Coventry Street

The street was constructed in 1681 for entertainment and retail purposes, and acquired a shady character with numerous gambling houses and a reputation for prostitution.

It is around 0.2 miles (350 yd) long and runs east from Piccadilly Circus to Leicester Square via Haymarket and Wardour Street.

[1] The western section of the road is part of the A4 one-way system between Piccadilly Circus and Trafalgar Square.

[1] No buses run along the full length of Coventry Street but there is access to numerous routes from Piccadilly Circus or nearby Charing Cross Road.

John Ogilby's 1681 map of London shows Coventry Street built up on both sides.

For much of the 18th and early 19th century, there were a number of gambling houses along the street, contributing to a shady and downmarket character.

[5] The historian J.T.Smith remarked in 1846 that Coventry Street had "a considerable number of gaming-houses in the neighbourhood at the present time, so that the bad character of the place is at least two centuries old, or ever since it was built upon".

The origins of the site can be traced back to 1744, when John Cartwright gave a 99-year lease on this land to Thomas Higginson, in order to construct a real tennis court.

[3] In 1835, an exhibition named the "Parisian infernal machine" was set up on Coventry Street, that depicted a murderer attempting to assassinate the French royal family.

[10] The London Pavilion was at the corner of Coventry Street with Piccadilly Circus and Shaftesbury Avenue.

[1] Charles Hirsch, a bookseller, sold French literature and pornography from his shop "Librairie Parisienne" in Coventry Street in the late 19th century.

It was built for and financed by actor-manager Edgar Bruce from profits made at the Scala Theatre.

[15] In the 1920s, the street became a centre for nightclubs, attracting clientele such as Edward, Prince of Wales, Rudolph Valentino, Noël Coward, Fred Astaire and Charlie Chaplin.

Owing to a lack of water, a leg wound had to be washed with champagne as it was the only suitable substance to hand.

[18] The Swiss Centre, at the far eastern end of the street adjoining Leicester Square was constructed between 1963–66 and designed by David du R. Aberdeen and Partners.

He fell unconscious after the attack, and was rushed to Charing Cross Hospital, where he was found to have been stabbed in the neck by a thin tube.

After another man was attacked a few hours later in a similar manner, followed by a third victim in the evening, an urban legend spread that a vampire was stalking Coventry Street.