Covent Garden is London's oldest planned square. It was built in 1614 in the style of an Italian Piazza and became popular with the gentry as London's first luxury neighbourhood. However, it soon plunged into an area of drink, vice and scandal with dozens of gambling dens and bawdy houses surrounding the piazza.
In the early 19th century, the slums and lowlife were cleared out and the market was built in Greek Revival style. The piazza became an important fruit, vegetable and flower market and remained so until 1974, when planners threatened to turn the site into office blocks. Fortunately local protests forced a rethink and it is now transformed with modern shops, stalls, cafés and enlivened by young musicians, buskers and comedy street performers.
Website: www.coventgarden.uk.com
Nearby attractions: London Transport Museum, Leicester Square, Trafalgar Square, Piccadilly Circus
Tube station: Covent Garden