Hamills of London Tours

14/03/2024

Very happy to confirm that I am now a fully fledged Windsor Ninja.

Whilst I have always been an accredited Windsor Castle guide, this just brings it to a whole new level.

11/03/2024

16/11/2023

Binge watch, all 4 episodes of The Crown Series 6 which dropped this morning.

Great entertainment, Elizabeth Debicki did a great job as Diana. Coming around to Imelda Staunton as The Queen but a few wobbly moments, esp when D & D appear as ghosts.

V evocative of the madness that surrounded Diana's last days and the series made feel a bit sorry for Dodi.

The final two episodes launch on December 14th. And then how will we cope? 😳.

Re runs, I expect. Enjoy...

12/11/2023

The coffin of the Unknown Warrior in state in Westminster Abbey, in 1920.

The guests of honour were a group of about one hundred women. They had been chosen because they had each lost their husband and all their sons in the war - "Every woman so bereft who applied for a place got it".

The guard of honour were 100 holders of the Victoria Cross from all three services. Most likely the greatest number of Victoria Cross recipients to be one place at the same time.

The Unknown Warrior was buried in Westminster Abbey, London on the 11th of November 1920, simultaneously with a similar interment of a French unknown soldier at the Arc de Triomphe in France.

The coffin was interred in soil brought from each of the main battlefields, and covered with a silk pall.

On the 17th of October 1921, the unknown warrior was given the United States' highest award for valour, the Medal of Honour. It hangs on a pillar close to the tomb. On the 11th of November 1921, the American Unknown Soldier was reciprocally awarded the Victoria Cross.

Photograph - Imperial War Museums - image file number IWM Q 31514.

28/10/2023

Another day, another chance to Chanel… merveilleux… 😎😍

12/10/2023

Joy 🤩

07/10/2023

Nice…

30/09/2023

Attempting to channel Churchill, but more Clockwork Orange, I feel..

10/09/2023

Sunny day with 3 different views of this beautiful Cathedral. London's finest....

13/06/2023

Turquoise Island in Westbourne Grove on a gloriously sunny Thursday morning.

Designed by Piers Gough, this eye catching building combines functionality with a very pleasing aesthetic.

Funded by local residents who were horrified at the thought of the local council adding a portaloo to this tranquil local traffic island, Turquoise Island is part HQ of luxury florist Wild at Heart and part public restrooms.

16/05/2023

1st family outing for this doting couple of Egyptian Geese and their chicks.

The parents pair for life and make quite a racket. Cute...

10/05/2023

Reviews are always much appreciated!

06/05/2023

To all my guests who have joined me at the Tower of London, isn't it just amazing to actually see the His Majesty wearing the Imperial State Crown!

A momentous occasion. When reality really does exceed fiction....

06/05/2023

And they're off!

Long Live the King...

05/05/2023

Some last minute practice sessions before the Big Day

25/02/2023

Pelican looking very Pink in the Park.

Pelicans have been a feature of St James Park since 1664 when the Russian ambassador presented a pair of them to Charles II.

Currently there are six of them, most are captive bred but this lovely specimen called Gargi just appeared one day in a garden in Southend and was gifted to St James Park back in 1995 or so; probably took a wrong turn when migrating.

He or she (how do I know?) is the only one who has not been kept in quarantine due to the latest bout of avian flu that is going around because he/she is classed as a 'wild bird' (ie not captive bred).

And how great to see the pink colouring, which always appear at this time of the year. It's a nature thing, all about capturing the attention of a would be suitor.

Not that there is likely to be much of that when you are the only one at the party, so to speak...

17/02/2023

Leighton House is back and even more stunningly awesome after its recent £8m refurbishment.

The house belonged to the artist Frederic, Lord Leighton - the shortest-lived peerage in history as he died the day following his appointment - who was famous for, among other much-loved paintings, Flaming June, and the rather racy The Fisherman and the Syren.

As you can see from my photos taken on a super sunny morning just recently, the whole building is an eye-catching visual feast and even though I have been many times to visit the Arab Hall, it still continues to take my breath away. Enjoy!

25/01/2023

I love the musical Hamilton, and I've now seen it 3 times.

One thing that makes me think of that show is when I pass by this equestrian statue of King George III in Cockspur Street, just a minute's stroll from Trafalgar Square.

He's the King George that sings 'You'll Be Back', 'What Comes Next' and 'I Know Him' in Hamilton because of course he was the King at the time of the American Revolution.

He's also the King that suffered from the mental illness as depicted in the movie The Madness of King George.

The statue is by Matthew Cotes Wyatt and was remarked upon by all who saw it at the time as being a near perfect likeness of the man himself, so when I look at it, I get a real sense of looking back in time at such a hugely important figure in our shared history with the US.

It does seem rather hidden, tucked away as it is on the small traffic island of Cocksupr Street. In fact It was originally intended to be placed at the much grander Waterloo Place, at the bottom of Regent Street, but this would have meant his back was turned on the huge column which has his son Prince Frederick, Duke of York at its summit, which was not deemed appropriate.

Whilst it may have captured his features so well, it became known by some of his detractors as the pig-tail and pump-handle due to the long pigtail sported by King George and the arched tail of the accompanying horse.

Not sure how he would have felt about that, although his son George IV probably laughed his head off.