Sculpture in the City is back along with a fun new pop-up shop in Leadenhall Market. If you work nearby scroll down to the end of this blog for more details – you won’t be disappointed. Here’s a hint of what’s in store …
Let’s look at some sculpture first, and I shall include the explanatory plaques that accompany the works. This is just a selection – go to the website for full details.
I’ll start with the seriously weird at Aldgate Square EC3N 1AF …
Onward now to others starting with Summer Moon at Undershaft EC3A 8AH (Next to St Helen’s Church) …
I love the texture …
… and the location …
Sandwich at Undershaft, EC2N 4AJ (In front of Crosby Square) …
Rough Neck Business at 100 Bishopsgate EC2M 1GT …
Orphans at Cullum Street EC3M 7JJ …
Burial at St Botolph-without-Bishopsgate Churchyard EC2M 3TL …
Cosmos at Undershaft EC3P 3DQ (Between Aviva and the Leadenhall Building) …
Untitled at 70 St Mary Axe EC3A 8BE …
Generations (Part2) at The Leadenhall Building EC3V 4AB …
Miss at the corner of Bishopsgate & Wormwood Street EC2M 3XD …
And finally The Granary at Cunard Place EC3A 5AR …
Now for something completely different and lighthearted.
The fantastic Monster Supplies Company has opened a pop-up store in Leadenhall Market only a few steps from the Lamb Tavern …
Train strike day – no problem! Just grab a very reasonably priced flying broomstick and soar above the traffic as you head home …
The store was packed with visitors when I called in yesterday …
With Halloween coming up, and Christmas not far behind, there are lots of wacky present opportunities …
Kids seemed to love items with rather disgusting or gruesome names …
These are difficult times so pop along to Leadenhall Market. I guarantee you will feel more cheerful after your visit and maybe come away with Hope and Laughter …
The shop is open Tuesday to Friday from 11:00am to 6:00pm. If you can’t visit in person for any reason you can buy online here.
All proceeds from sales go to support the wonderful Ministry of Stories charity, a creative writing and mentoring centre for young people in Hackney aged 8 to 18. You could also visit their store in Hoxton which I have written about before in my blog entitled, not surprisingly, A visit to the Monster Supplies Store.
If you would like to follow me on Instagram here is the link …
Bright sun, fluffy clouds, blue sky – just right for taking pictures. I decided to photograph some of the City’s newer buildings and see if I could make them look good – even the boring, ugly ones.
Here are the results.
I’ll start with everyone’s favourite …
The Gherkin, with the Guild Church of St Katharine Cree in the foreground.
I’ve been looking through my archive and some of these images made me smile when I came across them. I hope they cheer you up as well in these difficult times.
This notice is from the Inns of Court – home to distinguished members of the legal profession – and is placed at the entrance to the Inner Temple Garden …
What, I wondered, would a resident dog do for a living?
Maybe a judge …
Or perhaps a barrister …
I’m sure neither of them would be guilty of ‘fouling’.
Disconcerting message in Islington …
Yes, we’re prepared, we’ve got some wine in (although that’s probably not necessary).
Sign at a take-away food shop in Eastcheap …
Seems unfair that pigeons are banned even when they want to pay!
Although eating too much could mean you needing these people …
Bad railway news might be more palatable if delivered by a seagull wearing a hard hat and high-viz jacket …
Made me laugh …
Improvised directions …
If you are fencing off a large area for redevelopment work it pays to deploy some humour …
I’m sure the British Transport Police didn’t intend this suspicious character to look a bit like Priti Patel …
On Moorgate …
Especially the ones riding on the pavement.
Quite amusing …
Slightly spooky hotel signage …
I’ll drink to that …
Message from the local osteopath …
Classic public loo design …
But not much use if you’re ‘caught short’ nowadays …
There’s not much you’re allowed to do on the Barbican Highwalk. I like the trumpet and the iPod …
Bad doggy!
Note the cunning alteration here …
If you’re lonely in Bournemouth you can chat with the telescope …
Alongside Smithfield Market …
Bibulous monks outside the Blackfriar pub …
The facade of St Martin’s House at 1 Gresham Street is a delight …
Dating from 1891 it incorporates a wonderfully happy, smiling Mr Sun …
What also makes it charming is the rogue apostrophe ….
Surely it should read St Martin’s House?
Brenden Bracken worked for Winston Churchill during the War …
So the Zodiacal clock on the building named after him incorporates Churchill’s face …
Onward to London Wall. St Olave Silver Street was totally destroyed in the Great Fire of 1666 but its little churchyard lives on. A much weathered 17th century stone plaque records the terrible event …
This was the Parish Church of St Olave Silver street, destroyed by the dreadful fire in the year 1666.
Silver Street itself was annihilated in the Blitz and erased completely by post-war development and traffic planning.
I have, of course, collected quite a few ghost signs …
Classic pointing finger with smart shirt and cufflink …
Another pointed finger (this time it looks like with thumb extended) …
This sign on the wall of St Andrew by the Wardrobe is gradually disappearing. Eventually no one will know that the key for the fire ladder is kept with the Sexton at nearby 52 Carter Lane …
I took this picture three years ago …
Wardrobe Place is a little oasis of calm that escaped the Blitz …
This sign on the far wall harks back to before the war when this area was a centre for printing and print materials …
It reads Snashall & Son. Printers, Stationers and Account Book Manufacturers.
Here’s a picture I took five years ago so it has faded a bit …
Some attractive and imposing signage has, of course, just vanished. This business on the Commercial Road was still going strong 20 years ago …
Now both it and evidence of its existence have disappeared …
Walking along Carter Lane I looked up and saw this engraving …
Rather mysteriously, this is part of the coat of arms of Prince Edward Island …
The motto translates as The small under the protection of the great and dates from 1769. You can read more about its history here.
I like these two post boxes on St Andrew’s Hill (now sadly out of use and painted black) …
The box on the left is Edward VII (1901 – 1910) and on the right is George V (1910 – 1936).
I also like the design of this water fountain beside St Paul’s Cathedral and the pretty sign above it …
And finally, a massive vote of thanks to Cubitts the opticians.
The little shop on the corner of Cheapside and Wood Street used to look like this until the 1990s …
Then it became a card shop and all the quaint old signage was painted over …
Now Cubitts have taken over the building and arranged for a nice restoration job (although the lovely glass that once graced the door has probably been lost forever) …
The magnificent London Plane tree that you can see in most of the pictures stands 70 feet high and is protected by a City ordinance which also limits the height of the shops …
The little garden at the back of the shop used to be the churchyard of St Peter Westcheap (also known as St Peter Cheap) which was destroyed in the Great Fire and not rebuilt. The railings incorporate an image of St Peter. In his lap and above his head are the Keys to the Kingdom of Heaven …
The plaque in the churchyard attached to the shop’s northern wall confirms the age of the building, an early example of the reconstruction after the Great Fire of 1666 …
You can read more about this corner of the City and its history in my blog. A shop, a tree and a poem.
I hope you enjoyed that little trip to my image archive.
Last week I took a walk along the path south of the river and saw some interesting sights which I will revisit in a future blog …
If you would like to follow me on Instagram here is the link …
After my brief visit last week I said I’d write about Waterloo Station again.
In 1899 London & South Western Railway (as the London & Southampton had become) sought permission to completely rebuild and expand the existing station which dated from 1848.
The old station …
As the rebuild was drawing to a close, and as a memorial to their staff that died in the First World War, the LSWR commissioned the Victory Arch. It was designed by J R Scott, their chief architect, and this was his vision for it …
Made of Portland stone and bronze it depicts War and Peace, with Britannia holding the torch of liberty above. Leading from Station Approach onto the concourse, the Victory Arch forms the main entrance to Waterloo …
There are 585 names listed alphabetically on four large panels …
The most famous battle of the Napoleonic War, fought on 18th June 1815 after which the station is named, is commemorated on the upper level inside the station. The plaque was erected to acknowledge the battle’s 2ooth anniversary …
Pretty stained glass above what was once a station exit …
Early 20th century architecture meets 21st century retail …
More architectural detail. It would have been very high up and just below the roof in the original station …
Water damage …
Some previous destinations …
‘The Sunbathers’ …
‘Meet me under the clock’ …
I have gathered some images showing how the concourse has changed over the years.
A wonderful 1948 centenary poster incorporating a watercolour by Helen McKie. If you can, use magnification to admire the detail in the little figures …
An image from 1964 …
A painting by Terence Cuneo depicting the station in 1967 …
And specially for my Gooner subscribers (I know there are a few!) …
Supporters at Waterloo Station on their way to an F A Cup tie at against Portsmouth at Fratton Park, 13th February 1932. (Photo by S. R. Gaiger/Topical Press/Getty Images). Aren’t they dressed smartly – ties, suits and everyone has polished their shoes. The guy on the left looks particularly dapper.
Here are some images I took from outside the station.
Old signage across the road opposite the taxi queue …
I like the way it incorporates a picture of the famous clock …
Great ghost sign …
Wartime bomb damage …
Across the road …
071 ceased to be the London dialing code over 25 years ago.
Finally, I couldn’t resist including these pictures …
Abba at Waterloo in 1974, the year they won the Eurovision Song Contest with a song of the same name.
Listen to the song here on the official Abba website. You may like it even if you weren’t born in 1974!
If you would like to follow me on Instagram here is the link …
This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.
Strictly Necessary Cookies
Strictly Necessary Cookie should be enabled at all times so that we can save your preferences for cookie settings.
If you disable this cookie, we will not be able to save your preferences. This means that every time you visit this website you will need to enable or disable cookies again.
