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Jane Austen in London?

I'm a fan of Jane Austen, but unfortunately I'm not going to have time to go to Bath while my England trip. Are there any Jane Austen-related things to do in London? Or places that sell Jane Austen souvenirs or items?

Posted by
9022 posts

Go to the Poets Corner in Westminster Abbey where you'll find a stone tablet on the wall honoring her. There are stones for many of the great literary figures there. You might have to ask a docent to point her's out as it is disappointingly small.

Posted by
14821 posts

I don't remember Jane souvenirs but I'd look at places like the British Library gift shop.

I've got a small book called Walking Jane Austen's London by Louise Allen who is a Regency writer. There are 8 walks thru different sections of London and she gives a lot of history, pictures and JA chat along with the walking route. This is a book I would get in print rather than electronically. I've done a couple of sections of the walks and they were very interesting and somehow I didn't realize until then that White's bow window was still there.

Here is a link to Louise Allen's blog on JA London:

https://janeaustenslondon.com/walks-through-regency-london/

(I don't have her Walks thru Regency London book. Not sure how different it is from the Walking JA London one. Here is a link to a review of the book I've got. https://austenprose.com/2013/07/31/walking-jane-austens-london-a-tour-guide-for-the-modern-reader-by-louise-allen-a-review/ )

There is a London Walks program on JA but it's not offered very often. Not sure what your budget is but if it extends to a private tour, they will do custom walks.

http://www.walks.com/our-walks/jane-austens-london

There are quite a few blogs with a Regency focus so a search should turn up some hits for areas they recommend. I found this one:

https://janeaustensworld.wordpress.com/2008/02/08/a-wonderful-visit-to-regency-mayfair-in-london/

Posted by
61 posts

Just wanted to say hi ... from one fellow Janeite to another! If you’re ever in the Southeast U.S. in the summer, Louisville KY has a wonderful Jane Austen festival!

Posted by
4183 posts

Jane Austen died in Winchester and is buried in the Cathedral. It's only about an hour by train from London Waterloo Station.

There are a few other things to see or experience there if you could make the time. The most time-consuming, but maybe the most interesting Jane Austen one is this walk, but to save time you might be able to at least go to Chawton by public transport or taxi to see other very significant places related to her.

Posted by
14821 posts

Emma, thanks for that link! That programs looks quite good.

Posted by
18 posts

Thank you everyone for your suggestions!
Ahhh if only I had time to go to Hampshire!!

I think I'll try going to the Jane Austen-inspired bench outside Winchester Cathedral.