Category Archives: London

May 12, 2013 · 5:11 pm

London 1927

A few years ago I posted some old colour videos of Mexico City in the 1940s and 1950s. They were fascinating glimpses into the past of the city, and the colour reproduction just made them so much more…je ne sais pas quoi. But you probably know what I mean. I haven’t ever posted any videos of London. Partly because there isn’t an awful lot available in colour. Partly because there something of a proliferation of London videos. Partly because London, when colour film became more common, was a bombed out war zone.

A few days ago a friend emailed me a link to an old London video that’s somewhat unique. It’s old. Real old. As the title of the post suggests, it’s 1927 old. But it is colour film. All of the most famous sites are covered. It’s an awesome video. Fancy a trip back to 1927? Here we go then. Check out just how filthy all those monuments and buildings are though!

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April 18, 2013 · 9:31 pm

Shard and the Skies of London

If you’ve been to these parts before, you might remember my rather scathing post regards the pricing of the Shard for a ride up its elevator, the Shark of Glass. If you’ve been reading my blog for long enough, you might have guessed that eventually my contempt would wilt and I’d cough up. I do like going up things, whether it’s a tower, a monument, a mountain or anything else that offers a view.

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So what’s the ride up the Shard’s elevator like? It’s as ear-popping as the price is eye-popping. It’s a two lift ride that climbs into the sky at 14 miles per hour. It’s a slickly organised ride as well, I might add, with an attractive foyer and well managed queues. Before you know it, you’re climbing a few wooden steps and out onto an enclosed gallery with 360 degree panoramic views across London.

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But the best view is yet to come. There’s another staircase that leads on to a higher viewing gallery, which is partly open to the atmosphere. It was a nice day, not too much wind. But at this height, the winds are that much more fierce, and it’s quite a noise. The video I took, which is below, was shot from a compact camera. So noise is easily picked up. But don’t be fooled into thinking what you can hear is just down to cheap mics. It really does blow a right racket up there.

So. Was it worth £25? It’s a tough call. I don’t think it offers value for money, that’s for sure. But they do seem to be selling plenty of tickets easily enough, for the moment at least. I guess it just comes down to how much you want to see that view. It is a very special view. Unique. On a nice day, perhaps it’s just about worth the entrance fee if you’ve got plenty of time to spare and have seen everything else you wanted to see. I pity those who book well ahead and get nothing but a view of the clouds that regularly inhabit this capital city extraordinaire.

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If you don’t want to pony up quite that much money? There’s always the London Eye. I did that this weekend too. Or St Paul’s Cathedral. Oh yes, I really did treat myself. Thank you Auroras Encore. The London Eye isn’t much cheaper at about £18, and you only get half an hour in a capsule, once you’ve battled through the queues. Although we got an hour long ride this weekend, because we’re special it broke down. Whilst we were at the top. Bonus.

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St Paul’s Cathedral is the shortest building in this trio, but still offers a fairly lofty perch to shoot a photo or two from. Of the three it is the only one where you don’t have to shoot through tinted glass, which helps. Although truth be told, the view from St Paul’s isn’t quite as dramatic. Not least because it’s the one place where you can’t see the most beautiful building in the whole of the city….St Paul’s. But you can’t have it all.

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Rather disappointingly, photography is no longer allowed inside the cathedral, due to crowds gathering under the dome to get their snaps. That’s such a shame. It’d be nice if they’d operate a more friendly photography policy. Perhaps allow people to shoot on weekdays when it’s not so busy. Or place a charge for photography, like many European venues do. I’d have paid a few pounds extra. It;s a win-win situation, for both the visitor and the treasurer.

I did however, take a whole bunch of photos from the three venues. Some of the shots are just so-so. Others are a bit meh. But it’s tough shooting through tinted glass at full zoom to pick out distant objects like Wembley Stadium. Still, the Shard photos are here, the London Eye photos here and the Cathedral photos are here.

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February 3, 2013 · 10:03 pm

Londonscape

I had been thinking of going up the Shard tomorrow. But as one of my previous posts suggested, I was having second thoughts. The pricing, you see. Extortionate. I can confirm, I am not going to go. It turns out that the forecast for tomorrow is cloud. I’m not terribly keen to spend £25 per person to have a close up encounter with cloud. I’m not that fond of seeing cloud from ground level, to be completely frank. I’m not a cloud fan. So no Shard tomorrow. Perhaps another time? Perhaps. The urge to see that view is in strong competition with the urge to boycott the place on principle. But then just look at that photo below. That really is one hell of a view. The Guardian have an interactive 360 degree panorama taken from the Shard. The word spectacular doesn’t come close to serving it justice. This doesn’t surprise me. Views from tall buildings are always spectacular.

London is an incredible city in so many ways. The wealth on show in this snapshot is beyond comprehension. Riverside apartments cost millions. But you can pan left and right and see many different Londons. You don’t have to walk far from Tower Bridge to find yourself in dirt poor London. In a walk of just seven minutes you can go to an area where average life expectancy decreases by seven years compared to that of residents at your starting point. That’s pretty dramatic.

The view from the top of the Shard London panorama of sights and sounds – interactive

Gentrification has been going on a long time. Notting Hill and areas of West London became hip in the 60′s and 70′s. The view points east, down the river. That started to get the treatment in the 1980′s. All those towers of Canary Wharf didn’t exist when I was a child. It was all wasteland, abandoned warehouses and rotting docks. Further away from the river, in the East End stood horrific, crime ridden concrete blocks, built in post war London for the masses. Just a few short years ago this view housed hundreds of thousands of hard up families struggling to stay afloat, browsing the Sun or Mirror in between reading about debt management terms.

‘Genuine’ East Londoners aren’t there in such numbers these days. I’d like to report that the well being and wealth of Londoners is improving. Sadly, the truth is that Londoners are simply being moved out. If the poor were a race, we’d call this ethnic cleansing by economic means. There are a huge number of options for people in debt to utilise these days, plenty of new rights and a lot more support. But that’s come too late for most of them. These days, the view houses people reading the Times or Guardian and writing up debt management plans, ready to sell on the market.  East End apartments are actually excellent value as far as London goes. You can rent a pretty nice, modern one bed for little more than £1000 a month. But a grand is still mightily expensive.

Realistically, for the most basic place, you’re going to need an income of £30,000 as an absolute minimum. The average income in the UK is £26,000. It definitely pays to be a couple. I do wonder if the tightening economy might be the best tool in reducing the divorce rate? Want to see that panorama and go look at the view yourself? Click here, and have a look to see what you can spy hiding behind the palaces, towers and Victorian grandeur along the river.

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January 15, 2013 · 7:45 am

The Shark of Glass

I watched the progress of the Shard, soaring into the London skyline, for about a year. It was half built by the time I first clapped eyes on it. But still, it was fascinating to see how it grew that little bit, each time I visited London. Until progress finally stopped, as completion arrived, not so many months ago. I watched its construction with a tinge of sorrow. I love tall buildings. More to the point, I love being at the top of tall buildings. I have a very healthy fear of heights, but also a desire to clamber on top of things.

I’ve climbed some of the worlds tallest buildings. The Great Pyramid of Giza, in 2000. Well, a few blocks up it. Until a policeman with a gun asked me not to. My journeys up the Pyramids of the Sun and Moon in Mexico were more successful. The Petronas towers in Kuala Lumpar, as far as the sky bridge. The Willis (nee Sears) Tower and Hancock Centre in Chicago. The Empire State Building. The Angel of Independence, Torre Mayor and Torre Latinoamericano in Mexico City. And more. If it’s there, and if I’m allowed, I’ll climb it.

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Yet, even as I watched the crane lift the next piece of the puzzle up to the summit, I knew I’d not get to see the top of the Shard. They did build a viewing gallery. A generously proportioned gallery – why not? It’s not like they’re going to sell or rent much of the place in the current economy. But it’s opening date was so far away. Further away than my departure date. Or so I thought. The latter has been delayed, repeatedly. And now….the Shard is just a couple of weeks away from opening. I’ll be here. It was clearly meant to be.

I’ve been to the website. Clicked on the ‘Book tickets’ button. Entered all my details. Typed in my card number. And then pressed submit…paused. It costs £25 per person. That’s absolutely extortionate. Seriously. Let me put that into perspective. It costs the equivalent of about £13 to go up Willis Tower. The Hancock Centre is free – you just have to buy a drink at the bar. A coke will do. The Empire State Building is a shade over £16. Before anyone mentions any of the more expensive tickets available at any of these locations that surpass the Shards, you should know that if you turn up at the Shard on the day to buy a ticket, you’ll be charged a cool £100.

The capitalist in me accepts the right for a company to charge what it feels the market will pay (although I suspect as time goes by, they might find the market won’t pay), whilst the commie in me finds it just slightly bothersome that a company can get away with such extreme overpricing and social exclusion. The plain old non-political Gary just baulks when he feels he’s being ripped off.

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The Shard is the tallest building in Europe, let alone London. It’s also perfectly placed for decent views of the best of London. It’s unique. But, there are other London summits to ascend. All of them are unique in their own ways. There’s the Harvey Nicks restaurant at the Oxo Tower (photo above). Eat cheap and you’ll get your views of the Thames from the South Bank for £20 for two, plus a little feeding and watering. The active and adventurous could climb over the O2, properly climb over it, for £22 a person.  The famous London Eye is less than £18 per person. Best views of Westminster. Worst queues.

The Nat West Tower, or Tower 42 has some seriously lofty views that are free to see. Providing you book in advance and buy a drink or two. The best value in my list would have to be the Monument. Decent views, a good healthy climb and a certificate at the end of it, all for £3. Lastly, but perhaps the most easily recommended building with a view, is St Pauls Cathedral. Not just a view, but a glorious piece of architecture that oozes history, an enormous whispering dome and it has a crypt full of the good and great to boot. And all of that for a trifling £13. They all put the Shard’s pricing into context. I might just re-christen it the Shark.

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Will I or won’t I? I honestly haven’t decided. Can you imagine the views, and the photographic opportunities?! Awesome. Equally, can you imagine the look of disappointment on my face if I existed the elevator to be greeted with enveloping cloud cover? I have time and sufficient funds. At the same time, my time and funds are limited. I do need to choose what I do carefully, and want to get maximum value. Heck, the Shard should just give me a pair of tickets in exchange for the post I’d write, which by it’s very nature would be as good as an advert!  We’ll have to see. If I go, it’ll be on Monday November 4th. You won’t find out till the following Sunday though. When Mrs P and I return from our holiday. When you’ll also find out if we chose sand or snow…

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December 3, 2012 · 9:12 am

The Wembley Stadium Tour

The old Wembley Stadium, previously known as the Empire Stadium, used to be the closest major football ground to my home. Excluding Vicarage Road in Watford. Refering to that as a major ground is a little bit tenuous. I lived just a half dozen stops on the Met line away, and I saw plenty of games there – mostly England. They knocked the old stadium down in 2000, and built a brand spanking new one which opened in, I think, 2007.

I’d have liked to have seen a game there, but I currently boycott the England team. Supporting your team through thick and thin is fine, but following a team through stupidity and corruption less so. But I wanted to see the new Wembley stadium. There was an American Football game there recently between the Patriots and Rams. I’d have gone had it not been for the exorbitant ticket prices. I don’t have £150 per ticket. There was only one thing for it – the Wembley Stadium Tour. I bought a pair of tickets on Groupon for £16, normal price £32. And off I went.

There’s a lot to do in Wembley. Besides the Stadium there’s also Wembley Arena, Wembley Market and numerous conference centres, that collectively make up what is known as Wembley City. The Arena was also host to Olympics events in the summer, and was originally a swimming pool – the last time anyone took a dip there, though, was back in 1948 and the Austerity Games. Needless to say there’s plenty of hotels in the area too, although I’d recommend the Travelodge hotel near Wembley Arena. For location, quality and price it’s a hard place to beat. You might even see someone famous in the locality too, if you’re lucky. Elton John, George Michael, Depeche Mode, Abba and plenty more artists have strutted their stuff at the Arena, and have been know to go walkabout between shows.

It’s a seriously impressive stadium size wise. Seriously impressive. The tour does, quite frankly drag on a bit. I’d have happily gone through at my own pace in about 30 minutes. Alas, you have to ‘keep up’ with the guide and try and pretend not to get a little bored during the 90 minutes they drag it on for. The guide (Spanish – well, why not – they’re pretty good at footy these days) gave you a ton of trivia. All of which I knew bar three little gems. Spoiler alert: Wembley Stadium boasts more toilets than any other building in the world, and the musical artist to have performed there most times (old and new stadium) was Michael Jackson. Fascinating stuff.

Other key facts? The arch is the biggest single beam roof structure in the world. In Europe, only the Nou Camp in Barcelona holds more spectators (98k as opposed to 97k), although I always wondered why they didn’t just go the extra mile and fit another 3,000 seats to get to the magic 100,000 number. The stadium has also hosted more European Cup/UEFA Champions League finals than any other stadium. It hosted last years final and will also host next years final – it’s the 125th anniversary of the English football league. Naturally, I took a bunch of photos, all available of Flickr – click here.

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