Portland Place

Portland Place is a street in the Marylebone district of central London. It was laid out by the Adam Brothers for the Duke of Portland in the late 18th century, and in the early 19th century it was incorporated into the royal route from Carlton House to Regent's Park developed for the Prince Regent by John Nash. The street is unusually wide for central London, yet is kept relatively free of traffic. It still contains many of the spacious Georgian terraced houses built by the Adams, as well as some early 20th century buildings and a few post World War II bombing infills. Many of the houses are now occupied by company headquarters, professional bodies, and embassies. The landmark building of Royal Institute of British Architects sits directly opposite the Chinese embassy; for years practioners of Falun Gong have mounted a silent protest in front of the former and facing the latter. In addition, Portland Place remains a fashionable address with some very exclusive blocks of mansion flats.

Related Topics:
Marylebone - London - Adam Brothers - Duke of Portland - Carlton House - Regent's Park - Prince Regent - John Nash - Georgian - Terraced houses - World War II - Royal Institute of British Architects - Chinese - Falun Gong

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Its northern end opens into Nash's elegant stucco semi-circle Park Crescent, which in turn leads on to Park Square and Regent's Park. There are two landmark buildings at the south end of the street, although both are technically in Langham Place: the grand late Victorian Langham Hotel, and BBC Broadcasting House. Langham Place is a short road which connects Portland Place to Upper Regent Street, although on the ground they all appear to be one street.

Related Topics:
Stucco - Regent's Park - Victorian - Langham Hotel - BBC Broadcasting House - Regent Street

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