Welcome to our first newsletter of walks and events for 2026, and we have a comprehensive series of walks to tempt you out during the winter months, starting with:
Up the Cally
Caledonian Road is far from London’s tourist trail but that doesn’t mean there’s nothing to see. Far from it, in this two our zig zag stroll around Islington’s less well known spots Rob Smith will introduce you to a host of curiosities
The former home of a live chimpanzee show
Poetry in unexpected places
You’ll hear about the suffragette who starred in Britain’s first martial arts film
You’ll visit the site of an experimental Island community
All this and a prison, quiet gardens and a clock tower
Here’s your chance to see some of the real London with a qualified Islington guide
This walk takes place on the 12th of January and can be booked by clicking here.
St Mary Islington – Church and Tower Tour
Discover the history of Islington’s first parish church and climb the 120 steps to the top of tower for the best panoramic views across London.
St Mary’s church on Upper Street has played a central role in the history of Islington for over a thousand years and, during this time, several different churches have stood on the site, leaving an eclectic mix of architectural styles.
Find out about the 12th century Norman church, its 15th century medieval successor and the 18th century rebuild. During The Blitz of World War II St Mary’s suffered extensive damage – only the tower and steeple survived the bomb. The church was rebuilt in 1956 as a fascinating example of post-war reconstruction, enhanced by many unique artworks of interest.
Ghostsigns of Islington: bygone brands and businesses
Ghostsigns are the remnants of old advertising that still cling to the walls above today’s busy streets depicting products or services that are no longer available. There are some excellent examples to be found in adjacent to Islington High Street.
Most of the signs we’ll look at will be the hand-painted variety, as per the example shown here, but you will also see other types of old signage such as low reliefs, forged metal and carved and gilded shop fronts.
Learn about the unusual businesses, people or products behind the signs; from vets to vegans, rubber to metal and cars to chemists.
Starts near the Town Hall and ends at Angel station.
For more info on this specific walk please use the website link at the bottom or see janeslondonwalks on Eventbrite
This walk takes place on the 22nd of January and can be booked by clicking here.
Former Carlton Cinema, Essex Road – guided building tour
Take a rare look inside Islington’s glorious Grade II* listed 1930s Egyptian cinema.
When the Carlton Cinema on Essex Road opened in 1930 it was advertised as ‘North London’s most palatial cine-variety theatre’ with 2,500 seats and an in-house orchestra.
After the cinema closed in 1972 the building was converted into a bingo club which continued for almost 35 years until the last numbers were called in March 2007. Since 2015 it’s been home to Gracepoint church.
The unique, Egyptian-inspired building was designed by legendary cinema architect George Coles and much of the stunning original interior is still visible today.
On this special tour cinema historian Nigel Smith will take you back to the cinema’s glory days in the 1930s and 40s when going to the ‘flicks’ was a national pastime and Saturday morning clubs saw hundreds of kids flock to the pictures every weekend.
The tour will last approximately 90 minutes and you’ll see inside the auditorium, lobby and former café area. £5 from each ticket sale will go towards the building restoration fund.
The Slow Horses Stroll
Prepare to immerse yourself in the authentic London of Mick Herron’s Slow Horses novels and the acclaimed TV adaptation.
This walking tour takes you beyond the screen and pages, directly into the streets that inspired the stories and characters you love.
Your guides, Caroline and Nigel, will take you in the footsteps of your favourite bunch of MI5 misfits, and give you a whole new perspective on the city. You’ll see the actual Slough House and other real-life locations where memorable encounters with the Slow Horses take place. And along the way, you’ll discover the fascinating links between the series and London’s rich past — from the medieval heritage of its oldest parish church, to the Victorian grandeur of Smithfield Market, and the striking Brutalism of the Barbican.
The locations are brought to life with some of your guides’ favourite extracts from the novels and they’ll uncover the production secrets that transform this corner of the city into Lamb’s London.
The two-hour tour starts outside Barbican Underground Station (Hammersmith & City line) and ends near Old Street Station (Northern line).
Disclaimer: this walking tour of Slow Horses locations is in no way affiliated with Mick Herron or his publishers, See-Saw Films or Apple TV+.
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 27th of January and can be booked by clicking here.
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.
Tours are available twice a month on the second Friday and the last Wednesday.
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 tour takes place on the 28th of January and can be booked by clicking here.
Look At The Estate We’re In
An architectural appreciation tour showcasing a variety of well-designed social housing estates in Islington.
We’ll start in Essex Road and make our way to Highbury & Islington station via Victorian, Edwardian and pre-WWII developments made possible by concerned and innovative benefactors. We’ll also look at early LCC estates and Islington’s own, more recent, schemes. It’s a delightful route that always surprises.
Find out about the philanthropists and the architects behind the schemes and how their cleverly designed and solid-built constructions brought about a sense of pride and well-being. See how these estates continue to look good today.
For more info on this specific walk please use the website link at the bottom or see janeslondonwalks on Eventbrite
This walk takes place on the 29th of January and can be booked by clicking here.
Union Chapel Guided Tour
The Union Chapel has towered over Upper Street in Islington since the 1870s and today thrives as an award-winning venue, homelessness project and a working radical church.
On the tour, led by an expert Islington Guided Walks guide, you’ll see this architectural gem up close and discover the building’s fascinating history.
The Grade I listed Victorian Gothic Chapel is one of the largest Nonconformist churches in London. It houses an important Father Henry Willis organ that is one of few left in the UK with an original hydraulic blowing system, stunning stained glass windows and a distinctive octagonal interior built for acoustics and visibility.
Take a tour and learn more about Islington’s heritage, the Chapel’s triumphant survival after a wartime bomb, and the fascinating story of its near demolition in the 1980s, at a time when Victorian architecture was only just being appreciated.
New walks and tours are added to our website throughout the month, so please check back for updates.
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