People's Plaques

The Seven Dials Trust’s People’s Plaques bring to light fascinating people and institutions from the very local to the international, who have made a contribution to the area and, in some cases, nationally and internationally.

We are pleased to inform that items marked FEATURED have been sponsored. If you would like to support the scheme please contact us or download our brochure:

Download the People's Plaques Sponsorship Brochure

Brian Epstein (1934–1967) ^Featured

Brian Epstein (1934–1967), the legendary pop impresario and manager, dubbed the 'fifth Beatle' by John Lennon, worked with the defining acts of a movement that came to be known as The Mersey Sound. Among the artists managed by Brian Epstein were Gerry and the Pacemakers, Cilla Black and, of course, The Beatles.

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Monmouth Street Plaques

Sir John Gielgud (1904–2000) ^Featured

Knight of the stage and Hollywood star, Sir John Gielgud lived in a flat on this site from where he could see one of the theatres in which he directed and acted to great acclaim, now The Noel Coward Theatre.

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Upper St Martins Lane Plaques

William Hazlitt (1778–1830) ^Featured

William Hazlitt was probably the first Englishman to make a living as a professional critic. A parliamentary reporter and a freelance lecturer, he is best remembered as an essayist.

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Long Acre Plaques

John Jacob Holtzapffel (1768–1835) ^Featured

John Jacob Holtzapffel was the most famous producer and seller of luxury ornamental turning lathes. Priced at many times the annual wage of an ordinary worker, they were much sought after by wealthy amateurs: clergy, aristocrats and heads of state.

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Long Acre Plaques

William Henry ‘Bird's Nest’ Hunt (1790–1864)

The English water-colourist William Henry Hunt specialised in still life and also exhibited scenes from rustic life, but it was for his studies of birds' nests in hedgerows that he was most well known.

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Endell Street Plaques

Ellen Keeley Co (1900–1982) ^Featured

An iconic Covent Garden name, the barrow-making firm Ellen Keeley, named for the costermonger matriarch, had premises on Neal Street and in nearby Nottingham Court. They invented and manufactured several barrows, much used in London's wholesale markets.

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Neal Street Plaques

The Kip (1860–1922) ^Featured

The long-lasting lodging house called Tom Farmer's was better known as 'The Kip'. Here, until the end of the 19th century, residents slept 'on the rope' (sitting down leaning on a rope which was untied at dawn).

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Shorts Gardens Plaques

Lionel Lukin (1742–1834) ^Featured

Lionel Lukin, a fashionable London coach builder had a taste for science and a fertile mechanical mind. Among his many inventions was an 'unsubmergible' boat, the first lifeboat.

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Long Acre Plaques

Thomas Malton (1751–1804)

Architectural draughtsman Thomas Malton the Younger was hailed by J.M.W. Turner, who studied drawing under him, as 'my real master'.

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Long Acre Plaques

Melodisc Records

Melodisc Records was established by Emil Edward Shalit (24 December 1909 – 23 April 1983) in London from the USA in 1949 as one of the first, and at the time, the largest independent record label. The label, and then its subsidiaries ‘Blue Beat’ and ‘Fab Records’ introduced Afro-Caribbean music to the UK and thus played a key role in…

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Earlham Street Plaques

Angus McBean (1904–1990)

Portrait photographer Angus McBean is known for his radical experiments, using the devices of surrealism to create fantastical images of theatrical stars and society figures. In the early 1960s he photographed the Beatles for the cover of their first album.

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Endell Street Plaques

Max Reinhardt (1915–2002)

Max Reinhardt's successful fifty-year career in British book publishing culminated in The Bodley Head Press which he bought with a loan from the actor Ralph Richardson and persuaded J. B. Priestley and Graham Greene to join his board of directors.

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Earlham Street Plaques

We are looking for more sponsors to support this unique Plaques Project:

People's Plaques Brochure (PDF)

Street History Plaques Brochure (PDF)
(If you would like a printed copy of the brochure please do ask us)

Plaques Positions Visuals (PDF)

More info on Sponsoring People's Plaques
More info on Sponsoring Street History Plaques

The Golden Hind

The Golden Hind (more specifically a wounded female deer) is the symbol of the ancient Parish of St Giles-in-the-Fields. The Seven Dials Trust has used it, in a circle representing the Dials, as a motif on all street furniture.

Seven Dials Covent Garden is a unique quarter of London whose star-shaped layout remains as constructed in the early 1690s. It was brought back to life largely through the dedication of the Seven Dials Trust, working in partnership with the local authorities and landowners for nearly forty years.

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People's Plaques

Brian Epstein (1934–1967) ^Featured

Sir John Gielgud (1904–2000) ^Featured

William Hazlitt (1778–1830) ^Featured

John Jacob Holtzapffel (1768–1835) ^Featured

William Henry ‘Bird's Nest’ Hunt (1790–1864)

Ellen Keeley Co (1900–1982) ^Featured

The Kip (1860–1922) ^Featured

Lionel Lukin (1742–1834) ^Featured

Thomas Malton (1751–1804)

Melodisc Records

Angus McBean (1904–1990)

Max Reinhardt (1915–2002)

Plaques Menu

The Golden Hind

The Trust

Seven Dials

How to find Seven Dials

Seven Dials Covent Garden is a unique quarter of London whose star-shaped layout remains as constructed in the early 1690s. It was brought back to life largely through the dedication of the Seven Dials Trust, working in partnership with the local authorities and landowners for nearly forty years.

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People's Plaques

Brian Epstein (1934–1967) Featured

Sir John Gielgud (1904–2000) Featured

William Hazlitt (1778–1830) Featured

John Jacob Holtzapffel (1768–1835) Featured

William Henry ‘Bird's Nest’ Hunt (1790–1864)

Ellen Keeley Co (1900–1982) Featured

The Kip (1860–1922) Featured

Lionel Lukin (1742–1834) Featured

Thomas Malton (1751–1804)

Melodisc Records

Angus McBean (1904–1990)

Max Reinhardt (1915–2002)

Plaques Menu

The Golden Hind

The Trust

Seven Dials

How to find Seven Dials

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Brian Epstein (1934–1967) ^Featured

Sir John Gielgud (1904–2000) ^Featured

William Hazlitt (1778–1830) ^Featured

John Jacob Holtzapffel (1768–1835) ^Featured

Ellen Keeley Co (1900–1982) ^Featured

The Kip (1860–1922) ^Featured

Lionel Lukin (1742–1834) ^Featured