Covent Garden

Covent Garden is a district on the eastern edge of the West End whose present character is shaped by the Piazza and the Victorian market hall. The Piazza was laid out in 1631 by Inigo Jones on an Italian model as London's first planned square; St Paul's Church at the west end, whose eastern portico forms the stage for the opening of Shaw's Pygmalion, still belongs to the original scheme. For centuries Covent Garden was London's great fruit and vegetable market; in 1974 the wholesale trade moved to Nine Elms, and the empty hall was nearly demolished before citizens' protest secured its conversion into today's boutique and restaurant gallery. To the north stands the Royal Opera House, to the east the Drury Lane theatre complex. Today licensed street performers play under the arcades every half hour, from opera-singing tenors to fire-eaters, and the Sunday Apple Market sells crafts in the historic hall.