Blog

  • Uncovering the Secrets of the Old Royal Naval College in Greenwich

    This year is a very good time to visit the spectacular Old Royal Naval College (ORNC), right in the heart of Greenwich, especially if you love royal and maritime history and architecture. In 2023 we are celebrating Wren 300. This is a commemoration of 300 years since the death of the great architect of the ORNC, Sir Christopher Wren, who gave his time for free when the building was commissioned in 1694. So what is the ORNC, and why should you include it on a visit to London?

  • Upon The Roof: Ten Places To See London From On High

    Many visitors to London like to see the city from on high and several attractions give them the opportunity to do so. The London Eye and the viewing platform at The Shard are two of the capital’s most popular attractions, while One New Change and the Sky Garden attract people who do not wish to pay an entrance fee or wait in line to look at London from high up. Other towers, such as Arcelor Mittal Orbit in the Olympic Park and The Monument to the Great Fire, may not attract so many visitors but are important parts of London’s skyline.

  • History of Canterbury Cathedral

    Canterbury Cathedral covers 1,400 years of history and is today the seat of the Archbishop of Canterbury, the spiritual head of the Church of England. Once one of the major pilgrimage sites in England until the Reformation in the 16th century. Today the Cathedral is renowned as having some of the finest Medieval stained glass in the country as well as being one of the great Gothic style architectural buildings dating mainly from the 11th-16th century.

  • 10 Events During The English Summer Social Season

    “The Season” always fascinates visitors to England. An endless whirl of summer events where it’s just as important who to be seen with as to actually have fun. We asked Sophie Campbell, Blue Badge Tourist Guide and author of The Season: A Summer Whirl Through the English Social Season to give us her unique perspective on this most English of traditions.

  • Exploring the British Line of Succession: From Glorious Revolution to Gender Equality

    The United Kingdom has a new king, King Charles III, who will be crowned this May in Westminster Abbey in a tradition dating back over 1000 years. But the King needed no Coronation to take his place as this county’s head of state, his elevation to the throne was automatic under the laws of succession, becoming King instantly upon the death of his mother, the late Queen Elizabeth II.

  • Discovering London’s Hidden Depths: The Joseph Bazalgette Sewer System & The Thames Tideway

    Tourist guides are normally concerned with what is above ground, but London also has a fascinating underground story. As well as the famous buildings you can see on the surface – Westminster Abbey, Saint Paul’s Cathedral, Buckingham Palace, and the Tower of London – London has a network of underground sewers and rivers that repay close attention.

Blog Posts

Guide London A to Z: Letter R

Guide London A – Z: Letter R London Landmarks And Tourist Attractions

How many London landmarks and tourist attractions can you name that start with the Letter R? Blue Badge Tourist Guide Justin Roxburgh 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 R.

Read more
Christ among the Doctors oil on panel by Albrecht Dürer 1506. Photo Credit: © © Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza, Madrid via National Gallery in London.

Albrecht Durer Exhibition at the National Gallery in London

A blockbuster exhibition at the National Gallery traces the travels of Albrecht Dürer (1471-1528), the ‘Apelles of the black line’ as Erasmus called him. These journeys were principally to cities along the Rhine (1490-4), twice to Venice (1505-7), and the Netherlands (1520-21). No other artist has produced a comparable body of work from the experience of travel. Like the landmark self-portrait of 1500, which evokes Christ (above) Durer’s art signals a self-awareness that crosses frontiers.

Read more
Guide London A to Z: Letter Q

Guide London A – Z: Letter Q London Landmarks And Tourist Attractions

How many London landmarks and tourist attractions can you name that start with the Letter Q? Blue Badge Tourist Guide Emily Lawrence Baker 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 Q.

Read more
London blue plaque for Russell Henderson. Photo Credit: © Ursula Petula Barzey.

London Blue Plaques Commemorating Historical & Famous Residents

There are nearly a thousand blue plaques commemorating famous people who have lived in London. The modern plaque was designed by an unnamed student of the Central School of Arts and Crafts in 1938 who was paid just four guineas (£4.20) for it. Each blue plaque is nineteen inches in diameter and is crafted by ceramicists Frank and Sue Ashworth, who are based in the county of Cornwall rather than the capital.

Read more
Guide London A to Z: Letter P

Guide London A – Z: Letter P London Landmarks And Tourist Attractions

How many London landmarks and tourist attractions can you name that start with the Letter P? Blue Badge Tourist Guide Hamish Carroll 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 P.

Read more
Guide London A to Z: Letter O

Guide London A – Z: Letter O London Landmarks And Tourist Attractions

How many London landmarks and tourist attractions can you name that start with the Letter O? Blue Badge Tourist Guide Nigel Haynes 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 O.

Read more
Guide London A to Z: Letter N

Guide London A – Z: Letter N London Landmarks And Tourist Attractions

How many London landmarks and tourist attractions can you name that start with the Letter N? Blue Badge Tourist Guide Tomasz Haber 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 N.

Read more
Henri Matisse L’Escargot (1953). Photo Credit: © Richard Jones.

Famous Paintings At Tate Modern Art Gallery In London

The Tate Modern in Southwark has become one of the most popular museums in the world since it was converted from its former use as a power station and opened by the Queen in 2000. It is one of four galleries in Britain created from the legacy of the sugar entrepreneur Henry Tate. These are the original Tate Gallery (now Tate Britain), Tate St Ives and Tate Liverpool.

Read more
Guide London A to Z: Letter M

Guide London A – Z: Letter M London Landmarks And Tourist Attractions

How many London landmarks and tourist attractions can you name that start with the Letter M? Blue Badge Tourist Guide Mark Conroy 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 M.

Read more
Harrison H4 clockwork, at the Royal Observatory, Greenwich. Photo Credit: © Mike Peel via Wikimedia Commons.

John Harrison H4 – World’s Most Important Clock Can Be Seen In Greenwich, London

Which is the most important clock in the world? Many visitors to London would answer ‘Big Ben,’ even though this is officially the name of the bell behind it rather than the clock itself. However, as a London blue badge guide, I would say that the world’s most important timepiece is the John Harrison H4 which can be seen in the Greenwich Royal Observatory museum near where the Prime Meridian is marked on the ground.

Read more
A Dance to the Music of Time, 1640, Wallace Collection, London. Photo Credit: © Public Domain.

Poussin And The Dance Exhibition At The National Gallery In London

Paintings of dancing maenads, maidens, and a cavorting Bacchus in beautifully choreographed compositions are the subject of this themed exhibition which will be at the National Gallery from 9th October to 2nd January next year. Dance – both secular and religious – is one of the great themes in Western Art.

Read more
James Bond 007 Film - Dr No

James Bond Quiz Questions | 20 Trivia Questions on the 007 Books & Films

With the new James Bond 007 movie Spectre starring Daniel Craig set for release on 26 October, we thought we’d put together a quiz.  Specifically, below are ten questions each about the James Bond 007 books and films.  How many will you answer correctly?  

Read more