Regent’s Canal Ramble: Little Venice to King’s Cross

2020 marks 200 years since the official opening of the Regent’s Canal in 1820. Winding for 14km around the heart of the city, the canal now provides an escape from the hustle and bustle and is a perfect spot for a peaceful stroll.

The History

For most of its history the Regent’s Canal was used to transport goods and coal. It was conceived to connect the Grand Union canal in Paddington (that links up to Birmingham) to the Thames at Limehouse.

The canal opened to great fanfare, but at first, it was a commercial flop, with railway swiftly taking precedence. There was even a proposal at one point to fill it in and turn it into a railway! Business did eventually pick up and the canal came into its own particularly during the world wars to take pressure off the stretched railway system.

The Walk

If you are feeling spritely you can walk the whole 9 mile canal (Little Venice to Limehouse) in one go, but in this post I cover the walk from Little Venice to King’s Cross. It should take roughly 1-1.5 hours. Click here for the King’s Cross to Limehouse stretch.

Little Venice

What better place to start our meander down the Regent’s canal than the gorgeous Little Venice.

Little Venice centres around Browning’s Pool, named for the poet Robert Browning who lived on Warwick Crescent, by the canal from 1862- 1867. He is credited by some with coming up with name ‘Little Venice’ although others attribute it to Lord Byron.

The pool is at the intersection between the Regent’s Canal and the Grand Union Canal. Go and see the puppet theatre barge that has been putting on marionette shows since the early 1980s.

Blue plaques

Two blue plaques to look out for.

“You stupid boy!”- the first is for Arthur Lowe who played Captain Mainwaring in Dad’s Army from 1968-1977. He lived on Maida Avenue overlooking the canal from 1969-1982. In 2001 Captain Mainwaring was named as the 21^st best TV character of all time in a channel 4 poll.

The second is that of Guy Gibson; the leader of the Dambusters Raid in 1943. This operation saw two German dams in the Ruhr Valley breached, causing catastrophic flooding in the industrial heartland of Germany.

Guy completed over 170 war operations before dying at the age of 26 during an operation in the Netherlands when his plane crashed in 1944.

Crocker’s Folly

This large grand Victorian pub (now Lebanese restaurant) seems to stick out somewhat from its residential surroundings. There is a reason for that. It dates from 1898 and was built by a man name Frank Crocker.

Originally called The Crown, the story goes that Frank built it because he got a tip off that the new terminus of the Great Central Railway was to be built very close by. In fact, it was built half a mile away at Marylebone station. Having sunk his life savings into The Crown, Frank’s fortunes were dashed.

The rumour is that he took his own life, jumping from a top floor window. His ghost is said to haunt the place. This story, however, is untrue. Frank died of natural causes in 1904 but the next landlord did kill himself by jumping from a window of this building so maybe the ghost is actually him?!

Blow Up Bridge

This is Macclesfield Bridge, otherwise known as ‘Blow Up Bridge’. At 3am on the 2nd October 1874 locals in the area woke from their beds fearing an earthquake. A boat carrying gunpowder up the canal had exploded just underneath Macclesfield Bridge, killing 3 people and destroying the bridge.

When the bridge was rebuilt, the columns holding it up were turned around. Look for the grooves from boat-towing ropes on both sides of the columns for proof!

Neo-classical architecture

After the bridge, as we start to loop round Regent’s Park, you will see 6 grand and impressive villas backing onto the canal.

Georgian? Regency perhaps? In fact these are not as old as they look. They were built between 1988 and 2004 in the neo-classical style by Quinlan Terry (apparently Prince Charles’ favourite architect). A symmetry lovers dream, they represent the variety of classical architecture and have names including, ‘Corinthian Villa’ and ‘Ionic Villa’.

London Zoo

You will now pass by London zoo.

London zoo opened in 1828 with the first animals being those transferred from the Tower of London menagerie. The Tower of London had housed a menagerie of exotic animals since the 1200’s. 3 lions and an elephant featured, along with perhaps it’s most famous resident: Henry III’s polar bear. It was a gift from the King of Norway in 1252 and he would be taken on a chain down to the Thames for a dip.

You can see the occasional animal from the towpath but we’re talking the odd warthog, not the tigers and giraffes- you have to buy a ticket for them!

Don’t try to look for any animals in the large aviary (pictured above)- it’s not currently used but there are apparently plans to turn it into the monkey enclosure.

Camden Lock

Now to Camden and the world famous Camden lock market. The market began in 1974 with just a few stalls and it has now grown to be the largest market in London, welcoming 28 million visitors a year. ‘Camden Lock’ actually refers to the 3 locks here called Hampstead Lock, Hawley Lock and Kentish Town Lock.

Fun fact: Camden market is sat on top of a series of underground passageways and tunnels. These are known as the ‘Camden catacombs’ (although there are no dead bodies there don’t worry) and they were used as walkways and stabling for horses working on the canal and railway. Unfortunately they’re not open to the public due to the risk of flooding from the canal.

Look out for the grooves in the stone walls of the towpath and wooden railings over the foot bridge- these are from the ropes used to tow canalboats, by horse, along the canal.

Gasholder apartments

Another hark back to the area’s industrial past, these gasholders were built in the 1850s. They were decommissioned in 2000 and have now been transformed into 145 premium apartments. One holder has been made into a lovely circular lawn and mirror installation.

As they no longer serve any practical use, gasholders have been torn down across the country. I think it’s great that these ones in King’s Cross have found a new purpose but also retaining some heritage and charm.

Coal Drops Yard

Coal Drops Yard is now a thriving area with restaurants, bars and water fountains, but only as of the last few years.

For much of its history it has been an industrial hub. The buildings here were warehouses or ‘coal drops’ for the coal brought in from the North to power Victorian London. A staggering 8 million tonnes of coal was delivered every year to the capital in the mid- 19^th century. Look out in particular for the ‘Coal Office’ ghost sign on the side of the tall building pictured above.

Just past Coal Drops Yard is the brilliant Word on the Water bookshop barge, which is well worth a visit. It is a great example of how the canal is used today for leisure and relaxation.

Fancy continuing our historical ramble along the canal? Read part two: King’s Cross to Limehouse below!

More London history inspiration below!