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The Encyclopaedia of Plymouth History

ROADS AND STREETS

DRAKE CIRCUS

Technically speaking, Drake Circus was neither a road nor a street.  It was certainly a place but is probably best described as a terrace.  The eastern side of Drake Circus was on the western side of Tavistock Road while the western side was on the eastern side of Old Town Street.

Come to that it was not even a circus as it was not, well, circular!  It was shaped rather like a teardrop or a tadpole, fat at the bottom, southern, end and thin at the top.  It also had nothing whatsoever to do with Sir Francis Drake, being built several centuries after he died.

But whatever its deficiencies, it was and still is one of Plymouth's best known place-names and is kept alive today by the Drake Circus Shopping Centre.
 

Location of Drake Circus The plot of land that became Drake Circus was located between Old Town Street to the west and Garden Street to the east, and between Ebrington Street to the south and Park Street to the north. Origin of the name, Drake Circus As stated earlier, although it takes its name from Sir Francis Drake he had died several centuries earlier so had no direct connection with the location.  The "circus" part may be an allusion to the fact that Drake circumnavigated the world.

The area that became Drake Circus is in the centre of this map, between Old Town Street, Ebrington Street and the junction of Tavistock Road and Park Street.

History of Drake Circus

Up until the Old Town Gate was demolished in 1809 Old Town Street only ran as far as the Gate.  Outside it forked left to Saltash and right to Tavistock.  Once the Gate and the old Town Wall had gone Plymouth expanded northwards and houses appeared along the Tavistock Road.  Of the other roads that were built one was Garden Street.  It ran north to south between Ebrington Street and Tavistock Road.

Traffic ran in both directions up the Tavistock Road and this became increasingly congested so the Corporation decided to widen Garden Street and turn it into a separate main road.  The whole area was rebuilt and re-opened in 1903 as Drake Circus, although traffic still ran in both directions up both Old Town Street and Tavistock Road as one-way streets had not been invented then.

Drake Circus is again in the centre of this map, with
the tramway running down the newly widened equivalent
to Garden Street.  The position of the Old Town gate is also
shown on this map.

In October 1926 the Council decided to make Drake Circus a one-way system as an experiment  [1].

Demolition of the northern part of Drake Circus, by the Harvest Home Inn, commenced at the end of 1964.  While the new roundabout was under construction traffic for Ebrington Street and Cornwall Street had to use the old part of Tavistock Road to gain access.  Finally, from Sunday December 10th 1967 that section of Tavistock Road was closed to traffic so that demolition of the lower part of Drake Circus Shopping Centre could be started.  [2]

Her Royal Highness the Princess Anne officially opened the first Drake Circus Shopping Centre on Tuesday November 16th 1971.  Costing some £1.25 millions, the Centre was built by Messrs Laing Development Company Ltd, whose chairman, Sir Maurice Laing, invited the Princess to unveil a commemorative plaque.  During heer tour of the Centre, the Princess met Miss Philippa Threlfall, of Wells, Somerset, who, with her husband, Mr Kennedy Collings, designed and made the mural of Plymouth in the time of King Henry VIII.  [3]

Some Views of Drake Circus

Occupants of Drake Circus

• in 1935

Sources:

[1]  Plymouth City Council minute number 4489 dated October 20th 1926.

[2]  "Old Drake Circus road closes as demolition nears completion", Western Evening Herald, Plymouth, December 9th 1967.

[3]  "Big Welcome for Princess Anne in Plymouth", Western Morning News, Plymouth, November 17th 1971.

©  Brian Moseley, Plymouth, UK

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