Mortimer Street in Marylebone

Mortimer Street

Mortimer Street runs east to west through the southern fringe of Marylebone, connecting Regent Street in the west to Cleveland Street in the east. It straddles the boundary between Marylebone and Fitzrovia, with the western section carrying W1W postcodes associated with Marylebone and the eastern portion falling within Fitzrovia. The street takes its name from the title Earl of Mortimer, held by Edward Harley, 2nd Earl of Oxford and Mortimer (1689 to 1741), who commissioned the planning of this part of Marylebone in the early eighteenth century.

Development of the street proceeded during the latter part of the eighteenth century. The architect Robert Adam worked in this area in the early 1770s, and the sculptor Joseph Nollekens lived on a site now marked by nos. 42 to 44, as recorded by a London County Council blue plaque. The building at no. 82, designed by Arthur Beresford Pite, survives with its distinctive sculptural window treatment.

Mortimer Street today carries a mixed commercial character, with medical consulting rooms, offices and creative industry tenants occupying the varied building stock. It is well served by Oxford Street to the south and connects to the medical quarter centred on Harley Street and Cavendish Square to the north.