PROGRAMME OF GUIDED WALKS
AUGUST-OCTOBER 2008
Join DAVID WILLIAMS, your official City of London guide, on the new season of walks. Some of the old favourites are included and there are walks to some unusual yet fascinating parts of London.
Have a look at the programme and book your place now. Group numbers vary between 10 and 25 people. You can meet us at Leigh-on-Sea Station or it may be more convenient for you to join the group in London.
The cost is just £5 for the walk, pay on the day.
Friday 1st August 2008
STROLLING AROUND SOUTHWARK
It’s not all about William Shakespeare and the Globe Theatre. As we move through the narrow streets and passage-ways you will hear stories about Charles Dickens, the Marshalsea Prison, Thomas Guy, founder of Guy’s Hospital and the grimy industrial conditions of the 19th century before finishing up on the riverside and learning more about saucy Southwark and ‘Winchester Geese’.
Meet at Leigh-on-Sea Station at 9.15 am or outside W.H.Smith the newsagents on the concourse of London Bridge Station at 11 am
Friday, 15th August 2008
WAPPING AND THE THAMES RIVER POLICE MUSEUM
This ever-popular walk around Wapping never fails to amaze those who think of this area as a forgotten, uninteresting part of the capital. You won’t be disappointed. The old docks are now housing estates but this is where you hear about the exploits of Captain Bligh, the painter J.M.W. Turner and Captain Kidd the pirate. The visit to the Police Museum takes you back to an age when Wapping was notorious for crime, poverty and disease. Now it costs over £1 million to buy a penthouse with a river view.
Meet at Leigh-on-Sea Station at 9.15 a.m. or 10.45 a.m. or outside Tower Hill underground station.
Monday 8th September 2008
INK SPOTS
Fleet Street will always be remembered for printing empires and great writers But the newspapers have moved to gleaming temples of technology in Docklands and we are left with memories. This walk is about the men and women who have appeared in print over centuries – and a visit to the journalists’ church, St Brides – is the highlight of the walk.
Meet at Leigh-on-Sea Station at 9.30 am or in the booking hall of Blackfriars Underground Station at 11 a.m.
Saturday, 20th September 2008
INTRODUCTION TO THE CITY
The City – or Square Mile - has been the financial heart of Britain since the Romans established Londinium nearly 2,000 years ago. Today, it is in the grip of the biggest construction boom since the War - so finding the hidden history down alley-ways and narrow streets is a challenging aspect of this walk. At the weekend, when the streets are quiet, it’s a chance to re-discover some of that history.
Meet at 9.30 a.m. at Leigh-on-Sea Station or outside the main entrance of Fenchurch Street Station at 10.30 a.m.
Friday 3rd October 2008
‘ORRIBLE HOLBORN
It is hard to imagine that Holborn, on the western edge of the City, was an overcrowded, squalid area with a reputation for hard-drinking, prostitution and crime. Today, it is closely associated with publishing and the legal profession but behind the modern office blocks are some intriguing stories.
Meet at Leigh-on-Sea Station at 9.15 a.m. or in the booking-hall of Chancery Lane Station (Central Line) at 11 am.
Monday, 13th October 2008
ROTHERHITHE AND DOCKLANDS
This area south of the river is now re-named Surrey Quays. The transformation since the Surrey Commercial Docks were closed in the 1980s is startling yet the maritime traditions live on. It was from here that the Pilgrim Fathers set sail for America and the first underwater tunnel was built by the Brunels. It was badly bombed in the Second World War but the heritage was not destroyed.
Meet at Leigh-on-Sea Station at 9.15 a.m. Those joining at Rotherhithe should meet at Canada Water Station (Jubilee Line) at 11 a.m.
Friday, 31st October 2008
MURDER, MEAT AND MEDICINE
The walk starts near Smithfield meat market and you won’t be surprised to learn that this was also a place of hangings, riots and bawdy entertainment. The surgeons and doctors at nearby St Bart’s Hospital, founded in the 12th century, were always busy but their skill has saved many lives over the past 900 years. There’s also a chance to visit the Hospital museum with its famous Hogarth wall murals.
Meet at Leigh-on-Sea Station at 9.15 a.m. or outside the Barbican Station (Circle and Metropolitan Line) at 11 a.m.
LONDON FOOTSTEPS:
Email:
info@londonfootsteps.co.ukDavid Williams: Tel: 01702 710232 Mobile: 07831 857382
