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Devonshire Gates Green Park

History Behind the Devonshire Gates in Green Park

Posted on May 17, 2020
in Hidden Gems, London, Look Up London, West London
6 Comments

You can spot the gas holders easily, but there's also a secret garden hiding nearby too...

Behind the Scenes Tower Bridge

Behind the Scenes at Tower Bridge

Posted on January 28, 2020
in architecture, London, Look Up London, Things to do in London, West London
7 Comments

Join me for a look inside the bascule chambers...

Behind the Scenes St Paul's Cathedral

Behind the Scenes at St Paul’s Cathedral

Posted on January 14, 2020
in architecture, London, Look Up London, Things to do in London, West London
10 Comments

On a triforium tour of the cathedral you can see some amazing hidden gems!...

Sculptures above piccadilly

History Behind These Curious Sculptures Above Piccadilly

Posted on December 27, 2019
in Hidden Gems, London, Look Up London, West London
1 Comment

Heard the myth you're never more than 6ft from a rat in London? Well on Oxford Street it's other rodents (and their intriguing history) you should be looking for!...

Inside the London Library

Inside The London Library (aka Book Heaven!)

Posted on December 24, 2019
in architecture, London, Look Up London, Things to do in London, West London
2 Comments

The largest independent lending library in the world, The London Library is a phenomenal space, packed with history!...

Marchmont Street Token Sculptures

The Sad History Behind The Marchmont Street Token Sculptures

Posted on November 26, 2019
in Hidden Gems, London, Look Up London, West London
0 Comments

It's worth looking down in Bloomsbury, these sculptures reveal a sad bit of history...

Oxford Street Beavers

Oxford Street Beavers

Posted on September 10, 2019
in Hidden Gems, London, Look Up London, West London
2 Comments

Heard the myth you're never more than 6ft from a rat in London? Well on Oxford Street it's other rodents (and their intriguing history) you should be looking for!...

One Pembridge Square Ceiling

A Jaw-Dropping Secret Ceiling in Notting Hill

Posted on July 17, 2019
in architecture, London, Look Up London, West London
0 Comments

Now part of a library and one minute from Portobello Road, the stunning ceiling One Pembridge Square is well worth looking up at!...

North Audley Street Roundels

North Audley Street Pavement Roundels

Posted on July 2, 2019
in Hidden Gems, London, Look Up London, West London
4 Comments

I know I'm usually looking up, but these North Audley Street roundels on the floor recently caught my eye....

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...

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• Katie | Blue Badge Tourist Guide 🔵
• Private London Tours
• Public Walks from 30 August
• 📚 Read the Blog & Book walks here👇🏼

Look Up London Walks & Tours
You can find this wonderful street 5 minutes from You can find this wonderful street 5 minutes from Kings Cross Station… This is Keystone Crescent, laid out in the 1840s to provide good quality housing for local residents. Originally it was called Caledonia Crescent, a nod to the large numbers of Scottish immigrants who settled in the area to work on the railways and nearby Regent’s Canal. Today the crescent opens onto the much better known Caledonian Road. Having survived threats of demolition when the area was run down, happily we can rest easy knowing the street received Grade II listing in 1988. #lookuplondon . . . Hi I’m Katie 🙋🏻‍♀️ Blue Badge Tourist Guide and London history blogger. Book fun and immersive virtual tours in my bio @look_uplondon 👈🏼 I also offer private, bespoke tours (real and virtual!) get in touch for details. . . . #KingsCross #keystonescrescent #hiddengems #postcardplaces #mysecretlondon #london #discoverlondon #londonguide #londonwalks @kingscrossn1c
I might sound like a broken record. But honestly, I might sound like a broken record. But honestly, if you’re not looking up in London you’re missing out on so much history! This is the porch of the Royal Exchange in the City of London. Originally a hub of trade where merchants of all kinds could buy and sell, the current building is now a luxury shopping mall and opened in 1844. But its earlier history is in the detail! Look up (swipe right!) and you’ll spy a Royal Coat of Arms and then a small shield above it. Can you spot the tiny T and G? That stands for Thomas Gresham, city merchant who founded the original Royal Exchange in 1571. 
The eagle-eyed among you might also have seen that on top of this building there’s a golden weathervane of a grasshopper. The reason it’s there? It was Gresham’s family symbol. 
There’s nearly always an interesting explanation behind London’s details! #lookuplondon . . . Hi I’m Katie 🙋🏻‍♀️ Blue Badge Tourist Guide and London history blogger. Book fun and immersive virtual tours in my bio @look_uplondon 👈🏼 I also offer private, bespoke tours (real and virtual!) get in touch for details. . . . #RoyalExchange #londonhistory #cityoflondon #thisislondon #londonarchitecture #londondetails #hiddengems #london #discoverlondon #londonguide #londonwalks @theroyalexchange
Most people don’t realise there’s a church in Most people don’t realise there’s a church in the middle of Soho... Wednesday night is the final tour (“Soho’s Soul”) in the second series of my Virtual London Tours. I’m not sure if/when I’ll run another series so this is your last chance to join the fun for now! If you book Membership - available to book until Wednesday 6pm (BST) you can watch all the tours from this series; “East End; Suburb Squalor to Street Art”, “Kings Cross: Wrong Side of the Tracks”, “Docklands: Pirates Old and New” and “Soho’s Soul” for £28, available to catch up on until 12 August. Book in my bio link! Tap @look_uplondon 👈🏼 Here’s what people have said about the tours; ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ “One of the best things about lockdown.”
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ “The most enjoyable hour I've had since March.” ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ “We felt as if we were right there.” If you’re curious about the church. It’s a bit like Soho in general really; unique and a mix of all sorts!

St Anne’s was built 1677-1686, supposedly to the designs of Christopher Wren but it was gutted by bombs during WWII. The 19thC tower survives and the building now contains a small chapel, rectory, offices for the Soho Society and 20 flats run by the Soho Housing Association. #lookuplondon #londonhistory #londonguide #virtualtours #londonwalks #soho
This housing block in Spitalfields was the start o This housing block in Spitalfields was the start of something huge. In 1864, 57 apartments were made available on Conmercial Street for East London’s “most deserving of the working poor”. Over 100 people applied to be the first tenants in a Peabody Estate. Peabody was founded by George Peabody, an American banker whose business morphed into what is today JP Morgan. He didn’t have a wife or any heirs and so he gave most of his money to try and solve the great social crisis of the day for London; housing. The money he gave is estimated to be around £45million in today’s terms. The Peabody Housing Association is still going, with 55,000 homes across Greater London, but it all started here. #lookuplondon . . . Hi I’m Katie 🙋🏻‍♀️ Blue Badge Tourist Guide and London history blogger. Book fun and immersive virtual tours in my bio @look_uplondon 👈🏼 I also offer private, bespoke tours (real and virtual!) get in touch for details. . . . #spitalfields #london #philanthropy #peabody #eastlondon #londonstreets #londonhistory #historiclondon #explorelondon #londonguide #londonwalks #londontours @peabodyldn
Hard to believe, but this is actually London! Kno Hard to believe, but this is actually London! Known as the Old Molecatcher’s Cottage in Richmond Park, it might sound silly but catching moles was serious work. After all it was important to get rid of molehills so royals could enjoy riding through the park and hunting the deer. In fact, in February 1702 King William III’s horse stumbled over a molehill. He broke his collarbone, got pneumonia and later died. You’d definitely try to avoid the blame for that one! Back to this gorgeous spot though, it’s part of Pembroke Lodge (now a tearoom) built on the site of a small cottage in the 18th century for Elizabeth, Countess of Pembroke. You can’t go inside but there’s a beautiful rose garden to stroll through, swipe right for the video! 
Have you ever been? #lookuplondon . . . Hi I’m Katie 🙋🏻‍♀️ Blue Badge Tourist Guide and London history blogger. Book fun and immersive virtual tours in my bio @look_uplondon 👈🏼 I also offer private, bespoke tours (real and virtual!) get in touch for details. . . . #London #VisitLondon #BecauseImALondoner #LondonGuide #Londonwalks #RichmondPark #londonhistory #MySecretLondon #timeoutlondon
Have you ever seen a better looking car park?! Ri Have you ever seen a better looking car park?! Right by Russell Square Station in Bloomsbury is this Art Deco gem. Have you walked by before? Built in 1931, the strange circular shape of the right side of the building is because it’s a ramp, designed as part of The Daimler Car Hire Garage. There was a car park below and cars were on display on the upper floors. The building is Grade II listed (one of the first ever garages to get the honour!) and Historic England say there used to be pressure washing stations on each floor, handy! Up until recently it was used as offices for the ad agency McCann but they’ve since moved to Bishopsgate. I wonder who the lucky people are who get to move in? #lookuplondon . . . Hi I’m Katie 🙋🏻‍♀️ Blue Badge Tourist Guide and London history blogger. Book fun and immersive virtual tours in my bio @look_uplondon 👈🏼 I also offer private, bespoke tours (real and virtual!) get in touch for details. . . . #ArtDeco #LondonGuide #londonhistory #carparks #inspiremyinstagram #visitlondon #london #thisislondon #artdecolondon
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