Unveiled in 2007 this statue, made of Portland stone, is of Sir Hans Sloane, a doctor, naturalist and collector who left his collection of 71,000 items to the nation. These were the beginnings of the British Museum and the Natural History Museum.

Unveiled in 2007 this statue, made of Portland stone, is of Sir Hans Sloane, a doctor, naturalist and collector who left his collection of 71,000 items to the nation. These were the beginnings of the British Museum and the Natural History Museum.
The Flying Horse is a Grade II* listed building that is the last remaining pub on Oxford Street. A red brick building with stone dressing in the Flemish Renaissance style it dates from around the end of the 19th century, redeveloped on the site of an earlier pub.
The idea for the National COVID Memorial came from members of the COVID-19 Bereaved Families for Justice campaign and you can read more about that here. It is a public memorial of pink and red hearts representing each person who has died of COVID in the UK. It can be found just outside St Thomas’ Hospital opposite the Houses of Parliament and stretches along the South Bank of the Thames.
This very impressive Queen Anne building on Oxford Street is the former Waring and Gillow building. Waring and Gillow were furniture makers; founded in the 1730s in Lancaster by Robert Gillow his eponymous company merged with the Waring Company of Liverpool in 1897.
Whilst visiting the V&A Museum I came across this sculpture on the opposite side of the street. It is a memorial to those killed after being forcibly repatriated by the Allies to the then Soviet Union at the conclusion of the Second World War.
The school was first endowed in 1645 as a free school for the children of the poor. A school was actually built about 1709 elsewhere but they moved to the current building next to St Mary Abbots Church around 1860.
I’ve been a fan of Faberge’s work for a long time and I was delighted to get a ticket to see this exhibition at the V&A Museum in March. I’d bought the tickets in November of the previous year, not knowing then what COVID restrictions might be in place or even if I would feel up to travelling.
The Vestry Hall, Vicarage and National Schools in St Martin’s Place were built around 1830. The inscription around the roof reads “St Martin’s National Schools. Built by Subscription on Ground the Gift of His Majesty King George IV. MDCCCXXX”. The land was gifted for a school to educate the poor children of the parish.
A few weeks ago I decided to head out to Gedling Country Park which I haven’t been to for a while. The weather was sunny though quite windy and since I had walked there and back I just spent a little time walking around some of the smaller routes and enjoying the views.
Berwick House on Oxford Street dates from around 1886 and has a rather interesting spire and pillars along the front.