BANKSIDE

loosely defined area along the south bank of the River Thames in the London borough of Southwark. Bankside is also the name of a street in the district, which lies between Blackfriars Bridge (west) and London Bridge (east). Near the approach to London Bridge stands Southwark Cathedral, an originally 13th-century structure that was largely rebuilt in the 19th century. In the late 16th and early 17th centuries, Bankside was the location of Shakespeare's Globe Theatre, and other theatres and bear gardens (the venues for bearbaiting) also stood there. The district became the residence of famous actors and the site of infamous brothels. In the 18th century it was known for its manufacturing industries, its gardens, and its public houses, and in the 19th and early 20th centuriesprior to the devastation wreaked on London in World War IIit was an area of wharves and warehouses. Near the site of the original Globe Theatre, a functioning replica was built; it began regular performances in 1996.