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Kings Observatory

London’s Other Royal Observatory

Posted on June 11, 2019
in London, Quirky Museums, Things to do in London, West London
4 Comments

You've probably heard of the Royal Observatory in Greenwich, but there's also the King's Observatory in Richmond. Join me for a look around...

London Clown Museum

London’s Clown Museum | Trinity Church, Dalston

Posted on January 24, 2019
in Hidden Gems, London, Quirky Museums
2 Comments

Dalston is host to one of the strangest – and smallest – collections; The Clown Museum in Trinity Church. If you're a coulrophobe, look away now...

Strand Lane Roman Bath

The Real History of the Strand Lane ‘Roman’ Bath

Posted on May 26, 2018
in City of London, Hidden Gems, London, Look Up London, Quirky Museums
1 Comment

There's a National Trust Sign, but don't be fooled. The Strand Roman Bath isn't quite what it appears to be....

Roman Temple

London Mithraeum: Visit a Roman Temple Under London

Posted on May 4, 2018
in City of London, Hidden Gems, London, Look Up London, Quirky Museums
4 Comments

First discovered in 1954, as part of the new Bloomberg HQ, London's Mithraeum been restored so Londoners can step back 1,800 years, inside a Roman Temple!...

Dorich House: The Home, Studio & Gallery of Dora Gordine

Posted on April 17, 2018
in London, Look Up London, Quirky Museums, West London
2 Comments

Tucked away in leafy Kingston is the home, studio and gallery of Dora Gardine, Estonian sculptor, 1895-1991 . Have a look around Dorich House, a true London gem....

Turner's House

A Tour of Turner’s House in Twickenham

Posted on April 15, 2018
in Interiors, London, Look Up London, Quirky Museums, West London
1 Comment

Newly restored and open to the public, I discovered a fresh view of JMW Turner at his House in Twickenham....

Spirit Collection

Inside the Natural History Museum Spirit Collection

Posted on April 10, 2018
in London, Look Up London, Quirky Museums, Things to do in London, West London
0 Comments

South Kensington's Natural History Museum has far more on offer than dinosaurs, join me for a look inside The Spirit Collection; full of monstrous and surprising specimens not usually on display! ...

Parliamentary Archives

Parliamentary Archives: Inside The Victoria Tower

Posted on March 6, 2018
in London, Look Up London, Quirky Museums, Things to do in London, West London
2 Comments

See what's going on inside Westminster's Victoria Tower; it houses the Parliamentary Archives – millions of records with historical, constitutional and political significance. Join me on a tour inside…...

London's Weirdest Museum

London’s Weirdest Museum: The Last Tuesday Society

Posted on December 12, 2017
in East London, London, Look Up London, Quirky Museums
2 Comments

A bizarre collection in Hackney with everything from shrunken heads to terrifying taxidermy. Proceed with caution...

Best Open House London 2017 Highlights

The Best of Open House London – 2017 Highlights

Posted on September 26, 2017
in architecture, Churches and Graveyards, East London, Interiors, London, Look Up London, Quirky Museums, Things to do in London
0 Comments

Over 800 buildings are open for the public – for free – to snoop around and last weekend I did the usual rushing across the city to try and see as much as possible! These were my favourite Open House discoveries this year....

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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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