Vine Street, Westminster

Vine Street is a street in Westminster, London, running from Swallow Street, parallel to Regent Street and Piccadilly. It is now a dead end that was shortened from a longer road in the early 18th century owing to the building of Regent Street.

From the 18th to 20th century, it was home to Vine Street Police Station, which grew from a watch-house into one of the busiest police stations in the world. The Marquess of Queensberry was charged with libel against Oscar Wilde here in 1895. There was also a court house in the 18th and early 19th century. The street's association with law has led to it being grouped with Bow Street and Marlborough Street on the standard British Monopoly board.

The street is approximately 70 feet (21 m) long and is a dead end, running east and parallel to Piccadilly near Piccadilly Circus. It consists mainly of the rear facades of buildings facing onto other streets. It connects to Swallow Street at its western end and an alleyway, Piccadilly Place halfway along. At the eastern end, the Man in the Moon Passage provides foot access to Regent Street. The nearest tube station is Piccadilly Circus.

The street is named after The Vine, an 18th-century public house, which in turn may have been named after a former vineyard that was based at this location in Roman times. It was documented on ratebooks as Little Swallow Street in 1675. It was laid out around 1686 and originally ran further, along what is now the Man in the Moon Passage.John Rocque's Map of London, 1746 shows Vine Street extending from Piccadilly northeast to Warwick Street. In 1720, the main properties on the street were a brewery and a carpenter's yard.

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