While a certain sporting event in 2012 has transformed the area west of Stratford, the Lower Lea Valley between Stratford and the Thames still retains a post-industrial feel. In this two-hour walk, Rob Smith looks at the industrial heritage of the area and the fantastic Victorian (and earlier) architecture that remains. He will talk about how the Lea was important to the development of London. You will see buildings associated with railways, printing, canals, sewage, mills, shipbuilding and gas supply, and see what is planned in the area for the future.
Guide: Rob Smith
Meet at Stratford Station, Station Street, London E15 1AZ
The Isle of Dogs had a rich history of public housing, including outstanding 1920s Homes for Heroes estates built by radical Poplar councillors in the era before the Docklands Development Corporation initiated a private sector led renewal. Private housing has come to dominate the Island in just a generation, since the creation of Canary Wharf. This walk traces the boundaries between private and public housing in this fascinating tour of the western Isle of Dogs, ending near Mudchute DLR.
Guide: Oonagh Gay
Meet at Heron's Quay DLR Station, London E14 4JB
There’s so much more to Walthamstow than just its famous mile-long Market. The grand tombs in St Mary’s Churchyard offer clues to the area’s history, which is not what you might think. Starting at the award-winning William Morris Gallery, on this walk we will hear about the plagiarist who brought us Sweeney Todd and an interior designer nicknamed “Come and Seduce Me”, see a remnant of a post office designed by Robert Smirke and a theatre hidden within a school, visit the real and original Walthamstow Village with its Ancient House and finish at an industrial estate home to the jaw dropping God’s Own Junkyard, the Wild Card Brewery and the Mother’s Ruin Gin Palace.
Guide: Joanna Moncreiff
Meet at William Morris Gallery (outside front entrance), London E17 4PP
The walk follows the route taken by Charles Booth in 1899 to research his famous poverty maps. Along the way we experience one of London's most vivid high streets and hear tales of Captain Bligh's Bounty expedition, the blitz, the residency of Peter the Great of Russia and the death of Christopher Marlowe. We see the new Market Yard development and discuss the gentrification of the area.
Guide: Sean Patterson
Meet by the Anchor Statue, junction of A2 and Deptford High Street, London SE8 4AD
Part of the Capital Ring circular route round inner London, much of this walk follows London's second greatest river, the River Lea and the Lee Navigation, joining the river at the Horseshoe Bridge, following the towpath by Walthamstow Marshes and Hackney Marshes and finishing by the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park near Hackney Wick Station, offering historical and industrial interest as well as wildlife and water, taking in the railway arch where A V Roe in 1909 achieved the first all-British powered flight, the remains of the filter beds that provided drinking water for East London and an outpost of Eton College.
Guide: Sue McCarthy
Meet at Stoke Newington Station, Stamford Hill, London N16 6YA
In the 1980 classic thriller The Long Good Friday, Bob Hoskins’ character, Harold Shand, gives his view on the future of Docklands: “I believe this is the decade in which London will become Europe's capital. Having cleared away the outdated, we've got mile after mile and acre after acre of land, for our future prosperity. No other city in the world... has got right in its centre, such an opportunity... for profitable progress.” While things don't go well for Harold - his vision of the future proves fairly accurate and the old docks are redeveloped and London does host the Olympics. On this walk, Rob visits many of the East London locations from the film -- some recognisable, some changed beyond Harold's wildest dreams -- and also talks about the recent history of Docklands that brought the changes about.
Guide: Rob Smith
Meet at Tower Hill Tube Station, Trinity Square, EC3N 4DJ
The walk follows the route taken by Charles Booth in 1898 to research his famous poverty maps. Along the way we experience one of London's most historic and vibrant quarters, coloured by 400 years of immigration. The voices of writers such as Jack London, Israel Zangwill and Samuel Pepys vie with contemporary accounts to paint a picture of a constantly changing environment and population. As the City of London encroaches onto the ancient land of Spitalfields we discuss the implications for present and future populations.
Guide: Sean Patterson
Meet in Middle of Altab Ali Park, Adler St, Aldgate East, London E1
This two-hour walk looks at the exteriors of very different buildings, all built during the 20th Century. From the Edwardian splendour of the former public baths, a school designed by Erno Goldfinger, a factory that made aircraft landing lights, to more recent works like the Geffrye Museum Extension. Guide Rob Smith will talk about the buildings and some of the social history context in which they were built.
Guide: Rob Smith
Meet at Hoxton Overground Station, Geffrye Street, E2 8FF
Ada Salter was the first female mayor in London and the first Labour woman mayor in the British Isles. With her husband, local doctor and MP Dr Alfred Salter, she made a significant impact on health, housing, employment and labour relations, helping to make Bermondsey world famous for its flowers and its Garden City estate, still occupied today. Find out about the legacy of Ada on this charming riverside walk, which tells her story from the Bermondsey Uprising of women jam factory workers in 1911, to her years as a pacifist in the First World War, and her radical policies as Bermondsey Councillor.
Guide: Sue McCarthy
Meet at Bermondsey Station, London SE16 4RX
Roughly following the line of the Greenwich Meridian from the Bow Back Rivers at Pudding Mill Lane, this East London walk traces the industrial heritage of the lower Lea Valley from fine porcelain in the 18th century, through gasworks, gin, cosmetics and explosives to film studios. As we go we follow part of The Line, London's first dedicated modern and contemporary art walk. We finish at the now green oasis of Gasworks Dock with the chance for refreshments before a short walk to Star Lane DLR station.
Guide: Sue McCarthy
Meet at Pudding Mill Lane DLR Station, London E15 2NH
Roughly following the line of the Greenwich Meridian from the Bow Back Rivers at Pudding Mill Lane, this East London walk traces the industrial heritage of the lower Lea Valley from fine porcelain in the 18th century, through gasworks, gin, cosmetics and explosives to film studios. As we go we follow part of The Line, London's first dedicated modern and contemporary art walk. We finish at the now green oasis of Gasworks Dock with the chance for refreshments before a short walk to Star Lane DLR station.
Guide: Sue McCarthy
Meet at Pudding Mill Lane DLR Station, London E15 2NH
Ada Salter was the first female mayor in London and the first Labour woman mayor in the British Isles. With her husband, local doctor and MP Dr Alfred Salter, she made a significant impact on health, housing, employment and labour relations, helping to make Bermondsey world famous for its flowers and its Garden City estate, still occupied today. Find out about the legacy of Ada on this charming riverside walk, which tells her story from the Bermondsey Uprising of women jam factory workers in 1911, to her years as a pacifist in the First World War, and her radical policies as Bermondsey Councillor.
Guide: Sue McCarthy
Meet at Bermondsey Station, London SE16 4RX
In the 1980 classic thriller The Long Good Friday, Bob Hoskins’ character, Harold Shand, gives his view on the future of Docklands: “I believe this is the decade in which London will become Europe's capital. Having cleared away the outdated, we've got mile after mile and acre after acre of land, for our future prosperity. No other city in the world... has got right in its centre, such an opportunity... for profitable progress.” While things don't go well for Harold - his vision of the future proves fairly accurate and the old docks are redeveloped and London does host the Olympics. On this walk, Rob visits many of the East London locations from the film -- some recognisable, some changed beyond Harold's wildest dreams -- and also talks about the recent history of Docklands that brought the changes about.
Guide: Rob Smith
Meet at Tower Hill Tube Station, Trinity Square, EC3N 4DJ
Blackwall in London’s Docklands has as much maritime history as Greenwich – it’s just that you have to look a bit harder to find it. In this two-hour walk, Rob Smith uses fragments of the old dockyard and street names to tell the story of the East India Company, who made Blackwall their home for almost 250 years. You will hear stories of bravery, greed and ingenuity. The walk also visits the Leamouth Peninsula, one of the most unusual places on the Thames with a maritime history of its own. Rob will also tell the stories of some of the ships built in the famous Blackwall Yard and you’ll hear how Blackwall is at the heart of communications in the 21st century.
Guide: Rob Smith
Meet at East India DLR Station
This walk looks at three pieces of engineering that have influenced East London history, threading its way through an area that has slowly been evolving for the last 30 years. The Royal Docks were the largest docks in the world when built. We will look at their construction, the goods that were traded there, and hear about the docks in wartime and the numerous plans for redevelopment since their decline. The Thames Barrier, built as a response to the horrendous floods of 1953, today keeps London safe without many Londoners giving it a second thought. We’ll view it from Thames Barrier Park, one of London's best kept secrets. We’ll then see some of London's largest surviving factories, before finishing with an optional but recommended trip across the Thames on the Woolwich Ferry, one of London's last genuinely retro experiences.
Guide: Rob Smith
Meet at Emirates Airline Royal Docks Terminal
One of a series following the Thames from London looking at industrial, maritime and military history, this walk takes in an area that was once dominated by the testing grounds of the Royal Woolwich Arsenal. We'll walk along canals that were once used for carrying gunpowder, see the site of storage facilities for cordite, land where tanks were tested and a stretch of water once used for testing torpedoes. This stretch of the Thames features a dangerous bend called Tripcock Ness – we’ll go past a lighthouse which still marks the area, and hear tales from the river. In the 1960s, the area was built on to create a New Town within the boundaries of London - Thamesmead. We’ll look at the idealism of the plan and how Thamesmead is developing today. The walk also visits Medieval Lesnes Abbey, before finishing at Abbey Wood station.
Guide: Rob Smith
Meet at Plumstead Station, Walmer Terrace
Dagenham is instantly associated with the huge Ford factory that opened in 1931. However, the Dagenham Dock has an industrial history going back to the early 1800's. This walk will look at a complex history that includes explosives manufacturing, shipbuilding and power generation. You'll get to see the site where the last battleship built on the Thames was completed, London's other flood relief barrier, oil storage depots, scrapyards and a fantastic stretch of the Thames which is an empty white patch on the A-Z. This is a longer walk - around 5 miles - but fans of Patrick Keiller's Robinson films, and Iain Sinclair's books will enjoy being in this extremely off the beaten track part of London.
Guide: Rob Smith
Meet at Dagenham Dock Station, Chequers Lane
One of Rob Smith’s series of walks along the Thames going East, this takes us from Rainham where we'll visit the gardens of Rainham Hall - a house built by a ship’s captain who operated his shipping fleet from the village when it was a busy port – before crossing the site of a former military training camp until we reach the Thames, where we'll look at the history of industry in the area. Then it is a peaceful stroll along the Thames through an area that is now an RSPB nature reserve but once rattled to the sound of machine gun fire. The walk ends in Purfleet which used to be a popular destination for day trippers and Dracula!
Guide: Rob Smith
Meet at Rainham Station, Ferry Lane, London RM13 9HY
