A literary walk through London’s Mayfair

Experience

By Juliet Kinsman

April 18, 2024

Londoner Juliet Kinsman follows in the footsteps of a literary hero – from the West End to Hyde Park

Mayfair is at the heart of London, with stories on every corner – often involving Oscar Wilde, the Victorian literary sensation. ‘The only possible form of exercise is to talk, not walk,’ he once said, but you can do both on a self-guided tour of central London that will take you from Mandarin Oriental Mayfair, London – recently opened in Hanover Square – to Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park, London in under 30 minutes.

It may have been 170 years since the playwright, poet and bon viveur was born, but his influence and inspiration are still felt in this distinguished capital. Indeed, one of the most talked-about theatre shows right now is The Picture of Dorian Gray, starring Succession’s Sarah Sook, which runs until 11 May.

Hanover Square W1

Steeped in history, it was named in honour of the coronation of George I (a reference to the British king also being ruler of the Electorate of Hanover). Among its notable architecture, old and new, stand 18th-century houses from Wilde’s heyday – including St George’s Church, built in the 1720s and restored in 2010. Wilde’s lover, Lord Alfred Douglas, married Olive Eleanor Custance here in 1902.

Liberty

Liberty on Regent Street W1, established in 1875. Wilde hailed this upmarket mock-Tudor department store ‘the chosen resort of the artistic shopper’ – the sartorially minded playwright's description is still perfect for this quintessential grande dame of concept stores.

Marlborough Street Magistrates Court W1

Where numbers 19–21 once stood, Wilde took the Marquess of Queensbury to court for libel – the start of the writer’s downfall and the path to his imprisonment for gross indecency. His last six months in the city were spent behind bars here before he went to Reading jail, after which he headed to France, never to return to Britain and dying of meningitis in Paris aged just 46.

*Photo credit: The Blowup

Brook Street W1

Look for the Blue Plaques as you pass by number 25, the house where both Jimi Hendrix and George Frideric Handel lived – neighbours 200 years apart. At number 69, the Savile Club once counted Robbie Ross as a member: Wilde’s devoted friend, lover and literary executor. ‘I love London society,’ quipped the writer. ‘It is entirely composed now of beautiful idiots and brilliant lunatics.

Carlos Place W1

Wilde lived in third-floor rooms here after marrying Constance Lloyd in Paddington, as they awaited the completion of their Chelsea home following a rift between Wilde and Frank Miles, the society painter he shared a house with at 34 Tite Street. It’s less easy to spot now that Roland Mouret’s boutique is no longer on the ground floor, but look for the beautifully preserved red-brick exterior.

Albemarle Street W1

Once the location of the Albemarle Club, which opened in 1874, welcoming men and women – unusual for the time. Wilde and his wife Constance were regulars, though it was also the scene of the illicit trysts that sparked gossip about his sexuality. As he put it in his novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray: ‘There is only one thing in life worse than being talked about, and that is not being talked about.’ After his trial, the club felt its reputation had been ruined, so it relocated to Dover Street in 1909 before closing permanently in 1941. But Albemarle Street is still worth a stroll for its array of elegant galleries, such as Marlborough Fine Art.

Dunraven Street W1

When Reeves Mews, off Norfolk Square, once stood here, number 19 is where Lillie Langtry, actress and socialite (and mistress to King Edward VII) lived in a 10-room red-brick townhouse between 1877 and 1880. Oscar Wilde once said of his muse: ‘I would rather have discovered Mrs Langtry than to have discovered America.’

66 Knightsbridge SW1

The apartments built here in Queen Victoria’s time are now the Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park, London, which is where the walk ends, just opposite the Royal Entrance to the park. In time for an absinthe cocktail, perhaps? Oscar Wilde would have approved of supper, too, at Dinner by Heston Blumenthal. As the playwright said, ‘If you can dominate a London dinner table, you can dominate the world.’

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About the Author

Juliet Kinsman

Juliet Kinsman is a sustainable luxury travel writer, Condé Nast Travellers’s first sustainability editor and author of our Sustainability Report. The driving force behind the Evening Standard's sustainable travel channel and host of their award-winning podcast, she's written and edited many guidebooks for London and beyond.