Camden Town

Camden Town is a place in the London Borough of Camden, north London.

It is well-known for Camden Market which is made up of Buck Street Market, Stables Market, Inverness Street and Camden Lock Market, and an indoor market located in the Electric Ballroom. The markets are popular on the weekends selling variety of fashion, lifestyle and bizarre goods. Stables Market also has growing antique and furniture trade. The town also has a reputation for readily available drugs. There is a song by Morrissey from his recent album You Are the Quarry called "Come Back To Camden", which was written about the area.

The Regent's Canal runs through the north end of Camden Town and is a popular walk in summer.

Close by is Regent's Park with the London Zoo sited in the north side. The Roundhouse is a music venue located in a converted railway roundhouse, which is currently (May 2003) being refurbished. It was originally an engine shed for the London and Birmingham Railway.

Camden Lock in early spring

Due to the high popularity of the Camden Market with visitors and tourists, some more mainstream businesses such as a Virgin Megastore and a Holiday Inn have moved into the area in recent years, diluting the "alternative" character that made the market popular. However there has been no fall in visitor numbers, and it is necessary to close Camden Town tube station to outbound passengers on Sunday afternoon. To resolve the inadequacy of the station, London Underground sought to replace it with a much larger one. The proposal involved the compulsory puchase of the whole block on which the station is situated and would have required demolition of the Electric Ballroom and the reallocation of Buck Street Market. Larger shop units, office space and some flats were proposed for the new building. The radical changes involved gathered significant opposition from people who felt that would damage the character of the area, and they were rejected in 2004. Transport for London still wishes to enhance the station, but it is unclear when they will announce a new proposal or what it will involve.

It should be noted that the alternative character of Camden Town which is perceived "traditional" today only dates back to the 1970s. Before that the area was more conventional and it offered a full range of shopping for local residents, but this is no longer the case. Partly due to the small/obselete size of nearly all of the retail units, there are almost no shops selling clothing for adults or small children, or furniture and other large household goods. Consequently much of the local retail spend leaks to the West End, Brent Cross and elsewhere.

Bars, clubs and pubs in the area:

The Black Cap can be found on Camden High Street has a late licence and is aimed at a clientele of gay men and women. The pub was formerly known as "The Mother Black Cap".

The World's End has had a pub on the site since 1778. Formally known as "The Mother Red Cap" and later "The Red Cap", the site is located on Camden Road by Camden Town tube station.

The Underworld is a small (500 capacity) live music venue, located under The World's End.

Koko's, formerly known as The Camden Palace, is a major dance venue located at the south end of Camden Town High Street.

The Dublin Castle

The Oh! Bar

Electric Ballroom

Quinns is a large family run Irish bar located on Kentish Town Road

The Devonshire Arms, a goth themed pub, popularly known as "The Dev"

The Ice Wharf, a Lloyds No1 Bar

Places of interest:

Regent's Canal

Regent's Park

London Zoo