LONDON

How about this - London has two flags. Above, the flag is that of the City of London - the famed 'Square Mile'. The flag below represents Greater London.

How could I not give our Capital its' own page? Don't expect all the pictures to be of well known landmarks though...........

How to see the best of London from the River Thames....................

Alternatively, you can take a flight from the Battersea Heliport, right down the Thames to Greenwich and back

ACE CAFE

ALEXANDRA PALACE

BANK OF ENGLAND

BROADCASTING HOUSE

CAMDEN TOWN

CARRERAS CIGARETTE FACTORY

CLAPHAM JUNCTION

COUNTY HALL

COVENT GARDEN

EXCEL

GREENWICH

HOOVER BUILDING

HOUSES OF PARLIAMENT

KINGS CROSS

LONDON EYE

McCANN ERICSSON BUILDING

MI6

MORNINGTON CRESCENT

PLAISTER'S HALL

REGENTS CANAL

RIVER THAMES

ST. CLEMENT DANES

ST. KATHARINE'S DOCK

ST. PANCRAS

ST. PANCRAS OLD CHURCH

SOMERS TOWN

SOUTHWARK CATHEDRAL

TOBACCO DOCK

TOWER BRIDGE

TOWER HILL

TOWER OF LONDON

WEMBLEY STADIUM

WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE

THE ACE CAFE
The Ace, on the North Circular Road, became popular, as it was the last eating place and lorry stop for the traffic coming from the North, down the A1, before they hit London. The Ace was wrecked by a bomb in 1940 and rebuilt after the war ended. Because it was open 24 hours, it became a popular haunt for rockers in the 50s and 60s, as it gave them somewhere to meet, and access was easy.

It closed in 1969, and became a tyre depot.
In 1994, Mark Willsmore decided to 'borrow' it for a day, and hold a Rockers Reunion to mark the 25th. Anniversary of it closing. The response astounded everyone. Thousands of bikers turned up, most of them only knowing of it from stories told by their parents.
Mark began to wonder if there was still a need for a good old fashioned cafe-racer society. The tyre depot was shortly coming up for sale, and he put into motion a scheme for raising the money to buy it back and restore it as a cafe.
The outcome has been remarkable. As someone who used to regularly go to the original Ace in the 60s, I can vouch for the fact that it is indeed very similar to how it was, (no jukebox in a cage though!) with only minor concessions having to be made to modern health and safety requirements.
The Ace goes from strength to strength, with bikers from all over the world making almost a pilgrimage to the spiritual home of British biking.
It's a great place for a meet. They have good old fashioned rock 'n' roll bands there on a regular basis at weekends - including some of the great old names, such as Wee Willie Harris. Almost  every weekend day, one club or another hosts a day for their particular model, make or style of bike, and it is popular with car clubs too.
Brent Borough Council have also marked the importance of the rocker culture and the Ace, by putting railings along the gardens opposite, which depict bikes from the 60s racing under the railway bridge. (of course, that never happened for real, did it? ;)  )
Long may it continue.

ALEXANDRA PALACE

There is no better view than that from outside 'Ally Pally'  in its surrounding park, on the highest points in London.

The original palace was built in 1873, but burned down just sixteen days after opening to the public.

Two years later, a redesigned palace opened, boasting a concert hall, theatre, circus, racetrack, boating lake, and dining venues.

In 1967, an act of Parliament designated it a charitable trust, to protect it.

In World War I, it became first a centre for refugees, and later an internment camp for 'enemy aliens'. In World War II, it became a staging area for troops returning from Dunkirk.

Meanwhile, in 1936, the BBC launched the very first full television service in the world.

In 1980, the palace caught fire again, the fire starting under the huge organ.  The fire took hold very quickly,  and, although the Fire Brigade, managed to get half of the building under control, the decision had to be taken to allow the remaining part, including the Great Hall, to burn, as to attempt to put it out would have deprived London and the surrounding area of all of their fire cover, and put many lives at risk.

The BBC studios and the transmitting tower escaped. There has since been a massive partial restoration, and the Great Hall was made safe, but left as a partial ruin as a memorial to its past history. It is still usable, as a large marquee inside the roofless walls adds a lot of exhibition and entertainment space. 

Above: the rebuilt organ, and below: the Rose Window at the other end of the hall

The Egyptian-themed Palm Court, which serves both as an entrance to the main complex and has cafes and restaurants

In 2015 Alexandra Park and Palace Charitable Trust was awarded £18.8million of funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund to restore the palace’s most significant historic spaces to their former glory and secure the building’s future as a heritage destination. The Alexandra Palace theatre has been repaired and refurbished.

The sight line towards St Paul’s Cathedral from the palace’s viewing terrace is designated a ‘landmark viewing corridor’, which new building must not obstruct. Even trees must be cut back if they grow too tall.

THE BANK OF ENGLAND

This is where your currency is controlled folks. It is the UK's central bank, with a  mission is to deliver monetary and financial stability for the people of the United Kingdom.

The Bank's headquarters have been in London's main financial district, the City of London, on Threadneedle Street, since 1734. It is sometimes known as The Old Lady of Threadneedle Street, a name taken from a satirical cartoon by James Gillray in 1797. The road junction outside is known as Bank junction.

In this picture, the Bank of England is on the left, and to the right is the Royal Exchange. Because of the high security, you cannot enter the building unless you have specific reasons to do so. However, just around the corner is the Bank of England Museum, which will give you an impression of what it is like inside.

BROADCASTING HOUSE

The home of the BBC. The Architectural Review of 1932 described Broadcasting House as the "new Tower of London".

Designed by George Val Myer, it is strangely asymmetrical, which was not the case in the original architectural design, but Val Myer had to adapt his first plan because local residents complained about lack of light.
This meant the building was symmetrical up to the sixth floor, and after that the building was sloped back.
Artistic commissions adorned the building, notably the statue over the front entrance of Prospero and Ariel (from Shakespeare's play The Tempest), by Eric Gill.
The boy Ariel is naked, and the story goes that there were complaints about the size of his penis - so John Reith, then Director-General of the BBC, ordered Gill to amend it.
The building is Grade II* listed.

CAMDEN TOWN

Camden in one of those areas of London, that for years was very rundown and neglected. now, however, Camden Town is one of the most vibrant neighbourhoods in London, best known for shopping and entertainment. It is artsy, creative, and buzzing with live music and famous markets.

Every side street off Camden High Street seems to have its' own market, and the main market in the former dockyard stables, is a positive assault on the senses. The stalls are a riot of bright colours and the entire place thrums to the beat of Reggae music. The sheer number of world cuisines catered for by the street food stalls and shops is amazing!

The Art Deco HSBC bank stands at the junction of Camden High Street and Kentish Town Road, and backs onto the Leslie Green designed Camden Town underground station ,which is almost identical to that at Mornington Crescent.

Watch your feet as you walk along Camden High Street! There is a musicians Walk Of Fame to rival Hollywood's Film one. Here are just three of the plaques, which cover all genres from Janis Joplin to Billy Bragg. Naturally, I decided to feature three of my favourite musical acts. 

Don't just look down at your feet though - the shops are a riot of colour and imagination too. The pedestrian crossings add to the overall appeal of the High Street, being painted in Pride colours.

Keep heading along the High Street, and you reach Camden Lock. Unfortunately, the building on the left badly needs repainting. At one time it was a Starbucks Coffee house, but looks very derelict now. 

The railings along the canal here, towards Camden Lock, have become a copy of the 'Locks of Love' bridge in Paris.

And so onto Camden Lock Market itself. It is housed in the former stable yards where the canal boat horses were held. Horses were also kept here, that were used to shunt the trams and omnibuses.  As well as stables, there were farriers and tack repair shops here. The last horses were employed in 1967, and the stables closed. 

When I visited some time ago, there were beautiful bronze statues of horses and farriers etc., but they seem to have disappeared. There now seems to be an exhibition and free walking tour, so maybe those statues have been moved elsewhere.

Lara Croft - Tomb Raider

Beautiful statue of Amy Winehouse, nervously plucking at the hem of her skirt, as she always did. A very sad loss to British music, and one of my favourite singers of her style. She was only 5ft. 2 inches, but such a powerhouse, born in London and died in Camden, they rightly honour her here.

A proper tuktuk

Camden Market is full of statues and artistic displays. They all add to the cosmopolitan feel of the area

A shop selling Egyptian artefacts, has these black cats outside - a good reminder that the former Carreras Black Cat Factory is just down the road............

...........and this is William. By the time I turned into Waterside Halls for my return journey along Regents Canal, the beautiful smells emanating from all the food stalls, was making me feel really hungry, and reminding me I hadn't eaten today. 

The very first food stall there was William's. He offered me a piece of crunchy coated chicken, and I was hooked.

I sat and chatted to him, whilst his colleague made me the most delicious prawn Pad Thai I had eaten in a long while. I wandered down to the canal towpath and ate it whilst watching the ducks and geese.

Anyway, I promised William he could be famous and have his picture on this site. So I expect you all now to rush off to Camden Lock and buy a meal from him! Sorry it's not the best picture, but my camera doesn't do people (neither do I usually)

CARRERAS CIGARETTE FACTORY

I know the Hoover Building out on the Great West Way is more famous, but in many ways I find the Carreras Black Cat Building more satisfactory - largely because of those black cats!

It can be found opposite Mornington Crescent Underground Station, and backs onto Mornington Crescent itself. This enables you to look round all sides of the building. At 550 feet long, that takes quite a while!

The building and the Art Deco period tied in with the discovery of Tutenkhamun's tomb in 1922. The encouraged a huge upsurge in all things Egyptian and it gave Carreras the perfect opportunity to tie their new building in with their premium brand 'Black Cat' cigarettes, which were introduced in 1886. The black cat is also associated with the Egyptian goddess Bastet (although she was originally represented as a lioness)

Today it exists as offices, including those of ASOS, and the British Heart Foundation

The Carreras Tobacco Company began in 19th century London. Don José Joaquin Carreras Ferrer had a shop at 61 Prince’s Street near Leicester Square, but supposedly came from a line of Spanish apothecaries and so used ‘Established 1788’ on much of his branding. The Black Cat image adopted by Don José supposedly came from a domestic cat that loved to sit in his Wardour Street shop. In 1886 it was used as a trademark by Carrera, the JJC below standing for José Joaquin Carreras.

In 1928, having outgrown previous sites, the cigarette factory opened in Mornington Crescent. It was designed by Marcus Evelyn Collins and Owen Hyman Collins

The building was somewhat revolutionary. It was the first to use pre-stressed concrete and at the time was the largest reinforced concrete factory in the country.
It was also the first to install air-conditioning and have a system for dust extraction.

This remarkable building is just as beautiful from the back.......

A lot of the Egyptian style decorations were lost in the 60s, but thankfully, were restored in the 90s, and the heritage is now protected.

CLAPHAM JUNCTION

Clapham Junction is one of the busiest railway junctions in the world. Between 100 and 180 trains per hour pass through the busy station. Tucked alongside the station is a pub called The Junction, and known locally as Platform 18. The side wall of this establishment features a wonderful painting of the late, great David Bowie

COUNTY HALL

County Hall is a building in the district of Lambeth, London that was the headquarters of London County Council (LCC) and later the Greater London Council (GLC). The building is on the South Bank of the River Thames. It is a Grade II* listed building.

Now it is no longer a civic building, it has become home to several businesses and attractions, including the London Aquarium.

N.B. despite living in Kent, and being in and out of London most of my life, in 2009 we decided to do a 'Big Red Bus' (open-topped double-decker) tour of London. It seemed expensive, but from the top of that bus, we saw things that we've always missed before. The tour was helped by the fantastic tour guide, who was born, and lived his entire life within the sound of Bow Bells. So sorry that some of these pictures are not up to  standard, but not only were they taken on a very old (by digital technology standards) camera, but they were taken from the top of a moving bus!

Anyway, click here for the bus tour

COVENT GARDEN
I love Covent Garden. Its eclectic mix of market stalls and exclusive shops, its little eateries, and the added bonus of street entertainers and classical musicians. There are always street and circus performers in the piazza outside the market, and musical performers in the two galleried basement squares.

 We have become very fond of a String Quartet called Bowjangles who occasionally play there. They are led by a very funny, but brilliant, cellist called Ezme, and they really liven the place up. However, I digress, This is part of the spectacular Christmas decorations.

One of London's most famous markets, Covent Garden was primarily a place to buy fruit and vegetables. This 40-acre site once belonged to the convent of St Peter's, Westminster, which maintained a kitchen garden here. This 'convent garden' evolved to become known as Covent Garden.
In the 1630s, the Bedford family employed Inigo Jones to design a piazza to attract the moneyed folk of London. Only one side of his original design remains. The market began very simply in 1656 when the Duke of Bedford allowed several temporary stalls to be built in the gardens of Bedford House, his London home. In 1670 the Duke was granted a license by Charles II to hold a market every day except Sundays and Christmas.

According to diarist Samuel Pepys, the very first Punch and Judy shows were held here in 1662. Around 1650 the first pineapples began to be grown in England, and so popular did the fruit become that it was adopted as the symbol of Covent Garden Market. The area surrounding Covent Garden was quite posh, and the residents were by no means happy with the rather plebian market, a source, they thought, of noise and dirt. In 1748 the market was rebuilt by the Duke, at a cost of £4000. The shops gained upper stories, and the tone of the market was raised considerably.

EXCEL

The Excel is a huge venue in the East End of London, in Docklands. It's where a lot of shows (i.e. the London Motorcycle Show) and small ones (i.e. a dollshouse show) are staged, because it was designed with moveable walls that are invaluable for providing spaces of any size.  They even have a FormulaE car race through the centre of the building!

Although the venue is easily accessible from the M25 and there is ample parking, a more fun way is to to take the Docklands Light Railway from Central London to Custom House. The station is right outside the ExCel entrance. There is also a nearby cable car above the docks.

ExCel is surrounded by hotels of all price ranges, if you need to stay overnight.

Outside the front is a very pleasant paved terrace and a garden. There are statues celebrating the former dockers and a row of cranes has been left in situ.

GREENWICH

Greenwich is worth visiting as a separate entity from London. Take a boat trip down the Thames, to find Greenwich Park, the Royal Observatory, Queen Anne's House, the Cutty Sark, Gypsy Moth IV, and the National Maritime Museum. To discover the whole place easily takes 2 or 3 days.

THE HOOVER BUILDING

LOL you'll be sick and tired of Art Deco by the time I've finished this blog!

The Hoover Building was designed for the Hoover Company by the celebrated art-deco architectural practice Wallis, Gilbert & Partners. Completed in 1932, it was originally commissioned as a factory complex with production, storage and repairs at ground floor level and offices above. Listed in 1980, the Grade II building was in use until the late 1980’s. The original production area was then converted into a Tesco superstore and the Hoover Building to the front is effectively self-contained, once offices, now apartments. The extensive art-deco features on the exterior and in the common parts have been carefully restored. Even the Tesco at the rear, is very sympathetic to the building.

Once, the A40, the Great West Road, was lined by factories such as this. Sadly, this is one of the very few remaining, and I'm glad it's been protected and restored.

I'm sorry there are so many pictures (NOT!) but every square inch, even round the back at the supermarket, is just full of graceful architectural details

The London-based architectural partnership – initially Wallis, Gilbert & Partner, singular – had been founded in 1916, primarily for the purpose of collaborating with an American company that specialised in providing the reinforcement technology and materials for large concrete factories.
The partnership was commissioned to work on several monumental projects, including Victoria coach station and factories for Wrigley’s chewing gum in Wembley, the Gramophone Company in Hayes, and Firestone tyres, Pyrene fire extinguishers and Coty cosmetics, all on the Great West Road. Incidentally, there’s no evidence that there ever was a Gilbert at Wallis, Gilbert and Partners, nor that there was originally any other partner. Gilbert and his anonymous colleague may have been invented by the genuine founder, Thomas Wallis, simply to make his practice sound bigger than it was.

Vacuum cleaner production ceased in 1982 and the Hoover factory closed. It reopened ten years later – magnificently restored, with the rear ground floor converted into a Tesco superstore.

If you would like to look around it as it is now, here's a short video 

Hoover Building

THE HOUSES OF PARLIAMENT

Naturally, one of London's best known landmarks. It's correct name is the New Palace of Westminster, and it is the meeting place of the House of Commons and the House of Lords, the two houses of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The old Palace of Westminster burnt down in 1834, and the new Houses of Parliament were opened by Queen Victoria in 1852.

It is best known for it's tower, which is often incorrectly referred to as 'Big Ben' In fact, it is the bell which strikes the hour which is Big Ben. The tower housing it has now been named the Elizabeth Tower, in honour of Queen Elizabeth's Silver Jubilee in 2012.

KINGS CROSS

Walk out of the main entrance of St. Pancras International station and cross the road, and you can walk straight into King's Cross Station. This is where Harry Potter and his friends caught the Hogwart's Express from platform 9 3/4. A major redevelopment was undertaken in the 21st century, including restoration of the original roof. 

The 1972 extension at the front of the station has been removed, and the original facade refurbished. The area in front of the entrance is now a pleasant plaza, with seating and a daily multi-cuisine food market. 

THE LONDON EYE

The huge wheel was erected to mark the Millenium, and has remained a firm favourite with tourists. A 'flight' takes around 25 minutes, which translates to a speed of about 0.9km (0.6 miles) per hour, and the views from the highest point of the revolution are amazing. It's probably the only place in London where you can see the Houses of Parliament and Battersea Power Station in the same field of vision

It took fully seven years from the start of the design process to create the Eye. It was intended to stand for only a few years, but it proved to be such a popular attraction that the decision was made to make the wheel a permanent feature of the London landscape.

The Eye was originally sponsored by British Airways, and for several years after opening, the trips were called 'flights'

The London Eye is 135m (approximately 443 feet) high, making it the fifth highest building in London, after the Shard, BT Tower, Tower 42 and One Canada Square. The Eye measures 424m (1.392ft) in circumference. The wheel is supported on huge A-frame legs, made up of 2200 tonnes of concrete on 44 concrete piles set 33 metres deep in the earth.

The capsules are so designed that at all times, you have a full 360 degrees, river to sky view.

On a clear day, (yes really), you can see for 25 miles - or all the way to Windsor Castle!

Most of these shots were taken at the start of a dusk flight.

THE McCANN ERICSSON BUILDING.

Well, that's what it is currently known as, however, it was originally the Daimler Hire Garage, and later, Frames Coach Station. It's in Bloomsbury (which is probably where the only people who could afford to hire a Daimler lived)

The building was completed in 1931 for Daimler Hire Limited in the Art Deco and Streamline Moderne styles to a design by the architects Wallis, Gilbert and Partners and bears all their trademark features.

MI6

Yes, really. At one time, the location of the headquarters of Britain's Military Intelligence was kept well under wraps, but everyone now knows the magnificent Art Deco style building standing on the bank of the River Thames.

MORNINGTON CRESCENT

Opposite Mornington Crescent underground station, at the start of Camden High Street, stands a statue of Richard Cobden 

Well, the pigeons certainly like it! LOL. 

Richard Cobden was an English Radical and Liberal politician, manufacturer, best known for his successful fight for repeal (1846) of the Corn Laws and his defence of free trade.

Now cross the road to Mornington Crescent Underground Station.

This is a tile-covered building, typical of those designed by Leslie Green. The nice thing about it is, you can really get to see his design. Most of the ones he designed, are sort of swallowed up by surrounding buildings that mask the sheer beauty of his style. This one benefits from being almost stand-alone at the V-shaped junction of two roads, enabling a clear view of two sides.

The refurbishment of Mornington Crescent tube station was halted for several years owing to a shortage of funds. The station finally reopened in 1998, winning plaudits for its sympathetic restoration.

We've already visited the Carreras factory, but here, we are going to walk past it and round the back into Mornington Crescent itself.

The row of terraced houses that line the Crescent, were built in the 1820s and named for the Earl of Mornington. They are pretty much identical, all with the same beautiful wrought-iron balconies, but there are one or two notable points.

Walter Sickert RA RBA was a German-born British painter and printmaker who was a member of the Camden Town Group of Post-Impressionist artists in early 20th-century London.  And if you believe the book written by Patricia Cornwell (which I don't), the prime suspect for being Jack The Ripper!

Her theories have been largely discredited

Must admit, I'm not a fan of his work. I find a lot of them slightly disturbing.

Spencer Frederick Gore was a British painter of landscapes, music-hall scenes and interiors, usually with single figures. He was the first president of the Camden Town Group, and was influenced by the Post-Impressionists.

Certainly much brighter in style than Sickert

Frank Auerbach’s 1973 painting Looking towards Mornington Crescent Station – Night (a series), hangs in the Graves art gallery, Sheffield. The crescent has also inspired various musical artists, including the Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band and Belle and Sebastian. Here, for your errr.... entertainment:

Mornington Crescent

The crescent gave its name to a ‘strategy’ game played on the Radio 4 show I’m Sorry I Haven’t a Clue. Successful gameplay depended on sophisticated tactical proficiency as well as an encyclopædic knowledge of London destinations.

At the end of the long terrace, the Georgian has been successfully blended into Art Deco, with the entrance to Mornington Court, a large block of apartments.

Turn the corner into Arlington Road, at the difference is striking

PLAISTER'S HALL, ONE LONDON WALL

Absolutely stunning and sophisticated events venue, which stands in front of a small section of the old Roman city wall - hence its' address.

REGENTS CANAL

Regent's Canal is a canal across an area just north of central London. It provides a link from the Paddington Arm of the Grand Union Canal, 550 yards north-west of Paddington Basin in the west, to the Limehouse Basin and the River Thames in east London. The canal is 8.6 miles long.

So far, I've only walked along a short stretch, from Camden Lock to Granary Square - which is the closest point to St. Pancras Station, and my train home

I've already covered Camden Lock, with its' fabulous markets, so walking through Waterside Halls, I dropped down onto the towpath along the canal. 

Clear of Camden High Street, it becomes a little derelict and wild at first, but there is a lot of urban regeneration going on along the banks, and there's masses of water birds to see.

I spotted several Eqyptian pink-legged geese. They were originally introduced as an ornamental species, but have escaped into the wild and 'gone feral', and are now breeding successfully in this country.

Very common on our inland waterways, the Canada Goose.

I also saw mallards and coots on the canal. And this plant growing on the banks, and apparently it's oleander - not one I'm familiar with

There's a varied collection of narrow boats, moored, and being used as house boats, which is understandable, when you see the price of houses in London!

This is Gasholder Park. These constructions were originally the exo-skeletons of huge domestic gas containers. With the advent of natural gas, they were of no further use and the inner containers were dismantled and removed. Fortunately, instead of dismantling the ironwork, someone had the brilliant idea of using three of them to house apartments, and the fourth one was turned into a pretty garden and seating area.

This is St. Pancras basin, overlooked by this rather lovely Victorian water tower. I'm not a great lover of Victorian architecture per se, but this is not only attractive, it fits in well with the hyper-Gothic design of St. Pancras railway station.

Granary Square and the green steps. Such a lovely place to sit and eat lunch on a sunny day.

Granary Square, Coal Drops Yard and King's Boulevard have all been redeveloped, but with consideration to the architecture of the pre-existing warehouses and wharfs. It's now an area full of shops, bars and cafes. The centre of the square is filled with four 'musical' jet fountains, that fire upwards in such a way that you can hear and feel a rhythmic beat. It's all extremely relaxing and soothing

THE RIVER THAMES

The River Thames has many fine bridges, not the least spectacular being Tower Bridge. And, of course, everyone knows the nursery rhyme about London Bridge falling down!

Now, the Houses of Parliament has a bridge either side of it, and their colours are significant. In the House of Commons, the seats are green, whilst those in the House of Lords are red.

Similarly, on one side of Parliament, Lambeth Bridge is painted red, whilst, on the other side, Westminster Bridge is painted green.

  

This is the entrance to Lambeth Bridge

What most visitors to the River Thames fail to notice, are the beautiful lions head mooring points all along the river walls throughout the Pool of London

ST. CLEMENT DANES

The current building was completed in 1682 by Sir Christopher Wren. Wren's building was gutted during the Blitz and not restored until 1958 when it was adapted to its current function as the central church of the Royal Air Force

Outside the church stand statues of two of the RAF's wartime leaders, Arthur "Bomber" Harris and Hugh Dowding.

ST KATHARINE'S DOCK

Much of the old neglected dockland area in the East End, has been converted to houses and commercial buildings. But every now and then, you find a gem. Such is St. Catherine's Dock, near the Tower of London. It is fully in use as a marina-type dock, with the addition of the old warehouses refurbished as shops and apartments, and the old Dickens Inn being fully restored as a pub and restaurant.

Back in the 1980s, it was the temporary home of the Historic Ships collection. These pictures date from then.

ST. PANCRAS 

Unfortunately, when I get to St. Pancras station, I'm usually in a hurry to catch a train, either from there, from King's Cross across the road, or Euston, a brisk 5 minute walk away.

The modern two-level railway station of St. Pancras International lays behind the impressive Gothic St. Pancras Hotel, now fully renovated.

Now, I'm no big fan of the over-blown gothic splendour of St. Pancras, but this shot of the station in juxtaposition with the brand-new Francis Crick Institute is a good demonstration of how London is still evolving.

Love the above view of the very modern British Library, overlooked by the gothic higgledy-piggledy of the St. Pancras Hotel. It pleases me that the designers of the new British Library building took care to ensure that it echoed the terracotta and dark grey of St. Pancras across the road, so neither building stands out like a sore thumb.

As you walk out of the 'back door' of St. Pancras International onto Midland Road, directly opposite, you can hardly miss the Francis Crick Institute. I watched it being built, and today was the first time I had seen the entire building.

The Francis Crick Institute is a biomedical research centre in London, which was established in 2010 and opened in 2016. The institute is a partnership between Cancer Research UK, Imperial College London, King's College London, the Medical Research Council, University College London and the Wellcome Trust.

The station, as well as being a national London terminus, is also the terminus for both the Javelin Hi-Speed 1 services to Kent, and the Hi-Speed Eurostar services to the continent.

At the bottom of the stairs leading up to the Eurostar platforms stands a statue of Sir John Betjeman, who was a lifelong advocate of preserving Victorian architecture.

At the end of the Eurostar platform is another statue - The Meeting Place, by sculptor Paul Day. You can see why it is so named.......

Also on the upper concourse, is a statue of poet, John Betjeman, sculpted by Martin Jennings. He is depicted admiring the roof of St. Pancras. Betjeman was a lifelong advocate of Victorian architecture, especially in railways. 

John Betjeman was poet laureate from 1972 until his death in 1984. Betjeman campaigned again and again to save threatened Victorian landmarks, especially during that philistine decade that was the 1960s.  Palatial St Pancras station could have been lost had it not been for his efforts.

He also had a fondness for churches and churchyards - upon which he wrote a beautiful poem, called quite simply 'Churchyards'. It contains a few words that persuaded me to look at churches before all else, to find the true nature of an area:

Our churches are our history shown
In wood and glass and iron and stone.

ST. PANCRAS OLD CHURCH

Couldn't explore the interior today, as it is being refurbished. Definitely looks like a return visit will be required.

However, the exterior is beautiful and there's lot to see in the grounds. It is dedicated to St. Pancras, who is popularly venerated as the patron saint of children, jobs and health. His name is also invoked against cramps, false witnesses, headaches and perjury. 

Pancras was a Roman citizen who converted to Christianity and was beheaded for his faith at the age of fourteen, around the year 304. His name is Greek (Πανκράτιος) and means "the one that holds everything".

The suggestion that St Pancras Old Church dates back to Roman times has a long tradition, with most suggesting that it was founded in 313 or 314. It is certainly one of the oldest sites of Christian worship in London.

It was certainly mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1085. There is an exposed early Medieval wall, and Roman tiles to be seen. The church has undergone several eras of change.

While excavating in the old foundations of the west tower, the workmen stumbled across a trove of treasures, which had probably been hidden there during the course of the English Civil War when the church had been used as military lodgings. Six feet down under the floor of the tower they found an exquisite Elizabethan silver chalice, an Elizabethan/ Jacobean flagon and an Elizabethan paten that is used every Sunday at mass. They also uncovered an altar stone, believed to be from the eleventh century, which was restored to its place in the centre of the High Altar, and still used in the celebration of mass today. It is believed to be the most ancient artefact in Camden.

The churchyard accommodated almost 100,000 burials in the 150 years before it was closed in 1854, including those of Johann Christian Bach, Chevalier D’Eon, John Flaxman, William Franklin, William Godwin, John Polidori and Sir John Soane, whose Grade I listed tomb still stands here. 

When Eliza Soane died 200 years ago, it changed the life of her architect husband Sir John Soane – and it changed the British streetscape through the strange afterlife of the tomb he designed for her, which inspired the design of the iconic red telephone box.

Soane never got over his wife’s death on 22 November 1815 although he lived until 1837. He was one of the most renowned architects of his day – creator of monumental public buildings including the Bank of England, churches, and country houses, as well as an avid collector of fragments of older buildings including Old St Paul’s cathedral. He blamed her death on the shock of discovering that their son George was the author of some malevolent anonymous reviews of his work.

One of the churchyard’s most iconic sights was the “Hardy Tree”. Sadly, the Hardy Tree fell in December 2022 and the surrounding garden is in a state of neglect.

The Hardy Tree was named for the writer, who stacked gravestones around the base of the ash when both man and plant were young in the 1860s.

The tree was surrounded by dozens of headstones that were placed at its base while engineering works were being undertaken on a railway line. It became a prominent image of life among death.

Thomas Hardy, not yet the celebrated writer he would become, was employed as a young architect in the office of Arthur Blomfield, in Covent Garden, London. The firm got the commission from the bishop of London to disinter a large number of graves from Old St Pancras cemetery. The Midland Railway was about to thunder its way through to what is now the Kings Cross–St Pancras station complex and it needed the consecrated earth for its rails.

Hardy received the instruction for mass exhumation and decent reburial elsewhere. The church’s website called the tree a “monument to the railway encroachments of the 19th century”.

Another notable grave is that of Mary Wollestonecraft, and her husband, William Gladwin. Born 27th April 1759 she was the author of ‘A Vindication of the Rights of Woman’, published 1792. She died 10th September 1797 just ten days after giving birth to a daughter (Mary Shelley 30th August 1797-1st February 1851), who married Percy Bysshe Shelley and who went on to write ‘Frankenstein’. The stone memorial to William and Mary (Wollstonecraft) Godwin was previously further to the East. Their remains are no longer buried here. With the disruption of the railway the family removed them to Bournemouth.

Baroness Burdett Coutts was responsible for the ornate gothic sundial unveiled in 1879. It records on each side many notable figures and their professions including French emigres from the time of the Revolution. Burdett Coutts herself is buried in Westminster Abbey. The name Coutts is familiar as the Queen’s bankers and she lived in Highgate to the North of the former Parish of St Pancras. The sundial is a wondrous sight to behold, with it's stepped plinth and stone animal 'supporters'

Tucked away along the northern side of the Burdett Coutts memorial is a plaque to ‘The English Bach’. Johann Christian Bach was music master to Queen Charlotte, wife of George Ill. Born in Leipzig 1735 he was the youngest son of Johann Sebastian Bach. He died on Tuesday 1st January 1782. With Carl Friedrich Abel (1723 – 1787), also buried in the churchyard, foreign musicians were introduced into London in Bach-Abel Concerts.

Opposite the Coutts sundial, stands a beautiful iron drinking fountain

In the early years of the 21st. century there were further exhumations and reburials due to the building of the HS1 railway line. 

Bizarrely, the archaeologists also found a number of bones belonging to a large walrus. The bones of this huge creature showed signs of being dissected. Evidence of dissected human remains, found in the trenches where paupers’ burials took place, could possibly point to grave robbery.  The mass burial trenches would have been more vulnerable to the attentions of the “resurrection men” than private graves, as it would have been easier to steal remains without detection.  In A Tale of Two Cities, Charles Dickens names Old St Pancras as the site of Jerry Cruncher’s grave robbing. 

Just a short walk along Crowndale Road, you reach the Old St. Pancras Church House, dating from 1897, with its' small statue of the boy-saint, carved by Henry Hems. It is now a theatre. 

SOMERS TOWN

This is the largely residential area that lies between Euston Station and St. Pancras International. There are pretty, leafy streets here, and very little traffic. 

At the end of the 17th century John Somers, Lord Chancellor and later Baron Somers of Evesham, acquired the local freehold. The family later leased the land out for development, and Somers Town was built

When I first walked through it when passing between the two stations, there was a vacant plot of land where some buildings had been demolished, and this land had been turned into a community garden. Great idea!

Sadly, it seems the council are determined to build on it. That's disgraceful! Do they not think that inner city residents NEED their own space and places to unwind?

On the side of the space is a partially demolished building, and I suddenly spotted this painting high up. keeping watch on their little plot of land perhaps?

The picture is self-explanatory, I think. It's a lovely splash of colour, anyway

Other notable buildings in Somers Town are The British Library (which has its' own chapter on this blog), and the Francis Crick Institute, a picture of which appears in the section of St. Pancras, as it's the first thing you see when you walk out of the Midland Road entrance of St. Pancras International station into Somers Town.

SOUTHWARK CATHEDRAL

What we know as the Capital city, London, is actually more than one city. There is, of course, the City of London - which is the world's smallest capital city, being only 1 square mile - the City of  Westminster, and the city of Southwark.

 There has been a church on this site since AD 606. There may well have been a church here even earlier. Southwark Cathedral is the oldest cathedral church building in London, and archaeological evidence shows there was Roman pagan worship here well before that.

Significantly, Southwark stands at the oldest crossing point of the tidal Thames at what was the only entrance to the City of London across the river for many centuries. It is not only a place of worship but also of hospitality to every kind of person: princes and paupers, prelates and prostitutes, poets, playwrights, prisoners and patients have all found refuge here.
At one time, recreations such as gambling and prostitution were strictly forbidden in the City of London, so people would cross south of the river to Southwark, where such things were commonplace.

TOBACCO DOCK

Another one that has been converted for shopping and leisure, Tobacco Dock houses this pirate ship.

TOWER BRIDGE

(the bridge that foreigners mistake for London Bridge ;) )

Built between 1886 and 1894, the Bridge has spent more than a century as London's defining landmark, an icon of London and the United Kingdom. When it was built, it was the largest and most sophisticated bascule bridge in the world. The bascules to open the bridge were originally powered by steam, but are now powered by oil and electricity. It only takes a minute to open them to their maximum height. Although they are seldom required to open for large ships these days, they are still opened at regular times, to ensure that they are ready when required.

The bridge carries the busy A100 road across the Thames

TOWER HILL

Now the name of the road that runs behind the Tower of London, Tower Hill was infamous for the public execution of high status prisoners from the late 14th to the mid 18th century. The execution site on the higher ground north-west of the Tower of London moat is now occupied by Trinity Square Gardens.

Public executions of high-profile traitors and criminals, often attainted peers, as well as innocent Catholics in the 16th century, were carried out on Tower Hill. The backgrounds to these ranged from the Peasants’ Revolt of 1381 to the Wars of the Roses; Lollardism; claims to the throne by Perkin Warbeck and Lambert Simnel; Reformation; Pilgrimage of Grace; Monmouth Rebellion; Jacobite Rising and the Gordon Riots of 1780. Lord Lovat’s execution for high treason in 1747 was the last judicial beheading in England while the final executions on Tower Hill were hangings in 1780. Much of the land on Tower Hill is preserved and unbuilt on. There is however, a statue to an unnamed building worker. 

THE TOWER OF LONDON

One of the Capital's most significant buildings. In the early 1080s, William the Conqueror began to build a massive stone tower at the centre of his London fortress. Nothing like it had ever been seen before. His nobles subsequently built castles across the land, and it was these places that enabled the Norman kings to keep their grip on England.

Through the centuries that followed, successive monarchs added to the fortifications. Long used as a Royal Prison, it has seen some very historical figures indeed pass through its' Traitor's Gate for either imprisonment, or ultimately, beheading.

It is also the secure fortress wherein the Crown Jewels are kept, and the Royal Armoury, and was once the home of the Royal Mint, and the King's Menagerie.

The Monarchs' personal bodyguards, the Yeoman Warders, more usually called the 'Beefeaters', are the guardians of this remarkable place. They are drawn from retired members of the armed forces, who have reached the rank of Sergeant Major or above, and who live with their families within the walls. These Yeoman Warders also conduct guided tours when the tower is open to the public.

Other regiments take their turn in assisting the Yeoman Warders with their tasks. Hence the pictures of the Guards regiment here:

No article about the Tower of London is complete, without a mention of their most famous residents - The Ravens.

The Ravens of the Tower of London are a group of at least six captive ravens resident at the Tower of London. Their presence is traditionally believed to protect the Crown and the Tower; a superstition holds that "if the Tower of London ravens are lost or fly away, the Crown will fall and Britain with it."

After a successful breeding season, there are currently 9 ravens. 

Charles II is thought to have been the first to insist that the ravens of the Tower be protected after he was warned that the crown and the Tower itself would fall if they left. The King's order was given against the wishes of his astronomer, John Flamsteed, who complained the ravens impeded the business of his observatory in the White Tower.

I'm not spending too much time on the various aspects of this fortress, as to really appreciate its almost 1,000 years of history, and all that has passed in that time, you really do need to spend a day there and take it all in.

WEMBLEY STADIUM

The original Wembley stadium, known as the Empire Stadium, was built in 1923 to host major football events, and later, the 1948 Olympic Games.

It was demolished in 2003 and replaced with a new stadium in 2007. It seats 90,000, which makes it the second largest stadium in Europe. 

The stadium is crowned by the 134-metre-high (440 ft) Wembley Arch which serves aesthetically as a landmark across London as well as structurally, with the arch supporting over 75% of the entire roof load.

THE WORKING MEN'S COLLEGE

The Working Men's College , which stands in Crowndale Road, not far from St. Pancras, is among the earliest adult education institutions established in the United Kingdom, and Europe's oldest extant centre for adult education. Founded by Christian socialists, at its inception it was at the forefront of liberal education philosophy.

Founded in 1854 the college was established in Oakley Square by Christian Socialists to provide for Victorian skilled artisans a liberal education, with its ethical focus countering what its founders saw as failings and corruption in the practices of trade self-help associations of the time. The founding of the college was also a response to concerns about the revolutionary potential of the Chartist Movement.

The college opened at 31 Red Lion Square, later moving to Great Ormond Street in 1857, both in Central London. In 1905 it located to its new Crowndale Road building. This new home had been designed by W. D. Caroe. Since 1964 the building has been Grade II listed.

There is so much more to see and do in London.....................but I think I will need to start a second London page