The Old Curiosity Shop, London

Tucked away from the bustling streets of the City, this small shop has been in business for over five centuries. Today, it operates as a retailer specializing in custom-made high-end shoes, whereas upon establishment in 1567, it served as a dairy bestowed by King Charles II to one of his numerous mistresses. During the early 1970s, the premises were home to a bookstore specializing in the works of Charles Dickens.

While there is skepticism surrounding whether The Old Curiosity Shop directly inspired Dickens's novel of the same name, with some suggesting that the store was named after the book's publication, the building itself does a compelling job of convincing doubters otherwise. In fact, it has become so closely associated with Dickens that people make special journeys just to visit it. This association is further reinforced by a prominent sign on the front that proudly proclaims, 'Immortalized by Charles Dickens'.

Reportedly, this dollhouse-like structure is the oldest shop in Central London, a well-deserved title considering its distinctive features such as the precarious overhanging upper story, uneven Tudor gables and floorboards, sloping roof, and wooden beams, perfectly aligning with the imagery of Dickens's creaking, half-timbered 'Old Curiosity Shop'. Interestingly, the author himself resided nearby, in Bloomsbury, and visited the shop on several occasions. Miraculously, this quaint building, constructed from salvaged ship wood, survived both the inferno of the Great Fire of London in 1666 and the ravages of World War II.

The tale of the shop's occupants—a virtuous teenage orphan named Nell Trent and her grandfather—was originally serialized in 1840 in the weekly periodical Master Humphrey's Clock. Its popularity was so immense that legend has it readers in New York, anxious to discover the conclusion, descended upon the Lower Manhattan wharf when the ship carrying the final installment arrived.