Just to the east of Monmouth Street, about halfway between Seven Dials and the northern (Forbidden Planet Megastore) end, is courtyard called Neal's Yard.
GPS grid coordinates:
Latitude: (WGS84) N51:30:51 ( 51.514285 )
Longitude: (WGS84) W0:07:35 ( -0.126506 )
Neal's Yard is mentioned by William Gibson in Pattern Recognition, where Cayce visits a Pilates exercise studio. There are still Pilates, Reflexology, "healing crystals", vegetarian food etc. to be found in there, as well as corporate managed office space and skateboard fashions etc.
There is also a Blue Plaque dedicated to Monty Python, where the famous eccentric British comedy series / industry began its initial recordings.
The Short's Gardens entrance to Neal's Yard has a water clock sculpture. One shop to west, is the Neal's Yard Dairy Cheese Shop, which harks back to the original use of the premises.
This shop produces an overwhelming taste and smell sensation, with real "live" cheeses such as Cheddar and Stilton etc.. and is one of cyberpunk fiction author William Gibson's favourite shops in this area :
Friday, August 31, 2007
A SOVEREIGN FOR SOUL-DELAY
posted 5:03 AM
Yesterday morning I walked around the corner to Neils Yard Dairy and bought myself 200g. of the Montgomery's unpasteurized cheddar.Asked for it by name. The clerk, in a proper cheeseman's cap, wrapped my interestingly discoloured wedge in that special white paper they use, glossy on the inside, folding it that way I can never quite master.
Now it's 5:23AM PST, back in Vancouver, and the Montgomery's cheddar really *is* a sovereign medicine for jet lag. And that is the reason it costs almost as much as heroin, in America.
Interestingly, now (20th August 2009), the offices above this Neil's Yard Dairy are being advertised as "Trendy Offices to Let"
