Drury Lane
Preserved but no longer current.
This famous London street (and, consequently, the theatre) is named from Drury House, built in the time of Henry VIII by Sir William Drury. It stood on a site about in the middle of the present Aldwych.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “Drury Lane” mean?
This famous London street (and, consequently, the theatre) is named from Drury House, built in the time of Henry VIII by Sir William Drury. It stood on a site about in the middle of the present Aldwych.
Is “Drury Lane” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.