Walking. Gossip. Travel.

Category: London

  • London – Puma Court

    I walked down this street whilst following the Jack the Ripper Ramblers Route, otherwise I’m not sure that I would have ever found this street.

    It’s hard to imagine this quaint street is actually in the heart of Spitalfields. The street was formerly known as Red Lion Court and the Red Lion Court Chapel which was once on the street has long since been demolished.

    The text of this tablet reads:

    “These almshouses were erected in the year 1860 for poor inhabitants of the liberty of Norton Folgate in place of those taken down for the new street”.

    The original almshouses were in Blossom Street, but a road widening was needed there, so compensation and new land was provided to the charity.

  • London – Ramblers Routes

    I’m off to Luxembourg tomorrow and got the train today to my hotel at Heathrow. Inspired by the Hike Norfolk London trip on Saturday, I decided to follow one of the Ramblers routes which are available to members of the organisation via the national web-site. It’s a handy resource and the walks come with a .gpx file to follow, as well as the route description.

    This one is the ‘Jack the Ripper’ walk which is a 3.3 mile walk around the area in which the murders took place. There’s not a great deal to see of the murders, as obviously the areas aren’t what they wanted to preserve, but the walk does visit some of the parts of the city which the murderer and victims would have known.

    More of the walk itself in separate posts….

  • London (Central) – Kindertransport Statue (The Arrival)

    I don’t usually use this entrance into Liverpool Street Station, so have missed just how much of a wonderful statue this is. It’s a commemoration of the 10,000 Jewish children who were able to escape from Nazi Germany just before the outbreak of the Second World War and who arrived at the station.

    The statue was designed by Frank Meisler who as a child was evacuated from Gdansk (or what was then the Free City of Danzig) to London Liverpool Street station.

    There’s a parallel statue at Gdańsk Główny railway station (above photo which I took in 2016) by the same sculptor.

  • London (Central) – Frame Break by Jack West

    This sculpture at Spitalfields is entitled Frame Break, and was designed by Jack West and installed here in 1988. Personally I thought it looked confused, but I really like the premise behind it which is that it’s a reference to the Frame Breaking Act of 1812. This was introduced by the Government to increase penalties for those who damaged industrial machinery, mainly people known as Luddites. It became a capital crime to try and deter vandals from destroying equipment and along with other measures the action was generally successful in quelling the growing rebellion.

    I think I’d have liked something that looked less like a smashed up guitar and something which more resembled the looms from the period. It’s a really nice concept though, another reminder of the history of the area as it makes reference to the migrant Huguenot weavers who worked and lived in Spitalfields.

  • London (Central) – Wooden Boat with Seven People

    This interesting artwork in Spitalfields is an actual boat which was used to transport refugees from Turkey to the islands of Greece. It has a wider meaning of showing the suffering, terror and struggle of migrants around the world who have to make such perilous crossings.

    The artwork was created in 2011, although it has been in its current site since 2017. It was designed by Kalliopi Lemos, a Greek-born sculptor and painter, who specialises in artworks relating to the politics of forced migration.

    Very much a thought-provoking piece and the location in Spitalfields is also deliberate, it’s a reminder of how the area has been welcoming to waves of migrants over the centuries.

  • London (Central) – Truman’s Black Eagle Brewery

    There was a brewing industry at this site, at Brick Lane, in London in the sixteenth century and it continued until 1989 when this enormous brewery was closed down. For a period in the nineteenth century this was the largest brewery in the world, taking its name from the nearby Black Eagle Street.

    This map from the turn of the twentieth century shows just how big this brewery had become.

    Today the area has been repurposed with numerous restaurants, residential units and offices around the site. There’s something of a creative edge to it, with numerous art events and performances taking place.

    This is the former Head Office of the brewery, a sadly once grand site now looking a little forlorn. FWIW, which isn’t much, I think the site is seriously underused, there is no museum of the brewery or area, no explanation to its history and it seems primarily used for commercialised events which have a tenuous link to the local community.

    I’m sure that there are some marvellous businesses in the area which have taken the opportunity of being in one of the most vibrant parts of London, but I felt that this area was all rather underwhelming in terms of the brewery buildings themselves.

  • London (Central) – Crown and Shuttle

    When Steve mentioned that there was no particular pub planned for the Hike Norfolk day out in London, I felt compelled to offer assistance. This was one of the pubs listed in the Good Beer Guide, so it was here that eight of us came to.

    There was no dark beer, although the barman told me that there was but it had sold out as it was popular. For reasons unknown to me, since I didn’t ask, I was unsure why the pub hadn’t found another alternative. Nothing on the beer list was particularly interesting to me, but I like Redemption Brewery, so I opted for that one.

    The prices were surprisingly reasonable given the relatively central location in London. All of the real ales were £4.80 a pint, and I was pleased that my half cost exactly £2.40, I like it when pubs charge equitably. As for the beer, it was well kept, at the appropriate temperature and there was a pleasant taste to the whole thing with a taste of honey.

    The pub’s beer garden, which was all rather comfortable.

    Brewing tanks on the bar.

    The pub interior. CAMRA notes that this pub was closed and left derelict for 12 years, before reopening in 2013. They did a good job of the restoration, it feels on-trend and contemporary. My one little complaint (other than the lack of dark beer) is that the pub doesn’t seem to make much of its history, either at the venue or on-line.

    The former back wall of the pub, which has been brought back out to increase the amount of space available.

    The service in the pub was always friendly and helpful, so the whole environment was comfortable. We didn’t need to eat at the time, but the food options looked tempting and the prices were reasonable. I’d certainly return again and thanks to CAMRA for recommending it….

  • London (Central) – Principal Place

    Principal Place is a new residential building in Shoreditch which was managing to attract the attention of many passer-bys because of their astroturf bear.

    And an astroturf chair. Although living here isn’t really a cheap lifestyle choice, as there’s currently a one-bedroom flat to rent here for the bargain price of just £3,700 per month.

  • London (Central) – Old Meets the New

    The church is St. Andrew Undershaft, with the current building dating to 1532, although there has been a church here since the twelfth century. It takes its name from when its maypole was taller than its tower and it’s quite remarkable that this church has survived at all given the blitz and IRA bombings it endured.

  • London (Central) – Leadenhall Market

    I’ve walked by the front of this market building many times, but I’m not sure that I’ve actually ever walked through it. It was once the site of a rather more traditional market, although a renovation in 1881 made it something much more upmarket.

    This area was originally the heart of Roman London and it has been a market since the fourteenth century. It was once predominantly for meat and poultry sellers, although in 1488 it was repurposed to only be used by leather sellers. The market was destroyed during the Great Fire of London in 1666 and after that it was covered over for the first time.

    Today it’s mainly modern shops, restaurants and wine bars who occupy the space.

    Although this is a bustling location during the week, it’s rather quieter at weekends since nearly everything here appears to be closed.