London’s historical hidden gems
London, at its heart, is a Roman city, founded just after the Roman invasion in 43AD. Many Roman remnants survive today including sections of the wall, a temple and bathhouses. An important Roman town also needs an amphitheatre. It was assumed that Londinium, as the Roman city was known, must have had an amphitheatre but […]
Discovering The Remains Of London’s Roman Amphitheatre Read More »
I love stumbling across hidden gardens in the City of London. This one really is pretty hidden. Opposite Cannon Street Station is a little side street called Salter’s Hall Court. At the end, tantalisingly, you see a gate and some steps leading to a little pocket of greenery. St Swithin’s Churchyard Garden It is St
St Swithin’s Churchyard: A Secret Garden In The City Read More »
The Blitz was, of course, one of the great catastrophes in London’s history. The bombing campaign of the Luftwaffe from September 1940- May 1941 intended to destroy infrastructure involved in the war effort but also to demoralise British citizens enough for them to push the government to surrender. If anything, it had the opposite effect.
A Wonderful Blitz Survivor: The Vincent Street Fireplace Read More »
Soho Square is usually pretty buzzing, with its famous neo-Tudor building in the centre (actually built in the 1920s to cover the entrance to an electricity substation below the square). Look away from the hut into the South East corner however and you will see a beautiful 18th century building, with the intriguing words ‘House
6 Secrets Of The House Of St Barnabas Read More »
In the middle of a very modern estate in Fitzrovia you will find something surprising: a little Victorian chapel. The Fitzrovia Chapel, a hidden jewel of a building, was built from 1891, designed by the gothic revival architect John Loughborough Pearson. Its surroundings unsurprisingly once looks very different however, as it was originally at the
The Fitzrovia Chapel: A Hidden Historic Jewel Read More »