MIDDLEBURGH

Inns of Court

I used to study at Kings College so as I familiar with the area, and as we walked down the Stand, I took little detours to places of interest; I showed Becca Dr Johnson’s House; Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese; and the Law Courts in the Strand. We cut into Temple and visited the Templar church, which is mentioned in Dan Brown’s book “The Da Vinci Code”. Many of the buildings (not the church) date from 1667 which is the year after the Fire of London (September 1666) when work started on St Paul’s itself.

We also went to see the Roman Baths next to Kings College. This was more difficult to find and is tucked away behind the old Strand /Aldwych Station. - I was on a mission.

Walked past Australia House; Bush House and India House to the Aldwych and its theatres and across to Kingsway. I was surprised to see that WH Smith is still where it was 30 years ago and wasn’t a Starsucks (there is an infestation just down the road).

What most people don’t realize is what’s under their feet.. Not only is there the disused Aldwych line (which I remember traveling on before it closed) and older tunnels which were used to store the Elgin marbles during the war but under Kingway and High Holborn there are a series of cold war bunkers that housed a nuclear hardened telecommunications centre. If I remember correctly there used to be a pole with a “Four Minute Warning” Siren outside Holborn Station (originally from WWII ) and there was one outside Wanstead tube Station (Both are gone now - I checked)

Ducked down Portugal Street we visited "the old curiosity shop" mentioned by Dickens (and oldest shop in London) and went past the LSE (My first serious girlfriend's brother studied there and when I was at Kings I used to use the LSE facilities) We walked around Lincoln’s Inn Fields (a third inn of Court) The tea house near the tennis courts is no more so we detoured for food and missed the Sloane museum.(but we will get it next time ) We also didn’t drop in on my cousin who has chambers in Lincolns Inn (I am sure he won’t be upset)

After we had eaten we walked towards Chancery Lane and Staple Inn , an old Tudor style building by the Tube which survived the fire of London and which is part of the Chancery Inns of Court. I was pleased to see that the tobacconist is still there

Posted at 4/24/2005 05:38:00 pm by David Middleburgh   Permalink

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