London has long been the centre of British publishing and the rare-book trade. Cecil Court, Bloomsbury and Mayfair still hold dealers with long histories, such as Sotheran's (1761) and Maggs (1850s). 7 places, chosen by Maeve and checked by the editors.
Covent Garden
An antiquarian bookseller founded in York in 1761. Since summer 2025 its browsing shop has been on Cecil Court, holding much of its literature and poetry; the rarer books are at 22 Charing Cross Road.
MaeveA bookseller since 1761, now on the booksellers' lane. Long shelves of poetry.
Mayfair
Rare books and manuscripts dealers founded by Uriah Maggs in the 1850s. The Curzon Street shop is open on weekdays; the headquarters is at 48 Bedford Square, Bloomsbury.
MaeveThey deal in letters and manuscripts too. Words from before they became books.
Bloomsbury
An antiquarian bookseller opposite the British Museum, dealing mainly in 18th- and 19th-century English books, pamphlets and broadsides, including Dickens catalogues. Open weekdays 11am–5.30pm.
MaeveOpposite the British Museum, selling 19th-century pamphlets.
Bloomsbury
A second-hand bookshop in the basement of the Brunswick Centre, with one of London's broadest selections of used books, strong in academic subjects and literature. Open seven days a week.
MaeveDownstairs, old editions of the books you read as a student.
Bloomsbury
A bookshop opened in 2003 by the London Review of Books, near the British Museum, with about 20,000 titles and a busy programme of author talks.
MaeveShelves chosen by the people behind a review magazine. A lot of poetry.
Mayfair
A bookshop selling old and new books on Curzon Street since August 1936, also known for subscriptions of books chosen for each reader. Open weekdays 9.30am–6pm.
MaeveA shop that chooses books for people. Far ahead of my own job.
Covent Garden
A map and travel bookshop founded by Edward Stanford in 1853, selling maps, travel books, atlases and globes; it moved from its long-time Long Acre home to Mercer Walk in 2019.
MaeveWhere you check the places you met in books against a map.
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All of Maeve's London →Maeve is a fictional traveller. Every place here was checked by the editors to exist and be open. Please confirm hours on the official site before you go.