London

===Literature, film and television===
{{main|London in fiction|London in film|List of television shows set in London|London Television Archive}}
[[File:Sherlock Holmes Museum.jpg|left|thumb|[[Sherlock Holmes Museum]] in [[Baker Street]], bearing the number 221B]]

London has been the setting for many works of literature. The pilgrims in [[Geoffrey Chaucer]]'s late 14th-century ''[[The Canterbury Tales|Canterbury Tales]]'' set out for [[Canterbury]] from London. [[William Shakespeare]] spent a large part of his life living and working in London; his contemporary [[Ben Jonson]] was also based there, and some of his work, most notably his play ''[[The Alchemist (play)|The Alchemist]]'', was set in the city.<ref name="London in Literature"/> ''[[A Journal of the Plague Year]]'' (1722) by [[Daniel Defoe]] is a fictionalisation of the events of the 1665 [[Great Plague of London|Great Plague]].<ref name="London in Literature"/>

The literary centres of London have traditionally been hilly [[Hampstead]] and (since the early 20th century) [[Bloomsbury]]. Writers closely associated with the city are the diarist [[Samuel Pepys]], noted for his eyewitness account of the [[Great Fire of London|Great Fire]]; [[Charles Dickens]], whose representation of a foggy, snowy, grimy London of street sweepers and pickpockets has influenced people's vision of early [[Victorian era|Victorian]] London; and [[Virginia Woolf]], regarded as one of the foremost [[modernist literature|modernist]] literary figures of the 20th century.<ref name="London in Literature">{{Cite web |url=http://www.brynmawr.edu/library/speccoll/guides/london/londoninliterature.shtml |title=London in Literature |publisher=Bryn Mawr College |access-date=6 June 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110427043832/http://www.brynmawr.edu/library/speccoll/guides/london/londoninliterature.shtml |archive-date=27 April 2011 |url-status=live}}</ref> Later important depictions of London from the 19th and early 20th centuries are [[Arthur Conan Doyle]]'s [[Sherlock Holmes]] stories.<ref name="London in Literature"/> [[Robert Louis Stevenson]] mixed in London literary circles, and in 1886 he wrote the ''[[Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde]]'', a [[Gothic fiction|gothic]] novella set in Victorian London.<ref>{{cite news |title=Robert Louis Stevenson's Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde |url=https://www.britishlibrary.cn/en/works/jekyllandhyde/ |access-date=15 June 2023 |publisher=British Library}}</ref> In 1898, [[H. G. Wells]]' sci-fi novel ''[[The War of the Worlds]]'' sees London (and southern England) invaded by Martians.<ref>{{cite news |title=The War of the Worlds |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/The-War-of-the-Worlds-novel-by-Wells#ref343460 |access-date=2 August 2022 |work=Encyclopaedia Britannica}}</ref> [[Letitia Elizabeth Landon]] wrote ''Calendar of the London Seasons'' in 1834. Modern writers influenced by the city include [[Peter Ackroyd]], author of ''[[London: The Biography]]'', and [[Iain Sinclair]], who writes in the genre of [[psychogeography]]. In the 1940s, [[George Orwell]] wrote essays in the ''[[Evening Standard|London Evening Standard]]'', including "[[A Nice Cup of Tea]]" (method for making tea) and "[[The Moon Under Water]]" (an ideal [[pub]]).<ref>{{cite news |title=Orwell in the Evening Standard |url=https://orwellsociety.com/orwell-in-the-evening-standard/ |access-date=27 June 2022 |work=Orwell Society}}</ref> The WWII [[Evacuations of civilians in Britain during World War II|evacuation of children from London]] is depicted in [[C. S. Lewis]]' first Narnia book ''[[The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe]]'' (1950). On Christmas Eve 1925, [[Winnie-the-Pooh]] debuted in London's ''[[The Evening News (London newspaper)|Evening News]]'', with the character based on a stuffed toy [[A. A. Milne]] bought for his son [[Christopher Robin Milne|Christopher Robin]] in Harrods.<ref>{{cite news |title=Winnie-the-Pooh goes to Harrods in new authorised AA Milne prequel |url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2021/jul/23/winnie-the-pooh-goes-to-harrods-in-new-authorised-aa-milne-prequel |access-date=23 April 2023 |work=The Guardian}}</ref> In 1958, author [[Michael Bond]] created [[Paddington Bear]], a refugee found in [[London Paddington station|Paddington station]]. A screen adaptation, ''[[Paddington (film)|Paddington]]'' (2014), features the calypso song "[[London is the Place for Me]]".<ref>{{cite web|website=Paddington.com|url=http://www.paddington.com/global/about/timeline/|title=About|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160817131744/http://paddington.com/global/about/timeline/|archive-date=17 August 2016}}</ref>
{{wikisource|Calendar of the London Seasons/Calendar of the London Seasons|'Calendar of the London Seasons', by L. E. L.}}

[[File:London July 2010 (4818942309).jpg|thumb|Opened in 1937, the [[Odeon Luxe Leicester Square|Odeon cinema]] in [[Leicester Square]] hosts numerous European and world film premieres.]]

London has played a significant role in the film industry. Major studios within or bordering London include [[Pinewood Studios|Pinewood]], [[Elstree Studios|Elstree]], [[Ealing Studios|Ealing]], [[Shepperton Studios|Shepperton]], [[Twickenham Studios|Twickenham]], and [[Warner Bros. Studios, Leavesden|Leavesden]], with the ''[[James Bond]]'' and ''[[Harry Potter (film series)|Harry Potter]]'' series among many notable films produced here.<ref>{{cite news |title=The Harry Potter economy |url=https://www.economist.com/christmas-specials/2009/12/17/the-harry-potter-economy |access-date=8 July 2022 |newspaper=The Economist}}</ref><ref name="filmlondon">{{Cite web |url=http://filmlondon.org.uk/studio-contacts |title=Film London – studio contacts |website=Filmlondon.org.uk |access-date=27 May 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170810011712/http://filmlondon.org.uk/studio-contacts |archive-date=10 August 2017 |url-status=dead}}</ref> [[Working Title Films]] has its headquarters in London. A [[post-production]] community is centred in [[Soho]], and London houses six of the world's largest [[visual effects]] companies, such as [[Framestore]].<ref>{{cite news |title=The UK's VFX Industry: In Profile|url=https://www.ukscreenalliance.co.uk/subpages/the-uks-vfx-industry-in-profile/ |access-date=7 July 2022 |work=UK Screen Alliance}}</ref> [[The Imaginarium]], a digital performance-capture studio, was founded by [[Andy Serkis]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Who We Are |url=http://www.theimaginariumstudios.com/who-we-are |website=The Imaginarium Studios |access-date=5 October 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121031092554/http://www.theimaginariumstudios.com/who-we-are |archive-date=31 October 2012}}</ref> London has been the setting for films including ''[[Oliver Twist (1948 film)|Oliver Twist]]'' (1948), ''[[Scrooge (1951 film)|Scrooge]]'' (1951), ''[[Peter Pan (1953 film)|Peter Pan]]'' (1953), ''[[One Hundred and One Dalmatians]]'' (1961), ''[[My Fair Lady (film)|My Fair Lady]]'' (1964), ''[[Mary Poppins (film)|Mary Poppins]]'' (1964), ''[[Blowup]]'' (1966), ''[[A Clockwork Orange (film)|A Clockwork Orange]]'' (1971), ''[[The Long Good Friday]]'' (1980), ''[[The Great Mouse Detective]]'' (1986), ''[[Notting Hill (film)|Notting Hill]]'' (1999), ''[[Love Actually]]'' (2003), ''[[V for Vendetta (film)|V for Vendetta]]'' (2005), ''[[Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street]]'' (2008) and ''[[The King's Speech]]'' (2010). Notable actors and filmmakers from London include [[Charlie Chaplin]], [[Alfred Hitchcock]], [[Michael Caine]], [[Julie Andrews]], [[Peter Sellers]], [[David Lean]], [[Julie Christie]], [[Gary Oldman]], [[Emma Thompson]], [[Guy Ritchie]], [[Christopher Nolan]], [[Alan Rickman]], [[Jude Law]], [[Helena Bonham Carter]], [[Idris Elba]], [[Tom Hardy]], [[Daniel Radcliffe]], [[Keira Knightley]], [[Riz Ahmed]], [[Dev Patel]], [[Daniel Kaluuya]], [[Tom Holland]] and [[Daniel Day-Lewis]]. Post-war [[Ealing comedies]] featured [[Alec Guinness]], from the 1950s [[Hammer Film Productions|Hammer Horror]]s starred [[Christopher Lee]], films by [[Michael Powell]] included the London-set early [[Slasher film|slasher]] ''[[Peeping Tom (1960 film)|Peeping Tom]]'' (1960), the 1970s comedy troupe [[Monty Python]] had film editing suites in Covent Garden, while since the 1990s [[Richard Curtis]]'s rom-coms have featured [[Hugh Grant]]. The largest cinema chain in the country, [[Odeon Cinemas]] was founded in London in 1928 by [[Oscar Deutsch]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=Feature: The legacy of Oscar Deutsch's cinemas|url=https://www.theguardian.com/arts/critic/feature/0,1169,717532,00.html|work=The Guardian|access-date=8 July 2022}}</ref> The [[British Academy Film Awards]] (BAFTAs) have been held in London since 1949, with the [[BAFTA Fellowship]] the Academy's highest accolade.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://heritage.bafta.org/moment/1971/the-fellowship-baftas-top-prize/60 |publisher=BAFTA |access-date=19 June 2023 |title=The Fellowship: BAFTA's top prize |archive-date=13 May 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190513071405/https://heritage.bafta.org/moment/1971/the-fellowship-baftas-top-prize/60 |url-status=live}}</ref> Founded in 1957, the [[BFI London Film Festival]] takes place over two weeks every October.<ref>{{cite magazine|magazine=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]|url=https://variety.com/2020/film/global/kate-winslet-saoirse-ronan-london-film-festival-1234748238/|title=Saoirse Ronan, Kate Winslet Drama 'Ammonite' to Close BFI London Film Festival|date=26 August 2020|access-date=8 July 2022}}</ref>

London is a major centre for television production, with studios including [[Television Centre, London|Television Centre]], [[ITV Studios]], [[Sky Campus]] and [[Fountain Studios]]; the latter hosted the original talent shows, ''[[Pop Idol]]'', ''[[The X Factor (British TV series)|The X Factor]]'', and ''[[Britain's Got Talent]]'', before each format was exported around the world.<ref>{{cite news |title=The scribbled note that changed TV |url=https://www.theguardian.com/media/2009/oct/26/x-factor-cowell-fuller |access-date=4 October 2019 |newspaper=The Guardian}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://variety.com/2015/tv/spotlight/itv-simon-cowell-talks-strong-ties-with-brit-broadcaster-1201467913/|title=ITV: Simon Cowell Talks Strong Ties With Brit Broadcaster|publisher=Variety|date=7 April 2015}}</ref> Formerly a franchise of ITV, [[Thames Television]] featured comedians such as [[Benny Hill]] and [[Rowan Atkinson]] (''[[Mr. Bean]]'' was first screened by Thames), while [[Talkback (production company)|Talkback]] produced ''[[Da Ali G Show]]'' which featured [[Sacha Baron Cohen]] as [[Ali G]].<ref>{{cite news |title=Da Ali G Show (TV Series) |url=https://www.radiotimes.com/programme/b-zteorv/da-ali-g-show/ |access-date=8 July 2022 |work=Radio Times}}</ref> Many television shows have been set in London, including the popular television soap opera ''[[EastEnders]]''.<ref>{{cite news |title=EastEnders Episode 1, 19/02/1985|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b053l8b7 |access-date=28 June 2023|agency=BBC}}</ref>