#4984 New Exeter 'Change From an age when retail therapy demanded money and ahem manners. the new Exeter ‘Change (Exchange) on the Strand in London boasted the so-called refined offerings of the 17th and 18th centuries, including millinery, hosiery and dressmaking. The edifice appeared in 1676 and soared up for several floors, all on the site of the former residence of the Earls of Exeter, hence its name. From the start ‘it was in no sense externally beautiful, being designe

#4987 Old Blue Boar Holborn Here at scanning HQ we love an old inn! And this one, the Old Blue Boar at High Holborn, London brings that passion to provocative life. Shown on a scarce London map of 1682, it lay between High Holborn & Eagle street to the north. It gained the ‘old’ appurtenance by the mid-1700s, described as ‘one of London’s oldest houses’, additionally serving as a masonic lodge. It gained greater notoriety as the venue of choice for Newgate prisoners to have a

#4989 Old Sadler's Wells, London The birthplace of English ballet dates back to when a Plié Plié was first performed, and a stage was first walked upon. Originally, Old Sadler’s Wells began as a pleasure garden in North London's Islington. Around 1683, the first theatre, called the Musick House, was established. Due to the laws at the time that limited 'straight' drama, the venue focused on dance and performative arts, building a reputation that has lasted over three centurie

#5006 Sir John Soane's House in Lincoln's Inn Fields Sir John Soane, born 1753 in Goring Berkshire, emerged as one of Britain’s most celebrated architects. Son of a bricklayer, no doubt providing familial foundations for his soaring career, he became a ‘pupil’ of leading architect George Dance the Younger (Mansion House, Newgate Gaol) and later of Henry Holland (Marine, later Brighton, Pavilion). Enjoying such auspicious direction, he was destined to shine and shine he did, t