Welcome to the August listing of walks and events by Clerkenwell & Islington Guides, and for the next couple of months we have a comprehensive range of walks that cover so many aspects of the architecture, history and culture of this fascinating part of London, and we start with a walk that is running twice this month, the first date is today, the 3rd of August, if you would like a fascinating Sunday walk:
Undercurrent: Wandering the Walbrook
Join a Clerkenwell & Islington Guide for an intriguing walk from Moorgate to Old Street exploring the lost river Walbrook and other watery undercurrents. One of the smallest of London’s lost rivers, the Walbrook meandered through Finsbury and St Luke’s on its way to the Thames. Dammed by the Roman city wall, the river flooded to create marshy Moorfields. Long since culverted and part of the sewer system, underground water still leaves its mark on the landscape and its buildings. Hear about wells from medieval times to the present day, drinking water for humans and animals, a Georgian swimming pool, Victorian sanitation, a subsiding church and more.
This walk is funded by Islington Museum’s as part of their Undercurrent exhibition
This walk takes place on the 3rd and 13th of August and can be booked at the following link: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/undercurrent-wandering-the-walbrook-tickets-1501002943209?utm_experiment=test_share_listing&aff=ebdsshios
Follow the Elephants – Oh What a Circus!
This delightful route starts near Gospel Oak and ends midway between Archway and Tufnell Park stations.
We retrace the path of two Victorian circus elephants who were unusually startled by a loud noise such that they ran through the residential streets, ending their journey trapped but unharmed in an Islington N19 front garden.
We will take time to admire what the elephants missed as they charged past, such as well-to-do Georgian houses, charming backstreets, Victorian shops and tradesmen’s signs. Jane will read out some amusing excepts from contemporary newspaper reports and you’ll also find out about the real Greatest Showman, conservation, filming locations and a naughty monkey.
For more info on this specific walk please use on the website link at the bottom or see janeslondonwalks on Eventbrite
This walk takes place on the 4th of August and can be booked at the following link: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/1488570938749?aff=oddtdtcreator
Groundbreaking Women of Islington
This walk in the Angel area tells the stories of groundbreaking women of Islington that changed the course of history.
“A really inspiring walk”
“Thanks for the great tour”
“I really enjoyed it”
The walk includes women from the 16th to the 21st centuries, who made significant contributions to philanthropy, politics, literature, sport, leisure, community activities, music, film, theatre and the arts. See where they drew their inspiration from Islington and where they left their mark on the area.
The walk lasts approximately two hours. Please be prepared for all weather conditions!
Start: Outside the entrance to Sadlers Wells Theatre, Rosebery Avenue, London, EC1R 4TN
Finish: A short walk from Highbury & Islington tube station
“Thanks for a great adventure this afternoon! …there were bits I was familiar with and LOTS I learned!”
Tickets from Guided walks, London blog | London On The Ground
This walk takes place on the 9th of August and can be booked at the following link: https://www.londonontheground.com/service-page/groundbreaking-women-of-islington?referral=service_list_widget
The Diary of a Nobody – Mr Pooter’s High Brow Holloway
The Diary of a Nobody started as a popular satirical column in Punch magazine in 1888 before being extended and published in book form a few years later.
This guided tour brings the book to life, taking you back to the late Victorian middle-class Holloway that Mr. Charles Pooter and his family and friends might have experienced had they been real people.
We’ll look at relevant buildings, shops, and street furniture to link to the stories in the diary, such as Pooter’s silly arguments with the ironmonger, the shirt dresser and the stationer. Find out about 1880’s Holloway in the form of theatre venues, transportation, tradesmen and gin palaces as you roll your eyes at his clunky puns.
You don’t need to have already read the book to enjoy this tour, but it’s likely you’ll want to do so afterwards!
For more info on this specific walk please use on the website link at the bottom or see janeslondonwalks on Eventbrite
This walk takes place on the 13th of August and can be booked at the following link: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/1499879663449?aff=oddtdtcreator
Canonbury Tower Tour
Canonbury Tower was built in the late 16th century and is a rare survivor of Tudor domestic architecture in London. The Tower was added onto a manor house built in the early 1500s as the country retreat of the Canons of St Bartholomew’s Priory in Smithfield.
On this 90-minute tour you’ll see the existing Tudor interiors and hear about the many notable characters associated with the building. Over the centuries these have included Thomas Cromwell of Wolf Hall fame, Henry VIII’s fourth wife, Anne of Cleves, Francis Bacon and the writers Washington Irving (Sleepy Hollow) and Oliver Goldsmith (The Vicar of Wakefield). You’ll also have the chance to climb up to the rooftop which affords wonderful views over London in all directions.
Canonbury Tower is owned by the Marquess of Northampton and has been in the same family since the 16th century. All visitors are guests of the seventh Marquess, Spencer Compton.
This walk takes place on the 15th and 27th of August, along with multiple dates throughout the rest of the year, and all dates can be booked at the following link: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/canonbury-tower-tour-tickets-475150296327
Islington World War Walk
Find out about the factory that saved Britain from invasion. The British soldier turned wandering Buddhist mystic. Where some of the most notorious bombs fell, where some of Islington`s most famous wartime heroes and heroines lived. The former Arsenal stadium and its surprising role in winning two world wars.
This walk takes place on the 16th of August and can be booked at the following link: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/islington-world-war-walk-tickets-1510808130789?aff=oddtdtcreator
178 STEPS TO HEAVEN
Islington Guided Walks are organising Caledonian Clock Tower again.Tours are arranged for Sunday 29 June, Saturday 26 July and Sunday 24 August.
The Tower originally opened in 1855 as part of the Caledonian Meat Market which operated from the area now known as Caledonian Park in Market Street N7 close to Caledonian Road Underground Station. It is 45 metres high with178 steps to climb.
The tour will cover the fascinating history of London’s meat markets, you will also be able to see the insides of the wonderful pendulum clock that is older than Big Ben. At the top of the Tower, there are fantastic, photogenic 360°views around London.
This tour takes place on the 24th August and can be booked at the following link: https://www.eventbrite.com/cc/caledonian-market-clock-tower-tours-3488199
Art Deco Holloway
On this guided walk, Jane will show you some marvellous ‘statement’ architecture constructed in the interwar years during a design period that came to be identified as ‘Art Deco’.
The modernist architecture of the 1920s and 1930s with its clean geometric lines, simplicity, functionality and minimal decorative enhancement was designed to impress and inspire – a kind of “understated showing-off” pointing to a positive bright future – a complete change from the fussiness and over-embellishments of the Victorian and Edwardian eras – Holloway has some excellent and varied examples all hiding in plain view.
For more info on this specific walk please use on the website link at the bottom or see janeslondonwalks on Eventbrite
This walk takes place on the 26th of August and can be booked at the following link: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/1499752894279?aff=oddtdtcreator
Beautiful Barnsbury
See fine Georgian squares, secret gardens and London’s smallest nature reserve, while learning about the area’s history.
Dating back to the Domesday Book of 1086, Barnsbury was for centuries a rural manor set back a little from the busy Islington main road of Upper Street.
In the 18th century its open fields, fresh water springs, pleasure gardens (and forerunner of the world’s most famous cricket ground) were built over by 18th century developers. This brought the growing middle classes into the area, but in the 19th century it was not immune to industrialisation, overcrowding and a workhouse for the poor.
Today, Barnsbury is one of inner London’s most beautiful areas, tucked away between Upper Street and Caledonian Road.
Start: Angel tube station
Finish: Close to Caledonian Road & Barnsbury Overground station, or a short walk to Highbury & Islington or Caledonian Road tube stations.
The walk lasts around two hours. Please be prepared for all weather conditions!
“Such a wonderful walk around one of the loveliest parts of London”
“A great afternoon visiting a part of Islington I thought I knew but found out more and more about!”
Tickets from Guided walks, London blog | London On The Ground
This walk takes place on the 30th of August and can be booked at the following link: https://www.londonontheground.com/service-page/beautiful-barnsbury?referral=service_list_widget
Our next newsletter will be on the first Sunday of September, but please check our calendar of walks as this is regularly updated, and can be found at the following link: https://islingtonguidedwalks.com/walks/
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