Mapping Shakespeare: Discovery of His London Home Location

Thu Apr 16 2026 18:26:47 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

Recent findings have pinpointed the location of William Shakespeare's only London property, shedding new light on the playwright's connection to the city in his later years.

An unexpected discovery has led to the identification of the exact location of William Shakespeare's London home on a street in Blackfriars. Expert Prof. Lucy Munro from King's College London found historical documents outlining the property's floorplan, suggesting Shakespeare may have spent more time in the city than previously thought. This revelation revises the narrative surrounding his retirement and highlights the importance of this location in the context of his later works.

The exact location of William Shakespeare's only London property has been pinpointed to a Blackfriars street, after an unknown floorplan was discovered.

Shakespeare expert Prof. Lucy Munro from King's College London identified the location and size of the property he bought in 1613.

It had been thought that Shakespeare retired from his theatre career not long after he bought the house and returned to Stratford-upon-Avon. However, academics believe the discovery could indicate that the playwright spent more time in London than previously believed.

It also means that the blue plaque for Shakespeare on St Andrew's Hill is not near the site of his London house, but on the spot it used to exist.

Shakespeare's Blackfriars property was thought to have been part of the Great Gate over the entrance to the Blackfriars precinct, a major 13th-century Dominican friary.

Munro uncovered three documents – two from the London Archives and one from the National Archives – that provided more information.

Munro said: I was doing research as part of a wider project and couldn't believe it when I realised what I was looking at - the floorplan of Shakespeare's Blackfriars house.

It had been assumed that there wasn't much more evidence to gather about it, so research on it has laid dormant for a while.

These findings really help us tell the complete story of Shakespeare's Blackfriars house, and thanks to this new discovery we now know exactly where it stood.

One of the documents was a plan of part of the Blackfriars precinct, drawn up in 1668, two years after the Great Fire of London, which confirmed the precise location and size of Shakespeare's Blackfriars house.

The property covered what are now the eastern end of Ireland Yard, the bottom of Burgon Street and parts of the late 19th-century buildings at 5 Burgon Street and 5 St Andrew's Hill.

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