The Great Stink of 1858

If like me, you suffered through the blazing London summer of 2018 with seemingly wall to wall sunshine heat and humidity from Easter to the end of September, squashed on your commute in airless tube trains and wondering how you’d ever get to sleep in a bedroom that rarely fell under 30 degrees (90 F)… Continue reading The Great Stink of 1858

An eerie old mortuary from Jack The Ripper and the world’s oldest Police.

Whilst out on one of my walks and whilst taking some photos for Mondays post on The Ratcliffe Highway Murders, I made it my business to hunt out a new (for me) location related to Jack The Ripper. Hidden away in the corner of St George in The East Church, I found this. The derelict… Continue reading An eerie old mortuary from Jack The Ripper and the world’s oldest Police.

The ticking timebomb shipwreck that could damage half of London

Every now and then a newly made discovery of a long-lost shipwreck makes the news with everything from RMS Titanic to the lost ship of Captain Cook and everything in between. There are a few shipwrecks however that are well known, even visible to us today.  Out of them all, there can’t be any more… Continue reading The ticking timebomb shipwreck that could damage half of London

Ratcliffe Cross Stairs – Where fires raged, explorers set sail and pirates hung

Last week whilst scouting out a new walking tour of just a small part of East London, one of the places I most wanted to visit is the slipway which was once known as Ratcliffe Cross Stairs. The village of Ratcliffe itself is all but forgotten and subsumed by Limehouse which is itself unknown by… Continue reading Ratcliffe Cross Stairs – Where fires raged, explorers set sail and pirates hung

The Brunel Museum and the first tunnel in the world that goes under water

You might be wondering how much more can be squeezed into this relatively short little walk eastwards from London Bridge through Bermondsey and Rotherhithe.  I’m sure you’ll agree that there is something for everyone who visits. Today’s post relates to one of the few things I actually knew about before visiting the area recently and… Continue reading The Brunel Museum and the first tunnel in the world that goes under water

King Edward III Manor House

This my second post resulting from my scouting out a new tour I have been wanting to start offering to my lovely tourists.  As well as the regular tourist hotspots, I really enjoy taking people to the lesser visited parts and judging from the reactions of my tourists, the more authentic an experience, the greater… Continue reading King Edward III Manor House

The lost and hidden rivers of London

It’s easy to see London as one big mega city with just one river, what Londoners fondly call old Father Thames. When the tide of the river rises and falls it is almost as if you can see the city itself breathe. The Thames has always been the centre for life in the city even if… Continue reading The lost and hidden rivers of London

Crossing The River Thames By Cable Car

Sometimes when I am running tours, I get to do new things even in my home city.  Of course, that isn’t too hard when you live in London as not only is there a 2,000 year old back catalogue of things to do and see but there are new attractions cropping up by the day,… Continue reading Crossing The River Thames By Cable Car

Winter sunrise over the Thames

On New Years Eve, I was lucky enough to give a Sherlock Holmes themed walk to a family of four from New Jersey. As I always do, I arrived in good time to have a hot drink and just a general nose around the neighbourhood. Even the very centre of London is a huge place… Continue reading Winter sunrise over the Thames