The original building on the site of 2 Caxton Street was the chapel of St Ermin’s, built in the 15th century. It later evolved into St Ermin’s Mansions (built in 1889 by E. T. Hall) and since 1899 has been the St Ermin’s Hotel we know today. Most notoriously, the hotel was a meeting place for the UK intelligence service. It is rumoured that there is a tunnel from the hotel to the houses of Westminster.

During the Second World War, the hotel was described as “dim and quiet, suggestive of conferences to promote world governments” by Malcolm Muggeridge, who was recruited to MI6. The location of the hotel was convenient in its proximity to Broadway (MI6 headquarters at the time) and Westminster, so the hotel was often used for meetings.

In 1940, Winston Churchill conducted an historic meeting at the hotel, resulting in the formation of the Special Operations Executive (SOE), a covert operation during wartime. The fifth floor of the building was used as the headquarters for the SOE and the sixth floor was taken over by MI6. The lobby lift only went as far as the fourth floor and guests were oblivious to history being written around them.

The Grade I listed building at No. 2 Whitehall Court was built as luxurious residential apartments in 1884 by Jabez Balfour, a Liberal Party politician, property developer and a notorious rogue and fraudster. Since 1971, it has been the Royal Horseguards hotel.

Most famously, 2 Whitehall Court was the headquarters for the Secret Service for a few years. Sir Mansfield Cumming lived and worked at the address from 1911-1922. Flats 53 and 54, on the seventh floor, were Cumming’s home and his office. A blue plaque, adjacent to the entrance to the hotel, can be seen to this effect.

Cumming was the First Chief of the Secret Service (the predecessor to MI6); he referred to himself as ‘C’, possibly in reference to chief, and initialled all documents in green ink. Sir John Scarlett was still holding this tradition in 2009 of using green ink to sign letters with a ‘C’. Fleming took inspiration for his character, James Bond, by calling the head of MI6 ‘M’, with much speculation as to what it stood for.

Other famous people to have lived at 2 Whitehall Court include: Lord Kitchener, H.G. Wells, George Bernard Shaw (Irish playwright) and Stafford Cripps (British Labour politician).

The hotel also featured in the film James Bond film, Octopussy.

Number 12 Gower Street, now the building of Biological Sciences for University College London (UCL Darwin House), was once home to Charles Darwin, often described as one of the most influential figures in human history.

Darwin took residence of the property in December 1838. He officially moved in on the day of his marriage, 29 January 1839, with his new wife Emma. The Darwins lived there for four years until 1842 and saw the birth of two children, William and Anne, in the house. Darwin referred to 12 Gower Street affectionately as ‘Macaw Cottage’ in “allusion to the gaudy colours of the walls and furniture… which combined all the colours of the macaw in hideous discord”, his daughter recalled.

During his time resident at Gower Street, Darwin began to develop his theory of natural selection, although his groundbreaking book On The Origin Of Species, containing these theories, was not published until 1859.

In December 1904, a blue plaque was erected at the house dedicated to ‘Charles Darwin, Naturalist’, but the house was damaged by bombing during the Blitz in 1941 and not repaired. The site was redeveloped by the UCL and a new plaque was placed on the entrance to the building of Biological Science, where it can be seen today.

21 Queen Anne’s Gate was residence and office for Sir Mansfield Smith Cumming, the founder of the Secret Service (and MI6) for an alleged 47 years, although the exact dates are unclear. There is rumoured to be a tunnel between 21 Queen Anne’s Gate and 54 Broadway, which housed the offices of MI6 for twenty years from 1926 to 1946, built by Cumming.

Cumming was born Mansfield George Smith – but to favour his new wife’s grandfather, he changed his name to Mansfield Smith-Cumming upon marriage. Later, ‘Smith’ was dropped and he became Mansfield Cumming. In 1902, he founded the Secret Service (later to become MI6). Cumming famously signed documentation as ‘C’ in green ink – a tradition continued through MI6, most recently admitted by Sir John Scarlett.

Cumming was an eccentric character, and a story tells us that his party trick was to stab a sharp compass into his artificial leg (following a car accident), startling visitors who were unaware of the false limb.

The Grade I listed house (recognised for its Queen Anne architecture), built in 1704, is currently being redeveloped as a residential property after being used as offices for many years. Expect to pay around several million pounds for the privilege of living in this 7,000-square-foot home.

Houses were first built on Russell Square in the 1800s, when the Duke of Bedford (Sir Frances Russell) decided he wanted to make something of the area. He employed the builder James Burton (who can also be credited with building many of the houses in these neighbouring streets) and renowned landscape gardener Sir Humphrey Repton. In 2002, work was carried out to restore the original features of the garden to their former glory. The square is London’s second largest and features a statue of the Duke of Bedford.

Number 24 Russell Square was the original site of the publishing house Faber & Faber’s Georgian style offices and also the place where the infamous poet T. S. Eliot worked as an editor. A plaque there commemorates him. Faber & Faber published works by Ted Hughes, Sylvia Plath, William Golding and Samuel Beckett (to name a few).

Number 31 Russell Square was also linked with a famous writer, Oscar Wilde (born in Ireland 1854), as it was the place he spent his last ever night in London before leaving England permanently, never to return.

Originally referred to as the Swiss Re Building, due to the company commissioning the design by the architect Norman Foster and Arup group, 30 St Mary Axe (or 'The Gherkin', as it’s more commonly known) opened in April 2004 in the capital’s financial quarter. Likened to a gherkin pickle, its distinctive form is found in a myriad of marketing campaigns.

The magnificent features include: six coiled light wells behind the 7,429 impressive, diamond-shaped glass panes, propelling natural light; five degrees of rotation for each floor from the one beneath it; and 1037 steps (triple the amount found at Monument).

At 180m tall (covering 500,000 square feet), it was intended to be London’s leading ecological building of its scale. The alignment of 40 circular stacks broaden from 50 metres on the first storey and reach their fullest (57 metres) by the 17th floor. It reduces in width again, down to 25 metres, at its final, 40th storey. The Gherkin isn’t open to the public, but Searcys (occupying the top three floors) is available for private hire.

In 1926, 54 Broadway became the new, covert location of the MI6 headquarters. Masquerading as the ‘Minimax Fire Extinguisher Company’, the office held the employ of Dr R.V. Jones (assistant director of intelligence) who toiled away with strategies to foil the attempts of German bomber radio navigation aids. Without the Secret Service’s knowledge, a German agent (posing as a blind match seller) was sent to spy on the place; and it was later announced, on Radio Berlin, that the property was in fact the offices of MI6. Even with this announcement, admissions to this effect were never made. Popularly known as the Broadway Buildings, the dingy property was a far cry from the glamorous portrayals of sophisticated Secret Service headquarters in spy films like James Bond; but despite this fact, it still remained the Secret Service’s headquarters until 1946.

First displayed in Kensington Gardens (across from the Royal Albert Hall on Albert Memorial Road) in 1872, the memorial pays tribute to Queen Victoria’s beloved husband, Prince Albert, who died of typhoid fever in 1861 (aged 42).

One of the most opulent memorials in London, it was designed by architect George Gilbert Scott in the gothic revival style and was originally named the Prince Consort National Memorial. At 54 metres tall and costing around £120,000 (in excess of £10 million today), the memorial features a ciborium above a church altar and shows the Prince holding the Great Exhibition of 1851’s catalogue in honour of the part he played in its creation and organisation. At the statue’s podium, a large sculpted stone (named The Frieze of Parnassus, after Mount Parnassus) portrays 187 representations of poets, painters and artists, commemorating Albert’s artistic passions. Each of its corners has marbled interpretations of the four continents – Europe, Asia, Africa and America. Other figures signify manufacturing, agriculture, commerce and engineering, all crowned near its peak by bronze angels.

The decadent home of the first Duke of Wellington, Apsley House was simply known as ‘Number 1. London’, owing to its grandeur. By Hyde Park’s main entrance, across from the Wellington Arch, it’s the home of one of the most impressive collections of art, porcelain and silver in the city. An artistic testament to the overcoming of the Napoleonic movement, Apsley House is also a spectacular example of two opposing design schemes. The primary neoclassical elements that were favoured by the designer Robert Adam (1771 to 1778) and the contrasting tastes of Wellington himself, implemented with the aid of Benjamin Dean Wyatt. The renowned Georgian house, showcasing the best of Bath stone and its stunning columned portico, is mostly unchanged since Wellington’s renovations.

Dominating the first of its three storeys is the Waterloo Gallery. Showcased within this grandiose gallery is a collection of 70 paintings. Alongside the Gallery lies the Museum Room displaying lavish offerings of thankful kings who were spared the wrath of Napoleon by the Duke. The stairwell of the palatial residence also exhibits Antonio Canova’s gigantic figure of Napoleon depicted as Mars the Peacemaker, gifted by George IV.

The remarkable 178-metre tall slide at the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park opened in June 2016. The structure was commissioned in 2008, after Mayor of London Boris Johnson and Olympics Minister Tessa Jowell thought the Park could use a little something extra. Those brave enough to brace the UK’s tallest slide will reach speeds of 15 miles per hour as they hurtle down its astonishing lengths.

The uphill climb is made easy by taking a lift up 80 metres of the structure to the top, where you’ll be greeted by incredible 20-mile panoramic views of the city as it stretches out before you.

The stunning and distinctive structure was the design of award-winning Sir Anish Kapoor, alongside Cecil Balmond (from the Arup engineering group, who brought London many of its feats of modern engineering such as the Millennium Bridge and The Gherkin).

The amazing Artillery Mansions, in Victoria, was built in the 1800s and claimed, during WWII, by the Secret Intelligence Service as the location for their production research department, where George Blake (former British spy who worked as a double agent for the Soviet Union) and Greville Wynne (a British spy linked with the incarceration of the Soviet Military intelligence colonel, Oleg Penkovsky) worked. Conveniently neighbouring the historically prestigious St Ermin’s Hotel, where agents covertly congregated, the remarkable red-brick building later became the accommodation of ex-agents and servicemen.

Even though it played a spectacular part in London’s spy story, it was still abandoned by the 1980s and left as derelict. Politically-active squatters took residence there to provoke the attention of the police at Scotland Yard across the way, leading to the unfavourable nickname ‘New Squatland Yard’.

By the 1990s, it was purchased and renovated to the costly and luxurious Victorian apartment development that you see today. The Grade II listed complex contains 45 apartments over six floors, whilst the adjacent, newer development contains 145 apartments spread over 11 floors.

The UK’s main bank, aptly named the Bank of England, was first established in 1694. The bank has more affectionately been referred to as the ‘Old Lady of Threadneedle Street’ since its relocation to that site in 1734. It acts as the main debt manager and banker of the British Government, and is also responsible for the country’s currency.

The three-storey building went through periods of extension and renovation by architects including: George Sampson, whose handiwork barely remains (1732-1734); Sir Robert Taylor, who was not only responsible for extending the façade, but also introduced top lighting (1765-1788); Sir John Soane (famed for his neoclassical style), who was allegedly obsessed with the bank until his retirement (1788-1833); and Herbert Baker, who worked on the new building after the old one was largely demolished, giving the new property seven storeys above the ground and three below to accommodate its ever increasing workload (1925-1939).

The Elizabeth Tower (named in commemoration of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee in 2012) at the north end of the Palace of Westminster, was formerly known as St Stephen’s Tower. The name Big Ben is often misunderstood to mean the entire tower when actually it initially only referred to the Great Bell (13.76-tonnes, cast at the Whitechapel Bell Foundry).

The iconic clock was built following a fire destroying The Houses of Parliament in 1834. Charles Barry (who designed the main building with a neo-gothic slant) sought help designing the tower from Augustus Pugin (who later suffered poor mental health). The clock was first heard to chime on the 11th July 1859.

At 315 feet tall with 334 steps to the belfry, the tower stands on a 50-foot square raft comprising of concrete set 13-foot-deep (below ground level). The bottom 200 feet is made from brickwork and limestone cladding whilst the top spire section is made from cast iron.

Famed for its accuracy, the mechanism was actually designed by an amateur horologist, Edmund Beckett Denison (who worked as a lawyer) alongside George Airy. It was then made by Edward John Dent (a clockmaker), whose stepson finished the works after his stepfather’s passing in 1854.

The memorial, in Green Park, is dedicated to the memory of the 55,573 veterans who lost their lives serving in the WWII Bomber Command. It was designed by the architect Liam O’Connor to be modern, yet classical, and cut out of Portland stone. The aircrew have been immortalised in bronze, with a roof opening that allows light to cast over the airmen whilst silhouetted against the sky, as one looks up at the bombers, to be reminded of the symbolism the sky holds.

The roof of the memorial incorporates aluminium from recovered aircraft LW682, No. 46 Squadron, Handley Page Halifax bomber. The plane was excavated in 1997 from where it had been shot down over Belgium on the night of 12th May 1944. Three of the crew members were found still at their stations, 53 years later.

During the year of her Diamond Jubilee, Queen Elizabeth II unveiled the memorial on 28th June 2012, the Avro Lancaster of the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight showering the park with red poppy petals.

The 4.5-acre foodie’s paradise known as Borough Market is the oldest food market in central London. Thriving since 1756, imported foods docking up in London soon found their way to the market. Around that time, the market’s emphasis was primarily on fruit and vegetables – but throughout the years, a greater variety of world foods and specialist shops have been introduced.

The attraction of this colourful market is that it’s brimming with bakers, farmers, producers, food writers, chefs and fishermen who, for the most part, make up the main stallholders; so a wealth of expertise (as well as variety) coexists.

An ample selection of dairies, artisan breads, meats, vegetables, speciality foods, fresh fish and delicious street food stalls in abundance is a must-visit for any serious food lover.

Upon the bequest of 71,000 artefacts by physician, naturalist and collector Sir Hans Sloane to King George II, the British Museum was founded on 7th June 1753 by an act of Parliament. For ‘studious and curious’ persons.

The museum opened on 15th January 1759 in a 17th century mansion called Montagu House. Remarkable acquisitions in the 19th century included the Rosetta Stone (1802), the Townley collection of classical sculpture (1805), and the controversial Parthenon sculptures, otherwise known as the Elgin Marbles (1816).

In 1823, George IV gifted his father's library (the King's Library), which created the need for the quadrangular building we see today, designed by Sir Robert Smirke (1780-1867).

In 1880, part of the collections were removed and housed in the newly built Natural History Museum in Kensington, which directed focus on excavation abroad and archaeology.

The library collection was removed to St Pancras as the new British Library building in 1997, making space for the area that became the Queen Elizabeth II Great Court. Designed by Foster and Partners, this dramatic space is the largest covered public square in Europe. The inner courtyard was originally meant to be a garden, but the building of the reading room meant this intention was lost. The two-acre light-flooded space is a breathtaking construction of 3,312 panes of glass, no two being the same. The museum is worthy of a visit, just to see the Great Court.

The British Museum is renowned for being the first national public museum in the world and has remained open since 1759, only closing for the two World Wars. Initial visitor numbers were 5,000 a year; today the museum hosts nearly 6 million visits annually.

The Brunswick Centre is an unusual example of both shops and residential properties (560 in total), which contrasts with much of the general architecture of London’s Bloomsbury. The designer, Patrick Hodgkinson, was inspired by the studies of Leslie Martin, an English architect with an international architectural style. The centre was finished in 1972.

Hodgkinson’s intention had been that the property be finished in cream paint (reminiscent of the Georgian period) in acknowledgement of the housing that once populated the site. The Council’s budget couldn’t accommodate the finish and the buildings were left unpainted. The unfinished Brutalist architecture proved repellent to potential buyers and a lease was granted to Camden Council for the residential part only.

Although the Neo-Corbusian building met with further disapproval, and its commercial properties remained empty, it was awarded Grade II listed building status in 2000. By 2002, a £22 million renovation took place and the building was painted in keeping with the original design. Susanna Heron (artist and sculptor) was also commissioned to create desirable water features. By 2006, the Brunswick Centre was opened, with high-street names filling its stores.

Cabmen’s shelters have been around London since 1875. As cabbies were historically never permitted to leave their cabs, whilst pulled up at a stand, a need arose for a way that they could still have a hot meal or beverage without disobeying the rules.

It was The Earl of Shaftsbury who took the initiative to create a special charity, called The Cabmen’s Shelter Fund, in 1874. The charity was responsible for the building of shelters from 1875 to 1914, with a total of 61 shelters built. Although restrictions existed for the size and dynamics (as well as swearing, gambling and drinking within the shelters), most shacks could seat 10 to 13 cabbies and still have space for kitchens. 13 of the original 61 still remain today, remarkably carrying with them Grade II listed status.

The surviving shelters:

• Chelsea Embankment – near the Albert Bridge
• Embankment Place
• Grosvenor Gardens – west side of north garden
• Hanover Square – north of central garden
• Kensington Park Road – outside numbers 8-10
• Kensington Road – north side
• Pont Street
• Russell Square – west corner (previously in Leicester Square)
• St George's Square, Pimlico
• Temple Place
• Thurloe Place, Kensington – opposite the Victoria & Albert Museum
• Warwick Avenue – Clifton Gardens
• Wellington Place, St John's Wood

The museum at 48 Doughty Street, in Bloomsbury, was at one time the home of Charles Dickens (in 1837) and has been a museum paying homage to his life and works since 1925. Although Charles Dickens resided at other properties during his lifetime, this Grade I listed property (costing him £80 a year) is the only London property that remains.

The Georgian terraced building contains an astonishing and significant collection of paraphernalia, artefacts and documents pertaining to the renowned writer himself, but also showcases the domestic environment within which he and his family lived. Whilst living in this house, Charles Dickens first began to experience fame for his formidable talents and it’s no wonder that some of his best known works, such as Oliver Twist, were written there. The home of the esteemed novelist was also the birthplace of his two eldest daughters, as well as, tragically, the place where his sister-in-law Mary died (at the young age of 17). Charles Dickens and his family lived at this address until 1839.

The Churchill War Rooms, in London, are a branch of the Imperial War Museum open to the public. The infamous Cabinet War Rooms were used as a command centre by the Government during WWII and are hidden safely under the city’s streets.

Since the First World War, the British Government feared that the capital would be a prime target for bomb attacks and so the Cabinet War Rooms were built in 1940 to protect elect Government officials during the Blitz. On August 16th 1945, the Cabinet War Rooms were locked and preserved precisely as they were, until 1984, when the site was given public access. By 2003, the living and domestic space used by agents and workers (The Courtyard Rooms) were also opened to the public.

The warren of tunnels and rooms afforded hundreds of agents a secure place to implement strategies and eventually win the war. The bunker beneath the basement of a building in Whitehall is crammed full of historic information ranging from what life in the bunker was actually like to what it was like to work so closely with the notorious statesman.

The Churchill Museum at the site is the only one of its kind, and builds an intimate picture (aided by riveting historic artefacts as well as fascinating multimedia) of the formidable and world-famous former Prime Minister.

Headquarters for the Mayor of London, the Greater London Authority and the London Assembly. The building was part of the More London development designed by Foster and Partners.

Its frame is made up of 2,100 tons of steel, 13,100 square metres of concrete and 7,300 square metres of triple-glazed clear glass. The building’s overall ecological efficiency is respected and, during the fiscal year 2014-2015, it emitted 1,985 tonnes of carbon, which is notably less than any other similar building of its size. Solar panels were added in 2007 and it features movement sensors to reduce the energy wasted by unnecessary lighting.

Its design is such that it leans back from the Thames, resulting in no shadow being cast on the river walkway below. Another interesting aspect of the building’s spherical nature means it has 25% less surface area than the volume of a comparable cube, meaning less heat escapes during winter, whilst also keeping it cool in summer. Water is brought up from the ground and passes through beams on each floor, in order to chill the offices, which uses a quarter of the energy used in most conventional air conditioning units. The same ‘grey’ water is then used for flushing toilets.

This Grade I listed building has been the residence of The Prince of Wales, The Duchess of Cornwall and Prince Harry since August 2003. It was also the childhood home of Prince Charles from his first year to his third.

Designed by John Nash and built by 1827, the stuccoed royal residence was to be the London home of the Duke of Clarence (the building’s namesake) and his wife Adelaide. Owing to continued adjustments, Nash overspent on the quoted costs by more than double, although little of his mark remains on the building today.

Sustainable materials were specifically requested for the restoration (handled by The Royal Household Property Services alongside the Forest Stewardship Council). The interior renovations were the project of Robert Kime, who ensured changes kept with the ambience of the house as it originally was.

Not just a royal residence, it was also used by War Organisations of the Red Cross in 1942. Other occupants have included Princess Augusta, the third Duke of Edinburgh (who changed it considerably to include a Russian Orthodox Chapel), the Duke of Connaught, Princess Elizabeth and Philip, the present Duke of Edinburgh (the place where Princess Anne was born in 1950), as well as the Queen Mother and Princess Margaret.

Formerly called the Handball Arena, it was renamed to suit other sports that were also hosted there during the 2012 Paralympic Games, as well as to reflect its appearance. It was designed by English architect Ken Shuttleworth (nicknamed ‘Ken the Pen’ for his skilful sketches) who branched out from the Foster and Partners group and formed his own company, Make Architects, in 2014. Shuttleworth is also known for his work on Birmingham’s Cube and Cheltenham’s Montpellier Chapter hotel.

The Copper Box Arena is the home of the London Lions basketball team and was the first of the Olympic Park’s venues to open to the public. With a range of facilities to accommodate fencing, goalball and boxing, the venue also functions as a day-to-day gym. Dubbed the ‘box that rocks’, the arena boasts the capacity to seat up to 7,500 visitors.

The name of the Bohemian tourist attraction, Covent Garden, traces back to its more conventional roots when it was known as the ‘Convent Garden’ – the garden owned by Westminster Abbey during the Middle Ages.

Its lure to intellectuals, journalists and painters began in the 18th Century when artists like Richard Wilson and John Zoffany lived in the Piazza and Tavistock Row (which no longer exists). Now a collection of shops, eateries, street entertainment, clubs and stunning architecture; it offers more than 60 pubs, 30 theatres and numerous bars. The area’s Seven Dials was responsible for giving the world the Roxy Club in 1977 and has set a punk-rock precedent in the area even today.

At the heart of Covent Garden is Inigo Jones’s Market Piazza (built in the 1630s); but the surrounding buildings have also been designed by famed architects like Norman Foster, Christopher Wren and Edwin Landseer, to name a few. Strolling the streets reveals hidden treasures at almost every turn.

Thanks are owed to Charles I for the elegant architecture found there, as his passion for European architectural decadence drove him to make London the visually astounding place it is today.

To the south of the Serpentine lake of Hyde Park stands the Diana Princess of Wales Memorial Fountain, unveiled in July 2004 by the Queen in the company of Diana’s brother Charles Spencer, Prince Charles and their two sons William and Harry.

Designed by Kathryn Gustafson (known for creating sculptures with natural materials like earth, grass, stone and water), the fountain cost £3.6 million. To commemorate Diana’s love of people and children, Gustafson said: "I hope that it provides a fitting memorial for the princess and does credit to the amazing person that she was."

Made from 545 pieces of Cornish granite, fashioned using computer-guided cutting machines by S. McConnell & Sons, in Northern Ireland, the fountain was later closed after three people slipped into the water. Reopening in August 2004, it was then sectioned off by a fence and wardens to stop people entering and hurting themselves. In that same year drainage and a new surface were added to the fountain to keep the foundations and surrounding area safe from heavy rain.

The memorial that commemorates Princess Diana, who died in a car crash in 1997, is now open to all.

Number 10 Downing Street started life as the Axe Brewery in the Middle Ages. Its first domestic occupant after then was Sir Thomas Knyvet, in 1581 (MP for Thetford, who was famed for the arrest of Guy Fawkes). It was later inherited by Elizabeth Hampden (Sir Knyvet’s niece) and was subsequently known as Hampden House.

The street got its name from George Downing, who in 1682 secured the leases and employed Sir Christopher Wren to design the houses. Number 10 was actually number 5 until it was changed in 1779.

Sir Robert Walpole (effectively the first Prime Minister) moved into Downing Street in 1735 and commissioned the architect William Kent to revamp the place. The architect created a three-sided staircase which remains one of its notable features today. Walpole’s initials are still etched on the letterbox there.

In 1963, architect Raymond Erith was commissioned to renovate before the building either ‘fell or burnt down’ due to structural damage after so many years. Number 12 was rebuilt and 10 and 11 were completely gutted and refurbished.

10 Downing Street is much bigger inside than it appears, hosting a warren of staircases and rooms. The main functions are the official residence of the Prime Minister, their office and where the PM entertains leading dignitaries and guests.

Number 10 has been residence and office, amongst others, to Robert Walpole, Pitt the Younger, Benjamin Disraeli, William Gladstone, David Lloyd George, Winston Churchill and Margaret Thatcher.

Eduardo Paolozzi was commissioned to create a sculpture in 1982 that would detract from the ugliness of a cooling tower which is utilised by Pimlico Tube Station. The sculpture can be found on Bessborough Street, on the east side of Pimlico Station’s main entrance.

Paolozzi (whose works also include the wall mosaics of London’s Tottenham Court Road Station and The Piscator sculpture at Euston Station) has successfully transformed the cooling tower – made of cast iron – into industrial art, although its aesthetics have been brought into question on more than one occasion. With a base of 3m x 3m and reaching 4 metres high, the sculpture features intricate machine parts, cogs and insects. Everything above the main panelled bottom is actually a functioning part of the ventilation shaft and not the sculpture.

At the age of 31, controversial sculptor Arthur Eric Rowton Gill was commissioned by John Marshall (in 1913) to work on pieces paid for by Westminster Cathedral. Although the sculptor’s religious views were often contradictory to his troublesome behaviour, in just a year of work, he created a nine-inch square design of 14 panels for a series of carvings for the Stations of the Cross. The panels (each 5ft 8in square) were accepted at the price of £765. It’s thought that Gill accepted this low price due to his lack of confidence in his own skills, having only been a sculptor for less than four years.

Carved in marble-like Hopton Wood limestone, reactions to the first instalments weren’t great, with Marshall referring to Gill’s style as 'neither suitable for the peculiar light of the Cathedral nor the Catholic public'. Gill himself wasn’t pleased with the work and so covered it with a cloth. By 1915, four of the stations were completed and feedback received ranged from “grotesque and undevotional” to “dignified in conception, superb in outline and restrained in feeling”.

The original sketches are displayed at the Architect’s Room. The 14 carved panels are on display in the cathedral.

The Grade I listed building, 55 Broadway, was built in 1927 and designed by Charles Holden (known for designing many of London’s Underground stations).

With its Portland stone façade, it was the headquarters of the Underground Electric Railways Company and was the tallest office building in the city at that time.

The building’s cross-shaped floor plan makes the most of natural light and sits on a tapered corner site. It features 10 avant-garde sculptures; two known as Day and Night (by Jacob Epstein, known for his Tomb of Oscar Wilde), and eight accompanying carvings.

Day depicts a smiling man (with unusually long arms) accompanied by a boy with an unnaturally twisted posture; this is set in contrast to the Night sculpture, which depicts a sad woman cradling a weak-looking child.

Of the eight accompanying pieces, Henry Moore's is the most notable. The woman signifying the West Wind is one of Moore’s earlier works and was the first of his public commissions. In comparison to the other reliefs, it’s more three-dimensional and doesn’t adhere to an art deco style, marking the start of modernism.

Gordon Square has been renowned throughout history as the birthplace of the notorious Bloomsbury Group. As a collective of intellectuals, writers, artists and philosophers alike, the Bloomsbury Group met regularly at number 51 Gordon Square, which was the home of its founder Lytton Strachey (British writer and critic). The group’s influential members included Virginia Woolf, who also lived on Gordon Square at number 46 (1882-1941), John Maynard Keynes (the economist who lived on the Square between 1883 and 1946) and E. M. Forster. Although they denied being part of any active collective, the group’s most famed works helped to influence current philosophies and modern thinking, especially within the feminist and sexual equality movements.

The Square itself was originally created by the esteemed builder Thomas Cubitt, in 1820, and can be coupled with Tavistock Square, which shares its measurements. The Square takes its name from the 6th Duke of Bedford’s second wife (Lady Georgiana Gordon).

J M Barrie, the author of Peter Pan, drew inspiration to write the children’s classic play after the death of his older brother. Barrie tried to replace his much-loved brother David in his mother’s affections, whilst she derived consolation that David would remain a boy forever, which is considered to be the influence for the character of Peter.

Barrie and his wife remained childless, but they loved children and were keen supporters of Great Ormond Street Hospital. In 1929, after the need for funds to buy new land arose, Barrie donated all rights to Peter Pan to the hospital. He requested that all monies raised from the rights of Peter Pan remain confidential – a request upheld to this day.

The legacy of Peter Pan can be found throughout the hospital: a bronze statue of Peter and Tinker Bell, by Diarmuid Byron O'Connor and unveiled in 2000, can be found outside the hospital’s main entrance to the left of the door. The hospital’s chapel holds a plaque dedicated to the author, unveiled by J B Priestley in 1938; this can be visited, but please respect the hospital visitor rules.

In front of the remaining part of the old hospital are flower troughs. They feature a silhouette of Peter Pan and were designed by E H Shepard (Winnie the Pooh illustrator). A A Milne (Winnie the Pooh author) and Shepard launched a Peter Pan Appeal in 1930, the year after Barrie gifted his copyrights to the hospital.

Nearby, on the corner of Grenville Street and Bernard Street, a blue plaque can be seen dedicated to J M Barrie. This house is where he first lived when he came to London in 1885 and became the inspiration for the Darling house. The original building has now been replaced.

In front of the remaining part of the old hospital are flower troughs. They feature a silhouette of Peter Pan and were designed by EH Shepard (Winne the Pooh illustrator). AA Milne (Winnie the Pooh author) and Shepherd launched a Peter Pan Appeal in 1930, the year after Barrie gifted his copyrights to the hospital.

On the corner of Grenville Street and Bernard Street a blue plaque can be seen dedicated to JM Barrie. This house is where he first lived when he came to London in 1885 and became the inspiration for the Darling house in Peter Pan. The original building has now been replaced.

Allegedly, Green Park was originally swamplands used to bury female lepers from the hospital of St James. Later, in 1554, it was also cited as the location for an uprising against the marriage of Mary I to Philip II. Carrying on in that vein, it was also a renowned site for duels. But that changed in 1667, when King Charles II purchased more of it so that he could walk from Hyde Park to St James’s Park without straying from royal grounds. It then started to be referred to as ‘Upper St James’s Park’.

In 1746, it was renamed to differentiate it between St James’s Park and The Green Park – possibly owing to the rumour that the King’s wife had ordered all the flowers to be picked from the park after discovering he had been picking them and giving them to another woman.

During the 1820s, when John Nash was asked to re-design the 47-acre park, trees were planted and The Wellington Arch was erected to show the end of The Green Park and the start of Hyde Park. By the late 19th Century, it was the preferred park for ballooning and public firework displays, too.

Knife Edge, at Abingdon Street Gardens, is one of the earlier sculptures of Henry Moore, gifted to the city of London in 1967 via the Contemporary Arts Society. Although four full-sized casts of the sculpture were made, Moore kept one for himself, which is displayed at his former studio and estate Hoglands in Perry Green, Hertfordshire. The remaining casts can be found in Queen Elizabeth Park in Vancouver, the garden at Kykuit and the house of the Rockefeller family in Tarrytown, New York.

Although Moore thought he’d gifted the piece to the City of London, actual ownership of the sculpture was unclear and so the piece lost a lot of its original lustre. Featuring in the background of many news reports and located outside the Palace of Westminster, The House of Commons finally decided to take the initiative and responsibility for its care in 2011.

In the eight-week period that it took to restore the two-piece sculpture, The Henry Moore Foundation gave guidance to Rupert Harris Conservation over Knife Edge’s much needed restoration. The gleaming 366cm work of art is now back to its former and original glory.

Designed by architects Stanton Williams (Islington-based architects known for the Hackney Marshes Centre and Eton Manor), the £30 million complex of Lee Valley Hockey and Tennis Centre really is a mammoth enterprise. First opened in 2014, it consists of two hockey pitches, six outdoor tennis courts and four indoor courts, too. The stadium has an amazing capacity to seat up to 15,000 visitors if needed.

Located on the Eton Manor part of the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, it played host to the 2012 Paralympic Wheelchair Tennis Games.

Guarding the entrances to St James’s Palace and Buckingham Palace (known as Horse Guards) since 1660, the Queen’s Life Guards are made up of the Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment (consisting of the highest-ranking squadrons of the British Army).

Mounted impressively on horseback, The Life Guards are impeccably uniformed. The Guard departs from Hyde Park Barracks at 10:28 (weekdays) and 9:28 (Sundays), ready for the Changing of the Life Guards Ceremony at 11:00 (weekdays) and 10:00 (Sundays). Riding past Hyde Park Corner, Constitution Hill and The Mall, this is an ideal setting for tourist photos, as railings won’t interfere with the composition.

Changing hourly (in good weather), The Dismounting Ceremony begins at 16:00. Since Queen Victoria’s reign in 1894, when she found her guards drunk and gambling, daily inspections take place before the Changing of the Guard for the punishment period of 100 years (which should have ended in 1994). The horses are stabled by mounted guards for the evening. Two dismounted guards stand guard till the gates close at 20:00, when they are relieved by a solitary sentry who keeps guard till 07:00 the following morning when the gates reopen.

Passing through the Arch of Horse Guards by carriage or car is reserved for the Royal Family, unless an Ivory Pass is produced. Travellers on foot can walk through.

The Household Cavalry Museum (dating back to 1750) is inside the historic Horse Guards building at Whitehall. Unlike other museums, it focuses on jobs and people, giving a ‘fly on the wall’ feel of what life is like for those involved in the traditional and regal tasks that make up the Queen’s official guard.

Through use of multimedia touchscreen guides, as well as interesting regalia, awards, instruments and silverware by Fabergé, a fuller understanding of regimental life can be gleaned. As the cavalry not only serve the Queen but are also a working regiment, there’s plenty of modern day exhibits showing what life is like for the troops in places like Afghanistan.

Visitors get a direct look into the 18th century stables (through a viewing gallery) while workers tend to the horses that make up the mounted regiment. Visitors learn of the role of the horses, too, with information such as where the horses come from and how they are selected. The home of the Household Cavalry (first assembled by instruction from King Charles II in 1661) gives incredible insight into the daily chores of the Queen’s Life Guard in a tradition that’s just as much alive today as it was more than 350 years ago.

A royal palace has existed on the site at Westminster since the 11th century and stands as the largest royal hall in Europe. Little remains of the original buildings, except for the impressive and historic Westminster Hall, the oldest part of the Palace, built in the reign of King William II (1056-1100). The thick walls are from the original building, but much of the visible stonework seen today dates from the 19th century.

In 1834, a fire ravaged through the Palace, but Westminster Hall survived as firefighters doused the timber with water, much to the expense of the rest of the medieval palace.

In the mid 19th century, the architect Charles Barry (known for reconstructing Trafalgar Square) won a competition to design the Palace of Westminster, succeeding above 97 other entrants. He chose a Tudor Gothic revival style, inspired by the Perpendicular Gothic style of the 14th-16th centuries. Most of what we see today is just over 150 years old.

The Palace was originally the principle residence of the English monarch. The office of the Government and the law courts were based here in the 13th century, as were the meetings of magnates, called ‘parliament’, taken from the old French word ‘parlement’ meaning discussion. From the 14th century, Parliament usually met at Westminster. The Oxford Parliament of 1681 was the last time Parliament met outside of London.

The 625 acres of Hyde Park (350 acres of the park and 275 acres of Kensington Gardens) were first the property of monks at Westminster, but later belonged to Henry VIII (in 1536) who used it as his private hunting ground.

Charles I opened it to the public (1637) and during the time of the plague, Londoners camped out in Hyde Park to ‘hide’ from the disease.

The first streetlamps were initiated by William III, who had 300 oil lamps built to guide his way whilst strolling to St James’s Park. George II’s wife, Queen Caroline, took her turn to add her own touches to the park in 1730 in the form of the 11.34-hectare Serpentine lake.

When demonstrations got ugly in 1866, a ruling came to pass (in 1872) that an area would be reserved for discussions that wouldn’t result in violent outbreaks. Thus, Speakers’ Corner was founded, where anyone can stand and speak about anything, as long as they don’t swear or incite violence.

Besides Wellington’s monument, many other memorials can be found throughout the park; one of which is the Princess of Wales Memorial Fountain and another which commemorates the lives lost in the 2005 Tube bombings, depicted by 52 steel columns.

St Margaret’s Church Westminster, situated between Westminster Abbey and the Palace of Westminster, is sometimes referred to as ‘the parish church of the House of Commons’.

Within the church is a plaque which commemorates John Piper (an English artist, printmaker and designer) who designed the glass for the eight window bays on the south aisle in 1966, after the originals were destroyed in the Second World War.

Piper enlisted the help of Patrick Reyntiens, a stained glass artist whose work includes the stained glass at the V&A Museum. He chose pastel colours in pale green and silvery hues to help radiate sunlight and was determined that all windows would work in harmony and unity with one another. Piper had worked with Reyntiens previously, on glass for Coventry Cathedral, Eton College Chapel and Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral, and the Windows of St Margaret’s are known as their most exquisite work.

A Royal residence since the 17th century, Kensington Palace started out as a Jacobean two-storey mansion, built in 1605 by Sir George Coppin. It was later bought by the first Earl of Nottingham and was appropriately named ‘Nottingham House’. In 1689, the joint monarchs William and Mary purchased the property for £20,000. Christopher Wren was commissioned, during Queen Anne’s time, to complete the expansion he’d previously begun. She also commissioned the decadent Orangery in 1704, along with 30 extra acres of baroque parterre designed by Henry Wise.

During the First World War, parts of the palace were hit by a bomb during the Blitz in 1940, causing much damage.

By the 19th Century, the disrepair was notable and it was destined for demolition. But upon Queen Victoria’s insistence that her birthplace wouldn’t be demolished while she lived, Parliament paid for its renovation. The State Rooms first opened to the public in 1899. The palace later received a further £12 million (mainly from the Heritage Lottery Fund) for restorations, and it was opened once again in 2012.

Although high above Kensington High Street, the Roof Gardens (which used to be known as Derry and Toms Roof Gardens due to its location above the Derry and Toms building) can’t be seen from below. You can only spot the 1.5 acre garden by the Virgin flags flying from it.

Accessible through a doorway at 99 Kensington High Street, they were first created by Ralph Hancock (1936-38) and commissioned by Trevor Bowen, the vice president of John Barker & Co. Costing £25,000, people were charged a shilling to enter and the money raised went to more than 30 different charities.

The gardens are split into three main themes: a Spanish Garden (with fountains, palms and vines), a Tudor Garden (with wisteria, lavender and roses) and the English Woodland Garden (with its stream, pond, 100 types of tree, and pintail ducks). Here reside four flamingos called Bill, Ben, Splosh and Pecks.

The Roof Gardens also feature a club (accommodating 600 guests, offering panoramic views across London) and a restaurant (on the seventh floor).

The 18-inch soil beds of the Grade II listed site were used as the set for Roy Orbison’s Pretty Woman video for Top of the Pops, as well as an episode of Miss Marple, in 1987, called At Bertram’s Hotel.

London’s 122 Leadenhall Street is informally known as ‘The Cheesegrater’ because of its characteristic edge. Built by Laing O'Rourke (known for building Heathrow Airport Terminals and the racecourse at Ascot) and designed by Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners (known for the Millennium Dome and the Lloyd’s Building directly opposite), the 225-metre mercantile building was there to replace the demolished building that had stood before it since 1969 (previously 54 metres tall).

The 48-storey building’s popular name originated when Peter Rees (chief planning officer) remarked that his wife could use it to grate parmesan. The building seems anchored by a ladder linked to steel bracings running along the tapered glass façade. The lift shafts have also been made a feature, with their mechanics painted in eye-catching bright orange. The building’s structure is also of interest; instead of a more common concrete core, it has a steel megaframe (courtesy of Arup) that’s the world’s tallest stabilising structure.

Companies, including the designers Rogers Stirk + Partners, insurance broker Aon and insurance group Amlin have all secured leases for office space within the building.

One of the oldest markets, dating back to the 14th Century, Leadenhall Market began life as the ‘Manor of Leadenhall’, belonging to Sir Hugh Neville. By 1440, Lord Mayor Simon Eyre built a granary, a school and a chapel on the site of the old manor and the market was also extended to give food sellers a place to trade.

Narrowly escaping the perils of history like the Great Fire, Leadenhall Market evolved into a covered market in 1666. By 1881, the architect responsible for Billingsgate and Smithfield Markets (Sir Horace Jones) was commissioned to redesign it. Doing away with the old stone structure, his newer wrought iron and glass structure, with its intricate roof and cobbled floors, was awarded Grade II listing in 1972.

The iconic market has featured frequently in the media, including the backdrop for the video of Erasure’s song Love to Hate You in 1991 and the film Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone.

Occasionally referred to as ‘the inside-out building’, Lloyd’s of London, on Lime Street (completed 1986), is a Grade I listed building and is the newest building or structure to ever receive this listing.

Renowned for the architectural style associated with the architect Richard Rogers (designer of Paris’s Pompidou Centre), Lloyd’s of London shares the premise which aims to maximise floor space and reveal all working aspects of the building (like lift shafts, cables and pipes). The postmodern style is termed ‘Bowelism’ as it’s reminiscent of the inner workings of a human digestive system.

The building is formed around a pivotal, rectangular epicentre with six surrounding towers – three main and three service towers. At the heart of the building lies the Underwriting Room, which is covered with a barrel-vaulted glass ceiling (88 metres high) and surrounded by 14 balcony-type working floors. The floors can be adapted by adding or removing partitions accordingly. An interconnection between the floors is offered by 12 lifts running, remarkably, right through the centre, with some of the top floors only accessible from elevators running along the outside of the building. The 12 elevators, with their mechanisms revealed, were the first of their sort to feature in UK buildings.

The London Aquatics Centre was designed by architect Dame Zaha Hadid, also known for designing the Stirling Prize-winning Evelyn Grace Academy in Brixton and the Roca London Gallery in Chelsea. It’s the most cutting edge swimming bath in the world, inspired in design by the Dollan Aqua Centre in East Kilbride, Scotland; the building could originally be adapted to accommodate for larger crowds when needed. Two wings were added to accommodate a capacity of 17,500 (without them seating a maximum of 3,500), but since the Olympic Games, these have been removed. The three-metre deep floor of the 50-metre pool can also be modified to adjust the depth.

The undulating roof, inspired by waves, covers 11,200 square feet of the 45x160x80 metre swimming centre; and used for the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, it was described by the IOC President (Jacques Rogge) as a "masterpiece”.

In 1176, Henry II commissioned a permanent stone bridge to replace the previous succession of fire-prone wooden structures across the Thames. Not without problems, the bridge was only eight metres wide with traffic room reduced to four metres, and crossing the medieval bridge could take an hour. Parts of the bridge were prone to collapse, and in 1281, ice from the Thames crushed five of the arches. This gave rise to the popular rhyme of London Bridge is falling down.

Spikes above the bridge’s stone gatehouses were used to ‘display’ the heads of traitors for all to see. William Wallace, Thomas Moore, Guy Fawkes and Oliver Cromwell all adorned the spikes. Thankfully this practise ended in 1678.

During the 18th century, a new concrete and steel box girder bridge was commissioned, by way of a competition, to replace its 600-year-old predecessor. The Scottish civil engineer John Rennie (known for Waterloo, Southwark and Old Vauxhall bridges) won the competition, and the old bridge remained in use while work began on the new one in 1825. It was finished by 1831, spanning 283 metres long and 15 metres wide. By 1896, it needed to be expanded to accommodate for surge in traffic of 900 vehicles per hour and so was widened by four metres. Surveys later showed that it was sinking very gradually and by 1924, it was deemed in need of replacement.

After seeking a buyer, the bridge was then sold to an American (Robert P. McCulloch) in 1968 for 2,460,000 US dollars. McCulloch thought he was buying Tower Bridge. Each brick was dismantled, numbered and shipped to Arizona where it was rebuilt at Lake Havasu City.

London Bridge, as we know it today, opened on 17th March 1973 and was designed by architect Lord Holford (designer of Clarendon House and Eton College). It’s made up of three spans of prestressed concrete box girders costing £4 million at the time. It was built in place of the Victorian stone-arched bridge which, in turn, had replaced the medieval stone-arched London Bridge before it.

London’s most popular Ferris wheel is positioned on the banks of the River Thames and was designed by a strong architectural team consisting of Frank Anatole, Nic Bailey, Steve Chilton, Malcolm Cook, Mark Sparrowhawk, and married couple Julia Barfield and David Marks.

Known as the London Eye or the Millennium Wheel, it has dominated much of the view of the Southbank, with its imposing 135 metre height and 120 metre diameter, since 1999.

Attracting more than 3.75 million people annually, the world’s tallest cantilevered wheel is only surpassed by The Shard’s viewing gallery as the highest public viewing platform in London.

It was built flat, in sections, which were shipped to the site up the River Thames, and is supported by its bike-wheel, spoke-type structure. Once it was constructed, it was lifted to its upright position by a strand jack system. Its 32 ten-tonne sealed passenger pods (representing each of the London boroughs) can accommodate 25 people and are powered by electric motors. The wheel moves at 26cms per second, taking it about half an hour to complete one revolution.

The unremarkable looking London Stone is probably one of the least known and lowest profiled of London’s historical artefacts. Less than two feet long and almost hidden by an iron gate at 11 Cannon Street, thousands of people could be forgiving for never once having realised its existence.

The stone, which has withstood two major wars and one great fire, is due to be relocated to the Museum of London where it will undergo geological testing to try to ascertain its origins and history. However it is attached to a building earmarked for demolition on Cannon Street so developers have recently tried to move it, but to no avail.

The oolitic limestone has been attributed with magical powers and allegedly worshipped by the druids (according to William Blake). The stone, considered as old as the city, is believed to have been used as a marker by the Romans (according to Sir Christopher Wren) and the place where all roads lead from.

Of all the speculations and myths that surround it, one thing is for certain – it’s as the plaque accompanying suggests: ‘origins and purpose unknown’.

Thames House was built in 1929 by John Mowlem & Co on land previously devastated by the flooding of the Thames in 1928. Mowlem & Co being one of the largest civil engineering and construction companies in the UK, known for Billingsgate Fish Market and Woolwich Ferry terminals. The building was designed by Sir Frank Baines, who also designed the neighbouring building to Thames House, The Imperial Chemical House, which it can be paired with in terms of architectural style. Statues feature at its front by the sculptor Charles Sargeant Jagger (known for the Royal Artillery Memorial at Hyde Park) of St George and Britannia.

The building became vacant in 1989 after the Department of Energy departed and, after searching for a new home of adequate size and acceptable security considerations, Thames House became the new home for MI5.

From 1990, the GMW Partnership (architects who designed Castrol House, on Marylebone Road, London) were enlisted to renovate the property to accommodate MI5’s needs. As part of the renovations, its characteristic archway was partially filled in. The refurbished Thames House was opened by the Prime Minister of the time, John Major, in November 1994 and has since served as headquarters for the UK Security Service.

A pivotal part of London’s pedestrian framework is the Millennium Bridge, leading tourist traffic easily from Bankside to the City of London since opening in June 2000. During its first weekend of opening, a phenomenal 100,000 pedestrians used it. A swaying motion (known as synchronous lateral excitation) was noted during this period which led to the bridge’s closure for two years while investigations took place (it reopened in 2002). Dampers were installed to stop the movement caused by collective and harmonious steps, previously undetected by bridge engineering, resulting in a change to bridge building practices worldwide.

A fraternity of art, engineering and architecture, the bridge (spanning 320 metres) was designed by Norman Foster and the Arup engineering group (also known for their collaboration on The Gherkin) alongside the sculptor Anthony Caro, in response to Southwark Council and RIBA competitions in 1996. Termed Blade of Light, the winning design detailed suspension features and cables concealed below the bridge’s deck to give it a uniquely delicate form. The bridge’s hardy structure can withstand a load of 5,000 pedestrians crossing collectively but was famously portrayed as collapsing after being targeted by Death Eaters in Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince.

Designed by Sir Christopher Wren (the architect of St. Paul’s Cathedral) and Dr Robert Hooke (his friend and colleague), the Monument was made to commemorate the Great Fire of London, which started in a baker’s house in Pudding Lane on Sunday 2nd September 1666 and was finally extinguished after 3 days’ toil. The only buildings surviving its ravage were built of stone (like St. Paul’s and the Guildhall).

The Monument was finished by 1677. It depicts an enflamed copper urn symbolising the tragic fire and was built to Wren’s designs for an ancient Greece-inspired Doric column. It features 311 cantilevered stone stairs carrying you to its incredible viewing platform at 160 feet above ground, offering amazing views across the city.

The National Theatre in Lambeth was designed by Denys Lasdun in 1976 and stands beside Waterloo Bridge. It’s one of the UK’s most notable theatres funded by the public and, as such, since 1988, it’s been awarded permission to refer to itself as The Royal National Theatre.

By June 2009, the five-acre site of the National Theatre began an enterprise known as The National Theatre Live, which allows for around 12 productions a year to be screened at over 2,000 global venues.

The National Theatre has three auditoriums: the Olivier Theatre (a fanned-out, open-plan auditorium) which seats 1,100 visitors; the Lyttelton Theatre (with its proscenium stage) which seats 900; and the Dorfman Theatre (previously known as the Cottesloe) seating 450.

At St Thomas’ Hospital, you’ll find, Revolving Torsion, in the Gabo Fountain Garden, on London’s Southbank. Taking pride of place opposite the Palace of Westminster, the sculpture in the fountain which the garden encases was designed by the Russian Constructivist sculptor and kinetic artist, Naum Gabo (1890-1977) and was commissioned by The Tate Gallery. The fountain was originally meant to rotate gradually, but it’s not been working for many years.

Awarded a Grade II listed building status in January 2016, Revolving Torsion is made from stainless steel plates with interloping curves and is meant to reflect the colour of the water, to a degree. The sculpture represents a collection of ideas which Gabo started to form in the 1920s, making a series of models to fulfil notions published in his Realistic Manifesto, which were seen by Sir Norman Reid (the Tate Gallery’s director) during his visit to Gabo's US studio in 1968.

The five-ringed symbol is the main icon for the Olympic Games, originally designed by the co-founder of the modern Olympic Games, Baron Pierre de Coubertin, in 1912. The colours of each ring (blue, yellow, black, green, and red on a white background) pay homage to colours most frequently used throughout the national flags of countries competing in the Olympic Games.

Coubertin allegedly took inspiration for the symbol whilst he chaired the former sport’s governing body in France known as the ‘Union des sociétés françaises de sports athlétiques’ (USFSA), whose emblem was two interlocking rings signifying a union or ‘marriage’ and was originally Carl Jung’s (Swiss psychiatrist) idea as he felt the rings signified the flow of life and the human being. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) today feel that the rings reinforce the notion of togetherness and the movement of sport which calls upon athletes of all nations to compete with one another in one competition.

The London Stadium (formally known as the Olympic Stadium) is one of the capital’s premier sports grounds and is now home to West Ham United FC. The preparation for the site began in 2007 and called for the removal of 800,000 tonnes of soil. Designed by American architectural group Populous, along with construction and engineering company Sir Robert McAlpine, it required the capacity to house 80,000 spectators. Approximately 10,700 tons of steel were used (a quarter of that used by the Beijing Olympic Stadium), as well as large diameter pipes (left over from the North Sea Gas pipeline projects) and recycled granite.

The Stadium’s roof (supported by cables) covers around two-thirds of the stadium's seating and is made out of a cheaper type of phthalate-free PVC. The 70-metre-high floodlights, spread across 14 towers (consisting of 532 bulbs), were first used during a snowy December day in 2010. The stadium’s wrap is made up of 900 metres of fabric (20 metres high).

The opening ceremony for the 2012 Olympic Games, referred to as Isles of Wonder, was directed by Danny Boyle (British film director) and lasted nearly four hours as a theatrical extravaganza of incredible proportions. It featured a movie and live-action simulation (with stuntmen) of Daniel Craig, and The Queen as his 'Bond girl', making a parachute jump into the Stadium; and the Olympic flame was dramatically carried on a speedboat, manned by David Beckham, from City Hall to Stratford.

Dominating the prestigious pathway of the Southbank is London’s award-winning landmark, the Oxo Tower Wharf.

Originally built as a power station for Royal Mail around the 19th century, the façade facing the river that we see today is its only original remains; the rest of the structure was demolished and rebuilt. Later owned by the Liebig Extract of Meat Company (Oxo stock cube manufacturers) in the 1920s, it was recreated as an art deco design by Albert Moore in 1928-1929. The rebuild featured three vertical windows, in groups of four, arranged to display a circle, followed by a cross and a final circle. When the tower is illuminated at night the iconic ‘OXO’ can be seen glowing in red light – a creative way of circumnavigating a ban of skyline advertising along the southbank of the Thames imposed at the time.

Since the 1990s, the predominantly unused 13 acres were remodelled by Coin Street Community Builders (CSCB) into the desirable and eclectic eight-storey hub. The ground and first floors comprise of design studios, galleries and craft shops, whilst most of the second floor can be hired out for private events and parties. The third to seventh floors incorporate 78 flats (owned by the housing cooperative Redwood Housing) and its eighth floor features a popular rooftop restaurant, bar and brasserie along with a public viewing gallery.

The Paralympic Games symbol Agitos (meaning ‘I move’ in Latin) was created by Scholz & Friends agency. The three colours used (red, green and blue) signify the most frequently found colours of flags around the world. The three asymmetric crescents (agitos) encircle a fixed point to pay homage to the role of the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) in giving Paralympic athletes across the globe an opportunity to come together and compete.

First exhibited at the main bridge of the Olympic Park during the amazing Paralympic Games of 2012, the exemplary symbol has a width of almost 4 metres and a height of 3 metres.

Signifying ‘spirit in motion’, the symbol adds to the strong Paralympic legacy that the Paralympic Games hoped to perpetuate; and by being placed in the same spot as the Olympic Rings, it confirms the capital’s commitment to equality.

Parliament Square (created in 1868 by Charles Barry) features 10 famous statues.

The statue of Sir Winston Churchill was made by Ivor Roberts-Jones in 1973. The original attempt was said to look too much like Mussolini.

A statue of David Lloyd George (Prime Minister), made by sculptor Glynn Williams in 2007, stands on a plinth of slate from Penrhyn Quarry, Wales.

Jan Christian Smuts (Prime Minister of South Africa, 1919-1924 and 1939-1948) has a statue, featuring South African grey granite, by Jacob Epstein in 1956.

The statue of Henry John Temple (Prime Minister) features mottled grey/pink Westmoreland granite, by sculptor Thomas Woolner in 1876.

The statue, from 1874, of Edward Smith-Stanley (Prime Minister) stands wearing his Chancellor of Oxford University robes and was made by Matthew Noble. It also features bronze reliefs by sculptor Horace Montford.

Benjamin Disraeli (Prime Minister) features pink Peterhead granite, made in 1883 by Mario Raggi.

The sculpture of Sir Robert Peel (Prime Minister) was made by Matthew Noble in 1876.

Abraham Lincoln’s statue (President of the United States), by Augustus Saint-Gaudens in July 1920, is a replica of the one in Chicago’s Lincoln Park.

Nelson Mandela stands in the square, made by sculptor Ian Walters in 2007, along with Mahatma Gandhi, by sculptor Philip Jackson in 2015. It marks the centennial of Gandhi's return to India from South Africa.

Patrick Heron, the Yorkshire-born figurative artist and abstract painter, created the Big Painting Sculpture with the help of his son-in-law, Julian Feary (an architect).The brightly-coloured piece can be found if you walk out of Cardinal Place and head towards Buckingham Palace.

Reaching a height of 19 metres, the giant sculpture is made from metal strips with 18 strangely-shaped colourful discs. Anchored by aluminium masts, it was commissioned by Land Securities in 1998, and is a popular piece of public art, as well as a fantastic windbreak!

The artist, who died a year after the piece was unveiled (at the age of 79), was influenced by the work of Barbara Hepworth, Braque and Matisse.

The path which takes you along the 1,384 metres of Hyde Park to Hyde Park Corner is known as Rotten Row. A fashionable place for the upper classes of 18th and 19th century London to ride their horses, it was first established in 1690 by William III who installed the first types of street lighting. Insisting on the erection of 300 oil lamps, he wanted to ensure his safety as he walked to St James’s Palace from Kensington Palace of an evening.

The pathway (which still permits horses to be riden along it today) has its roots not in reference to the dangers of the highwaymen that were known to lurk around the area, but in the French term for King’s Road – ‘Route du Roi’ – which later became the slang ‘Rotten Row’.

The artistic venues of London’s Southbank Centre started life in the 1950s, arising from the Festival of Britain which helped to resurrect Britain’s flair for science, technology and the arts after having suffered two world wars.

It’s made up of: Royal Festival Hall, the Saison Poetry Library, the Queen Elizabeth Hall and the Purcell Room, as well as the Hayward Gallery. It is dubbed Europe’s biggest arts centre, also sharing its grounds with the independent National Film Theatre and the new Museum of the Moving Image.

The Southbank Centre achieved an independent arts organisation status in April 1988 after two years working as part of the Arts Council.

A market for over 350 years, Spitalfields can be found in the London borough of Tower Hamlets.

The buildings in the market were the design of George Sherrin, for Robert Horner (the last private owner of the fruit and vegetable market), and were built between 1885 and 1893. The market’s original Victorian features (such as the buildings, the hall and the roof) were restored and Old Spitalfields is now one of London's major, thriving marketplaces. Open seven days a week, almost anything can be bought there, from fresh food produce to fashionable items, and in 2011 it earned ‘Best Private Market’ status from the National Association of British Market Authorities.

There was some controversy during the 20th century regarding the renovation of the 1926 market extension along the west end of the site. The City of London Corporation won the dispute (against the owners and local residents) and an office block was built, designed by Norman Foster.

The baroque-style church of St Bride’s is one of the oldest churches in London, dating as far back as the 7th century and named after the patron, St Bridget of Ireland.

The modern-day St Bride’s is a Grade I listed building and is often affiliated with the London press, owing to its location on Fleet Street. Its most recent restoration was designed by Sir Christopher Wren in 1672, although Wren’s work was mostly destroyed during the Blitz in 1940. Standing at 69 metres tall, it’s the second tallest church designed by Wren (St Paul’s being the tallest).

One of the church’s most impressive features is the organ, with its four manuals, 98 speaking stops, almost 4,000 pipes and four blowing installations; reportedly the best ever work of John Compton Organ Company of Leicestershire in 1957.

Dubbed ‘the spiritual heart of the Royal Air Force’, the baroque-style St Clement Danes is just across from the Royal Courts of Justice in London. Standing on an island set in the centre of the Strand, it’s a haven from the hustle and bustle of the city.

Built by Sir Christopher Wren in 1682, it houses a plethora of memorabilia pertaining to the Royal Air Force from around the world. With its white Portland stone floor, the RAF crest is encircled by crests of the eight commonwealth air forces in copper, brass, white bronze and marble.

The church’s exterior is peppered with memorials commemorating the bravery of the RAF, with one statue in memory of Arthur "Bomber" Harris. The Welsh slate floor of the church is also encrusted with badges of more than 800 RAF squadrons.

It’s one of two churches which allege to be the inspiration for the nursery rhyme Oranges and Lemons, and the bells of St Clement Danes do actually play that tune. The other church claiming the same famous connection is St Clement Eastcheap, also in the City of London.

The most senior of the royal residences is St James’s Palace, in London’s Westminster. It was built in 1531-1536, in red brick with a Tudor style, by Henry VIII at the location of a leper hospital that was dedicated to Saint James the Less.

The palace was never the preferred home of the monarchy and always seemed to play second fiddle to places like the Palace of Whitehall (in Tudor and Stuart times) and Buckingham Palace (in the 18th century).

Today, St James’s is still a functioning palace as well as the base of the Royal Court. The complex contains York House (the previous home of Prince Charles, William and Harry), Lancaster House (used for official governmental receptions) and Clarence House (Prince Charles’ new home and formerly the home of the late Queen Mother). The Royal Philatelic Collection has also now been moved there from Buckingham Palace where it was kept for the whole of the 20th century.

Pelicans first made an appearance in St James’s Park in 1664, gifted by a Russian Ambassador to King Charles II. Taking up residence close to Duck Island, the pelicans can mostly be seen sunbathing or eating and are renowned residents of the park. Visitors can go along to St James’s Park, near the cottage of Duck Island, to watch the feeding of the pelicans between 2.30 and 3.00pm daily.

The park has three characterful great white pelicans who amuse visitors. They’ve often been spotted joining members of the public on benches around the park, with one particularly adventurous pelican journeying over to London Zoo to snack on fish that can be found there!

The oldest of London’s eight Royal Parks is St James's. 470 years ago, it was used for grazing pigs. A perpetually flooded swamp, King Henry VIII turned it into a deer hunting lodge in 1536. It remained that way until King James I took the throne in 1603. It was then drained and turned into a park with ponds. Game was shot there that would wind up as part of the King’s dinner. King James also used the park to house a small selection of animals, including camels, crocodiles, elephants and tropical birds.

When Charles II took his reign in 1660, he ordered for the park to be redesigned. It’s speculated that he commissioned French landscaper Andre Mollet for the job. The 23-hectare park was remodelled again and overseen by architect and landscaper John Nash in 1827. Most of the park’s present day beauty can be attributed to Nash’s designs and any changes made are always in keeping with his original vision.

Located near St Paul’s Cathedral, on Ludgate Hill, the baroque-style Anglican Church of St Martin-within-Ludgate can be found. The church was first built in 1437, and churches located just inside of a city’s parameters are often named after St Martin of Tours (who is the patron saint of travellers).

Rebuilt by Sir Christopher Wren in 1677-84, the chandelier in the church originates from the West Indies and is dated around 1777. The organ is a Bernard Schmidt design dating from 1684, with carvings by Grinling Gibbons inside (Dutch-British wood carver and sculptor, known for his work on Windsor Castle and Hampton Court Palace).

By 1893 to 1894, the church was restored and renovated once more, with many of the graves uprooted and relocated to the Brookwood Cemetery (also known as the ‘London Necropolis’) in Surrey. The church suffered roof damage by bombs in the First World War, but fared well during the Second World War. By 1950, the church earned its Guild Church status and became a Grade I listed building.

The church of St Mary Abchurch, near Cannon Street, London, dates back to the 12th century and is dedicated to the Virgin Mary. The word Abchurch is thought to have originated from ‘upchurch’, referring to its location on higher ground. The church was destroyed by the Great Fire of 1666 and redesigned in 1681 by Sir Christopher Wren, finishing it in 1686. Since then, it’s mostly remained the same.

Some of the most stunning features of St Mary Abchurch are the carvings made by Grinling Gibbons (Dutch-British sculptor and wood carver, known for his work on Windsor Castle, Hampton Court Palace and also St Martin-within-Ludgate) in limewood. They are the largest of his works to be found in a city church, with the exception of St Paul’s Cathedral.

The church’s domed ceiling is punctuated with four windows and is 40 metres across. The painted ceiling was thought to have been created by William Snow in 1708, a member of the Painter-Stainers' Company, who was a neighbour of the church. The altar piece was made by Grinling Gibbons and features a gilded motif known as the ‘Pelican in her piety’, which can also be found on the weather vane outside.

St Mary Aldermary, the Gothic Anglican church in London’s Bow Lane, dates back to medieval times and the word ‘Aldermary’ generally refers to the ‘oldest Mary’ (meaning the oldest church to have been dedicated to the Virgin Mary).

The church, like many in London, suffered badly from the Great Fire in 1666 and was subsequently rebuilt by Sir Christopher Wren. £5,000 had been left for the rebuilding of the church by Henry Rogers, whose widow ensured the money was used for that sole purpose. According to Nikolaus Pevsner (history of art scholar), the church is "the chief surviving monument of the 17th century Gothic revival in the City and – with Warwick – the most important late 17th century Gothic church in England."

The windows of St Mary Aldermary were smashed during the Blitz, in the Second World War, although the building remained mostly undamaged. Renovations of the church have occurred frequently throughout history and, in 1876-7, new stained glass was put into the windows.

Rebuilt after the Great Fire of London in 1666 by Sir Christopher Wren, the church can be found near Cheapside. The baroque-style church of St Mary-le-Bow is one of the most renowned churches of the East London area. Evidence suggests that a church has stood on that very site since Saxon times. During Norman times, it was called ‘St Mary de Arcubus’, which is where it gets the addition of the word ‘Bow’ from, as it was rebuilt with two arches (or ‘bows’) of stone. The church bells (which could be heard as far as Hackney Marshes) were used to call a curfew in London.

It is said that you can only refer to yourself as a true Cockney if you were born within the sound of Bow Bells. The bells of St Mary-le-Bow were also said to have convinced Dick Whittington to remain in London and eventually become the Lord Mayor.

Hailed the second most significant church in London after St Paul's Cathedral, it was one of Christopher Wren’s first church rebuilds in 1671 and 1673, and today is a Grade I listed building.

Baroque-style St Paul’s Cathedral is one of the most renowned of the London sites – a significant part of London’s identity and a famous landmark, with the dome enduring bombing during the Second World War. At 111 metres high, it was the tallest building in London until 1962. It sits on Ludgate Hill and was built in the 17th century. Its height was attributed to its designer Sir Christopher Wren’s love of astronomy and for its designs; he kept Michelangelo's dome of St Peter's Basilica in mind (as well as that of Mansart's Church of the Val-de-Grâce).

The Cathedral has held state services for some of the most famous people – Lord Nelson, the Duke of Wellington and Sir Winston Churchill – and was also the venue for Prince Charles and Lady Diana’s wedding.

Quite uncharacteristically, the Cathedral has a crypt (the largest in Europe), which provides significant structural strength. The crypt is populated with gigantic piers which help to distribute the weight of the daintier piers above ground. Wren designed the Cathedral with eight piers, instead of the customary four, to help distribute the weight further. These precautions arose due to the weak clay soil site of the Cathedral.

One of the most noteworthy aspects of the structure is its square (and not circular) plan.

St Stephen Walbrook church is another of London’s stunning examples of Sir Christopher Wren’s restorations. Destroyed in the Great Fire in 1666, Wren took up its redesign at a cost of £7,692.

His design included an enclosed staircase of sixteen steps, carrying you to the entrance of the church. Its impressive 19 metre domed roof was based on the designs for St Paul’s and is made of plaster and copper-covered timber.

The baroque-style building is adjacent to Mansion House, but the original site was west of a stream running across London (known as Walbrook). The church was relocated to its present site after Robert Chichely purchased the land and gifted it to the parish in 1429.

The rector, Thomas Wilson, installed a statue of Catharine Macaulay (who campaigned to reform Parliament) as he admired her politics; but the statue proved controversial and so was removed.

The church was the founding home of the Samaritans charity in 1953, which was based in the church’s crypt. A telephone displayed in a glass box commemorates the charity.

In 1987, Peter Palumbo (the churchwarden) commissioned the huge, polished white stone altar by Henry Moore, which still takes a central position inside the church.

The Tate is the British institution housing contemporary art. Made up of the Tate Britain (1897), Tate Liverpool (1988), Tate St Ives (1993) and the Tate Modern (2000), it started life as the National Gallery of British Art. It was renamed, in 1932, to the Tate Gallery after Henry Tate (of Tate & Lyle) began the collection by donating his own. An £80,000 anonymous donation was offered for the building of the gallery on the condition Henry Tate approved the site. The donor turned out to be Henry Tate himself.

The building façade of Tate Britain was designed by Sidney R. J. Smith and the main sculpture gallery by John Russell Pope. Its Clore Gallery, by designer James Stirling, is considered to be an important example of postmodern architecture. £45 million was raised in 2012 for renovations (mostly from the Heritage Lottery Fund and by Tate Members).

Branding of The Tate was designed by Wolff Olins (known for working with BT and Orange) in 2000. The logo came from the concept look again, think again and thus changes focus, also 'suggesting the dynamic nature of Tate'.

In 1972, the Tate was subject to controversy, after Carl Andre’s work Equivalent VIII was criticised for “wasting taxpayers’ money” and was dubbed ‘The Bricks’. The Tate was criticised in 1998 after accepting donations from John Drewe (art fraudster) and once again for accepting sponsorship from BP after campaigners called for ‘Art Not Oil’.

The Tate Modern, established in 2000 and part of a collective of four Tate galleries across the UK, exhibits international modern and contemporary art. The building it occupies was previously the Bankside Power Station, designed by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott (known for Battersea Power Station) and completed in 1963.

The power station closed in 1981 and was later proposed as the new site for the Tate Gallery’s extension plans, after a competition ran for a new building which would be known as the Tate Modern. Herzog & de Meuron (Swiss architects known for the Serpentine Gallery Pavilion in London) won that competition in 1995 and decided to renovate and redesign the Bankside Power Station instead of pulling it down.

Externally it resembles a factory and this carries thematically throughout the building’s seven-storey interior (concrete floors and metalwork revealed). Using 4.2 million bricks, the façade is built with windows between the brickwork, which allows light to flood through. Its huge chimney is immediately recognisable and can be seen from St Paul’s, reaching a staggering 325 feet and made completely of brick.

The London residence of the famous Charles Dickens from 1851 to 1860, Tavistock House is where he penned such literary classics as Hard Times, Bleak House, Little Dorrit and A Tale of Two Cities.

The house, as it originally stood in 1834, was built by James Burton (known for developing parts of Bloomsbury and Regent's Park). The house was eventually leased to James Perry (editor of The European Magazine and the Morning Chronicle). Dickens later leased Tavistock House from his friend, Frank Stone (an English painter).

Realising fame while he lived there, his first published story A Dinner at Poplar Walk (later re-titled Mr. Minns and His Cousin) was set in Tavistock House. The house was also the site of many amateur dramatics hosted by Dickens. He converted the house’s schoolroom into what he affectionately referred to as "The Smallest Theatre in the World”. The first play to show there was the burlesque Guy Fawkes by Alfred Smith.

During 1858 Dickens, and his wife Catherine separated and, many years later, in 1901, Tavistock House was demolished. The headquarters of the British Medical Association now sits on the site and a blue plaque can be found commemorating the house and the revered author.

Remembered as Sir Christopher Wren’s Temple Bar, it marked the entrance to the City of London for 200 years, although no formal paperwork exists proving he redesigned it. The Portland stone arch was built by 1672, by the City Mason Thomas Knight and Joshua Marshall.

The gate actually dates back to 1293, when it was most likely just a chain. History is littered with mentions of the bar, but most famously after the defeat of the Spanish Armada. Waiting at Temple Bar was the Lord Mayor, to present Elizabeth I with the keys of the City. Elizabeth I presented the Mayor with a pearly sword (one of five City swords). The ceremony is re-enacted on major state occasions.

Temple Bar remained in Fleet Street until mandatory roadworks were actioned to widen the road and pull it down. The Neo-Renaissance-style Temple Bar Memorial (by Horace Jones) replaced it in 1880, depicting a pedestal topped with a dragon.

The Bar was then rebuilt at Hertfordshire’s Theobalds Park after the owner, Lady Meux (a banjo-playing barmaid) bought it. The 2,500 stones, weighing almost 400 tons, were delivered on horse-drawn trolleys.

In 1984, the Temple Bar Trust bought it back for £1 and relocated it to Paternoster Square.

12th century Temple Church was built by the Knights Templar as their headquarters. In 1199-1216, it was used as the site of the royal treasury, where the Knights Templar worked. It is applauded for its popular ‘knight-themed’ round design and its historic stone effigies.

Although it was undamaged by the Great Fire of London, it was renovated by Christopher Wren who added an organ to the church. It had another restoration in 1841, by Smirke and Burton, who renovated the interior in a Victorian gothic style. Since being damaged in the Second World War, it received further renovation by the architect Walter Godfrey and, since 1950, it’s been a Grade I listed building.

The church has always been known as a church that’s exempt from the jurisdiction of the diocese (known as a Peculiar). Presently it’s owned by the Inner Temple and Middle Temple Inns of Court (home of the English legal profession).

The South Flower Walk at Kensington Gardens is a 500-yard-long, flower-laden walk that takes you from the Albert Memorial to the Palace and Broad Walk, and can also be reached from Hyde Park Gate.

The gated, flower-lined pathway is one of the most popular parts of the garden and is a sensual and floral haven, described as a “quarter most patronized by nursemaids and their charges” in the book The Fascination of London (1903).

First built in 1599, but destroyed by fire in 1613, the Elizabethan playhouse on London’s Southbank was rebuilt in 1614 only to be demolished again in 1644.

Today’s version is said to be a close match to the original design, with the exception that it now fits 1,400 spectators, whereas the original would have accommodated 3,000. Founded by Sam Wanamaker (director), it was rebuilt in 1997, around 230 metres from the location of the original playhouse.

Helping to give the building its authentic feel is the fact that it’s made exclusively of English oak with mortise and tenon joints. The building also has the first ever thatched roof to be allowed in London since the Great Fire in 1666. Visitors shouldn’t feel concerned about the safety of this feature as it’s well protected by sprinklers on the roof, in case of a fire.

Shakespeare’s Globe theatre also houses an indoor theatre (as well as the renowned outdoor one) which first opened in 2014, and features an exhibition of the world-famous bard’s life, including tours of the two theatres. The Globe’s restaurant has stunning views of the Thames and St Paul’s.

The History Trees, at the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, were brought to life by British artists Ackroyd and Harvey and are a fine example of living works of art. At the main entrances to the park, there are 10 different trees which signify the biodiversity and inclusivity of the park’s ethos.

A specifically tailored metal ring encircles each tree, engraved in a redrawn version of Akzidenz Grotesk (font), with historic information pertaining to each location. The trees are part of a project supported by the artist Lucy Harrison called Mapping Your Manor (Harrison interviewed local people for the history and information for each inscription). The phosphored bronze and stainless steel 6-metre diameter rings, weighing nearly half a ton each, contain information like local residents’ recollections of the area (at the one nearest the London Aquatic Centre).

A unique part of the design is that the shadow cast by this ring will be permanently captured by being inlayed onto the ground in bronze, and each year the shadow and ring will momentarily align to commemorate the significant date and time during the London 2012 Games.

The Royal Exchange was first founded by Thomas Gresham, in the 16th century, as the centre of commerce for London and opened by the Queen who permitted the legal sale of alcohol there. Its unusual shape was Britain’s first specialist commercial building and the design was influenced by a Bourse (a market for buying and selling commodities) which Gresham saw in Antwerp. Royal proclamations were also traditionally always read from its steps by the town crier.

Destroyed and subsequently rebuilt a few times throughout history, the Exchange was redesigned in the 1840s by William Tite. For almost 150 years, it was the home of Lloyd’s insurance market, but today features a diverse selection of offices, shops and eateries.

By 1982, its glass roof was considered to be in dangerous need of repair and so The Royal Exchange was again the site of renovation by architects Aukett Fitzroy Robinson.

The Exchange also features two statues: one of Paul Julius Reuter, who founded his news agency there, and one of George Peabody, the founder of the Peabody Trust. In 2013, it was sold and, eventually, the Oxford Properties Group bought it, allegedly for around £86.5 million.

One of the tallest buildings in Europe, The Shard stands at 309.6 metres (1,016 ft) high.

Starting life as a sketch, scrawled on a restaurant menu in Berlin by Italian architect Renzo Piano in the year 2000, building of The Shard (previously London Bridge Tower) started in 2009 and was finally completed by 2012.

The designer, harbouring a dislike of conventional skyscrapers, took inspiration from nearby train lines, impressions of the London Spires by Canaletto (an 18th century Venetian artist) and ship masts.

Built with a Combined Heat Plant (CHP) and running on natural gas, the eco-friendly building uses fuel-to-electricity conversions and engine heat to supply its hot water. With 72 floors, The Shard covers a surface area of 56,000 square metres. The reflective nature of the building’s 11,000 glass panes, along with its name, make it sound misleadingly delicate. The Shard is designed to withstand arduous stresses thanks to its shape, load-bearing pillars, post-tensioned concrete and 16-inch sway resistance.

With 40 mile views across London, visitors get a free return ticket if they can’t see at least three of these landmarks: London Eye, St Paul’s Cathedral, The Gherkin, Tower Bridge and One Canada Square, Canary Wharf.

Under the cover of Waterloo Bridge, on Queen’s Walk, you’ll find one of the only outside second-hand and antiquarian book markets in the south of England. Open every day from 11am to 7pm, no matter what the weather, the Book Market has a fantastic variety of paper and hardback books for visitors to choose from, at bargain prices. It’s one of the Southbank’s best kept secrets.

Laid-back Gareth Skewis – the man who runs the market – also features in a short film called The 1000 Londoners Project, in which he talks about his love of the market and his fears of the effect that Amazon will have on his trade. Watch here…

Central London’s Theatre Royal in Covent Garden is also known as Drury Lane, owing to its location, backing onto Drury Lane.

Four theatre buildings have been constructed on this site, with the first dating back to 1663 – which makes Drury Lane the oldest theatre site still used today.

The second building on the site, was historically considered to be designed by Christopher Wren, in 1674. Although in 1964, after 290 years, the validity of this supposition was disputed by scholars inspecting the original drawing held at All Souls Library. Robert D. Hume of Penn State University concluded that use of the drawing "could just as easily be a discarded sketch unconnected to Drury Lane in any way." Google still attributes Christopher Wren as the architect of Theatre Royal, alluding to the open question surrounding Wren’s contribution.

Although the designers of the first building are unknown and the second building are in question; the third building was designed by Henry Holland (known for Carlton House, London) and was first opened in 1794. The one we see today was designed by Benjamin Dean Wyatt.

London’s Tower Bridge Exhibition (originally opened in 1982) features an amazing glass floor on its top-deck walkway. The top-level walkway, which connects the two 65-metre-high towers, affords visitors a unique perspective of London. 42 metres above the River Thames, the 11-metre-long transparent walkway allows visitors to see traffic and pedestrians through the floor, as well as across the city of London (if visitors don’t like looking down).

The £1m project first opened in 2014 and saw the installation of 530kg glass panels on the top deck of the iconic bridge. It’s recommended that the best time to cross, for downward viewing, is while the lower deck is being raised.

Only two weeks after opening, a member of the catering staff dropped a beer bottle and shattered the glass. But as each pane is made up of five layers of glass, replacing the top layer solved the problem easily. The glass floor was designed to be shatterproof, crack resistant, anti-slip and easily uninstalled if needed.

First built in 1886-1894, Tower Bridge is London’s world-famous suspension drawbridge. The two 65-metre-high towers at either side of the bridge are connected by two horizontal paths. The drawbridge mechanisms can be found at the base of each tower.

The main deck is free for traffic and pedestrian use, but the upper deck and towers form part of the Tower Bridge Exhibition and feature a glass floor.

In 1884, a competition began to find a design for the new bridge in London. More than 50 designs were submitted, but an entry by one of the judges, Sir Horace Jones (known for the Temple Bar Memorial) won.

Building the 240-metre-long bridge took eight years, five contractors and 432 employees. 70,000 tons of concrete created the two towers, as well as more than 11,000 tons of steel. Clad in Portland stone and Cornish granite, the bridge was opened in 1894.

In 1952, it was famed when a number 78 double-decker bus got caught while the deck was being raised. The driver accelerated, clearing the three-foot drop to the other side, resulting in no injuries at all. By 2000, a computerised raising and lowering mechanism was installed. By 2008, the bridge was renovated at a cost of £4 million.

As folklore forewarns, the Kingdom will surely fall if its ravens should ever abandon the grounds. Although superstition insists that six ravens remain at all times, there are presently seven, just for good measure.

This was something Charles II took very seriously, demanding no harm come to the ravens, even though the infamous birds interfered with the astronomical observations of John Flamsteed at the White Tower.

The named birds – Hardey, Thor, Odin, Gwyllum, Cedric, Hugine and Munin – can be found near the Wakefield Tower. Although their presence is legendarily mandatory, rebellious ravens (like previously unreliable employees, ravens George and Grog) can still be laid off if necessary.

Answering exclusively to the Raven Master (Christopher Skaife), visitors are warned to keep their distance and to refrain from feeding the large territorial birds, who eat around 170g of raw meat and blood-soaked biscuits daily.

A fortress, a prison and a palace, the Tower of London’s rich history has made it a popular tourist attraction since Elizabethan times.

Emerging victorious from the Battle of Hastings, William the Conqueror started building the White Tower (giving the castle its name) in 1078. It reaches an impressive 27 metres and is made entirely of Caen stone from his home country, France.

Home of the Crown Jewels, which have been there since the 17th century (with an estimated value of £20 billion), its official name is actually Her Majesty’s Royal Palace and Fortress, The Tower of London. Listed as an official residence of The Queen, during the Second World War it was used as a prisoner of war camp for the deputy chancellor of Nazi Germany, after he was found by a local farmer parachuting over Scotland.

The Yeoman Warders (whose £7,000 uniforms contain pure gold threading) also reside at the Tower. To be selected, they must have served a minimum of 22 years in the armed forces.

Although notorious for its six ravens (whose presence ensure the safety of the Tower) and its gruesome history, it’s been the site of only 22 executions, the last being in August 1941 when the German spy Josef Jakobs was sentenced to death by a firing squad.

The University of London’s Senate House is an imposing building which inspired the writer George Orwell. Historically, the building was used as the Ministry of Information during the Second World War, where Orwell’s wife Eileen worked for the Censorship Department. Her accounts of working in the building provided much inspiration to Orwell for his novel Nineteen Eighty-Four and the ‘Ministry of Truth’. The building was used in the film adaptation starring John Hurt, in 1984.

First built in 1932- 1937 and designed by the architect Charles Holden (known for many of the London Underground stations). The 19 floors of the art deco, neoclassical building are the heart of the University of London’s Central Academic Bodies. Within its imposing 64-metre-high interior can be found the whole collection of the Senate House Library (occupying the 4th to the 18th floors) and many of the research institutes for the School of Advanced Study. The 4th to the 7th floors of the Senate House Library are open to staff and students and, within its walls, over three million volumes are kept.

The MI6 Building, at Vauxhall Cross, is the home of the British Secret Service (SIS), having moved from their previous headquarters at Century House due to the building’s insecure nature (The Telegraph dubbed it ‘London’s worst kept secret, known only to every taxi driver, tourist guide and KGB agent’).

The new building is on the site of the 19th century Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens, a location which subsequently saw life as a glass factory, vinegar works and even a gin distillery.

A competition won by Terry Farrell (known for Charing Cross Station) transformed the site into office blocks. Farrell’s designs were inspired by industrial modernism in architecture from the 1930s, as well as Aztec and Mayan temples. In 1989, it was bought for £130 million, with the SIS as the new occupiers.

For security the building is constructed with triple-glazed windows, two moats and many parts of the building are subterranean with interlinking underground corridors. The layered design includes 60 roof areas and sophisticated amenities for its staff – a sports hall, gym and even a squash court.

It was made famous in the James Bond movie of 1999, The World is Not Enough, when it was filmed being attacked. A special screening of the film was held at the offices, for staff, who allegedly cheered when the building was destroyed.

The cycling centre on Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, known as VeloPark, was one of the permanent venues for the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games and was first opened to the public in March 2014. The park was built on the site of the Eastway Cycle Circuit, which it replaced.

Featuring a velodrome and BMX racing track, along with a one-mile road and five-mile mountain bike trail, the park was designed by Hopkins Architects and Grant Associates. The park features a 360 degree viewing level of the Olympic Park and is often more informally known as ‘The Pringle’, owing to its form.

The external men’s BMX track is 470 metres in length and is made up of a berm jump, an S-bend transfer, a box jump and a rhythm section in the final straight. The women’s track is 430-metres long and includes three jumps in the opening straight and a tunnel, as well as a rhythm section in the final straight. With its eight-metre starting ramp, the track is known to be the most gruelling track around. It earned itself the Prime Minister's Better Public Building Award at the British Construction Industry Awards in 2011.

Named best commercial high-rise in London at the International Property Awards in 2015, number 20 Fenchurch Street (or the Walkie-Talkie as it’s popularly known) was finished in 2014. The renowned Sky Garden on its top floor took a little longer, and wasn’t completed until January 2015.

Designed by architect Rafael Viñoly, it’s the 5th tallest building in the city at 160 metres tall, with 680,000 square feet of enviably state-of-the art-offices. Costing over £200 million, the 34-storey building gets its name from its top-heavy and notably bulky form.

During its earlier stages, discoveries were made that, as the sun shone onto it, the building was acting as a concave mirror, sending beams of light (six times as bright as direct sunlight) onto the streets below, causing considerable damage. It was then mocked by the public press, referring to it as a ‘Fryscraper’ or the ‘Walkie-Scorchie’.

The prestigious Sky Garden is an unexpected and unique hub of innovative green space, viewing galleries, terraced area, café, bar and restaurant. It occupies three floors of the building and gives perfect panoramic views of the City.

Previously known as the Collegiate Church of St Peter at Westminster, the Gothic abbey near the Palace of Westminster is one of the most renowned in the UK. It has historically been the burial site of British monarchs since 1066, and since 1100, 16 royal weddings have taken place there.

With historical references dating back to 960 AD; it was original built in 1245 and was finished by 1517 by the architect Henry Yevele (known for Canterbury Cathedral). The three masons Henry of Reyns, John of Gloucester and Robert of Beverley supervised the work. The architect was inspired by the new cathedrals at Reims, Amiens and Chartres, which gave him the idea for the radiating chapels, pointed arches, ribbed vaulting, rose windows and flying buttresses.

Between 1540 and 1556, it achieved cathedral status but lost it in 1560 when it became a Church of England Royal Peculiar (referring to a church that reports directly to the monarch). In 1698, it was renovated after considerable damage was suffered at the hands of the Puritan Iconoclasts in the 1640s; and by 1698, Christopher Wren was appointed Surveyor of Westminster Abbey.

The last renovations were finished by 1745 (on the West Towers) following the design of Nicholas Hawksmoor, the Abbey's Surveyor.

A museum can also be found beneath Westminster Abbey.

Howick Place, in London’s Victoria, is home to Wind Sculpture by the (British-born) Nigerian artist Yinka Shonibare (MBE). The sculpture was first installed in April 2014 and was commissioned by Doughty Hanson & Co Real Estate and Terrace Hill (the joint developers of Howick Place).

At an impressive six by three metres, the sculpture entertains the idea of harnessing movement by holding wind still in a capsule of time. The sculpture is said to parallel the artist’s work on the sails of the Nelson’s Ship in a Bottle exhibited outside the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich.

Wind Sculpture is thematically connected to its location (which was named after Viscount Howick, who was one of the architects of the Reform Act 1832 which saw the Catholic emancipation and the abolition of slavery in the British Empire). The sculpture shares the themes of colonialism, globalisation and race shown through Yinka Shonibare’s use of batik Dutch wax fabric, which is linked to the traditional and ceremonial costume of Africa and, by the 1960s, symbolic of African independence. The fabric (inspired by Indonesian design) was once produced en masse by the Dutch and sold to colonies in West Africa.