The Theatre of Small Convenience
Located in Edith Walk in the center of Great Malvern, England, you’ll find a tiny, ornate space adorned with a dozen armchairs—and a stage.
Originally constructed as a Victorian bathroom for gentlemen, the space was modified into a theater in 1999 by Dennis Neale who still runs this independent, nonprofit. In 2002, the Guinness Book of World Records acknowledged it as the world’s smallest theater.
The Theatre of Small Convenience has become a featured attraction at the Malvern Fringe Festival, an annual three-day arts festival held every June since 1977. The 33-square-foot space is lavishly decorated with whimsical landscape murals. In the off season, this small stage serves up primarily puppet shows, but it also offers the occasional opera.
Tiny Living
When discussing the world’s smallest house, many refer to a 6-foot-wide, 8-foot-deep, and 10-foot-high dwelling in North Wales. This 19th century fisherman’s cottage is now open to the public—if they can fit inside. The little house was acquired by 6-foot Robert Jones at the beginning of the 20th century, who traveled all over England to make sure that his was the smallest in the country. Although it was typical for the time of its construction, the miniscule home lacks an important modern feature—a toilet.
Another contender is Thimble Hall, located in Derbyshire, England. Although its external dimensions (11.9 x 10.3 x 12.13 feet) significantly surpass those of the fisherman’s cottage above, this house once housed a family of eight in the 19th century.
But don’t think that tiny homes are just a thing of the past. Carrying on the small-living tradition, entrepreneur Jay Shafer started the Tumbleweed Tiny House company in 1997. Appealing to homebuyers looking to lessen their impact on the environment, Shafer offers dwellings with all the modern amenities—including bathrooms—starting at just 65 square feet.
Dance, But Don’t Push!
Again in England, London’s “Miniscule of Sound” carries the title of the smallest dance club on Earth. Operating since 1998, the night club has a capacity of no more than 14 people, including the disk jockey.
In 2005, the Miniscule of Sound carried its “keep it tiny” style to the Far East. The small night club model is now in Beijing, where seven or eight people can dance very carefully to the music.
Mill Ends, the Smallest Park
In the beginning, Mill Ends was just a section of empty traffic median in the middle of Portland, Oregon, intended to be a base for a light pole, but the lamp never arrived. Soon this small patch of forgotten space became overgrown with weeds. That’s when Dick Fagan, a journalist for the Oregon Daily, decided to plant flowers in the nearly 2-foot cement oval. He named the space “Mill Ends” after his weekly column, and the smallest park in the world was born.
However, Fagan offers more mystical details to his version of the story. According to the first article in which the columnist mentioned the tiny park, he writes that while he was observing this space from his office window on St. Patrick’s Day in 1948, he witnessed a leprechaun digging a hole. Fagan tells how he ran down to the street and captured the mythical creature, named Patrick O’Toole, who granted him a wish in exchange for his freedom. Fagan requested that the tiny plot become a park.
Fagan’s magical median was officially named a city park in 1976, and it continues to exhibit the same whimsical nature as its creator. Among various installations, Mill Ends has been granted a swimming pool for butterflies and a tiny Ferris wheel.
The Smallest Island
Located in the Atlantic Ocean, at the far west end of the U.K.’s Isles of Scilly, Bishop’s Rock is outfitted with a lighthouse that occupies 90 percent of its landmass. It is recognized as the smallest developed island in the world.
The initial attempt to build a lighthouse on the tiny island got washed away in 1850. Different design considerations had to be made to accommodate the tiny landmass, and by 1858 the lighthouse was in operation. Difficulties getting to the island by boat prompted the addition of a helipad for the top of the lighthouse in 1976, and it is still in operation today.
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