Short read: Secret places and hidden interiors…
Long read: “If you want to know London better, if you want to learn some things about the world’s most cosmopolitan city that most people who spend their lives there never learn, I can think of no better investment than London Walks.” The New York Times could have been describing this walk. It teems with quirkiness, odd places and passing strange things and people. We start with the verdurous glooms and winding mossy ways of a mini-Eden that doubles as the largest civil engineering project to ever come London’s way.
We meet the lady the early twentieth-century public would have plumped for as the first woman Prime Minister. She might be our hostess. And meeting her, well, the parade – the extravaganza – is well underway. There’s the Santa Maria, Columbus all eagle-eyed. There’s the neo-Gothic mansion built by William Waldorf Astor as a home and an office to impress. And it does. There’s a putto putzing about with a 1920s candlestick design phone.
The Astor mansion – there’s nothing else remotely like it in London – will be open after the walk because it’s hosting the exhibition; “The Glass Heart Art.” It’s a rare opening for one of the most extraordinary interiors in London. So – nudge, nudge – catch it while you can. Thinking ahead to après walk, well, you’re spoiled for choice because when we part company with the Astor abode (and the Santa Maria, ships passing in a dreamscape) some fancy footwork waltzes us by a gem of an 18th-century pub, the Edgar Wallace. Yes, that Edgar Wallace, the prolific writer of crime novels. Inside, wave upon wave of… well, you’ll see.
Famed for its traditional fayre, the Wallace is well worth visiting for a pint after the walk. On your way back to the Astor palazzo! Ok, that’s how the walk starts. No end of razzmatazz. And that’s how it continues. Lives up to its name – Unexpected London – every step of the way.
Coda read: hidden palaces, the hotel where George Orwell worked, an abandoned Tube Station, a flying guinea pig, two island churches, the Great Cham, oranges and lemons, bomb damage, “the first street in Europe,” the apotheosis of black cats, an arrow shower of great history. Well, you get the idea. What’s not to like? And come cold weather– hey, all those sheltering, hidden interiors – say hello to the parfait
London Walk! Guided by Alison
IT ALL COMES DOWN TO THE GUIDING
“If this were a golf tournament every name on the Leader Board would be a London Walks guide”
UNEXPECTED LONDON – THE PRACTICALS
The meeting point is just outside the exit of TempleTube. N.B. the Unexpected London walk ends in Embankment Gardens, right next to Embankment Tube.
LONDON WALKS SOUPÇON
“The implications of this are as disturbing as Einstein’s second law of relativity. The _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ is a quiet little late Gothic building, almost as black as it would be in Newcastle. Rearing above it is the glazed white backside of the _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _. Neither part is memorable but the tension between them is. And the tension not only comes by accident but depends on it. Only a sadist would design this kind of affront, yet the affront is the essence of the place: and the final effect is not disgust but compassion for the tired old animal down below.” Ian Nairn
Tim Smith –
We really enjoyed this tour of unexpected places around the Temple area Alison was extremely informative and delivered information, anecdotes and stories in a thoughtful and engaging style Her tour comes highly recommended
Sue Flin –
We thoroughly enjoyed our walk exploring Unexpected London. Alison showed us places and things that, although we may have seen them before, we saw them in a different way. She made it very interesting with funny anecdotes. Look forward to another walk with Alison in the near future.
Stelios Poulman –
I have worked around the area for over 20 years and I thought I knew the area. Yet, there was so much more to discover. Alison delivers the tour in a very relaxed and engaging way. She encouages interaction with the group and she is clearly a very knowledgeable tour guide.
A thorougly recomended, pleasant way to spend a Friday adfternoon!
Alison McCarty –
Such a wonderful and informative tour! Alison shared incredible history with us, and I have a new appreciation for these areas that I walk past regularly.
Derek Melbourne –
Recently my wife and I joined the “Unexpected London” tour with Alison as our guide. Alison was an excellent guide providing fascinating information in an engaging manner and with a clear delivery. We learned things that we would never have discoverd for ourselves and in fact would have walked past much that proved to be intruiging and historically interesting. An excellent tour highly recommended.
Dr. Thomas A. Underwood –
Yesterday, I joined others on the “Unexpected London” walk lead by Alison, a guide previously unknown to me. I found her to be a consummate professional: learned, witty, courteous, and well-spoken. She has a way of mining out fascinating detail and little-known stories from both London’s built environment and its social history. Her knowledge of the Temple area was both deep and interdisciplinary — spanning, as it did, music, literature, art, architecture. and more. She kept on pace and ended exactly at the two-hour mark, making sure that everyone knew how to find public transportation. All in all, a great walk by a gifted guide!
Jackie –
What a brilliant tour! Very aptly named, full of enlightening snippets, bringing to life several points of interest that I had frequently walked straight past. Alison makes for a fascinating tour. I will be walking again very soon!
Penny Ham –
My friends and I were amazed by the interesting sights, facts and fun information given by Alison in a couple of hours. Her voice was clear and her manner was warm. Highly recommended.
Thank you Penny
John Morton –
I really enjoyed this walk. Alison brought life to what the uniformed spectator would be an inanimate buildings or object. Alison was engaging, informative and open to questions ( of which I had many). I recommend this walk to anybody curious about London and its rich history.
Patricia Rayner –
I have been on two walks with Alison and it’s 2 hours packed with Information and interesting sights! She speaks clearly, communicates well and is just fun to hear her !