{"page":"\u003clink rel=\"stylesheet\" href=\"https://lessonplanet.com/assets/packs/css/resources-c03aa079.css\" /\u003e\n\u003clink rel=\"stylesheet\" href=\"https://lessonplanet.com/assets/packs/css/lp_boclips_stylesheets-517835be.css\" media=\"all\" /\u003e\n\u003cdiv data-title='Olympic London - Destination Piccadilly Circus' data-url='/boclips/videos/5c54c268d8eafeecae15983f' data-video-url='/boclips/videos/5c54c268d8eafeecae15983f' id='bo_player_modal'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='boclips-resource-page modal-dialog panel-container'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='react-notifications-root'\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-header'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-type'\u003e\n\u003ci aria-hidden='true' class='fai fa-regular fa-circle-play'\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\nVideo\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003ch1 class='rp-title' id='video-title'\u003e\nOlympic London - Destination Piccadilly Circus\n\u003c/h1\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-actions'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='mr-1'\u003e\n\u003ca class=\"btn btn-success\" data-posthog-event=\"Signup: LP Signup Activity\" data-posthog-location=\"body_link_boclips\" data-remote=\"true\" href=\"/subscription/new\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan\u003eGet Free Access\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"\"\u003e for 10 Days\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e!\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/a\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-body'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-info'\u003e\n\u003cdiv aria-label='Hide resource details' class='rp-hide-info' role='button' tabindex='0'\u003e\u0026times;\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003ci aria-label='Expand resource details' class='rp-expand-info fai fa-solid fa-up-right-and-down-left-from-center' role='button' tabindex='0'\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\n\u003ci aria-label='Compress resource details' class='rp-compress-info fai fa-solid fa-down-left-and-up-right-to-center' role='button' tabindex='0'\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-rating'\u003e\n\u003cspan class='resource-pool'\u003e\n\u003cspan class='pool-label'\u003ePublisher:\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003cspan class='pool-name'\u003e\n\u003cspan class='text'\u003e\u003ca data-publisher-id=\"30356011\" href=\"/search?publisher_ids%5B%5D=30356011\"\u003eCurated Video\u003c/a\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-description'\u003e\n\u003cspan class='short-description'\u003eLondon's Piccadilly Circus is one of the UK capital's busiest junctions - thronging with traffic, shoppers, neon advertising hoardings and tourists.Many come to see what the hype is about - others to argue about whether it's Eros', or...\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003cspan class='full-description hide'\u003eLondon's Piccadilly Circus is one of the UK capital's busiest junctions - thronging with traffic, shoppers, neon advertising hoardings and tourists.\u003cbr/\u003eMany come to see what the hype is about - others to argue about whether it's Eros', or his brother's statue that dominates this city hub. \u003cbr/\u003eBuilt in 1819 to connect Regent Street to Piccadilly, Piccadilly Circus is one of London's busiest and most iconic sights. \u003cbr/\u003eThousands of tourists visit this famous junction on any given day, but according to London tour guide Charlie Stamp, many are surprised by what they find here:  \u003cbr/\u003e\"A lot of tourists are disappointed, because they come here expecting lions and tigers and a big show, but it actually refers to the circular nature of the junction we're standing in, so it is a big traffic island, but it's kind of one of those focal points, a bit like Time Square in New York.\"\u003cbr/\u003eOnce here, visitors tend to spend their time just traffic and people watching, but Piccadilly Circus always features on the top ten list of things to do in London. According to Stamp, that's partly down to the advertising hording which have been decorating Piccadilly Circus since the early 20th century.\u003cbr/\u003eStamp says it's also popular because it sits in the middle of the West End and theatreland, the nightlife of Soho, the shops of Regent Street and Oxford Circus and the route to Buckingham Palace. \u003cbr/\u003eIn addition to taking a sandwich break, visitors can also check out the odditarium at 'Ripley's Believe It Or Not'  which now includes a selection of original Olympic torches from around the world to celebrate London 2012, including the torch that boxing legend, Muhammad Ali held in the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta. \u003cbr/\u003eThere's 6 floors of curiosities of all shapes and sizes including animals that aren't quite what they first seem and a portrait of Princess Diana made from lint.  \u003cbr/\u003eAlka Chandolia from Ripley's Believe It Or Not says: \"We're often asked by tourists, so where's the circus in Piccadilly and we often say, 'well there's no circus here as such, but there is actually something to see, so we invite people to rediscover wonder as such.\" \u003cbr/\u003eThe historic Criterion Restaurant, once linked to the theatre of the same name just next door still offers food and cocktails in sumptuous  neo-byzantine style surroundings.\u003cbr/\u003eBut perhaps the main draw to this roundabout is to get a good shot of the famous statue that sits in the middle of it.   \u003cbr/\u003eEros, right? \u003cbr/\u003eWrong actually. \u003cbr/\u003eStamp explains: \"Eros is the Greek god, well, one of the Greek gods of love, but actually a Greek god of very much one-sided love and of selfish, needy love, when in fact the statue is intended to be the statue of the Greek god of Anteros. Anteros, Eros' brother and it's actually the god of reciprocal love in honour of the Earl of Shaftesbury - 7th Earl of Shaftesbury and he was a very charitable man, so it's supposed to represent his loving and giving nature and not the kind of selfish god that Eros actually represents.\"\u003cbr/\u003eIn fact even Westminster Council seem to have got it wrong. \u003cbr/\u003eStamp says: At the time the statue was unveiled it was a controversial thing. A lot of the Victorian public were disgusted that a small, naked statue could be representing such a noble man as the Earl of Shaftesbury and at the time there was a conscious effort to rename it 'The Angel of Christian Charity,' but that didn't really stick and it pretty soon reverted back to Eros, maybe people prefer shorter words and Ateros was just too much of a mouthful for some people.\" \u003cbr/\u003eThe popularity of Piccadilly Circus as a tourist attraction and its use as a busy traffic junction have led to the name being used as a descriptive term in colloquial English for 'extremely busy.'  For example: 'it's like Piccadilly Circus in here' - meaning it's very busy in here. \u003cbr/\u003eThe London tourist Board, Visit London, say they're unable to predict how many more people will swamp Piccadilly Circus over the Olympic period, but once here many tourists will wonder what all the fuss is about.\u003cbr/\u003eAP Television\u003cbr/\u003eLondon, 4th July 2012\u003cbr/\u003e1. Wide people sat on steps at Piccadilly Circus\u003cbr/\u003e2. Mid shot entrance to Piccadilly Circus Underground station\u003cbr/\u003e3. Wide people sat on steps with advertising boards in background\u003cbr/\u003e4. SOUNDBITE: (English) Charlie Stamp, Tour Guide, Tours by Locals:\u003cbr/\u003e\"A lot of tourists are disappointed, because they come here expecting lions and tigers and a big show, but it actually refers to the circular nature of the junction we're standing in, so it is a big traffic island, but it's kind of one of those focal points, a bit like Time Square in New York.\"\u003cbr/\u003e5. Pan around the Piccadilly Circus\u003cbr/\u003e6. Various tourists people, traffic watching  \u003cbr/\u003e7. Pan tourists on steps to digital advertising boards\u003cbr/\u003e8. Wide exterior of 'Ripley's Believe It Or Not' oddatorium \u003cbr/\u003e9. Wide models of very tall man, three legged man and long necked woman playing music\u003cbr/\u003e10. Close up long necked woman model's face\u003cbr/\u003e11. Mid shot three legged man and long necked woman models\u003cbr/\u003e12. Pan left visitors looking at Olympic torches\u003cbr/\u003e13. Pan right Olympic torches\u003cbr/\u003e14. Close up pull focus hands holding torches\u003cbr/\u003e15. SOUNDBITE: (English) Alka Chandolia, Ripley's Believe It Or Not:\u003cbr/\u003e\"We're often asked by tourists, so where's the circus in Piccadilly and we often say, 'well there's no circus here as such, but there is actually something to see, so we invite people to rediscover wonder as such.\" \u003cbr/\u003e16. Wide model of 550kg (1212 lb) woman\u003cbr/\u003e17. Close up scales\u003cbr/\u003e18. Wide visitor standing next to model of very tall man\u003cbr/\u003e19. Wide dinosaur with two tailed llama in the background\u003cbr/\u003e20. Close up two headed sheep\u003cbr/\u003e21. Mid shot visitor taking a photo\u003cbr/\u003e22. Wide Princess Diana portrait made from lint \u003cbr/\u003e23. Wide exterior Criterion Theatre \u003cbr/\u003e24. Pan Underground sign to sign of Criterion Restaurant \u003cbr/\u003e25. Pull focus people having drinks \u003cbr/\u003e26. Wide Criterion restaurant and bar\u003cbr/\u003e27. Mid shot two ladies dining \u003cbr/\u003e28. Pan flower display across neo-byzantine gold leaf ceiling \u003cbr/\u003e29. Wide people sitting on steps in front of statue of Anteros commonly called Eros \u003cbr/\u003e30. Pan up statue of Anteros commonly called Eros\u003cbr/\u003e31. VOXPOP: (English) Tourist from Finland:\u003cbr/\u003e\"The statue of Eros\"\u003cbr/\u003e32. VOXPOP: (English) Tourist from England:\u003cbr/\u003e\"Eros, Piccadilly.\"\u003cbr/\u003e33. VOXPOP: (English) Tourist from England:\u003cbr/\u003e\"I was under the impression that's it's Eros.\"\u003cbr/\u003e34. SOUNDBITE: (English) Charlie Stamp, Tour Guide, Tours by Locals:\u003cbr/\u003e\"Eros is the Greek god, well, one of the Greek gods of love, but actually a Greek god of very much one-sided love and of selfish, needy love, when in fact the statue is intended to be the statue of the Greek god of Anteros. Anteros, Eros' brother and it's actually the god of reciprocal love in honour of the Earl of Shaftesbury - 7th Earl of Shaftesbury, and he was a very charitable man, so it's supposed to represent his loving and giving nature and not the kind of selfish god that Eros actually represents.\"\u003cbr/\u003e35. Close people walking over plaque placed by local authorities in front of the steps calling the statue Eros\u003cbr/\u003e36. Close of plaque\u003cbr/\u003e37. SOUNDBITE: (English) Charlie Stamp, Tour Guide, Tours by Locals:\u003cbr/\u003e\"At the time the statue was unveiled it was a controversial thing. A lot of the Victorian public were disgusted that a small, naked statue could be representing such a noble man as the Earl of Shaftesbury and at the time there was a conscious effort to rename it 'The Angel of Christian Charity,' but that didn't really stick and it pretty soon reverted back to Eros, maybe people prefer shorter words and Ateros was just too much of a mouthful for some people.\" \u003cbr/\u003e38. Wide statue of Anteros zoom in to close up \u003cbr/\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='action-container flex justify-between'\u003e\n\u003cbutton aria-expanded='false' aria-label='Read more description' class='rp-full-description' type='button'\u003e\n\u003ci class='fai fa-solid fa-align-left'\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\n\u003cspan id='read_more'\u003eRead More\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003c/button\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-report'\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv aria-labelledby='resource-details-heading' class='rp-info-section'\u003e\n\u003ch2 class='title' id='resource-details-heading'\u003eResource Details\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-resource-details clearfix'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='detail'\u003e\n\u003cdl\u003e\n\u003cdt\u003eCurator Rating\u003c/dt\u003e\n\u003cdd\u003e\u003cspan class=\"star-rating\" aria-label=\"3.5 out of 5 stars\" role=\"img\"\u003e\u003ci class=\"fa-solid fa-star text-action\" 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id='concepts-heading'\u003eConcepts\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='clearfix'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='details-list concepts' data-identifier='Boclips::VideoDecorator' data-type='concepts'\u003elove, living things, london, animals, muhammad ali, england, europe, lions, sports, time, boxing, mammals, western europe\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='concepts-toggle-buttons' data-identifier='Boclips::VideoDecorator'\u003e\n\u003cbutton aria-expanded='false' class='more btn-link' type='button'\u003e\n\u003cspan\u003eShow More\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003ci aria-hidden='true' class='fa-solid fa-caret-down ml5'\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\n\u003c/button\u003e\n\u003cbutton aria-expanded='true' class='less btn-link' style='display: none;' type='button'\u003e\n\u003cspan\u003eShow Less\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003ci aria-hidden='true' class='fa-solid fa-caret-up ml5'\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\n\u003c/button\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv 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