- Tube stations: Marylebone, Edgeware Road, Marble Arch, Oxford Circus, Baker Street, Regent’s Park, Great Portland Street
- Rail stations: Marylebone
- Location: bordered by St. John’s Wood in the northwest, Edgeware Road in the southwest, Oxford Street in the south,Great Portland Street in the east and Regent’s Park in the north
- Borough: Westminster (www.westminster.gov.uk)
- Postcode: W1
Landmarks: BBC’s Broadcasting House headquarters on Portland Street is currently undergoing renovation – while impressive now, there’s no doubt that once it’s complete it’ll be an even bigger landmark.
Known for: Marylebone is a strange neighbourhood – it envelopes several enclaves that have their own distinct feel. Edgware Road is London’s Little Middle East, Oxford Street is filled with open-mouthed tourists and harried Christmas shoppers and Marylebone High Street is home to trendy boutiques.
Who’s there? A mix of varying ethnicities and categories of wealth, although in general Marylebone is definitely one of London’s less affordable areas.
Making history: Marylebone gets its name from a local church called St. Mary by the Bourne. It grew as a residential district thanks to its location between relaxing Regent’s Park and bustling Oxford Street, and it soon attracted legions of London’s wealthy. The railway station was built in 1899, and although much of the area was bombed during World War II it still retained its classy reputation.
Pub quiz facts: When Madame Tussaud’s was bombed in 1940, the Hitler wax figure was one of the few that weren’t destroyed.
Famous faces: Madonna has tried to fool the world over into thinking she’s British by transplanting herself to Marylebone, where she lives with Guy Ritchie.
When it’s hot: Stop and smell the roses at Queen Mary’s Gardens – there’s also an open air theatre from May to September if you fancy some outdoor culture.
When it’s not: There’s loads to do around Marylebone if you don’t feel like shopping or laying in the park. See a show at Wigmore Hall (www.wigmore-hall.org.uk), view 18th- and 19th-century paintings at the Wallace Collection (www.wallacecollection.org) or try your hand at mystery-solving at the Sherlock Holmes Museum (www.sherlock-holmes.co.uk).