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OctogenPics- Mostly London

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OctogenPics- Mostly London

I'm an 85-year-old Londoner with a love for walking and capturing the beauty of this incredible city. I hope I encourage others to look.

From hidden gems to iconic landmarks, my photos showcase the charm, history, and surprises of London through my eyes.

06/06/2026

This is the second part of my walk along Watling Street from Edgware Road to Cricklewood. I was quite surprised that the City of Westminster spread so far North, and I’m a Westminster Resident. Kilburn High Road is a very typical London high street, but with lots of Irish influences. I like the way the Co-op convenience stores let you know where you are, very helpful. I must admit that the Crown Hotel at Cricklewood is a fine building.

05/06/2026

My first walk for a couple of days started at Edgware Road, in Roman times it was known as Watling Street and is probably one of the longest and straightest roads in England. Maida Vale is mostly large mansion apartment blocks and grand houses. I’ll share the rest of the photos tomorrow.

03/06/2026

Dodging the rain yesterday, I hopped on a bus to Waterloo and headed over to the South Bank for a wander.

It was great to see that the Skateboard Undercroft has been saved . I also noticed that work has restarted on the renovation of Blackfriars Bridge, so I managed to get a before-and-after photo.

Along the way, I captured a different view of St Paul’s Cathedral and the tower block nicknamed "The Boomerang"—although I still think "The Beer Belly" is a much better name! 😄

The tree branch photo I took turned out to be from a Linden Tree, thanks to the PlantNet app helping me identify it.

Eventually, the rain won the battle and stopped play, but luckily I was right outside the Tate Modern and could take shelter. Modern art isn't really my thing, so I didn't spend too long looking around the exhibits.

As I made my way across Blackfriars Bridge to catch the Tube home, I noticed just how high the tide was on the River Thames.

A pleasant little outing despite the weather, and a few interesting photos to show for it!

02/06/2026

Yesterday, inspired by something I had read online, I decided to take the train from Vauxhall to Hampton for a bit of exploring. It turned out to be one of those days where things didn't quite go according to plan!

Arriving at the station, I couldn't see any obvious directions, so I trusted Google Maps and headed towards the river. Big mistake! After a long walk through the suburbs, I found myself surrounded by huge industrial buildings stretching as far as the eye could see, all hidden behind high steel fences. It eventually dawned on me that I had wandered into what seemed like an entire city of Thames Water facilities.

After finally escaping, I made my way along the busy main road into Hampton Village. One highlight was spotting the sign for The Jolly Coopers pub, which cleverly played on the names of Tommy Cooper and Henry Cooper — very amusing. I was also pleasantly surprised by Garrick’s Lawn and House.

By this point my legs were definitely feeling the miles, so I jumped on a bus to Hampton Court Green. I hadn’t planned to visit Hampton Court itself, but I was surprised to discover that one of the country’s most important royal palaces is only open from Wednesday to Sunday.

With my energy running low, I caught a bus to Richmond and then the Tube home. Not quite the day I had imagined, but certainly an adventure!

01/06/2026

This is the continuation of yesterday’s walk, starting at Richmond Riverside, which is always popular on a warm sunny day.

A singer called Chris Harvey was entertaining the crowds with a very enjoyable easy-listening repertoire. The boat with the red canopy looked rather regal — perhaps an optional throne for passengers would be a nice touch!

The attractive riverside terrace, with its mixed Georgian-style backdrop, was designed by Quinlan Terry. That brought back memories, as I worked with his firm during my construction career.

I suspect there was quite a queue for beer at The White Cross Pub. When the tide is especially high, the pub famously lends wellies to customers heading home — a practical solution to a unique riverside problem!

While waiting on the platform at Richmond Station, an announcement informed us that the District Line was suspended due to a points failure at Tower Hill. Fortunately, a quick change of platform allowed me to catch a South Western train to Vauxhall and make my way home without too much delay.

A very pleasant day out, with plenty to see along the river.

31/05/2026

I hadn’t planned on visiting Richmond today, but just as I was about to leave home, a friend called because she was having problems with her printer. I spent about an hour trying to help, but unfortunately we couldn’t get it working.

When I got home and started looking through my photos on the PC, I noticed a smudge on the lens that had affected some of the pictures. My apologies if a few of today’s photos aren’t quite up to my usual standard—I’ll definitely remember to clean the lens next time!

I’ll post the rest of the photos tomorrow. Thanks for your understanding. 😊

30/05/2026

I’m not sure why I decided to go out today. I had a good ride in a nicely air-conditioned bus (unusual for London) only to be held up in a 20-minute gridlock at Hyde Park Corner whilst a long procession of Horse Guards passed by. Unfortunately, I could not enjoy the spectacle. I eventually got off the bus at Church Street Market, but it was so hot and no shade, so I ended up at Marylebone Station and hopped on a bus home. This time the air-conditioning was as expected – useless. Sorry!

29/05/2026

Yesterday was supposed to be a little cooler, so I hopped on a No. 13 bus to Regent’s Park for a wander. Unfortunately, it didn’t feel much cooler at all, so I spent most of the walk searching out patches of shade wherever I could!

One sight that made me smile was a man standing right beside a “No Dogs in the Water” sign while happily throwing sticks into the water for his two big dogs. Rules clearly didn’t apply there 😂

I also had another look at the Queen Elizabeth II Garden, which is starting to develop a bit of maturity now, although this heatwave certainly isn’t helping the plants.

Crossing towards Marylebone, I came across a procession of military horses with a police es**rt. In true London fashion, some idiot on a motorbike came roaring past on the inside lane, much to the annoyance of the police riders.

Marylebone High Street was as busy as ever, and I passed by my previous two homes before eventually moving on towards Oxford Street. Finally caught a 390 bus home after a very warm afternoon out and about.

28/05/2026

Today was the continuation of yesterday’s walk, from Rotherhithe to Deptford and back to Greenland Dock. Lovely to see a swan family keeping cool along the way.

Apologies for the out-of-focus photo of the flats — I was disappointed because I thought the buildings had some real architectural character. I’m also not sure who the faces on the block of flats represent, but I’m guessing they must have some local connection.

The rather unreadable inscription on the stone explained that Peter the Great gave the mulberry tree in the next photo to Sir John Evelyn for his garden at Sayes Court, which is now the park.

Finished the walk in the best possible way — with half a pint in the Dog & Bell before catching the bus home!

27/05/2026

Today was a much better day — sunny, cooler, and with a lovely breeze too ☀️🌿

I hopped on my local C10 bus from Pimlico to Rotherhithe and started my walk at Beatson Walk, then wandered through the cool shady paths of Russia Dock Woodland before reaching Surrey Quays and Greenland Dock. Such a lovely walk on a beautiful day 😊

Tomorrow is supposed to be very hot again, so I’ll save half of my photos for another post later!

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