Dr. Johnson’s House – Samuel Johnson’s home
- Dr. Johnson’s House map location
Dr. Johnson’s House address and telephone
- Address:
- Dr. Johnson’s House is located at: 17 Gough Square (off Fleet Street), The City,
London EC4A 3DE
England - Telephone:
- You can contact Dr. Johnson’s House on Work +44 (0) 207 353 3745
- Website:
- The Dr. Johnson’s House website can be visited at www.drjohnsonshouse.org
Dr. Johnson’s House opening times and ticket price
- Opening hours:
- Dr. Johnson’s House is open to the public from: 11 AM to 5 PM (Mon-Sat, Oct-Apr); 11 AM to 5.30 PM (Mon-Sat, May-Sep); Closed (Sun)
- Time required:
- A typical visit to Dr. Johnson’s House lasts 40-50 mins (approx)
- Ticket cost:
- The entry price for Dr. Johnson’s House is: Adult price £6.00; Child cost £2.50 (5-17); Infants free entry (under-5); Family ticket £12.50
- Visiting hours and admission charges are subject to change, and may not apply on public holidays. Always reconfirm entrance fees and whether it’s open to visitors before booking tickets and making plans to visit Dr. Johnson’s House
How to get to Dr. Johnson’s House
- When visiting Dr. Johnson’s House you can use the following:
- Minicabs:
- Find minicab and taxi firms near Dr. Johnson’s House
- Buses:
- 4, 8, 11, 15, 17, 23, 25, 26, 45, 46, 76, 172, 242, 341
- London bus fares
- Trains:
- Blackfriars CRC DSC, Chancery Lane CNT, Farringdon CRC H&C MET, Temple CRC DSC
- If you want to visit Dr. Johnson’s House by train then the nearest underground station to Dr. Johnson’s House is Temple
- London underground fares
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History of Dr. Johnson’s House
Dr. Johnson’s Georgian townhouse is where the great London writer and wit lived between 1748 and 1759.
It’s half-hidden in a maze of alleyways and courtyards off Fleet Street, and is one of the few 18th-century residential dwellings to still survive in the City of London.
It is decorated much as it would have been during his stay (albeit, rather sparsely), and the walls some portraits of his friends and contemporaries.
Samuel Johnson
Samuel Johnson was a famous writer, wit and raconteur, but is best remembered for writing one of the first English dictionaries.
He also contributed some very memorable quotes, including the most famous London quote of all: “If a man is tired of London, he is tired of life. For there is in London all that life can afford.”
Johnson’s English dictionary
Samuel Johnson’ English dictionary is often mistakenly described as the first dictionary in history, but he was actually beaten by a Frenchman and an Italian. But it was the best of its kind, and it remained so until the Oxford English Dictionary came out one hundred and fifty years later.
His dictionary contains definitions for almost 40,000 words, and some of the quotes are even quite cutting and funny: “Patron: One who countenances, supports, or protects. Commonly a wretch who supports with insolence, and is repaid with flattery.” You can view a valuable first edition of the dictionary inside the house.
Craig’s review of Dr Johnson’s House
This review originally appeared in his London blog
Samuel Johnson is one of those famous people that no one knows anything about. If you read a lot of London history then you’ll inevitably bump into him from time to time, but I’m guessing that 95% of London tourists won’t have a clue who he is. They might vaguely remember that he was a London wit, and that he wrote an English dictionary, but that’s probably about it. So why would they bother to visit his house? Hmmm… That’s a toughie.
Dr Johnson’s House is supposed to be a perfectly preserved Georgian townhouse but I was a bit underwhelmed, to be honest. I didn’t really feel as if I was being transported back in time. If you stick a bit of carpet on the floor and some curtains on the windows, then you might even be able to pass it off as your grandma’s house.
The problem is that it’s too sparsely decorated… there’s not enough stuff in it. Where are all his belongings? And his books, papers and letters? They’ve got a small selection in there, but the rooms aren’t exactly choc-a-block. They seem to have made a decision that unless it has a genuine connection with Johnson, then it doesn’t belong. The bedroom hasn’t even got a bed in it. You can’t see his kitchen or his bathroom.
There are a few wooden tables and chairs dotted about the place (none of which are of any particular interest to a tourist: they are all plainly made) and some dim and dark portraits hanging on the walls. I would have arranged some Madame Tussauds wax models in there as well, and dressed up like they were in his day, sitting at their desks and writing, going about their business, with some quiet music from the period playing over the speakers. They need to try and bring the house alive a bit because it’s too… dull.
They should have dotted a lot of glass cabinets around with his work and letters in them, so you can read them. They don’t have to be originals. Why can’t they just showcase some old editions? Apart from one of his dictionaries which you can leaf through, all of his other books are locked up inside a bookcase.
If you don’t fancy spending a couple of quid on the audioguide (which costs extra) then they’ve left a few laminated essays on the tables for you to read, letting you know what the rooms were used for. But if you’re not a fan of Samuel Johnson already, then it’s basically just a plain house, with plain furnishings.
> Read Craig’s latest review of Dr Johnson’s House “If you flick through a London guidebook then it won’t be long before you find the phrase “If you’re tired of London, you’re tired of life”. It’s the go-to quote when you’re writing about our city. Well, the guy who wrote that line used to live here – at Dr. Johnson’s House. Samuel Johnson was the famous writer and wit who wrote the first dictionary. If you want to be pedantic about it then I don’t think it was actually the first, but we English like to call it the first. (The other one was foreign, so it doesn’t count.) That’s pretty much everything that we remember Dr Johnson for: that opening quote plus the world’s first (or second) dictionary. And this house… continued.”
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If you’re into the interior architecture of Dr Johnson’s House then you might like to visit Benjamin Franklin’s House and George Handel’s House. If you’re more into the history of literature then try the Charles Dickens Museum and Treasures of the British Library exhibition. There’s an interesting museum at Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre as well.
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AliBell – “If you are already a fan of samuel johnson then you will love this. We went on one of the walks that run from the house and I highly recommend doing that at the same time, as you get an insight into his life around town as well -- taking in everything from fleet street to his local pub the cheshire cheese! -- Which still seems to have the same Decor as when he drank there. The house is beautifuly preserved in the same style that it would have appeared when he lived there, with 18th-century furnishings, and is situated in a lovely quiet courtyard off fleet street.”- TomK – “I got dragged along by my wife who likes all the georgian stuff. It was a bit stuffy and boring for people who aren't into it but it was interesting to see how an old house looked, I suppose. But that's all it is, really -- it's a just an old house Decked out in the style of how they lived back whenever it was he lived. You may as well just spend an afternoon round your great grandmothers house. At least you get a cup of tea then. And there are some displays and books around that he had, which are just as boring. The only thing that made it worthwhile for me was the pub down the lane that he went to called the cheshire cheese. That is Decked out in the old style that he was used to as well, but the big advantage that that place had was that it sold beer!.”
AliBell – “If you are already a fan of samuel johnson then you will love this. We went on one of the walks that run from the house and I highly recommend doing that at the same time, as you get an insight into his life around town as well -- taking in everything from fleet street to his local pub the cheshire cheese! -- Which still seems to have the same Decor as when he drank there. The house is beautifuly preserved in the same style that it would have appeared when he lived there, with 18th-century furnishings, and is situated in a lovely quiet courtyard off fleet street.”
TomK – “I got dragged along by my wife who likes all the georgian stuff. It was a bit stuffy and boring for people who aren't into it but it was interesting to see how an old house looked, I suppose. But that's all it is, really -- it's a just an old house Decked out in the style of how they lived back whenever it was he lived. You may as well just spend an afternoon round your great grandmothers house. At least you get a cup of tea then. And there are some displays and books around that he had, which are just as boring. The only thing that made it worthwhile for me was the pub down the lane that he went to called the cheshire cheese. That is Decked out in the old style that he was used to as well, but the big advantage that that place had was that it sold beer!.”If you enjoy visiting Samuel Johnson’s House then try these other literary museums in London…
> Charles Dickens Museum The Charles Dickens Museum was home to the great Victorian novelist in 1837, and was where he wrote Oliver Twist.
> Handel & Hendrix in London Handel & Hendrix are two adjacent houses where Jimi Hendrix and the composer Handel used to live.
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