We gathered in the concourse at Oxford Street station. The station layout is complicated and some people were in different places. There were rumours of Poly Ramblers being seen in the vicinity but eventually we got together and set off. In Argyll St, home of the Palladium, we saw plaques commemorating Sir William Roy and Washington Irving. After crossing Regent St we made our way to Hanover Sq for Prince Talleyrand and were joined by the 26th member of the party at the Hanover Sq exit from Bond St Elizabeth line station.
In Brook St we saw Jimi Hendrix and G F Handel on adjacent buildings, then went up New Bond St for Lord Nelson. Returning to Brook St we saw Sir Jeffrey Wyatville before going to the far end of South Molton St for Ernest Bevin, not to be confused with Aneurin Bevan. It was pointed out to me that I had missed William Blake in South Molton St. I don’t remember seeing him on by blue plaque map or seeing him on my walkover. Anyway, my apologies to William, sorry I missed you. Continue reading Plaques and Parks Walk, Sunday, January 15th
All posts by Gillian
FEBRUARY TO MAY 2023 WALKS PROGRAMME
TOWER HILL TO GREENWICH – 27 DECEMBER
Seventeen members met at Tower Hill station on Tuesday 27th December on a mild and sunny morning for a walk alongside the Thames to Greenwich. Skirting the Tower of London, we had a look at the execution site where Thomas More amongst others met his end and then the low-tide beach which was popular with East End kids before the War. Leaving the tourist crowds behind, we passed St Katherines Dock and joined Wapping High Street with its historic pubs the Town of Ramsgate & the Prospect of Whitby. We resisted the temptation of sampling their wares and carried on past Shadwell & Limehouse Basins to West India Quay where we had our lunch stop at the Ledger Building. Refreshed we walked through the Canary Wharf complex with its assortment of skyscrapers reminiscent of a Batman movie. Views of the South Dock and the Millwall Dock followed before we entered Mudchute Park which was formed from the spoil excavated from the adjacent docks in the 1860s. We had a look at some of the animals in London’s largest city farm before heading to Island Gardens with its fine view of Christopher Wren’s Naval College and the Royal Observatory on the high ground behind. The foot tunnel took us to Greenwich town centre and the finish of the walk. The group went their separate ways including a few who had coffee in the Gate Clock hostelry enriched with a tot of whisky!
Danny
Photos courtesy of Ida Kwan
SNOW WALKING WEEKEND – REUTTE, AUSTRIA. JANUARY 2023
After a two-year interruption, we decided to resume the snow-walking weekends. This time, we stayed four nights to be able to do three walks. As the time to leave got nearer, snow was lacking in the mountains. Would it just be a walking weekend? Never mind, we were keen to see the mountains. At Heathrow, one member of the group was missing but we were eventually reunited at the gate (phew!) and eight Poly Ramblers flew to Munich on Friday 13. After travelling on three different trains, we finally arrived in time for dinner at the Hotel Goldene Rose in Reutte, a small Austrian market town located on the river Lech. Continue reading SNOW WALKING WEEKEND – REUTTE, AUSTRIA. JANUARY 2023
Xmas lunch and Bloomsbury walk – 11 December
On a bright but cold Sunday morning, twenty-seven members gathered at Tottenham Court Road station for a short walk to whet appetites for the Club Xmas Lunch later that day. The Bloomsbury area with its literary connections and numerous fine squares was the location for the stroll. The group first headed for the perfectly preserved Georgian Bedford Square which was the centre of British publishing until the late 1980s. Passing many blue plaques, we then moved on to London University’s imposing Senate House on which George Orwell is reputed to have based his ‘Ministry Of Truth’ in the novel 1984. Next, three squares Russell, Woburn and Gordon followed in quick succession before reaching Tavistock Square with its memorial stone to conscientious objectors at one end and a statue of Gandhi at its centre. The eclectic neighbourhoods of Tavistock Street and Lambs Conduit Street on either side of Brunswick Square were traversed before Red Lion was our final square where the Ethical Society has its headquarters at Conway Hall. A few minutes more and the walking group were inside the Freemasons Arms pub in Long Acre. There a further sixteen members and one guest joined the party before adjourning to the upstairs function room for an excellent repast served by the efficient and friendly staff. Our chair Hilary thanked everyone for their contribution to the Club over the past year before everyone headed home to the prospect for many of heavy snowfall overnight.
Danny. Photos courtesy of ida
