Last summer I headed out to do the two harbours walk from Folkestone to Dover in Kent, partly following the North Downs Way. This beautiful coastal walk follows the chalk cliffs with stunning views across the Channel ending at the famous white cliffs of Dover. We pass the Martello towers, Abbots Cliff Sound Mirror, Battle of Britain War Memorial, Samphire Hoe and Shakespeare Cliff. I have to say this was one of the most picturesque walks I’ve done anywhere in the world.
The pints in a hotel bar with my Dad and sister at the end were decent as well.
This links to the walk I did from Folkestone in 2022 to visit the Hythe Sound Mirrors.
Welcome to New London is not just a book about a city; it’s a vivid, personal account of a city in flux, where the author’s passion for exploration and his commitment to bearing witness to change converge.
Our host for the evening, Travis Elborough, is described by The Guardian as ‘one of the country’s finest pop culture historians’. Travis has been a freelance writer, author, broadcaster and cultural commentator for over two decades now and his well-loved books include Wish You Were Here: England on Sea, The Long-Player Goodbye, a hymn to vinyl records that inspired the BBC4 documentary When Albums Ruled the World, Through the Looking Glasses: The Spectacular Life of Spectacles and Atlas of Vanishing Places, winner of Edward Stanford Travel Book Award in 2020. He is a regular host and cherished author at our Crow events. Tickets £5 (include a drink) https://booksellercrow.co.uk/shop/john-rogers-with-travis-elborough-event/
As we start to sense the possibility of Spring, plans for future walks start to take on a new tone of intent. One such plan is to pick up the trail of this enlightening walk exploring a dramatic stretch of the River Medway in Kent from Gillingham to Rainham with the brilliant Professor Kate Spencer. Last summer, we started at Strand Leisure Park, then passed Horrid Hill, Bloors Wharf, Eastcourt Woods and Otterham Creek. Kate is an expert of estuarine environments and in this video we learn about the specific ecosystem of the Medway estuary and its industrial past. This route also follows the Saxon Shore Way. Expect the next instalment some time in Spring.
A late afternoon wander across Wanstead Flats across traces of ancient usage and possible Roman routes.
Resist the lure of The Golden Fleece, where I haven’t been for years, and get drawn down The Chase that appears as a remnant of old country Forest Gate.
Loop around Alexandra Lake through sunset into gloom and to The Red Lion and a few magickal pages of Alan Moore’s Voices of the Fire.
A freezing cold night in January I found myself ensconced in the Thameside Inn having stumbled upon the ruins of the Bishop of Winchester’s Palace in the narrow lanes near Borough Market. Supping a pint of Adnam’s Ghost Ship from Southwold, I looked across the river at the City lights reflecting in the Thames and the flashing blue lights on the ferry coming in to dock at London Bridge. I must make a video of this short deeply storied strip of the river between London Bridge and Blackfriars Bridge, I resolved as I lined up the second pint.
A couple of weeks later a friend and former colleague messaged me to say that I had to visit Hopton’s Almshouses just behind Tate Modern, a rare secluded gem hidden amongst the rush and tear of Southwark. This is what gave me the final push to go and shoot the Bankside stroll in this video.
The Route: Crossing Blackfriars Bridge we first visit Hopton’s Almhouses built in the 17th Century. Then we pass through Tate Modern and then Cardinal’s Wharf where Sir Christopher Wren stayed during the rebuilding of St Paul’s Cathedral. Next door is Shakespeare’s Globe theatre, a reconstruction of the famous Elizabethan theatre. We pass along Bear Alley the site of a Tudor Bear pit and into Park Street where we find the sites of the Rose Theatre and the original Globe Theatre. Our Bankside amble then passes the notorious Clink Prison and the ruins of the Bishop of Winchester’s Palace before ending at the reconstruction of the Golden Hinde ship famously skippered by Sir Francis Drake on circumnavigations of the globe.
Stumbled across this fascinating video on YouTube about Josh Charow’s photography book ‘Loft Law. The Last of New York City’s Original Artist Lofts’. “The law, enacted in 1982 (Article 7-C of the Multiple Dwelling Law), granted protection and rent stabilization to thousands of artists who were living illegally in commercial and manufacturing zoned lofts in neighborhoods like Soho, Tribeca, and the Bowery after the manufacturing industry predominantly left Manhattan.
Two years ago, he found a map of the remaining protected buildings, rang hundreds of doorbells, and photographed and interviewed over 75 artists who are still living in these incredible lofts to this day. The photographs explore some of the most unique beautiful, and hidden artist studios across New York City. The book includes writing and personal stories from the incredible group of artists featured in the book.”
It’s particularly poignant to watch this at a time when artists are really struggling for affordable spaces in London – not just to work but to live (like everybody else) – with what studio spaces that are created as a product of newbuilds being shortlife. It made me think of the artist community that once thrived in Leytonstone before the M11 Link Road was built.