When two lovers meet in Mayfair So the legends tell
Songbirds sing and winter turns to spring
Every winding street in Mayfair falls beneath the spell
I know such enchantment can be
‘Cause it happened one evening to meA Nightingale Sang In Berkeley Square – Vera Lynn
Mayfair is synonymous with luxury and lavish lifestyles. It is of course the most expensive square on the monopoly board and the one always coveted by me when playing the game! Now, l simply look forward to a walk around Mayfair’s pretty streets at Christmas. It is perhaps no surprise that some of the glitziest shops have some of the glitziest window displays. Although it may not have the bright lights of the garlanded Oxford and Regents Street, it is much more peaceful and conducive to those of us who prefer a calmer meander.
Begin your walk at Green Park Station, turning away from the busy streets of Piccadilly towards the quieter streets of Mayfair. Within moments it becomes much more peaceful and the need to walk at speed which comes with being in the busy crowds of London leaves you.
Shepherd Market
Saunter through Shepherd Market with its tiny streets and passageways. All redolent of its shady history and association with ladies of the night. At Christmas the twinkly lights and trees create a Dickensian feel to these quiet streets and tiny squares in central London.
Just opposite on Curzon Street, are two shops not to miss. GEO. F. Trumper and G. Heywood Hill Books Ltd. Trumpers, as it is affectionately known in our house must be one of the most seductively scented shops in London. This barber shop has been serving the well heeled gentleman of town since 1875. Step inside and you will feel you have entered a bygone era. Aromas of sandalwood and warms spices pervade the air and shelves are stacked with beautifully packaged unctions and oils. The staff here are charming and only too willing to help you select a special gift.
Heywood Hill Books is a bookshop for bibliophiles, and at christmas it’s impossible to ignore the tempting books displayed in its prettily lit bay window. Nancy Mitford worked here during the second half of World War Two. It is said that “her gregarious character and witty repartee helped establish Heywood Hill’s shop as a centre of English social and literary life during the 1940s”. (Heywood Hiil website)
Mount Street
Shepherd Market is the precursor to Mount Street, and this is where many of the lavish stores and Christmas windows can be found. It’s always lovely to walk up and down this street a couple of times as you never quite know what or who you might find. A couple of years ago I distinctly remember reindeer outside the St Georges club on the corner of Mount Street. This year a bemused looking dog in an elf’s costume seems to have taken up residence!
Tucked away on another corner is Marchesi, the Milanese pastry shop famous for its panettone. It has been making these since 1824. The prices are as mouthwatering as I imagine the panettone is, so I’m yet to try one. On display in it’s snowy windows, are cakes so intricately and cleverly decorated it is hard to imagine ever digging a knife into them, let alone taking a bite!
Scotts of Mayfair is famous for its shellfish, fish, and oysters and champagne. It is also reportedly the restaurant in which Ian Fleming, the creator of James Bond discovered the dry martini ‘shaken not stirred’. I had a very memorable lunch here during the festive period two years ago. At the time my arm was in a cast having recently been operated on after breaking my wrist. Despite this, I could not resist the lure of lobster and less than gracefully tackled it one handedly. It was delicious and absolutely worth the effort!
The enormous tree outside The Connaught Hotel is always beautiful too. Last year it changed colour. This year its perfect conical shape is smothered in tiny white lights, and every so often dry ice emanates from somewhere underneath it!
Don’t forget to walk through the peaceful Mount Street Gardens. It is lovely at any time of year, but at Christmas is especially peaceful. The church of the immaculate conception is situated at the east end of the gardens. At Christmas time they display a beautiful painting on the wall of the church. This years painting of the virgin Mary is particularly restful.
Berkeley Square
I’m sure it is impossible to walk through Berkeley Square without humming A Nightingale Sang In Berkeley Square. It is here you must come to see the famous Annabel’s private members club. Their decorations at Christmas probably outweigh anything you have seen anywhere else. Ever! The last couple of years have seen the front of the building transformed into a giant Christmas tree. This year the stage is set for a performance of The Nutcracker with huge draped curtains, toy soldiers and dancers in the windows. It almost has to be seen to be believed. In normal times, there are usually lots of people understandably taking photographs here!
Between Grosvenor Square and Berkeley Square is Wild Things Flowers. I would certainly recommend putting in a few extra steps here to visit this luxury florist. They are renowned for their baths of flowers which have graced the feed of many a London instagrammer.
New Bond Street
From Berkeley Square walk a few minutes to New Bond street where any designer worth his or her salt it seems has a shop. New Bond Street is the home to many flagship stores including the likes of Cartier and Tiffany. Cartier is spectacularly wrapped in thick red ribbon. This is the place to window shop with abandon.
Piccadilly
After the ostentation of New Bond Street, the elegant arcades of Piccadilly are perfect. The shops remain luxurious and expensive but feel somehow more gentile and exclusive. Each year both Burlington Arcade and Piccadilly Arcade are glorious to behold. Burlington arcade is protected by smartly clad beadles who are the oldest and smallest police force in Britain. Piccadilly arcade is bright and filled with twinkling lights and snow flakes which are the ideal adornment to the glossy windows and lantern style lamps.
On Piccadilly you will find the wonderful Hatchard’s book sellers, and the world famous Fortnum and Mason, purveyors of luxury hampers and food. They stand side by side and both have Royal Warrants establishing them as prestigious and very worthy of their central London location.
For me, no trip to Piccadilly is complete without a visit to Hatachard’s, one of the friendliest book stores in London. There is a very good travel and London section here where all the best books on discovering London can usually be found. 5 floors of books on almost any subject you can imagine. A book lovers dream!
For the last couple of years Fortnum and Mason. has been decorated as a giant advent calendar. Its probably my favourite Christmas facade. Spend time looking carefully at each window dressing. The meticulous attention to detail is incredible. Each year the windows have a theme which is carefully interwoven with all the goods and foodie produce available in the store.
I traditionally visit here at this time of year to buy a Christmas pudding, some delicious earl grey tea and some luxury Champagne truffles to be enjoyed during the festivities. Christmas isn’t Christmas without a visit to Forntnums….and if you don’t believe me see what Mr Dickens had to say!
“Fortnum and Mason, in Piccadilly, is always a beautiful and astonishing shop, filled with the gourmandizing pleasures of the whole world. Yesterday it was a perfect fairy palace, and Prince Prettyman Paradise of bonbons, and French plums, and barley sugar. Many, many young persons will be ill tomorrow morning if half of those sweetmeats sold yesterday are devoured today.”
Charles Dickens, published on Christmas Day in The Morning Chronicle, 1845.
Why not finish your walk with coffee and cake or ice cream in The Parlour on the first floor at Fortnums.
