UK ~ London - Piccadilly Circus ~

... Found this nice surprise in my mailbox today... a postcard showing Piccadilly Circus situated in the heart of London... an icon of the city... one of the world’s most famous advertising hoarding seen by hundreds of tourists each day...Thanks a lot Johan, hope you had a wonderful trip!!  (✿ ♥‿♥) ➜http://johanpostcards.blogspot.be/

Piccadilly Circus is a road junction and public space of London's West End in the City of Westminster, built in 1819 to connect Regent Street with Piccadilly. In this context, a circus, from the Latin word meaning "circle", is a round open space at a street junction.

Piccadilly Circus used to be surrounded by illuminated advertising hoardings on buildings, starting in the early 1900s, but only one building now carries them, the one in the north-western corner between Shaftesbury Avenue and Glasshouse Street.

The bright sign for Coca Cola has been here the longest (since 1955) but the first products were advertised in neon lights here in 1908. Bovril and Perrier were among the promotional pioneers. Even corporate might was unable to stop the lights being switched off during WW2, and since then they have also been turned off for individuals on two occasions: Firstly for the funeral of Winston Churchill in 1965, then again for Diana, Princess of Wales in 1997.

Stamp:

Universal Mail - The National Gallery
(Issued 01-06-2012)