic qualities Marylebone posses.
Marylebone Local Schools
PRIMARY SCHOOLS
Hampden Gurney CofE Primary School 13 Nutford Place London, W1H 5HA
Wetherby Preparatory School 48 Bryanston Square London, W1H 2EA
The Sylvia Young Theatre School 1 Nutford Place London, W1H 5YZ
SECONDARY SCHOOLS
Wetherby Preparatory School 48 Bryanston Square London, W1H 2EA
Halcyon London International School 33 Seymour Place London, W1H 5AU
The Sylvia Young Theatre School 1 Nutford Place London, W1H 5YZ
Abercorn School 248 Marylebone Road London, NW1 6JF
The Wallace Collection Selfridges Madame Tussauds The Sherlock Holmes Museum Charles Dickens King Henry the Eighth Baker Street Station the oldest tube line in London (The Metropolitan Line - opened in 1863) Portland Place Marylebone Station The Landmark Hotel The Langham Hotel The Sherlock Holmes Hotel Chiltern Court Harley Street (World centre for medicine and surgery) Royal Academy of Music London Business School European Business School Westminster University Queens College for girls
Marylebone Transport Links
UNDERGROUND STATIONS
Marylebone Baker Street Edgware Road Marble Arch Edgware Road (Bakerloo)
TRAIN STATIONS
Marylebone station Paddington station Euston station St. Pancras station Charing Cross station