Chelsea's rural heritage seen on a Brompton G-Line

The other day I found myself cycling in the now rather fancy Chelsea. As I past this particular building, first seen on one of Ross’s brilliant quite interesting Sunday rides a few years ago, I decided to stop and take a few photos of my Brompton G-Line…and the building in question of course! Yes you read that correctly…rural. 

The cows head on the building were once the mooo-dels (sorry, I could not resist) for Wright's Dairy, which proudly served Londoners with milk, from the late 1700s.

Modern architecture ride on a Brompton

Last Sunday I joined the lovely Friday peeps for an architectural cycle ride in which we would be treated to some of the more modern buildings the city has to offer. Starting at the usual Hyde Park Corner we set off in good time and in weather conditions that got better as the ride progressed. I even had the time for a few touristy photos.

Brutal Barbican on a Brompton

I have always held quite the soft spot for Brutalist architecture, often perceived as a subject of polarising opinion - one either loves it or loathes it. I firmly belong to the former category. Throughout my relatively unchanged residence in London, I have been fortunate to be in proximity to some great examples of this architectural style. The Barbican Centre, a quintessential representation of Brutalism, has always been a favourite and epitomises the aesthetics of this genre. As you might suspect, I possess literally thousands of photographs capturing various angles, times of day and different seasons.

Quite interesting ride on my Orange Titanium Brompton - Part 2

Hello dear reader. I am glad you came back for part 2 of my recent 'Quite interesting ride on my Orange Titanium Brompton.' 

6. Myddleton Passage. Where a wall is not just a wall!

Regular readers and those of you who follow me on Instagram (you can find me on there by typing @orangebrompton) will know that I do like a brick wall to rest my Brompton and take a photo. This aspect has become a signature element in my posts. This particular wall was very different indeed.

Quite interesting ride on my Orange Titanium Brompton - Part 1

Last Sunday, I went on the sixth version of the ‘Quite Interesting Ride’ series, which is the brainchild of the gentleman that is, Ross. Regrettably, this was to be the last of his rides of this type, but that didn’t deter me from attending, even with the forecast predicting near-constant rain (more on that later)! After all, skin is waterproof!

The ride started near London Bridge station, and I had to resort to using several tube lines to get there on time. As you know, dear reader, I am not the biggest fan of public transport, but I steeled myself for the worst and got there in the end.

With that challenge behind me, I dusted off my trusty Orange Titanium Brompton for this occasion. (I wasn't keen on getting my G-Line or Brompton Electric wet)! Initially, riding one of my small-wheeled Brompton after such a long hiatus felt a bit odd - for about two minutes, that is. Once I found my rhythm, I was absolutely loving the ride. There’s something freeing about zipping around on a Brompton, even in drizzly conditions!

The premise of the ride was simple. We would visit 15 interesting locations covering roughly 15 miles of gentle cycling. It was a perfect opportunity to soak in the history of London. As we set off, each stop promised unique views and stories.

In this blog post, I will cover the first five locations. The rest will follow at a later date - when I have more time to write them. Keep an eye out for those. 

1. The Royal Exchange - Giant Grasshopper weathervane

The grasshopper was the emblem of Tudor financier, Sir Thomas Gresham. He founded the first Royal Exchange in 1565, establishing a vital hub for commerce. Moreover, he set up Gresham College, which delights audiences to this day with engaging public lectures. The grasshopper appears on top of the Royal Exchange building and also elsewhere in the City. 

But here’s a whimsical twist: it is said that Thomas’s ancestor, Roger de Gresham, was abandoned as a small child in the marshy parts of Norfolk. What a spot to be left! Remarkably, little Roger was eventually discovered by a lady, intriguingly drawn to the sound of a chirruping grasshopper. Now, whether this sound came from a genuine grasshopper or if young Roger was simply wailing like one remains a mystery. Perhaps it’s more likely that the tale springs from an old pun connecting Gresh and grass! Either way, it adds flavour to the Gresham legacy.

2. Fine wooden doors at 23 Cornhill. 

This location was once the headquarters of the Cornhill Insurance Company, an establishment rich in history. 

The mahogany doors, designed by the esteemed Sir Walter Gilbert in 1939, are the highlight. He was quite the noteworthy figure, also responsible for the façade at Selfridges on Oxford Street and the gates of Buckingham Palace.

The intricate carvings on the doors catch the eye, each illustrating significant events that have shaped the area over time. They serve as a visual narrative, linking the past to the present. The doors are rather lovely and stand as a testament to the craftsmanship of their time, inviting visitors to pause and appreciate the stories they tell. Saying that, I have passed them countless times and never given them a second glance. It is only thanks to this ride that I know they existed at all!

3. Mercer's Maiden

This carving in Covent Garden is the symbol of the Mercer’s Guild and signifies their ownership, appearing on several buildings across London. While there are a few in Covent Garden, this mid-16th century example is uniquely set into the wall of a newer building. The Mercers originally specialised in fancy textiles and were the foremost guild in London, playing a significant role in the city’s commercial history.

4. St Lawrence Jewry, Gresham Street. (Another weathervane). 

The original church was built here in the 12th century but was destroyed in the Great Fire of London of 1666. It was subsequently rebuilt to the design of Sir Christopher Wren, renowned for his masterpiece, St Paul's Cathedral. However, this architectural tale is merely the backdrop to a much more intriguing...disturbing story.

St Lawrence, born in 225, served as a Christian deacon in Rome. His unwavering faith drew the ire of the Roman Prefect, who ordered a gridiron to be prepared, with hot coals seething beneath it. Yes, as one might surmise, St Lawrence was placed atop the gridiron - what a chilling fate and what a way to go! Ironically, he is honoured as the Patron Saint of individuals who work with fire. To add a layer of absurdity, he is also the Patron Saint of comedians. This latter designation may stem from the legend that, in defiance of his impending martyrdom, St Lawrence is alleged to have boldly declared, "I’m done on this side!"

5. The Castle pub, Farringdon.

The Castle pub, adorned with the distinctive three brass balls on its sign, both outside and inside, is renowned for its unique status as a pawnbroker. The origins of this unusual designation trace back to an incident involving a gentleman who, having suffered considerable losses at a nearby cockfight, probably up the road in Clerkenwell, sought assistance at the Castle Pub. In need of immediate funds, he implored the landlord to advance him some cash, offering his gold pocket watch as collateral. The landlord acquiesced, and soon after, a royal employee reclaimed the watch with a cash payment. The gentleman with the watch was in fact George IV. This transaction resulted in the landlord receiving a Royal Warrant, thereby officially permitting the Castle to operate as a pawnbroker. Consequently, it stands as the only pub in England with such a privilege. In contrast, if one finds themselves financially bereft at your local Wetherspoons, exchanging a bicycle for cash would be an improbable endeavour!

Well, that is you lot for now. Many thanks to Ross for all his research and effort into these rides. They are quite simply brilliant. There will be more in a future blog post so keep an eye for it. 

Until next time, stay safe out there people!

Meeting up with my Partner in Crime

It has been far too long since I went out for a cycle ride with my Partner in Crime, so early last week we arranged to go for one of our favoured routes that we have been on countless times before.

We met at the London Eye and were soon off in an easterly direction. Our first port of call however was to stop off for a quick hot drink and snack. Feeling suitably refreshed we continued. It didn’t take long for us to catch up on what we had been up to. 

My Partner in Crime has recently been diagnosed with prostate cancer. When I found out about this, I experienced a few reactions that varied from disbelief, to anger to sadness and then positivity. Thankfully it has been caught early and positivity is something my riding Partner exhibited. You can read his blog post about this. Click here.

At Wapping we stopped at Pelican Stairs adjacent to the Prospect of Whitby pub. Luckily as the tide was out, meaning we could go onto the foreshore of the Thames. We are definitely kindred spirits and needed no encouragement to take lots of photographs of our respective Brompton bicycles. 

Heading further east we reminisced about the many adventures we had been on. This included a never to be forgotten return journey from Whitstable! Read about that one HERE!! Our night rides to the coast. The several Brompton World Championships we have attended. We even recalled a time where a group of us inadvertently strayed onto a railway line with trains rolling past. (Understandably, I have not written a blog post about that one, nor will I)!! 

We reached the Thames Flood Barrier but the information centre (and cafe) is now only open on Saturday. So, we headed back to the establishment where we had a snack to have something more substantial. 

Of the Brompton peeps, Andrew is one of the Brompton users I have know the longest. We would never have met had it not been for the fact we both had a Brompton bicycle. We were I suppose drawn to each other. He had the Bumblebee thing going on and I the Orange thing. It is in many ways incredible that a wonderful friendship started as a result. We are both older - probably not wiser - and I know that I will have many more years of adventure on two small wheels. 

Until next time, stay safe out there people. 

"Are you Mr Orange Brompton? You here to take a photo of that postbox?!"

Not that long ago I went to Wilton's Music Hall (wonderful place) to see if I could get some tickets for an event there later in the month. (Perhaps a blog post for another time). My G-Line and I were very welcome and knowing that Wapping High Street and the Thames path were not far away, I headed south. I did not put anything into my Wahoo and tried to navigate on my own. Obviously this went wrong but I did meet a very helpful chap in more ways than one. 

I realised that I hadn't a clue where I was. I had lost my bearings and resorted to a maps app on my iPhone to at least tell we where I was and what general direction I could point my bike in - to avoid the very busy road that sat behind me. It was then I heard from behind me the words that make up the title for this blog... 

Instinct took over and I summoned up my many years of Judo that I laboured with in my youth, just in case the person who knew who I was turned out to be one of those phone snatcher rapscallion types. They weren't. What they turned out to be was a reader of my blog - Sunil. 

Sunil reminded me of a previous blog post where I had mentioned cyphers on postboxes. I have to confess that I did not remember this blog post or even taking a photo of a post box (apart from the unusual one near the Chelsea Pensioners residence with two sides). Sunil was there on the A1203 for the sole purpose of getting a photo of the postbox cypher you can see below. We had to walk a few hundred metres and there it was. 

This postbox has the Edward VIII cypher on it. He was the king who abdicated so he could marry Wallis Simpson. As such, there are very few of them in existence. Sunil was very pleased to finally spot this one and took lots of photos with a rather fancy Sony camera and lens that looked as if it would be better suited to capturing the images of wild beasts on a safari holiday. 

With directions from Sunil I said my goodbyes and headed off to the Thames Path. (Sunil, if you are reading this, it was a pleasure meeting you and when you get your Brompton on the road again, send me a message). 

As I cycled back reaching Tower Bridge I could not help but take a photo of this Victorian Penfold postbox! 

Until next time, stay safe out there people!

Amble on an Orange Brompton

The other day I went on a little amble with nowhere in particular in mind at all. I decided to test out the Velo 2 that the lovely peeps at Beeline had sent out to me to test, so I decided to be give it a try. (Much more on the Velo 2 at a later stage once I have really given it the once over, so keep coming back to read about that at some point). 

I started off at Finchley Road just on the border of NW8 and cycled down past Abbey Road and its famous studios. there was no one there taking a photo on or near the famous zebra crossing for once. From there I cycled past Regents Park, the British Museum, through Clerkenwell and then to Barbican. There, I had to stop off at Florin Court which to those of you who are fans of the television series, Poirot will know that this was used as the home of the famous detective, Whitehaven Mansions. 

The little Velo 2 did a great job of getting me to various locations that popped into my mind and I enjoyed its simplicity. 

Heading south across the river I found myself cycling past Millwall Football Club. I didn't particularly want to cycle past this but the route was a good one and it got me target of the Greenwich Foot Tunnel - south side. I found an old Victorian archway and decided to stop and take a photo. A couple walking the other way looked at my taking a photo and the lady shouted out, 'nice bike.'

I headed into the old Naval College at Greenwich for a few more photos and wondered why tourists firstly don't hire a bike to see London and second don't get up as early as myself to have lots of these locations all to yourself?

Cycling further east towards the O2 I stopped for the photo below. I can honestly remember the first few times I cycled this way and sure it was but a step away from a derelict building site. (In truth it is not much more now). 

At North Greenwich I stopped for another piece of 'Labyrinth' art by Mark Wallinger. I really like these. I am not sure I will ever managed to get a photo of them all, but on the rare occasions I use the tube, I see if I can find one. From there it was a quick few stops on the Jubilee Line back to NW8 as I did not have the time to cycle back. Another time perhaps.

Until next time, stay safe out there people!

Usual London shops ride on a Brompton bicycle

This morning I was up bright and early and off to Hyde Park Corner on my Cloud Blue Brompton. Of late I have been using my other two orange Brompton bicycles and thought it only fair I took it for an outing. 

I arrived before the agreed 09:30 meeting time, the sun was shining and it was going to be a lovely day for it!

After saying hello to some of the usual suspects we followed Nick, our ride leader, for another of his themed London rides. I particularly like them as it is in London naturally but also because we cycle to locations I might have passed by and yet know nothing about 

#1. John Simons. 46, Chiltern Street. 

Our first location was an upmarket gentlemans outfitters. The window display offered a peek into what sort of clothing was on offer. My eyes were drawn to a rather expensive pair of suede shoes - offered in two colours - that screamed 1970's Geography Teacher. Now there is of course nothing wrong with this or that look but I personally wouldn't want to pay large sums of money to achieve it. Having a good look through the window (as you can probably guess) I took the view that I would not care for any of the the items offered for sale. 

#2. Niwaki. 38, Chiltern Street. 

Almost next door was our second shop, this one offering various Japanese tools for your home and garden. Certainly more upmarket than Homebase!

#3. V V Rouleaux. 102, Marylebone Lane.

As you can see in the photos, this shop is a supplier of all things ribbon. Dresses, no problem. Decorating your party, no problem. Pagan Maypole ribbon, probably no problem. 

#4. John Bell and Croyden. 54, Wigmore Street.

This shop is essentially a rather posh version of Boots or Superdrug and has been around since 1798. I have only ever stepped inside there once. I had collected a newly strung tennis racket from Wigmore Sports across the road and sliced my finger open on one of the ends of a very sharp spring. I went inside to buy a plaster or two but the lady on the counter took charge and cleaned and bandaged my finger quite beautifully. Before I left she gave me a supply of bandages, just in case. 

#5. Pollock's Toy Museum. 1, Scala Street.

This has been in its current location since 1969. I do remember going there when I was little, enjoying the James Bond, Aston Martin toy car from Goldfinger.

#6. Treadwell's. 33, Store Street. 

This quite the bookshop, selling books on magic, the occult, spiritualism and witchcraft. 

#7. Hobgoblin. 24, Rathbone Place.

This shop is another I have been to over the years.  It sells a wide variety of musical instruments from around the world. I have bought a ukulele from them that I still own to this day. 

Natalia in the photo below went inside (upon my insistence) to see what this instrument was.

#8. Reckless Records. 30 Brewer Street. 

It was not that long ago that some of us who went on Charlie's album covers ride were at this very location. Reckless Records has been buying and selling vinyl and CDs since the early 1980s. 

#9. I Camisa and Son. 61, Old Compton Street. 

This billed as the first real Italian food store in London and goes as far back as 1929. I have to say that I am not 100% about that as I think, Terroni's in Clerkenwell goes back further. 

# 10. Algerian Coffee. 52 Old Compton Street l00.

If you like coffee and tea (tea being my favourite) this is a rather good place to go if you want something a little different to the genetic high street outlets or supermarkets. 

#11. Paxton and Whitfield. 93, Jermyn Street. 

This rather fine establishment has been around for ages - in fact from 1894 in this location, They are the oldest cheesemongers in England and have two Royal Warrants. This is another shop I have used quite a bit and remember going there as a youngster with my mum. Well worth a visit and you can try before you buy and sample all sorts using their expert knowledge. 

#12. Floris. 86, Jermyn Street. 

Floris is the oldest perfumery in England and still family owned and run. In addition to being perfumers to the current Queen, past customer include Florence Nightingale, Winston Churchill, Ian Fleming and Marilyn Monroe. There is little chance of buying a bottle of 'Brut 33' however I am sure they could make something that came close!

It was outside this shop that our ride leader Nick stoically carried on providing a history of Floris whilst competing with the sounding of a nearby church bell and shouts of 'louder' from certain participants. 

#13. Farlows. 9 Pall Mall. 

This is another shop I have been to in the past. In what seems like a former life, just before university, I worked in a bank not far away on Pall Mall East. The bank job was horrid and instead of lasting more or less up to the point I started university, I could only stomach it for five months. I remember nipping into Farlows as I wanted a replacement Barbour jacket for the one that I had had for years. They didn't have the one I wanted but I do remember them having a fly fishing display that I comically caught my trousers on and almost toppled over!

#14. Cecil Court. 

Cecil Court is just off Charing Cross Road and is a rather interesting place to go to if you like books that are themselves interesting. Here you will find specialist bookshops that cater for one specific genre. Some cost less than £1 while others a fortune. In recent times I have to say that it has always given a Harry Potter vibe. 

#15. Stanfords. 7, Mercer Walk. 

Stanfords is a specialist travel and maps bookshop. Dating from 1854 is sells one of the largest quantity of maps and globes in the world. Another shop I have been to several times and I do remember going in there many years ago to get a few maps of Europe for an interrailing trip - does anyone still do that - and the lady in their was so helpful she pretty much planned out an incredible route on a main map for me. 

#16. Ede & Ravenscroft. 93, Chancery Lane.

If you have ever graduated from a university in the past, you might have obtained your robes and motor board hat from this establishment. My daughter recently graduated and she got her robes about two hours before the ceremony. It was all really well organised and rather slick. I recall having to go to this establishment to get a fitting and take with me all wrapped up in brown paper. It was a bit of a chore, equally so taking it back!

#17. Amazon Web Services. 60, High Holborn.

This particular building had us all stumped and not a single person guessed what company might be based here. 

#18. Coppermill Ltd. 118-122, Cheshire Street.

A very unassuming shopfront for a company that sells industrial cleaning rags and holds a royal warrant. Established in 1920 it has remained a family-run business. 

#19. Blackman's Shoes. 46, Cheshire Street.

A family business that was the first shop in London to sell Dr Marten boots.

#20. Labour and Wait. 85, Redchurch Street.

This isn't an old shop but is of the rather hip and trendy variety. Inside you can buy all sorts of household items.

#21. Gleave and Co. 111-113 St. John Street.

A rather unique shop selling every part the discerning horologist might need.  Established in 1948 is is still in the same family. 

#22. Condor Cycles. 49-53 Grays Inn Road. 

First opening its doors in 1948, Condor have been making some wonderful bicycles ever since. I own a Condor road bike and have visited the shop many times. It is a wonderful shop and once you buy one of their bicycles you are part of the club. It still stands as perhaps the most pleasurable buying experience I have ever had. 

With our shop stops completed we headed back to Russell Square where some participants  enjoyed some refreshments. I made my goodbyes and headed back. Another really interesting and enjoyable ride. I do like these London rides as they always provide locations that I might otherwise not know existed. Many thanks to Nick for leading the ride and providing a great route. 

Until next time, stay safe out there people.