Lismore Circus is a housing estate in Gospel Oak that was built in the 1960s and ’70s. Its name derives from the Victorian circus previously built on the land that had six streets radiating from it. The former Victorian buildings were devastated by bombing during the Second World War.

Wally Cardew, the YouTuber and former voice of Drek in the cartoon, lives on the estate. Josh Blay also grew up there, and Robin decides for this reason that the backstory for her Jessica Robins character would also have her growing up there.

The location is first visited by Strike. 

“The first Monday in May, which was a bank holiday, saw Strike limping into the Lismore Circus estate, there to keep watch over the three-bedroomed maisonette where Wally Cardew lived with his grandmother and sister.” (The Ink Black Heart, Chapter 41)

After watching the flat for a couple of hours, Strike calls Robin to tell her that Wally and his mate MJ have just come out of Wally’s flat, heading toward the Tube. He notices another man following them as well.

Later in the book, in Chapter 64, it is Robin’s turn to watch Cardew’s flat. She calls Strike whilst he is having dinner at The Gun with Grant Ledwell to say that she just saw Wally leaving his flat and being beaten up by a group of men she assumes to be MJ’s relatives. Wally was taken away in an ambulance and Robin leaves the estate.

You can find Lismore Circus on the map here: