Essential History | The top sights in London, Madrid and beyond
The best cultural and historical sights in London, Madrid and beyond.
Built for £2.2 million in 1933, it’s the price of a modest apartment today in this swish residential-retail-leisure complex. Originally designed by Sir Giles Gilbert-Scott, the station powered a quarter of London by 1948. Closed in 1983, the grade II* listed building was the problem child of the river front until rescued by Malaysian investors [...]
In 2019, Scotland welcomed almost 3.5 million inbound visitors who spent approximately £2.5 billion in the country. This has resulted in the UK Government earmarking £19 million to promote destinations across Scotland. The influx of visitors has helped secure the UK’s position in the top five countries globally when it comes to inbound visitor spending.Thanks to this [...]
Here are London’s 5 most historic five-star hotels, in date-of-opening order. If your budget doesn’t stretch to an overnight stay, settle for a coffee in the public lounge! London’s first hotel built in 1837 with numerous historical associations - not least being the location for the first successful telephone call in London by Alexander Graham [...]
Essential London has published 'Essential Clapham' - a pocket guide to this popular area in south-west London. It's a guide to the history of Clapham and the best cultural, historical and social (e.g. leisure venues, pubs and cafes) sights that you can see and visit today. Showcasing modern-day London-living through 100 pages and 90 original [...]
The British Library re-located to new premises near St Pancras Station, Euston Road in 1997. The building is an expansive state of the art premises utilising hi-tech book storage and retrieval systems. It also offers free seating and Wi-Fi for around 300 people - many are students, but you’ll be very welcome. No special pass [...]