Bow-windowed boutiques and Georgian terraces guard the sedate grassy squares, tree-lined avenues and cobbled lanes of Bloomsbury.

Rich in literary associations, academic institutions and refined Bohemian character, Bloomsbury is a thriving cultural community and London's undisputed intellectual driving force. This eminently respectable district accommodates quiet nooks and hives of activity alike, interspersed by the grand buildings of the universities and museums.

In the early 1900s Bloomsbury'’s admirable architecture resounded to the intellectual musings of the famous Bloomsbury Group, including T.S. Eliot, Virginia Woolf, Vanessa Bell and John Maynard Keynes. This loose league of Cambridge alumni’s sustained their friendship at weekly soirees in the trendy Bloomsbury district. They thrived on risqué behaviour and artistic banter and united in the belief that self-promotion was an essential element of cultural progress. Their antics caused scandal but the clique gave the Bloomsbury area credence and they are now regarded as a major enriching influence.

Now home to a myriad of colleges and specialist hospitals, not to mention both the British Museum and the British Library, Bloomsbury is the educational core of London. This inspirational hub is home to a host of outlets selling anything from collector's books to stamps, umbrellas and other quirky curios, and naturally with a vast student populous there are drinking holes and eateries galore.

Whether you are looking to sell or buy a property, or wishing to let or rent a flat or apartment in Bloomsbury we realise it is an important and personal transaction for you. As established estate and letting agents, our partners and staff have an in-depth knowledge of the Bloomsbury property market and will offer you honest and sensible advice.

Location of Bloomsbury

Bloomsbury is the area east of Tottenham Court Road, north of New Oxford Street, west of Southampton Row, and south of Euston Road.

Ideally located in one of London's most vibrant vicinities, Bloomsbury is situated in the borough of Camden, sandwiched between the financial district and the West End. Its central locale is ideal for indulging in London's cosmopolitan flair and is in easy walking distance of Soho, Covent Garden, Fitzrovia and an array of attractions.

Unlike its hedonistic neighbours Bloomsbury is primarily a residential area and is not traversed by any main thoroughfares. In turn a Bloomsbury residence offers a spacious, composed appeal rarely found in the capital’s urban jungle and provides convenient access to some of London's tranquil squares and hotels.

The main streets and buildings include Bloomsbury Mansions, Bedford Court Mansions, Bedford Avenue, Ridgmount Gardens, Russell Square, New Oxford Street, Theobalds road, Queen Square, Lamb's Conduit Street, Bedford Square, Bloomsbury Square, Woburn Place, Gower Street, Southampton Row, Great Russell Street, Museum Street, Great James Street, Red Lion Square, Queen Court

Nearby areas include:

• Kings Cross
• Camden Town
• Clerkenwell
• Holborn
• Fitzrovia
• Soho
• Covent Garden
• Farringdon

Bloomsbury Transport

Its plethora of stations makes Bloomsbury easily accessible from all over London. King's Cross is the system's busiest interchange, while Goodge Street and Russell Square are most central for the sights. Buses run frequently along Tottenham Court Road, Gower Street, Euston Road and New Oxford Street.

Bloomsbury is also home to the disused British Museum tube station.

Nearest Tube Stations:

• Russell Square (Piccadilly line)
• Holborn (Central & Piccadilly lines)
• Tottenham Court Road (Central & Northern lines)
• Goodge Street (Northern line),
• Euston (Northern, Victoria & National Rail lines)
• Euston Square (Circle, Hammersmith & Metropolitan lines)
• Warren Street (Northern & Victoria lines)

Architecture of Bloomsbury

The streets and squares of Bloomsbury were developed in the late 17th century and the region still retains some of its youthful spirit. It was the 4th Earl of Southampton who imported an Italian novelty called the ‘square’ and christened the first in London Southampton Square, later renamed Bloomsbury in the early 1800’s.

The buildings range from elegant Queen Anne and Georgian family houses to Victorian and Edwardian red brick blocks. Large flats (1300 to 1600 square feet) can be found in prestigious portered buildings such as Bedford Court Mansion, Ridgemount Gardens or Bloomsbury Mansions. Blocks and conversions offer three bedroom flats to studios which are ideal for first time buyers, buy to let investments or for student accommodation.

Loft style penthouses crown both new developments and period blocks, often with roof terraces. Interiors vary from cutting edge minimal urban designs to panelled, with a wealth of period features.  

History of Bloomsbury

Once an ancient village identified as Lonesbury the area was surrounded by fields until it began to be developed in the 17th century by the Earl of Southampton. Around this time the original Bedford House emerged, as did Tavistock House where Charles Dickens later settled for a few years.

By the 18th century Bloomsbury had become residence to a number of medical institutions, and within the next 100 years it saw the development of numerous hospitals. The University College London was founded in 1826, and soon after other University of London buildings started to appear around Bloomsbury.

In the early 20th century it was also home to the Bloomsbury Group, an eccentric and informal social assembly of academics, writers, artists and critics that existed from 1905 until around World War II.

Highlights of Bloomsbury

Bloomsbury offers everything you'd expect in an area dominated by students of academic and artistic mind: bookstores, cheap eats, social haunts and retail therapy. But rather than offering a campus lifestyle Bloomsbury is sophisticated, cultured and prestigious.

The British Museum (Great Russell Street) contains one of the most comprehensive collections of art and artefacts in the world.

The Socialist Bookshop (1 Bloomsbury Street, London WC1B 3QE) offers an eclectic range of titles on history, black struggles, economics and anti-fascism.

And the world famous James Smith & Sons Umbrella Shop (Hazelwood House, 53 New Oxford Street, London WC1A 1BL) has been making umbrellas and canes for 170 years.  

Other places of interest in Bloomsbury

• UCL
  University of London
  Gower Street, Bloomsbury, London WC1E 6BT
  
  
• Royal Academy of Dramatic Art
  62-64 Gower Street, Bloomsbury, London WC1E 6ED
  
  
• School of Oriental and African Studies
  Thornhaugh Street
  Russell Square Bloomsbury, London WC1H 0XG
  
  
• Central Saint Martins School of Art & Design
  Southampton Row, Bloomsbury, London WC1
  
  
• Dickens House
  48 Doughty Street, Bloomsbury, London WC1
  
  
• Ulysses bookshop
  187 High Holborn, Bloomsbury, London WC1
  
  
• Senate House
  Malet Street, Bloomsbury, London WC1E 7HU
  Used as ‘The Ministry’ in the film version of George Orwell's "1984"

 Bloomsbury Bars and Pubs

• Museum Tavern
  49 Great Russell Street, Bloomsbury, London WC1
  Tel: 020 7242 8987
  
  
• The Plough
  27 Museum Street, Bloomsbury, London WC1
  Tel: 020 7636 7964
  
  
• The Grafton Arms
  72 Grafton Way, Bloomsbury, London WC1
  Tel: 020 7387 7923
  
  
• Queens Larder
  1 Queen Square, Bloomsbury, London WC1
  Tel: 020 7837 5627
  
  
• The Lord John Russell
  Marchmont Street, Bloomsbury, London WC1
  Tel: 020 7388 0500
  
  
• Norfolk Arms
  Leigh Street, Bloomsbury, London WC1
  Tel: 020 7388 3937
  
  
• Grape Street Wine Bar
  224A Shaftesbury Avenue, Bloomsbury, London WC1
  Tel: 020 7240 0686
  
  
• Mybar
  Myhotel, 11-13 Bayley Street, Bloomsbury, London WC1
  Tel: 020 7667 6000

Bloomsbury Restaurants

• Abeno
  47 Museum Street, Bloomsbury, London WC1
  Tel: 020 7405 8001
  
  
• Townhouse Brassiere
  24 Coptic Street, Bloomsbury, London WC1
  Tel: 020 7636 2731
  
  
• North Sea Fish Restaurant
  7-8 Leigh Street, Bloomsbury, London WC1
  Tel: 020 7387 5892
  
  
• Trattoria Verdi
  110 Southampton Street
  Bloomsbury, London WC1
  Tel: 020 7405 8001
  
  
• Thai Garden Café
  32 Museum Street, Bloomsbury, London WC1
  Tel: 020 7637 4309
  
  
• Konaki Greek Restaurant
  5 Coptic Street, Bloomsbury, London WC1
  Tel: 020 7580 9730
  
  
• Glass
  Marlborough Hotel, 7-13 Bloomsbury Street, Bloomsbury, London WC1
  Tel: 020 7636 5601
  
  
• China House
  51 Marchmont Street, Bloomsbury, London WC1
  Tel: 020 7713 0866