Shaftesbury Avenue · Covent Garden · The Strand · W1 and WC2
The West End: forty theatres, one curtain-down
London's theatre district is not a venue, it is a few streets containing about forty of them. Almost all raise the curtain between half seven and eight and drop it between ten and half past, which means the whole district empties at once into roads where nothing can stop.
When nearly every West End show finishes. Forty theatres, tens of thousands of people, and Shaftesbury Avenue, the Strand and Covent Garden all trying to absorb them simultaneously. Knowing where to stand is most of the service.
Four things that are true of every West End theatre
Whichever show you have tickets for, these apply.
Everyone finishes together
Curtain down within a half-hour window across forty venues. The surge is district-wide, not venue-specific.
Not on any of those streets
Shaftesbury Avenue, the Strand and the Covent Garden approaches all have restrictions. Nothing idles.
Large parts of it
Covent Garden and the streets around Leicester Square are closed to vehicles entirely.
Small foyers, narrow pavements
These buildings were designed for hansom cabs. The pavement outside holds a fraction of the audience.
Where we collect, by theatre area
Tell us the theatre and we set the point. These are the four clusters and where the vehicle waits for each.
| Theatre area | Examples | Where we wait |
|---|---|---|
| Shaftesbury Avenue | Lyric, Apollo, Gielgud, Sondheim | Soho side streets north of the avenue |
| Covent Garden | Theatre Royal Drury Lane, Aldwych, Duchess | Towards Kingsway or the Strand, clear of the piazza |
| The Strand | Savoy, Vaudeville, Adelphi | Embankment side, below the Strand |
| Haymarket and St James's | Her Majesty's, Theatre Royal Haymarket | Towards Pall Mall and Waterloo Place |
| Victoria and Westminster | Apollo Victoria, Victoria Palace | Around the station approaches |
| Oxford Circus | London Palladium | Off Great Marlborough Street |
Central London from Kent
The West End sits north of the river, so from Kent it is a bridge or a tunnel and then across the centre. The return after the theatre is considerably quicker than the outbound.
| Pick-up area | Distance | Evening out | After the show |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gravesend & Northfleet | 26 miles | 65–95 min | 45–60 min |
| Dartford & Bluewater | 21 miles | 60–85 min | 40–55 min |
| Bexleyheath & Welling | 13 miles | 45–70 min | 30–45 min |
| Bromley & Orpington | 13 miles | 45–70 min | 30–45 min |
| Sevenoaks & Tonbridge | 26 miles | 60–85 min | 40–55 min |
| Rochester & Chatham | 35 miles | 70–100 min | 55–70 min |
| Maidstone & Aylesford | 37 miles | 70–105 min | 55–75 min |
| Canterbury & Ashford | 60 miles | 95–130 min | 80–95 min |
Making a theatre night work from Kent
Name the theatre, not the show
Shows transfer between venues and revivals reuse titles, so the theatre name is what we need. Once we have it we set the collection point for that specific cluster, which is the difference between walking two minutes and walking around Leicester Square looking for a vehicle among ten thousand other people.
Dinner before, not after
Almost every West End restaurant is full at half past six and empty by nine. Booking a table before the show, with an earlier drop, is both easier to get and a better evening than trying to eat afterwards when the kitchens are closing. It costs nothing extra to build in.
Matinees are a different journey entirely
Wednesday and Saturday afternoon performances mean daytime traffic in and an early evening return, which is a considerably easier trip from Kent than an evening show. For anyone who would rather not be home at midnight, a matinee plus an early dinner is the better version of the same day.
The last train is the reason people book
From Kent, an evening show ending at half ten means a rush for a terminus, a connection, and a station at the other end with no taxis. It is doable and it is not relaxing. A vehicle at an agreed point removes the clock from the evening entirely, which is rather the point of going to the theatre.
West End theatre questions
The district, and how to leave it.
Can you drop us at the theatre door?
At most theatres, yes, as a brief set-down. What is not possible anywhere in the West End is waiting, because the streets all carry restrictions and several are pedestrianised entirely.
Where will you collect us?
From a point set for your theatre's cluster: Soho side streets for Shaftesbury Avenue, towards Kingsway for Covent Garden, the Embankment side for the Strand. Name the theatre and we set it correctly.
What time do West End shows finish?
Nearly all between ten and half past. That synchronisation across forty venues is what makes the district surge rather than any one theatre.
Should we eat before or after?
Before. Restaurants are full at half six and closing by the time you come out. An earlier drop for dinner costs nothing extra when built into the quote.
Is a matinee easier from Kent?
Considerably. Daytime traffic in, early evening back, and home at a reasonable hour. For many people it is the better version of the same day out.
Can we do a show and a night out afterwards?
Yes, and it prices as one job. Tell us where you want to go after the curtain and we will build it in.
Do you cover several theatres for a group?
Yes. Groups sometimes split across two shows on the same evening. Give us both theatres and we will set the collection for whichever finishes later.
Is the fare fixed?
Yes, agreed at booking. An overrunning show, traffic on the way in or a drink afterwards do not change what you pay.
London stages and guides
Every theatre and concert hall we cover.