Highgate Cemetery had been on my list of places to visit for a long time and I finally managed to do so on a surprisingly warm and sunny weekend in January. The cemetery is split into two sites across the road from each other – Highgate Cemetery East will feature in my next post. The West Cemetery is accessed by guided tour only and costs £12 (which includes access to the East Cemetery which is self-guided). You can’t book in advance on a weekend but you must do so during the week – I had no problem getting on to a tour on the Sunday at 11am (tours start at 10.30).
Highgate Cemetery – West
Categories: England, London
Tags: architecture, cemetery, graves, gravestones, guided tour, history, Julius Beer, mausoleum, photo post, Radclyffe Hall
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The Royal Academy of Arts, London
The Royal Academy of Arts is based in Burlington House, a 17th century mansion. Construction began in 1664; the plot of land had been given to Sir John Denham, Charles II’s Surveyor of the Office of Works, as thanks for his loyalty to the King. Renovations to the exterior and interior took place over the years with the third Earl of Burlington in particular inspired by Italian architecture.
Categories: England, London
Tags: architecture, art, art gallery, free, gallery, history, photo post, Royal Academy of Arts
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St James’ Church, Piccadilly
St James’ Church, Piccadilly is one of the churches designed and built by Christopher Wren, the foundation stone being laid on 3 April 1676. It was paid for by the Earl of St Albans who owned the land and probably selected Wren personally for the job.
Categories: England, London
Tags: architecture, christopher wren, church, mary beale, St James's Church, stained glass, stained glass window, william blake
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The V&A, London
The V&A is one of my favourite London museums. When I’m in the area I always pop in, visiting the fashion collection and then wandering up to the top floors. If you hit the right time – late afternoon on a weekday – you can pretty much guarantee to come across maybe only two other people and it feels like you have the whole place to yourself.
Categories: England, London
Tags: architecture, exhibition road, museum, photo post, sackler courtyard, victoria and albert
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Throwback Thursday: Cock and Hoop Pub, Nottingham
The Cock and Hoop is a a Grade II listed pub in the Lace Market area of Nottingham. A house stood on the site in 1832 but from 1833 it was the County Tavern public house which conveniently had rooms set up so patrons could watch the public hangings taking place on the steps of what was then the County Gaol and is now the National Justice Museum. It became the Cock and Hoop in the early 2000s and is now part of the Lace Market Hotel.
Categories: England, Nottingham, Nottinghamshire
Tags: cock and hoop pub, nottingham, photo post, pub
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The Natural History Museum, London
I’ve been to the Natural History Museum lots of times before but on this trip I wanted to pay particular attention to the building’s architecture, and of course to see the whale skeleton that replaced Dippy the diplodocus.
Categories: England, London
Tags: Alfred Waterhouse, architecture, museum, natural history museum, photo post, sculpture
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Billingsgate Roman House and Baths
I visited Billingsgate Roman House and Baths as part of Open House London. There was a small queue to get in, as numbers down to the remains have to be restricted but it passed quickly and we were given an interesting talk about the remains while we waited. First discovered in 1848, outside of the arrangements for Open House London they can be visited at only certain times between April and November, so do check their website before making a visit.
Categories: England, London
Tags: london, london history, Roman baths, roman history, ruins
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Custom House, London
I hadn’t planned on visiting Custom House for Open House London but as I’d been wandering taking photos nearby anyway I thought I’d pop in to see what it was all about. It doesn’t look like a very impressive building from this side – it’s the southern part of the building that looks out to the river and therefore the approaching ships which is more ornate.
Categories: England, London
Tags: British history, custom house, history, Open House London, self-guided tour
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Birmingham Sea Life Centre
A few weeks ago I decided to head to Birmingham and visit the Sea Life Centre. I hadn’t been there for a good ten years or so and it’s still a nice place to visit, but very expensive even when booking online in advance. Not all of the creatures photographed particularly well and the lovely seals the Centre recently fostered from a coastal sea hospital (they have medical conditions that will prevent them ever being returned to the wild) were particularly active and difficult to capture, but you can find a few of my favourites below.
Penguins guarding their eggs
Categories: Birmingham, England
Tags: frogfish, jellyfish, national sea life centre, penguin, photo post, spotted garden eel, turtle
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St Mary-at-Hill Church, London
St Mary-at-Hill was one of those churches I decided to pop in and visit while I was wandering around the Billingsgate area of London. The entrance is hidden away down a narrow street, handily marked by the sign below, and is far bigger inside than I’d been expecting.
Categories: England, London
Tags: christopher wren, organ, photo post, Robert Hooke, St Mary-at-Hill
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