Davenports & Co.

Davenports & Co. was established in 1898 by Lewis Davenport. Based in central London, it is now one of the oldest family run magic business in the world.

The current proprietor, Betty Davenport began working in the shop in her teen years, starting in 1948, demonstrating magic. When her father, George Davenport, (son of Lewis Davenport), died in 1962, she took over the shop. Betty changed the name to Lewis Davenport Limited‎ around 1981. It is now known as Davenports Magic.

Davenports announced in January 2020 that they would be closing their physical shop but hoped to remain open for mail order:

It is with great regret that we need to announce that Davenports Magic Shop in Charing Cross will be closing for the final time on Thursday, 30th of January 2020. This is due to the redevelopment of the Underground Arcade that we have called home for some 36 years. We are looking for a new central London location for our shop, but at present have not found anywhere that would suit our needs.

We will continue with our mail-order web site, which has over 14,000 items available for shipping around the world, including the very latest magic tricks, books, accessories, and videos. We will also be developing our renowned magic classes, workshops and courses for both adults and children, please see our web site for more details of these, with the forthcoming dates and locations.

Finally, we would like to take this opportunity to thank our friends and customers for your support over the years. We have had some wonderful times, met some wonderful people, and are immensely grateful for your friendship. Thank you all so very, very much

As of February 2024, their [website] is broken, and their [Instagram] and [Twitter] haven't been updated since 2021, so I assume they have now closed completely.

References

• The Davenport Story – Volume One: The Life and Times of a Magical Family, 1881-1939 by Fergus Roy