In our London series you’ll find out who was crowned at Westminster, buried in St Paul’s or beheaded at the Tower and hear their stories. You’ll discover the history of Shakespeare’s Globe, the London of Charles Dickens and the royal palaces. We’ll tell you what to look out for in London’s museums and galleries, help you discover the city’s parks, theatres, shops and markets and take trips out to Hampton Court and Windsor.
The 26 episodes in our City Break London series bring you all the background history and culture you need to fully understand this amazing city. In short, here is all the research you’d do yourself if only you had the time.
Each episode centres around a podcast, available here or on all the usual providers. The blog posts here on the website include a summary of the main information, plus pictures, useful links and ideas for further reading. So, let’s go!
Welcome to our introduction to London, a global city-break favourite. Samuel Johnson (1709-1784) knew why: ‘He who is tired of London is tired of life, for there is in London all that life can afford.’ … Read more
St Paul’s Cathedral is THE building which Londoners see as the symbol of their city and it has been the venue for dozens of important national events over the centuries. This post re-tells a few … Read more
The City of London, also known as the square mile (among the 600 square miles of today’s London!) is where it all began. This post gives you a flavour of this ancient and fascinating area, … Read more
This post tells some of the dramatic history of the Tower of London – think imprisoned kings, beheaded queens, murdered children and a World War II spy connection – and then runs through the highlights … Read more
Westminster Abbey: a thousand years of British history. Of course, it’s first and foremost a place of worship – Holy Communion and evensong are offered every day – but it is also the nation’s church, … Read more
The Houses of Parliament in London might be a stunning Victorian gothic pile, but its history goes much, much further back than that. This post outlines a little history, including some of the great events … Read more
Whitehall and Trafalgar Square are quintessential ‘central London’. This post takes you first on a10 minute wander, from Parliament Square to Trafalgar Square, in which you’ll pass loads of famous statues and well-known addresses (Downing … Read more
What visit to London could miss out Buckingham Palace? This post starts with a little history and some tales from the famous balcony. Then we explain what to look out for if you visit Buckingham … Read more
This post takes you on a wander round the Inns of Court, that most peaceful haven just off some of London’s busiest streets. We explore the courtyards and gardens, talk a little about the ancient … Read more
Fleet Street has been a focal point for writers, publishers and journalists since the Middle Ages. This post explores a little of its history during the 19th and 20th centuries when the area was home … Read more
In this episode it’s all about London as a centre of entertainment. We’re going along the Strand, round Covent Garden, popping into the Royal Opera House and the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, and then on … Read more
Victoria and Albert’s London centres on Kensington. Surely no two people left a greater mark on ‘their’ corner of London, than Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. This post covers a little of their story – … Read more
Britain’s two greatest authors, Chaucer and Shakespeare, both lived and worked in London for most of their lives. This post covers a little about them and their work, focussing particularly on the places you can … Read more
London certainly pops up frequently in the novels of England’s best-known 19th century author, Charles Dickens, and traces of him can be found all over the city. This episode investigates the links between the author … Read more
Bloomsbury, London’s literary and academic heartland, is full of pretty garden squares and the place to find some of the country’s top museums, bookshops and libraries. We stroll past many of them, pointing out some … Read more
The Historical And The Hipster A tour of East London, in search of the Old East End and the area’s Jewish and multi-ethnic roots. A little history, ideas for places to visit and some literary … Read more
A two-stop tour of north London. Firstly, pretty Hampstead, where Virginia Woolf thought ‘it is always spring’: lanes and cottages, cafes, antique shops and museums, including the house where John Keats spent his last 2 … Read more
Greenwich is real day out territory from central London, except that one day won’t be enough for all there is to see! Unusually, this post covers something which is no longer there – but the … Read more
This post takes you on a tour of the five Royal Parks in central London, Regent’s Park in the north of the city and the 4 others which form ’a green necklace’ through central London, … Read more
The River Thames has been the lifeblood of the city of London for two millennia, So much of the city’s past is tied up with its iconic river. This post covers many aspects of the … Read more
This post takes you to Hampton Court Palace, explaining what there is to see there and giving a little background history, majoring on Henry VIII and the palace’s heyday of Tudor feasting, with no shortage … Read more
Kew and Richmond – two classy areas a little way outside central London – make great day trips, either separately or combined. Both sit on the River Thames and both offer plenty to see and … Read more
The number one day trip from central London Visiting Windsor and the next-door village of Eton is one of the easiest day trips from London, taking less than an hour by train. And there you … Read more
This post starts with the most famous London shops and shopping streets, then covers other kinds of shopping visitors to the city are likely to want to search out: historical venues which offer a little … Read more
This post looks first at the musings of London diarists and other writers who have penned interesting thoughts on visiting the city. The quotations included span the 16th to the 20th century and come from … Read more
London through prose, poetry and literary walking tours This episode collects together information on Literary London, beginning with a list of reading ideas and continuing with information on four London anthologies, all of which we … Read more
