Events and Tours - Archive Articles

Chance to visit the top of the BT Tower

OMG! OMG! OMG! The iconic BT Tower in the centre of London that has to be in the top-10 of any Londoner’s list of buildings they would most want to go inside will be open to the public this coming…

A room full of ancient scrolls and parchments

Ask most people to draw an outline picture of the Houses of Parliament, and often you will get long oblong with “Big Ben” at one end. Most will not include the huge tower that is at the other end of…

The 2010 cart marking ceremony

Another year, and another annual cart marking ceremony carried out by the The Worshipful Company of Carmen. I have written about the history of the tradition before – so I wont recount that again. Today though, I noticed an interesting…

Visiting the catacombs under Brompton Cemetery

Following my recent visit to the catacombs under South London's West Norwood cemetery, it seemed sensible to pay a visit to their counterparts in central London yesterday when they were opened for tours as part of the annual open day.

Sailing Ship to pass through Tower Bridge today

The lift schedule for Tower Bridge notes that a "vessel" is due to pass through today at around 5:15pm, but doesn't indicate what sort of ship it will be.

Free tours of Victoria Tower at the Houses of Parliament

As part of a UK-wide Discovering Places event, Parliament is leading short tours, showing familiar yet unexpected aspects of its buildings and works of art. Although most of the tour options are ones that anyone who goes in to the…

The Victorian Catacombs of South London

In the early 19th century, the graveyards in central London were becoming not just rather full, but also a bit of a health hazard - so in the 1830s laws were passed that banned the burial of new bodies with The City of London area.

The History of Beeswax in London

As part of the soon to finish City of London Festival, there was a talk the other evening at the Wax Chandlers Hall all about their trade - bees and beeswax.

Photos – Red Arrows flypast over London

Today, as part of the Cadet150 celebrations, there was a cadet march along The Mall at lunchtime, finished off with a flypast by the famous Red Arrows.

Transforming Aldwych Tube Station

UPDATED 4th September 2010 – special guided tours of the station will be available later this month, a meeting at TfL just over a year ago, and while we can hardly take the credit for the idea of using a…

Last chance to visit London’s Grant Museum before it closes

Tomorrow (Wed 30th June) marks the final day for the Grant Museum in its ancestral home before it closes down. The Grant Museum is the only remaining university zoological museum in London. It houses around 62,000 specimens, covering the whole…

Chance to visit the disused Aldwych tube station

UPDATED 1st November 2011 – more tours announced for the end of this year. Details more details here. — Of the closed tube stations that litter the London Underground, two top the list of stations that people want to visit.…

A crumbling Georgian House in Spitalfields

Just off the crowded bustle of London's Brick Lane is a small side street that conceals a historical marvel - a crumbling, derelict building within which lurks the unrestored remnants of one of London's oldest synagogues.

Saturday tours of the Houses of Parliament

There have been tours of the Houses of Parliament during the Summer Recess for some years – but did you know they are now available all year round? Trawling through the House of Commons Early Day Motions (as you do),…

A weekend visiting private gardens – in photos

The weekend was spent visiting various gardens across parts of London as part of the Open Squares Weekend – from nature reserves to formally laid out affairs – all had their own unique charm. I think my heart goes to…

The 2010 Open Garden Squares Weekend

Today (Mon 7th June) is the final day to buy discounted tickets to the Open Garden Squares Weekend that runs this very Saturday and Sunday (12th-13th June). Ticket prices are £7.50 in advance but £9 if bought during the weekend.…

An Afternoon of Polo at London’s Hurlingham Park

Very long term readers may recall that I am quite fond of the game of Polo. As a teenager and young adult living around the Windsor area, most of my weekends would be spent up at Guard’s Polo Club. However,…

She who must be obeyed

Last night while various London notables were over at the Museum of London celebrating the launch of their new gallery, I was in a somewhat older museum sitting on hard plastic seats watching a DVD film. As part of their…

Celebrate the 350th Oak Apple Day this Saturday

This Saturday will mark the 350th anniversary of the anniversary of the day that King Charles II returned to London from exile overseas after the Restoration of the Monarchy. To celebrate “his Majesty’s Return to his Parliament” the politicians of…

Open Evening at the Honourable Artillery Company

If you were in the vicinity of Old Street or Moorgate on Tuesday evening, you might have been slightly alarmed by the sight of a very low flying Chinook Helicopter coming into land, shortly followed by the sound of explosions…

Beating the Bounds and Thrashing the Thames

Beating the Bounds is an ancient custom still observed in many English parishes on Ascension Day – the 40th day after Easter – including, fortunately for me, a parish within the City of London. The roots of the tradition go…

Last Chance to Visit Hampstead Observatory

…until September. Hampstead Observatory, the 100-year old telescope observatory in North London is open to the general public for free during the winter months – but has to close for summer due to the annoyance of a lack of darkness…

Tours of 10 Downing Street

As politicians traipse into 10 Downing Street to learn what second jobs they will get in addition to being an MP, I decided to brag dig out this photo of the time I once also passed through those hallowed doors.…

London Festival of Architecture Debate

This came via an email and looks interesting – and in the absence of a website to link to, I copy it below. London Festival of Architecture Debate Thursday 24th June 2010 at the Apple Store, Regent Street in association…