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St Andrew Undershaft

Why Is This City Church Called St Andrew Undershaft?

Posted on October 12, 2020
in architecture, Churches and Graveyards, etymology, London
0 Comments

Ever paid attention to the names of London’s City Churches? Some of them seem a little odd to us now, but these names give us clues to their history...

Dirty Dicks

What Makes ‘Dicks’ so Dirty?

Posted on September 15, 2020
in etymology, London, Pubs
1 Comment

Steady on. We're talking about Dirty Dicks pub near Liverpool Street Station, which has quite the filthy historical story attached to it....

London Underground Animals

London Underground Safari | Spotted These Animals on the Tube?!

Posted on August 10, 2020
in etymology, London, London Underground
3 Comments

We're going on safari! (On the underground...

Walking Tours of London

Weird London Street Names With A Story Behind Them (Part 2)

Posted on June 25, 2019
in etymology, London, Look Up London
3 Comments

Curious about 'Pardon Street'? or want to know the story behind 'Of Alley' Here's a second helping of weird London street names...

Weird London Pub Names

10 Weird London Pub Names With A Story Behind Them

Posted on November 14, 2017
in etymology, London, Pubs
8 Comments

Along with Street Names, I always find that pubs have a canny way of hinting at London's past. Here's a selection of my favourite weird London pub names, each with an intriguing story behind them....

Whitechapel Road Bullock Running

What Whitechapel Road and Pamplona Have in Common

Posted on October 6, 2017
in East London, etymology, Hidden Gems, London, Look Up London, Pubs
0 Comments

Pamplona isn't the only city with a history of bull running. Ok, you might not get much Whitechapel Road Bullock Running nowadays. But the history is there to be found!...

Weird London Street Names

Weird London Street Names With A Story Behind Them (Part 1)

Posted on July 2, 2017
in etymology, installations, London, Look Up London
13 Comments

Concerned by Hanging Sword Alley in EC4? Intrigued by Knightrider Street? Or tempted by Wardrobe Place? There are the best street names in the city and they each have a story to tell....

The Eleanor Cross of Charing Cross

The Eleanor Cross of Charing Cross

Posted on May 18, 2017
in architecture, etymology, Hidden Gems, London, Look Up London
6 Comments

You’ve probably noticed the massive decorative monument outside Charing Cross Station, but do you know why it’s there? Digging into its history gives you a story of romance and the reason this area has its name....

Tyburn Tree Marble Arch

Tyburn Tree: Hidden History at Marble Arch

Posted on April 24, 2017
in Churches and Graveyards, etymology, London, Look Up London, West London
3 Comments

In the middle of a traffic island in Marble Arch lies a grisly bit of London's history. Have you heard about Tyburn Tree?...

St James Park Grammar

St James’s Park Tube: Nightmare For A Grammar Lover

Posted on January 24, 2017
in etymology, London, London Underground
0 Comments

Let's get technical. Is it St James’s Park or St James’ Park? Or both? This may make your head spin...

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Although it’s no longer a pub, The Turk’s Head Although it’s no longer a pub, The Turk’s Head in Wapping was lucky to survive at all!  Gutted after a fire and left derelict in the 1980s, a local woman; Maureen Davies led a group on a campaign to save the building. They were brilliantly known as the ‘Wild Women of Wapping’!  Today it’s a cafe and - as far as I know - still offering takeaways at the moment. As for the name, it’s actually a reference to a type of knot, rather than a severed head of someone from Turkey. However on a more macabre note, they claim the pub used to be the location for the final drink of condemned pirates facing their fate on execution dock 😅  #lookuplondon #wapping #turksheadwapping #londonhistory #EastLondon #wappinghistory #explorelondon #londonpubs #londonpubhistory #discoverlondon #londonguide #visitlondon #londoncorners #cutelondoncafes #localhistorylondon #londonwalks @theturksheadwapping
Well doesn’t this just lighten the mood?! Spott Well doesn’t this just lighten the mood?!  Spotted this Mary Poppins-esque figure on the side of The Harrison Pub in Bloomsbury. It’s been there since at least 2009 (from a google street view stalk!) but I don’t know the artist or what prompted it to be painted.  I suppose nestled in Bloomsbury it’s in good literary company and JM Barrie - author of Peter Pan - lived an 8 minute walk away between 1885-1888.  Ever spotted it?  #lookuplondon #london #londonStreetArt #bloomsbury #theharrison #londondetails #explorelondon #londonwalks #discoverlondon @harrisonpub
Fancy brightening up your Thursday Evenings? From Fancy brightening up your Thursday Evenings?  From 21 January I’m running my fifth series of virtual tours! At 7pm we’re kicking off with “Greenwich: Heroes & Villains” - a look a the iconic sights and surprising hidden gems of this beautiful London neighbourhood.  Other tours include;  • Hampstead & Highgate - 28 Jan, 7pm
• Holborn & Fleet Street - 4 Feb, 7pm
• Along Regent’s Canal - 11 Feb, 7pm  Can’t make them live? No problem! Book membership for £32 (plus booking fee) which gives you access to ALL four tours and the catch up recordings!  📍 link in bio to join the fun! @look_uplondon 👈🏼  What people say about the tours 🗣  ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ “The Very Best. If you’ve never done a virtual tour before this is the best place to start (and stay).” - Judith  ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ “Lockdown means nothing when you have Katie ‘walking’ you around interesting parts of London” - Lavender  #london #visitlondonfromhome #londonguide #londonvirtualtour #londontour #londonguide #lookuplondon #explorelondon #lockdownlondon #londontour #visitgreenwich #thingstodoinlondon #greenwichhistory
FIRST YOUTUBE VIDEO IS UP! 📺 📍link in bio! FIRST YOUTUBE VIDEO IS UP! 📺  📍link in bio! Tap 👉🏼 @look_uplondon to watch!  It was hard to pick a first video - the presssure!! But it’s... 🥁  The Hidden History of Tower Bridge.  Aside from Big Ben, probably THE most recognisable building in London and yet there are many sneaky symbols and little details which contribute to its history, plus I’m sharing some of my favourites stories which are stranger than fiction!  Really hope you enjoy it ☺️  #lookuplondon #london #visitlondon #thisislondon #londonhistory #TowerBridge #TowerBridgeHistory #londonhistoryvideo #londonviews #londonphotography #londondetails #hiddenhistorytowerbridge
I used to think graveyards were creepy. 
Don’t I used to think graveyards were creepy.

Don’t get me wrong, I probably wouldn’t wander through one alone at night but living beside one and regularly walking through, I now find them kind of inspiring.  Before lockdown I managed to squeeze in a self-guided visit to Highgate Cemetery and one of the more unusual graves is that of Thomas Sayers, the Victorian bare-knuckle prize fighter.  His burial was one of the largest ever seen here, with reportedly 10,000 people in attendance! Chief mourner, riding just behind the coffin in the funeral procession, was his pet dog; ‘Lion’. His statue can be seen lying on his master’s tomb today.  📍This is one of 10 strange London memorials I’ve written about on the blog. Tap my bio link to have a read! 👉🏼 @look_uplondon  #london #highgatecemetery #londoncemetery #londongraves #londonhistoryblog #lookuplondon #londoncemeteries #highgatelondon #visitlondon #exporelondon #discoverlondon #londonoffthebeatentrack #londonguide #londonwalks #londontourguide #bludebadgetouristguide #thomassayers #londonstatues #hiddenhistory #londonhiddenhistory @highgate_cemetery
Along Barking Road you’ll spot the extraordinary Along Barking Road you’ll spot the extraordinary West Ham Central Mission.  Today known as the Memorial Community Church, it was founded as the West Ham Central Mission back in 1871.  The current building was finished in 1922, the whole - impressive - structure serving as a memorial to local men who were killed during the First World War.  There’s a further memorial in the form of 10 bells hanging in the East Tower. There are 172 names cast into the bells, 169 closely associated with the church, one dedicated to the Unknown Warrior and another to Prince Maurice of Battenberg, the youngest grandchild of Queen Victoria and the only member of the Royal Family killed during WWI.  In June 1921 a report in the Tabernacle Messenger stated that “The music of the bells will ever remind us of the heroic sacrifice of our men who gave their lives for us.” #lookuplondon  #londonhistory #plaistow #eastlondon #eastlondonhistory #BarkingRoad #warmemorials #Londonhiddenhistory #londonoffthebeatentrack #explorelondon #londonguide #westham #discoverlondon #byzantinearchitecture #londonarchitecture #londonchurches
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