Showing Tag: "walking" (Show all posts)

Trekking in London’s Hills

Posted by Ian McDiarmid, City of London Tour Guide on Monday, January 4, 2021, In : Roman London 

One of the highest points near to the Thames is Cox’s Mount in Maryon Park, Charlton in South-East London. Here you can reach almost 100 feet above sea level. Yes, almost 100 feet! The views of the Thames are impressive, with the Dome and North Greenwich to the West, and beyond them Greenwich itself. The Thames Barrier is immediately to the North, and a little to the  East across the river is the Tate and Lyle factory at Silvertown. 


Go at the right time and you have the place to yourself, a...


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Why did Charles Dickens choose the name Ebenezer Scrooge?

Posted by London Walks on Wednesday, October 12, 2016, In : Christmas 

Charles Dickens was prompted to write A Christmas Carol as his response to the evident evils of capitalism; but it was also an attempt to pay his ever-increasing unpaid bills. Six weeks after visiting Manchester where the fancy first occurred to him, his novella was complete. Dickens was in the event underwhelmed with the profits it generated, but his story went on to become synonymous with the modern Christmas ideal.

The first few paragraphs of the novella set the scene of Ebenezer Scrooge i...
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Pokemon Go in Bristol

Posted by London Guided Walks on Sunday, October 2, 2016, In : Day Trips 
We had an awesome day in Bristol doing a Poketour this week. We caught many 2nd evolution Pokemon such as Slowbro,  Poliwhirl and Starmie. Since we were all Team Mystic, the best Pokemon Go experience was taking down gyms together.

Pokemon Go aside Bristol is a wonderful place to explore, especially on a day trip away from London. It's small enough to navigate there is rich history starting in the stone age, enough to keep any history-lover happy. 

Below is a short video of some of the wonderfu...
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London's Burning

Posted by London Guided Walks on Sunday, September 4, 2016, In : Guided Walks 

350 years ago the Great Fire of London tore through the medieval streets of London, destroying 80% of the city in four days. 373 acres of the City - from the Tower in the East to Fleet Street and Fetter Lane in the West - and burning around 13,200 houses, 84 churches and 44 company halls.

Learn more about this major event, how the royals and the regulars dealt with this disaster as well as other historical events on our Heretics and Horrors walking tour.

Further reading: Was the Great ...
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Halloween London Walks

Posted by London Walks on Thursday, October 15, 2015, In : Quirky 

London has a lot of many wondrous things such as pubs and theatres but what London seems to have more of is ghosts.

We have some fab Halloween themed walks available 27th, 29th & 31st October. Join us on this night walk and hear tales which will give you a chilling thrill! 

Tues 27th Oct, 7pm Baker Street  - Haunted Marylebone & Mayfair Book now

Thurs 29th Oct 7pm Baker Street  - Haunted Marylebone & Mayfair Book now

Sat 31st Oct, 3pm London Bridge - City of London Dragons Book now

Sat 31st Oct, 7...


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St John Street, Islington

Posted by London Guided Walks on Wednesday, July 1, 2015, In : Local History 

St John Street, Islington, was originally a lane linking the village of Islington to the City of London.

When you look up St John Street (as in the pic above) you can see a slight incline. That's been made up of gravels from the ice age. Underneath that is London clay. Where the gravel and London clay meet there is a line of fresh water springs. 

Those springs are still evident in place names such as Sadler's Wells and Clerk's Wells, more commonly known as Clerkenwell today.

The geology has had ...


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Follow the Footsteps of Oliver Twist

Posted by London Guided Walks on Sunday, January 4, 2015, In : Victorian 


Many of Dickens’ contemporary critics and reading public feared that novels could be too realistic, and that naïve readers (often female readers) wouldn’t be able to tell the difference between fiction and reality. Especially for a novel like Oliver Twist, which is about “dangerous” subjects like poverty, crime, and the relationship between the two.

"Please sir, I want some more"

London is repeatedly described as a labyrinth or a maze – once you get into it, it’s hard to get back o...


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Oliver Twist Guided Walk in London

Posted by London Guided Walks on Sunday, January 4, 2015, In : Victorian 

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Farewell Christmas Lights

Posted by London Guided Walks on Sunday, January 4, 2015, In : Guided Walks 
It's not yet the 6th day of Christmas and yet many retailers in the West End have taken down their Christmas decorations. The 2 tonne Christmas canopy of Selfridges on Oxford Street disappeared overnight. Where is Harry the Golden Goose now?

Even though each season has it's own charms, there is an air of sadness when the darkness returns to the West End, when the Christmas lights are removed and the wait for lighter evenings begins.

Christmas 2014 saw nearly 200 attendees on our Christmas light...
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Paddington Bear hits London

Posted by Guided walks in London on Monday, November 17, 2014, In : Art 
As a child of the 80's I grew up with the cartoon of Paddington Bear who wore an old black hat, a blue duffel coat and had an unhealthy relationship with marmalade. I have never been a fan of the sweet citrus nectar but certainly could relate to the well mannered bear as I too had a duffle coat and very often found myself in surprising situations.

The star studded Paddington film hits the UK 29 November. To assist it's launch 50 statues of Paddington Bear have graced the streets of London.  ...
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Know your Ghosts from your apparitions

Posted by London Guided Walks on Tuesday, October 14, 2014, In : Quirky 

London has a lot of many wondrous things such as pubs and theatres. What London seems to have even more of is ghosts. 

There are a number of different types of paranormal activity:

Demonic hauntings - a haunting by a nonhuman entity. They often start off with subtle and relatively simple paranormal activity before quickly increasing to strong, potentially scary activity. Demonic hauntings can be very dramatic, yes, even violent.

Cold Spots – a small, defined area of intense cold, at least 10 d...


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Walk a royal trail around the fields and woods of Windsor

Posted by London Guided Walks on Friday, September 5, 2014, In : Hidden 

Home to kings and queens since William the Conqueror, Windsor is dominated by its castle, which, as benefiting a monarch, is the largest in the kingdom.


 The trail starting in Egham takes you first to the calming waters of the Thames, where you can explore Runnymede, the site at which medieval barons forced a King John to sign the Magna Carta in 1215 which  lasted less than three months. Read more about the situation surrounding the Magna Carta.


"And still when mob or monarch lays,

Too rude a ha...


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Exploring London on foot

Posted by London Guided Walks on Sunday, August 24, 2014, In : Quirky 

“London is a city that needs, that demands, to be explored on foot.”
Geoff Nicholson, The Lost Art of Walking


The pace of London and its people moves so fast that the ability of being able to observe and absorb one’s surroundings certainly requires the speed of travel be slowed down. And what better speed to decrease down to than that of walking? It is a way of actually shifting a state of consciousness.

There are many nooks and crannies of London that cannot be seen and/or appreciated at ...


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History of Mason's Yard, Mayfair

Posted by London Guided Walks on Thursday, August 21, 2014, In : Art 

History of Mason's Yard, Mayfair

Mason's Yard SW1

Ormond Yard was laid out as a 200 feet square plot of land originally designed to be a stable yard and by 1740 the yard was already being called Mason's Yard, probably due to the owner of the two houses fronting both the yard and Duke street was a Mr Henry Mason. It would make sense for him to have rented some stables in Mason's Yard.


In 1748 the London Evening Post reported a death 'at his House in Duke-Street' of a Mr. Margison 'who for several...


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