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Bow Street Magistrates Court has been the most famous Magistrates Court in England for much of its existence. It is located in Bow Street in Central London close to Covent Garden . There has been a court at Bow Street since 1739 or 1740, when Colonel Thomas De Veil sat as a Magistrate in his home at Number 4. The house was taken over by the novelist Henry Fielding in 1747 when he became a Justice Of The Peace . He was appointed a Westminster magistrate in 1748 at a time when the problem of Gin consumption and resultant crime was at its height. There were eight licensed premises in the street and Fielding reported that every fourth house in Covent Garden was a gin shop. In 1749 as a response to the call to find an effective means to tackle the increasing crime and disorder, Fielding brought together eight reliable constables, who soon gained a reputation for honesty and efficiency in their pursuit of criminals. Initially nicknamed Robin Redbreasts, on account of their scarlet waistcoats, the constables came to be known as the Bow Street Runners . Fielding's blind half brother Sir John Fielding (known as the "Blind Beak of Bow Street") succeeded his brother as magistrate in 1754 and refined the patrol into first truly effective police force for the capital. When the Metropolitan Police Service was established in 1829, a station house was sited at numbers 25 and 27. In 1876 the Duke Of Bedford leased a site on the eastern side of Bow Street to the Commissioners Of HM Works And Public Buildings for an annual rent of £100. Work began in 1878 and was completed in 1881. The date of 1879 in the stonework above the door of the present building is the date on which it had been hoped that work would finish. In its later years the court housed the office of the Senior District Judge (Magistrates' Courts) who heard high profile matters, such as extradition cases or those involving eminent public figures. In 2004 the court was put up for sale by its joint owners, the Greater London Magistrates Courts Authority and the Metropolitan Police Authority . In July 2005 '' The Times '' reported that the building was expected to be sold to an Irish property developer called Gerry Barrett who planned to convert it into a Boutique Hotel . {Link without Title} . The court is due to close on July 26 2006, after which cases which were heard at Bow Steet, will move to Horseferry Road Magistrates' Court . FAMOUS DEFENDANTS Many famous accused people have passed through Bow Street - often on their way to be tried elsewhere - including: SEE ALSO |
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