Village Islington

Amid the cafes, estate agents and fashionable shops of Upper Street, today’s Islington has some clues to its rural and agricultural past. It was a different place 250 years ago. People came to enjoy the cleaner air and escape the City of London. It was a major route out of London and was dominated by ... Read More

Kings Cross Ghostsigns – Boots, Breakfast, Bates and Weights

The streets in Islington's most western area, adjacent to Kings Cross station, used to be slathered with signage. On this tour we look at some of the examples that are still visible, whether painted onto walls or as carved panels. Hear about the businesses, brands and people behind the signs – innovative inventions, bogus potions ... Read More

Barnsbury’s Bygone Businesses

A wander from Angel to Caledonian Road following a trail of evocative signage and advertisements for trades and brands of the past in this leafy residential area of Islington. Find out about beer retailers, chemists, instrument makers, garages, hardware, insulation and so much more

Local London Guiding Day

The contribution to the day from Clerkenwell & Islington Guides is: From Archers to Wizards Meeting point: Outside Angel tube station, by the benches in front of NatWest bank, Islington High Street, N1 8XX. Five hundred years of Islington history told through the people who influenced politics and culture. Meet the man who gave us ... Read More

Event Series Canonbury Tower Tour

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 ... Read More

Promenades, Punks, and Pints of Port: Islington’s Lost Entertainments

Angel station

On this two-hour tour we'll be walking through the many ways that Islington has met that most unusual of human needs: the need to have fun. Fun, like all culture, is subject to the whims of fashion, and Islington is littered with traces of activities and institutions that have gone from ubiquity to obscurity. We'll ... Read More

Event Series Canonbury Tower Tour

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 ... Read More

Promenades, Punks, and Pints of Port: Islington’s Lost Entertainments

Angel station

On this two-hour tour we'll be walking through the many ways that Islington has met that most unusual of human needs: the need to have fun. Fun, like all culture, is subject to the whims of fashion, and Islington is littered with traces of activities and institutions that have gone from ubiquity to obscurity. We'll ... Read More

Meet the Guides

Would you like to become a Clerkenwell & Islington tour guide? This is an opportunity to find out more our next Clerkenwell & Islington Tour Guiding course starting in January 2024 and what it's like being a local tour guide. Our guides (including the course tutors) will take you on a taster walk to show ... Read More

Event Series Canonbury Tower Tour

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 ... Read More