The Tower of London Castle was built by William the Conqueror (or, as the British refer to him, William the Bastard) in 1078. It was one of the first buildings in London built in stone.
Bishop Ranulf Flambard was the first know prisoner in 1100. Flambard was loathed by the English for exacting harsh taxes. Although he is the first recorded prisoner held in the Tower, he was also the first person to escape from it, using a smuggled rope secreted in a butt of wine.
Traitor's Gate - entrance for the accused, including Anne Boleyn and Catherine Howard, the 2nd and 5th wives of Henry VIII.
A password - updated daily - is required to enter or leave the Castle premises after it is closed to the public. These guards are on their way to disclose the password.
Hampstead has long been known as a residence of the intelligentsia, including writers, composers, ballerinas and intellectuals, actors, artists and architects — many of whom created a bohemian community in the late 19th century. After 1917, and again in the 1930s, it became base to a community of avant garde artists and writers and was host to a number of émigrés and exiles from the Russian Revolution and Nazi Europe.
This former hospital has been converted to higly coveted (and expensive) flats in Hampstead. Residents are said to include both Sporty and Scary Spice.
Christmas Tree in Holly Brush - the first pub on our tour -
and more Chrismas cheer -
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