The home of Greenwich Mean Time, and therefore where each day and year commences. The Observatory’s original function was to improve sea navigation through knowledge of astronomy.
The iconic bridge (opened 1894) still gives priority to river traffic, and is raised on average 3 times a day. In 1997 it split the motorcade of US President Bill Clinton, causing some alarm.
The best place to visit if you want to learn more about London’s history. And of course it houses the Crown Jewels, the most famous jewellery collection in the world
Look out for the mosaic floors in the main entrance and stairwell. Fascinating. Work by the same artist can be seen at Tate Britain.
The British Museum began from the collection of naturalist Sir Hans Sloane which he left to the nation on his death in 1753. Now it houses 7 million objects including more than 100 Egyptian mummies.
London Zoo was opened for Fellows of the Zoological Society of London in 1828, only opening to the public in 1847 to aid funding. It currently houses 755 species of animal.
Opened in 1881, the museum facade uses terracotta tiles which were resistant to the soot of Victorian London. The largest of the famous dinosaur skeletons in the central hall is a diplodocus.
Currently the third tallest Ferris wheel in the world (the tallest when built in 1999, but now behind Singapore and Nanchang), it moves at 0.6mph, and you can see 25 miles from the top.
A tour of the Houses of Parliament should be on everyone’s to-do list. It takes just over an hour and really gives you a witty insight into the British Government system, art, and history as well.
Big Ben refers to the 13 ton bell in the clock tower of Westminster Palace. Opinion is divided as to whether it was named after the then Commissioner of Works, or a famous prize-fighter of the time.
This is where my cousin Kate became a Princess! Westminster Abbey is absolutely beautiful. The vaulted ceilings, the stained glass, the painting of Stedman. I might be thinking of Oprah's house.
Sculpted from Italian marble and based on the Arch of Constantine in Rome, this was built in 1827 as the entrance to Buckingham Palace. It was moved here in 1851 when the palace was enlarged.
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle: There was no 221B Baker Street when Doyle first published Holmes, but this museum is likely to now be where he imagined it so long ago.
