Portals to the Past

Scattered across London in stately prominence and secret corners, the blue plaques scheme brings buildings to life

- JESSICA TOOZE

On a quiet Chelsea street between the River Thames and the bustling King’s Road, the odd passer-by pauses to ponder two small blue plaques set into the red-brick walls of numbers 30 and 34. Once home to the composer Philip Arnold Heseltine and wit and dramatist Oscar Wilde respectively, the circular signs serve as a reminder of these famous names and help us make the imaginative leap that connects us with the past.

Tite Street, as this particular street is called, was a fashionable location for those of an artistic disposition in the late 19th century, and its most famous resident, Wilde, moved into number 34 with his wife in 1884. The house’s plaque, like others all over London, gives enthusiasts a tangible place to associate with the life and achievements of its most renowned occupant.

It is this that forms the main draw of the capital’s blue plaques – they offer the opportunity to visualise familiar buildings as they would have been when some of the most influential, scandalous, creative or intelligent people in history called them home.

Since its inception in 1866, the blue plaques scheme has allowed London locals and visitors to discover where their favourite author, scientist, musician, politician or other well-known name lived or worked.

From grand residences that are open to the public to quirky and hard-to-find boltholes in unlikely locations, there are around 950 iconic blue plaques spread across London, with a few more in other cities around Britain.

Now thought to be the oldest of its kind in the world, the scheme has had several sponsors over the years; since 1986 English Heritage have been responsible for deciding who qualifies for a plaque and what it should look like.