Visiting London? Fancy taking in some of the more quirky places this great city has to offer. Below are 8 of the more quirky places to visit for those looking for something a little different.
If you fancy a drink on the underground after a hard day of sightseeing, Cahoots tube themed cocktail bar is the place. Cahoots is an underground air raid shelter refurbished into a 1940s-themed bar complete with carriages, bunk beds and sandbags leftover from the Blitz. It is located in Kingly Court, Carnaby and its certainly keeping the Blitz spirit alive. Head down there for some great cocktails and check out all the Blitz paraphernalia
Dennis Severs’ House is located at 18 Folgate Street next to a neat row of Georgian terraces. It is an 18th century time capsule that shows the lives of silk-weavers from 1724 to the 20th century. The house is breathtaking and with the soft candle light you are immediately transported back the 18th century. Thisvery rare house has been featured in many history documentaries and dramas and used for fashion shoots.
The House of Dreams is a life project by artist Stephen Wright which you can visit in his house at certain times. Stephen has a history of working in the printed textiles industry before he felt disillusioned with the design world. He started his House of Dreams Museum in 1998 and today it is a collection of objects he has found over the years also with memory boards recalling important events in his life. You should email Stephen in advance on [email protected] if you want to book a visit.
Platform 9 3/4
Harry Potter fans know to board Hogwarts you have to walk through a solid brick barrier at Platform 9 3/4. Kings Cross has celebrated its role in the Harry Potter Books and films with a marker indicating the location of Platform 9 3/4. You can see a baggage trolly disappearing into the wall. It now attracts visitors from around the world to have their photo taken on Platform 9 3/4.
Those interested in the history of medicine and how doctors performed surgeries need to head the Old Operating Theatre Museum in St Thomas Street London. This museum of surgical history houses a whole host of 18th and 19th-century surgical memorabilia. With lots of interesting and unusual rusty iron instruments and potions it is europe’s oldest surviving operating theatre.
Fancy sleeping next to real-life lions? Well this is possible right here at the London Zoo. You can hire a lodge for a night or two and enjoy private guided tours around the Zoo after normal visiting hours.
Museum of Curiosities
Located on Mare Street in the East of London, Viktor Wynd Museum of Curiosities, Fine Art & Natural History houses a huge collection of strange objects. The musuem is a lifelong project of the artist and writer Viktor Wynd. This is certianly one of the most unusual musuems in London. So many bizarre objects are on display including a number of dead things in bottles, lots of Taxidermy skeletons and heads. Plenty of unusual creatures are on view and oddly enough some samples of celbrity stools! The Museum also chost weekly lectures and workshops.
Cross Bones Graveyard is a graveyard in sounth London which was closed in 1853. It houses thousands of people (estimated 15,000) who could not be given a Christian burial. So a number of prostitutes and poor people who lived in squalid conditions were buried here. For centuries it was the outcast’s graveyard. It is located in one of London’s poorest slums formally known as The Mint. Part was dug up in the 90’s during work on the Tubes Jubilee Line Extension. What is left is now a remembrance site.
The above are just a few quirky places to visit, there are lots more if you do some investigating. London’s history stretches back to Roman times and some of its history is being kept alive, you just need to know where to look. There is much more to London than the sights of Houses of Parliament, Big Ben and Westminster Abbey, Buckingham Palace etc. Take a trip to the more quirky sites and enjoy something a little different on your trip to London.
