LIVERPOOL STREET STATION

          

     Not being a railway buff, I've little to say here but, as usual with the stations, I spread my wings somewhat and end up in Chelsea with Elvis Costello playing in my head.

     Liverpool Street is the third busiest railway station in the UK, behind Waterloo and Victoria.

                  At least four of the Kindertransport children became Nobel prize winners.

Hamilton Hall, Bishopsgate

   

     My day begins with coffee (99p, bottomless) in the opulent surroundings of this showpiece Wetherspoons which was once the ballroom of the Great Eastern Hotel.

    The Victorian building is on the site of England’s first hospital for the mentally ill, the Bethlehem Royal Hospital. It opened in 1247 and became known as ‘Bedlam’.

    The Great Eastern features in Bram Stoker's Dracula.

Eataly, Bishopsgate

    

    Despite the terrible pun, Eataly is a fantastic new Italian food hall which opened during a lockdown lull.

     It has four restaurants, two bars and over 5,000 Italian food products to buy. And you can watch a signore making mozzarella – buffalo cheese the size of a buffalo.

 Dirty Dick’s, Bishopgate

  

   

     Established around 1804, the pub is named after onetime owner Nathaniel Bentley. After his fiancée died on the eve of their wedding Bentley became a recluse, stopped washing, and lived in squalor. Dickens’ Miss Haversham in Great Expectations is thought to have been inspired by Bentley.

     The ‘attraction’ used to be they never cleaned the place. In the 1970s I remember there was a layer of dust everywhere. I (gratefully) don’t remember seeing Bentley’s wedding breakfast and dead cats which were apparently on display until the 1980s. But health and safety measures ensure Dirty Dick’s is now spotless.

     The area around Liverpool Street station is now mainly office blocks with plenty of restaurants to sustain all those folk now working from home. They’ve been building around here ever since the IRA began the demolition work with a massive truck bomb in Bishopsgate in 1993. There was only one fatality thanks to the bombers thoughtfully choosing a Saturday and giving a warning.

    But some gems still remain .... if you know where to look.

 Victorian Bath House, Bishopsgate Churchyard

     Built in 1895, this Ottoman-style curio operated as a Turkish baths until 1954. It is now a cavernous subterranean restaurant with a seating capacity of 90 specialising in functions, particularly weddings.

Goat statue, Brushfield St

Old Spitalfields Market

    But this is no time for shopping or checking out magnificent organs, it’s lunchtime ….

Duck and Waffle, Heron Tower, 110 Bishopsgate

     The Duck and Waffle is ‘London’s highest 24-hour restaurant’.  Keng-Gah always wanted to try it but in pre-covid days you had to book weeks ahead. Now you can probably just turn up. For my main course I just had to have the duck and waffle. It’s the first duck’s egg I’ve eaten since panic buyers snapped up all the chicken’s eggs in March 2020. For the full experience I went for the caramelised banana waffle with ice cream dessert. For those with a waffle allergy there are alternative options.

     And for those without vertigo, the ambiance is brilliant. The food is ok; but if you just want to eat duck head for Chinatown. Also, a 13.5% service charge was a bit sneaky given the normal maximum is 12.5%, but not begrudged as my waiter was very attentive (“The duck and waffle, an excellent choice sir”).

St Ethelburga Church, Bishopsgate

     Next, a clever manoeuvre; well, I think so ….

     From the stop next to St Ethelburga I catch the number 11 bus and head upstairs for a free (for pensioners) sightseeing ride. And the front seats are vacant, result.

     I could have got off at Victoria Station but stayed aboard until Sloane Square. Another option is to go a couple of stops further to Chelsea Old Town Hall then walk back to Sloane Square along the length of the King’s Road. But I want to finish my day with a visit to the Saatchi Gallery.

Saatchi Gallery, King’s Road, Chelsea

     

    There are four free galleries on the ground floor plus special presentations for which you can buy tickets with concessions on weekdays. They change exhibitors regularly and there’s a nice gift shop.

     The number 11 bus ride from Liverpool Street to Sloane Square takes around an hour. Allow one hour for the Saatchi, or rather more when they reopen the bar and brasserie. But there are plenty of other places for an afternoon cuppa e.g. Peter Jones department store.

Hamburg, March 31, 2023