When industrial Hackney Wick declined the artists moved in. Across the River Lea institutions including the V&A, Sadlers Wells, BBC and Universities are transforming the area. Our walk follows Carpenters Road from Stratford through the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park to Hackney Wick. On the way there is sculpture and street art, a memorial to the victims of 9/11 and intriguing glimpses of the area's industrial past.
Guide: Sue McCarthy
Meet at Stratford Underground Station, 99 Gibbins Road, London E15 2HU
Shadwell, developed to equip ships for imperial interests and explorations in the Age of Sail, was home to wealthy merchants and many small businesses. To make those possible, large numbers of ordinary folk provided services, making the area a multicultural hub where escaping slaves hid out, fed-up sailors started new lives, river pirates spied opportunities and women provided the comforts of home in lodging-houses, taverns and brothels. Of course, women were also seamen, pirates, slaves and merchants. Outsiders came to experience the many opium-dens that were standard places of unwinding for seafarers. Shadwell Basin is the only one left of three early docks located in the area. On this walk we pass remnants of all these phenomena as well as river stairs, imposing warehouses, green spaces, the Thames Path and numerous appealing pubs.
Guide: Laura Agustín
Meet at Shadwell Overground Station, outside exit on Cornwall Street, London E1 2QE
Wood Street was known for its early film studios but there is so much more to discover in this area of Walthamstow. On this circular walk which traverses some of the area known at one time as 'On the Forest' we will seek out evidence of lost pubs, the lost film studios and several lost mansions - one former mansion still stands. We will walk down a path which dates back several centuries, visit a churchyard with some fascinating stories to tell and find a hidden mural and a hidden garden. Some of this walk covers uneven ground and forest paths so please wear appropriate shoes.
Guide: Joanna Moncreiff
Meet at Wood Street Station, London
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 Having cleared away the outdated, we've got mile after mile and acre after acre of land, for our future prosperity.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 Guided 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
There's more to Barking than you might think. Join Sue to find out more. This circular walk takes us past landmarks associated with its medieval abbey, its once huge fishing fleet, the noxious industries and civic pride of the 19th and 20th centuries, right up to today's riverside regeneration. Along the way we learn where Capt. Cook was married and where a local suffragette entertained Mrs Pankhurst. We find out what links prison reformer Elizabeth Fry to Barking's stunning Sikh temple and why there is a memorial to the victims of asbestosis.
Guide: Sue McCarthy
Meet at Barking Station, Station Parade, London IG11 8TU
The Royal Group of Docks in East London were one of the largest engineering projects in London's history. Comprising The Royal Victoria, Albert and King George V Docks, when built, they were also the largest enclosed body of water in the world. They still make an imposing sight - 12 miles of waterfront undergoing redevelopment. This 50-minute Virtual Walk via Zoom tells their story. Your guide, Rob Smith, will show slides about the building of the docks, the people who built them, the technical advances that had a huge impact on London's economy, and the factories that were built alongside them. Rob will look at the communities that worked in the docks, how they struggled to improve working conditions and how they faced challenges like the Silvertown explosion of 1917 and the Blitz. You will hear about the decline of the docks and the long-running plans to redevelop them, and get to see heritage features that remain today so you can go and explore for yourself.
Virtual Guide: Rob Smith
Online Event
In 1601 Sir James Lancaster left London on the first voyage of the East India Company which, over the following 250 years, became one of the most powerful companies the world has ever seen, controlling the fate of millions of people, wielding its own army and dominating trade with South and East Asia. It was Britain's first multinational company and its effects on London were immense. This virtual walk with Rob Smith on Zoom will show you some of the legacy of the East India Company today, and where you can find them, in East London and beyond, including large houses like Danson House, parks like Wanstead and East India Company Warehouses in the City at Devonshire Square. Rob will look at how street names around the old East India Docks have a connection to the East India Company and where you can find connections to them in Croydon. There will be a look at East India Company objects can be found in museums and even in the Crown Jewels.
Virtual Guide: Rob Smith
Online Event
Using old maps and photographs as we walk, with a chance for questions and discussion, this walk from East India DLR Station to Canary Wharf looks at the East India Company and the ruthless sugar traders that built warehouses in the area around Canary Wharf using profits made from the labour of enslaved Africans. You'll see what is left of the East and West India docks, built for sailing ships in the early 1800's.
Guide: Rob Smith
Meet at East India DLR Station, Aspen Way, London E14 9GF
This walk with Rob Smith from Royal Victoria Dock to Pontoon Dock looks at the vast Royal group of docks, built for steamships by entrepreneur engineers and at some of the industry that was created by the docks. Rob will also talk about the dock workers strike of 1889 and the creation of the Port of London Authority. One of a series of walks by Rob covering different periods in the development of the Port of London from the Romans to Canary Wharf, uncovering some of the legacy of the Port of London through street names, mooring posts, cranes, plaques etc. and using old maps and photographs.
Guide: Rob Smith
Meet at Royal Victoria DLR Station, Seagull Lane, London E16 1BZ
