Karen Sharpe

Lions in London

Lions are first mentioned in London at the Tower Menagerie in the reign of King John in 1216 and since that time they have not left the city until now.

ZSL London Zoo is building a brand new, 2,500sqm lion enclosureand so its current resident lionesses Ruby, Heidi and Indi will be relocated to a private home at ZSL Whipsnade Zoo, Bedfordshire, while the work is being undertaken. Lucifer, the male, was permanently moved to Paignton Zoo earlier this year – it means that London Zoo will unfortunately be without lions for the first time in living memory until the new exhibit is unveiled in 2016.

London Zoo: Asian Lions

Asian lion at the London Zoo. Photo: ©ZLS London Zoo.

END

Would you like to explore London and beyond with a highly qualified and enthusiastic Blue Badge Tourist Guide?  Use our Guide Match service to find the perfect one for you!

 

Karen Sharpe

I was born in London and have lived there for most of my life although I have now ‘decamped’ to what is known as the suburbs.
I have worked for an antiques removal/shipping company before joining the Metropolitan Police Force where I enjoyed a varied career for 14years. Since leaving I followed up…

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

You may also like

Waterloo Sunset

My friend Phil Coppell, a Liverpool Blue Badge Tourist Guide, tells me that he took Ray Davies a member of the English rock band The Kinks on a Beatles tour some years ago. He queued up and paid for his ticket like everyone else and, during the tour, mentioned that he had originally set his song Waterloo Sunset in Liverpool but the line ‘Mersey Sunset’ did not scan and he moved it to London. He had always had a soft spot for Liverpool and said that whenever The Kinks played at the Cavern or other venues they always had a great reception.

Read more

10 Things That May Surprise You About London's West End - Theatreland

London is a "world class" city on many levels, and attracts visitors for a wide variety of reasons, and none more so than for its theatrical reputation, credentials and concentration of West End theatres, known as "Theatreland." Today there are well over sixty theatres both large and small located in a fairly tight geographical area.

Read more