Holborn, St Giles & Bloomsbury South

Holborn, St Giles and the southern edge of Bloomsbury sit where central streets meet institutional squares and narrow lanes. The area contains Lincoln's Inn and Gray's Inn, and Lincoln's Inn Fields — the largest public square in London — opens onto rows of townhouses and civic buildings. On one corner a preserved house-museum holds the collection of Sir John Soane, with its packed galleries and mirrors retained as they were in the 19th century. A concrete shopping and residential block, the Brunswick Centre, fronts a pedestrian route that links to small bookshops, university departments and workplace buildings that line the main streets.

Day-to-day life alternates between legal business, academic timetables and retail trade; chambers, lecture theatres and offices sit close to flats and student housing. Holborn station provides Central and Piccadilly line connections and several bus routes cross the area, feeding commuters and visitors. Public squares and planted courtyards offer places to pass time between appointments, while basement bars, mid-sized performance venues and specialist shops serve a working population as well as residents.