Centred around the exemplary 18th century Manchester Square, this affluent neighbourhood of southern Marylebone sits to the east of Edgware Road and to the north of Bond Street. With an array of fine Georgian and Victorian townhouses, and more modern apartment buildings, the area caters to a broad range of wealthy permanent residents, and the numerous local offices mean that the streets and pubs are often full of professionals. Manchester Square itself is home to the esteemed Wallace Collection, an extensive art collection in Hertford House that stretches from the 15th to 19th centuries. To the south lies Orchard Street, a busy retail thoroughfare that is the location of Selfridges department store, as well as a number of other flagship stores. Marble Arch and Bond Street stations offer residents and visitors great transport links throughout the city, and encourage tourism to the area’s nearby attractions.

Manchester Square was planned in the 1770s, when Henry William Portman revived a previous idea and began to sell ground leases for the site. Samuel Adams, a speculative builder, bought the leaseholds of eight plots of land in 1771 but was later bought out by the Duke of Manchester in 1776, when he realised the land’s potential as a duck hunting site. The grand Manchester House was built on the square in 1778, followed by smaller but still impressive homes, many of which are still standing today. Manchester House was renamed Hertford House in 1797, after it was purchased by the Marquess of Hertford and passed down through the family to Richard Wallace, who, in 1897, bequeathed his impressive collection to the nation. In 1960, the record company EMI, moved its headquarters to a modernist block in the square, which was demolished in 1999 when the company moved to Hammersmith.

The iconic cover of the Beatles’ 1963 album Please Please Me was photographed in a stairwell at the EMI headquarters at 20 Manchester Square, which was recreated seven years later for their compilation LP.

In 1810, Simón Bolívar (1783-1830) lodged at 4 Duke Street just beneath Manchester Square. El Libertador is known for the liberation of the current republics of Venezuela, Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru from the Spanish Empire.

Marylebone’s location, reputation and history means that it is an incredibly expensive place to live. A two-bedroom property can reach up to £2 million, and larger houses are on the market for over £25 million.

Nearby Bond Street is set to become one of the stations on the new Elizabeth line, which became operational in early 2022. Opening to the public in November 2022, the station’s extension and refurbishment aim to improve accessibility and increase the capacity of one of the city’s busiest Underground stations by an additional 137,000 passengers daily. It will also bring more tourism to the popular shopping district.