Up the Cally – Where History Misbehaves
King's Cross Tube (meet by the taxi rank)
Guided by Philip
Adult: £20 · Students & Seniors: £15 · Children: £5
Walk Times
| Day | Walk Type | Start Time | End Time | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14 June 2026 | Special | 2.30 pm | 4.30 pm | Summer | |
| 15 November 2026 | Special | 2.30 pm | 4.30 pm | Winter | Reserve Online |
‘Up the Cally’ – stories and legends of the Caledonian Road
Meet your guide – here’s Philip’s podcast about the walk.
UP THE CALLY – THE PRACTICALS
To go on the Up the Cally walk meet Philip at 2.30 pm on Sunday, November 23 by the taxi rank of King’s Cross Station. The West side (front).
X marks the spot — the meeting point!
Strap in. This one’s a cracker.
A walk of astonishing contrasts – and irresistible character – up one of London’s most gloriously unpredictable roads. The Cally, as the locals call it. Never dull, never straight, never quite what you expect. It’s a bit of a rogue, this road – and we love it for that.
We’ll unpick layers of London few ever see: a Gothic prison straight out of a Victorian fever dream, a clock tower with secrets to spill, and murals that shout stories from the walls. This is where political firebrands once roared, where arms caches lay hidden, where the market was the place to be seen – and where spies once slipped through the shadows.
You’ll meet some unforgettable characters along the way – Fishy Bill, the fishmonger king; Prince Monolulu, the flamboyant fortune-teller in feathers; and more besides. Each one larger than life. Each one pure Cally.
And it’s not just a walk through the past. We bring it bang up to date – discovering why this once-overlooked stretch of North London is now one of its most popular (and affordable) places to live.
Quirky. Gritty. Surprisingly beautiful. Irresistibly real.
Go on. No. Make that come on. Come up the Cally. You’ll never look at it the same way again.
Emma Tait –
Great guided walk by Philip. I learnt and saw a lot that was new to me. Amazing history of one road. Philip answered our questions. He had planned a number of stops and before we set off for the next one, he told us what we would see. All very relaxed and professional. A very good walk.
Anders Hanson –
This is a walk I’d been wanting to do for a while as it started off in an area familiar to me (Kings Cross) but then went very much off the usual territory for a London visitor such as myself. It was a great walk showing how even, what on the surface, seems like a fairly run of the mill part of London, includes fascinating snippets of history. This is something London Walks does really well, and Philip was an excellent guide showing us places we’d never have discovered on our own.