Visit London


Visit London.
Although I was born in London in the balmy summer of 1978, my family moved out to rural Buckinghamshire when I was a young child. And that was that, we never looked back.
I eventually lived all over the UK, only really making it back to the capital for sporadic visits to catch up with family and friends. And of course to go and watch my beloved Queens Park Rangers.

Visit London.
Later, I left the UK altogether for a life travelling the world. Every few years or so, usually in between various work contracts, I’d find myself back in Britain for a catch up.
These brief trips would always include a visit to London. To gorge on my favourite foods. Eavesdrop and perfectly comprehend the snippets of conversations I caught on the street and on The Underground. To reconnect, if you will, with a sense of lost Englishness.

Visit London.
Finally, over the course of the spring, summer and autumn of 2019, I got round to doing something I’d never truly done before. Actually live in London.
It wasn’t planned, it just kind of happened. Unsure of my long term future plans, my old friend Henry in Tooting Bec offered me the chance to live at his place. “Stay as long as you want” he said, with typical Henry nonchalance.

Visit London: Tooting Bec Common.
Thus it came to be that I got to know my home city like never before. I explored the parks and sought out the best curry houses. Moreover, I delved deep into the city’s rich history with visits to some of London’s most historic sights.

Visit London: Westminster Abbey.
Furthermore, I made pilgrimages to some of the city’s hallowed music sights. And dove deep into the local coffee scene in Tooting Bec.
It’s been fun documenting these experiences here on Leighton Travels. Following years of self imposed exile, I’ve certainly enjoyed rediscovering my roots. In fact, it has inspired me to go even deeper each time I return.

Visit London: The David Bowie Mural.
And so I will continue to build this page with the passing of the years. For the full story on my adventures, why not visit London with my articles on:
The Monster Sights:
Changing of the Guard, Buckingham Palace
Churchill War Rooms (coming soon!)
Highgate Cemetery (coming soon!)
Leicester Square (coming soon!)
Parliament Square
The Sky Garden (coming soon!)
Tower Bridge
Trafalgar Square
Westminster Abbey
Westminster Bridge
Victoria and Albert Museum (coming soon!)
The Parks
Green Park (coming soon!)
Hyde Park & Kensington Gardens (coming soon!)
Greenwich Park
Hampstead Heath & Kenwood House (coming soon!)
Regent’s Park
St James’s Park (coming soon!)
Tooting Bec Common
The Markets
Borough Market (coming soon!)
Camden Market (coming soon!)
Leadenhall Market (coming soon!)
Mercato Mayfair (coming soon!)
Neighbourhood Guides:
Camden Town
Tooting Bec
Notting Hill (coming soon!)
The Churches
St Olave’s Church (coming soon!)
Southwark Cathedral (coming soon!)
St Dunstan in the East (coming soon!)
St. Mary’s Abbots Church (coming soon!)
St Pancras Old Church (coming soon!)
Music Sights:
Abbey Road
David Bowie Mural & Birth Home
Under the Radar:
Cecil Court (coming soon!)
St Martin’s Lane & Goodwin Court (coming soon!)
Kynance Mews (coming soon!)
Leake Street Graffiti Tunnel (coming soon!)
Savile Row (coming soon!)
My London:
Fitzneal Street
Kensal Green Cemetery
Queens Park Rangers Football Club
Visit London.