How many London landmarks and tourist attractions can you name that start with the Letter W? Blue Badge Tourist Guide Gavin Skerritt continues our Guide London A-Z video series and provides insights on the historical events, famous and not-so-famous landmarks in London starting with the Letter W.

London landmarks and tourist attractions that begin with the Letter W

Hello and welcome to the Guide London A to Z. My name is Gavin Skerritt and I’m a London Blue Badge Tourist Guide, looking at the Letter “W. Now although we are nearing the end of the alphabet, there are still many important sites for us to see. So let’s look at what is considered to be the spiritual centre, not just of London, but of the nation, Westminster Abbey.

Westminster Abbey

With over one thousand years of history, Westminster Abbey is where many of our kings and queens have been crowned. Starting on the 25th of December 1066 with William the Conqueror, taking us all the way up to the first televised coronation in 1953 of her majesty the Queen. It is also where you can see the tombs and memorials of great scientists, writers, composers, inventors, explorers. Westminster Abbey is absolutely jam-packed with memorials and tombs to people, some of which have made a huge impact on the nation. It is also where many of our kings and queens have been buried but another place of royal burial is Windsor Castle.

Windsor Castle

Twenty-five miles west of London, it is the oldest and largest inhabited castle in the world, Windsor Castle. First constructed as a wooden fort in the 11th century by William the Conqueror. It has grown over the centuries into a castle with over one thousand rooms. Today it is one of the official residences of Her Majesty Queen. Highlights include the state apartments where you can see some of the most sumptuous and richly decorated rooms in the castle. Another highlight is St George’s Chapel where in 2018 the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, Megan and Harry were married.

Wimbledon

We move now to an affluent green and leafy suburb of southwest London called Wimbledon. Wimbledon, famous of course for tennis. The Championships, Wimbledon, is the oldest tennis tournament in the world, founded in 1877. Traditionally this is where strawberries and cream are consumed by the spectators. In 2017, spectators officially consumed 34,000 kg of strawberries and 10,000 litres of cream.

Westminster Cathedral

Heading back into central London, we come to another religious building, Westminster Cathedral. The mother church of the Roman Catholic Church in England and Wales. This unusual building with its red and white stripes is made almost entirely from bricks and was completed in 1903. Well, I say completed, when you enter this cavernous building, you will notice that the lower half has a magnificent display of marble and gold along the walls, but when you look above the marble you will see plainly exposed brick arches, looking more like a Victorian railway tunnel, rather than a cathedral. Actually, the interior decoration was never completed and because of this, it has a sort of earthy/mystic/sacred atmosphere inside.

Wembley Stadium

Another building with an atmosphere, a strong atmosphere, can be seen in Wembley, northwest London. Mention Wembley to anyone in the United Kingdom and they will immediately think of football. Because this is where we have the magnificent rebuilt Wembley Stadium completed in 2007 by Norman Foster. It holds up to 90,000 people and is often referred to as the “Home of English Football.” As well as football, you can see rugby, American football, boxing, and rock concerts.

West End

And sticking with the theme of concerts and entertainment, we head finally to the West End. A part of central London which has become the centre of entertainment and shopping. This is where we have a large concentration of shops, bars, restaurants, and nightclubs. but is it perhaps best known for its concentration of theatres, making London one of the great theatre capitals of the world.

These are some of the tourist attractions you can find in London beginning with the Letter W. My name is Gavin Skerritt. Check out my profile at our website guidelondon.org.uk. Please subscribe to our YouTube channel and join us as we explore our A to Z of Guide London.