Famous Fictitious London Residents

Famous fictitious London residents, I know with this article I’m going to shatter the dreams of many people, especially my American friends. It may come as a huge shock to some people that some of London’s most famous residents are nothing more than the imagination of a very talented writer.

It may be a good idea for some of you to stop reading now, because it may be better for you not to know the truth, about some of  London’s best known and loved characters.

Famous Fictitious London Residents

Ebenezer Scrooge

Charles Dickens Classic tale, “A Christmas Carol”, which was written in 1843 and who’s main character is of course Ebenezer Scrooge. In the book it says Scrooge lives in London.

Even though I have known a few people that could have been related to Scrooge, he however was nothing more than a figment of the brilliant mind of Charles Dickens. Sorry everybody that also means the Ghost of Christmas past wasn’t real either.

Sherlock Holmes

Sherlock Holmes the super sleuth, is a fictional character created by Arthur Conan Doyle, who first appeared in print in 1887. What confuses many people is that Doyle actually used a real address for Sherlock Holmes address, 221b Baker street, London.

Sherlock Holmes gets thousands of letters every year from people trying to contact him. He would only be around 160 years old if he was ever a real person. So if you are still waiting to find out if Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson are going to solve your case, try writing a another letter, he obviously never received your first one.

James Bond

Commander James Bond 007, MI6 secret service agent was born to a Scottish father and a Swiss mother, and is portrayed as an agent residing in London. The James Bond character was first created by the writer Ian Fleming in 1952.

I know it is a dark moment for many people to find out that James Bond is nothing more that a character in a book.

Sweeny Todd

Sweeny Tood the Demon Barber of  Fleet Street,  first appeared in 1846 as a secondary character in a short story called “The String of Pearls – A Romance” by Thomas Prest. A playwright called George Dibdin Pitt, who was renowned for filching other peoples stories, reworked the story for theatre and advertised it as founded on fact.

It is not knowing whether Sweeny Todd truly did or did not exist, but there is a possibility that there was a demon barber in London during the 19th century that killed his customers for there money. As was common in Victorian times, stories would end up becoming hugely embellished to satisfy the publics morbid fascination for such stories. But in all probability Sweeny Todd was created as a story to thrill audiences, much like the movies of today.

Paddington Bear

I know it is going to be heart breaking for many people out there, but Paddington Bear was never real, he never existed. Writer Michael Bond came about the idea for Paddington Bear, when he noticed a lone teddy bear sitting on a shelf in a London shop near Paddington Station on Christmas Eve 1956. He bought the teddy bear for his wife and the idea for the story of Paddington Bear was created.

Paddington Bear originally came from Darkest Peru, but after stowing away on a ship, he was found at Paddington Station by Mr & Mrs Brown who ended up taking him home to live with them at 32 Windsor Gardens in London, with their two children.

There we have it London’s most famous fictitious residents, I only wish I could add buffoon Mayor Boris Johnson to this list, but alas that joker is unfortunately for real.

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1. Sherlock Holmes 221B Baker Street
2. My Garden Is Full Of Thousands Of Dead People