Piccadilly Circus, Road junction in City of Westminster, England.
Piccadilly Circus is a road junction in City of Westminster where several major streets converge to form an open space surrounded by tall buildings fitted with large electronic advertising screens. The northern facades display glowing panels with rotating advertisements, while shops and commercial establishments line the remaining sides of the junction.
The junction opened in 1819 to link Regent Street with Piccadilly, taking its name from the original circular design. Roadworks during the 1880s removed the circular layout and reshaped the crossing into an open space with wide through roads.
The Shaftesbury Memorial Fountain, often mistaken for Eros though actually depicting Anteros, sits at the edge of the open area where Londoners and visitors arrange to meet. Street performers and musicians gather around the steps while people from across the city pause here, making it a social hub where different communities cross paths daily.
The underground station beneath the junction connects to several tube lines, while many bus routes pass through the crossing. The open area can become crowded during peak hours, so visiting in late morning or early evening often provides a more comfortable experience when pedestrian traffic eases slightly.
Electric advertisements first appeared here in 1910, beginning a tradition that transformed the northern building facades into glowing commercial displays. The current digital screens continue this practice, showing rotating campaigns that often adjust in real time to events or happenings across the city.
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