Camden Guides

The Trollopes of Bloomsbury
2026-03-23 11:00 - 13:00, 2026-03-29 14:00 - 16:00 (Europe/London)
Both Anthony Trollope and his mother Fanny were proliflc and successful writers.
Anthony, born in Bloomsbury is best known for the Barchester Chronicles and Paliser novels where Catherdral towns and country houses often overshadow the place of Bloomsbury. But this area which “cannot be called fashionable” and is “not much overlooked by nobility” offers lodgings and temptation to young clerks like Johnny Eade and affordable accomodation for impoverished women like Lady Anna.
Join Sue to follow the links between Anthony Trollope’s own life as a civil servant at the Post Office, his fiction with its Bloomsbury locations and the influence of Fanny Trollope’s writing on her son’s work.

Music and Revolution in Camden Town
2026-03-28 11:30 - 13:30
Camden Town has been a hotbed of musical scenes and counter-cultures for over 50 years!
But where did it get the grit and charm that has inspired so many musicians and writers? From open fields to steam and stench, industrial powerhouse to drinkers paradise, and from radical thinkers to musical rebellion – what is it that put this tiny area of Camden Town on the global stage and spawned cultural movements that changed the world? Join me as we look beyond the t-shirt stands and souvenir stalls to discover the places where counter cultures were born and musical history was made. Find out how Camden Town became the beating heart of Rock, Punk, Britpop and beyond! The tour will naturally end in one of Camden’s fine pubs where you can soak up the atmosphere and find some inspiration of your own 😉

Secrets of St. Giles and Seven Dials: a walk through London's dark past
2026-04-24 11:00 - 13:00
Join Elena to discover a fascinating neighbourhood that not many people know.
We will delve into the darker chapters of London’s past as we uncover the secrets of this infamous neighbourhood.
We will wander through the alleys where tales of poverty and crime once echoed (Dickens will get a mention or two, of course…) and discover the remnants of centuries-old buildings that bear witness to St Giles’ tumultuous history.
As we wind our way from the ancient church built on the site of a leper colony to the site of the infamous rookeries and gallows, now replaced by some of the most striking modern architecture in London, we’ll talk music, pubs, executions and developers’ greed. There is something for everyone!

Nooks and Crannies of Covent Garden
2026-04-28 10:00 - 12:00
The hidden parts of St Giles and Covent Garden. Explore the history of the area from leper colony via plague pits, executions, slums to the vibrant centre we see today. What lies beneath the surface? Why has it been on a rollercoaster of ups and downs? Meet the mixed bag of characters who have lived in these streets-the original muffin man, pioneering women doctors, music makers and freemasons. Amid the noise and bustle, sit in a quiet oasis of a communal garden. The walk lasts 2 hours, starts at Tottenham Court Road station and ends near Covent Garden tube.

Women Who Broke the Rules: Bloomsbury Walking Tour
2026-05-08 11:00 - 13:00
A guided walk led by Elena Paolini, Camden and City of London guide, to celebrate women’s history
Bloomsbury, a hotbed of radical ideas, has always attracted women who refused to conform. This Women’s History Month, we will walk in the footsteps of suffragists who demanded the vote, women doctors who fought to practise medicine, artists who defied expectations, reformers and pioneers who transformed women’s education. As home to the 200 year old University of London, the first secular university in Britain to admit women in 1878, Bloomsbury nurtured thinkers who challenged conventions and changed the world. From political rebels to medical mavericks, this walking tour celebrates bold women who refused to think – or live – inside the box.

Historic Homes of Hampstead Village
2026-05-09 11:00 - 12:30, 2026-06-13 11:00 - 12:30, 2026-07-11 11:00 - 12:30, 2026-08-08 11:00 - 12:30, 2026-09-12 11:00 - 12:30
Since its development from a village to an 18th Century spa town and then a Victorian suburb, Hampstead has retained its unspoilt Georgian charm with many listed townhouses and terraces. In the 19th and 20th Centuries this made it very popular with artists, intellectuals and creatives of all kinds and there are many stories of influential figures who are former residents who left their mark on the area. Join our knowledgeable guide on this walking tour to learn more about the people and buildings that have shaped Hampstead, where you will be introduced to a selection of the area’s finest historic homes.

First and Quirky Fitzrovia
2026-05-13 11:00 - 13:00
A very popular walk passing the homes of the famous both past and present. Film sets, street art and ending at an iconic tavern.
This is about Bohemian London and both the wealthy and not so wealthy parts of the community. We pass the homes of some celebrities past and present and the workhouse that inspired Dickens to write Oliver Twist. We pass Dickens first London home, and some very ‘quirky firsts’. We walk along Colville Place a hidden gem. As this walk is on a Wednesday we are able to visit the amazing Fitzrovia Chapel which is a real rare treat. This is the location where King Charles in 2024 chose to give his annual Christmas speech to the public.
As with all of my walks we end in an iconic tavern (this one I promise is amazing – its one of those places that it is easier to state who hasn’t drank there than who has!)

Abolition! Anti-Slavery Campaigners Against the Aristocracy of Skin
2026-05-16 13:00 - 15:00
Runaway slaves, free blacks and white women and men campaigned for a century to abolish slavery and slave-trading, against fierce opposition
This walk reveals where many key London events took place in British campaigns against slavery – based on a theory of race and ‘aristocracy of skin’ – between the mid-1700s and mid-1800s. Fugitive and former slaves, white lawyers, activists and orators — women as well as men — along with black activists, authors and musicians come alive in a walk from Chancery Lane to Fleet Street, Lincoln’s Inn and Covent Garden, ending at Embankment Gardens.
The capture in London of escaped slaves led to legal cases that campaigners loudly supported. Slaves were given as gifts by West Indies planters to wealthy Londoners who used them as fashion-accessories. There were small communities of free blacks, many working as servants. Blacks made free by fighting on the British side during wars thronged to London, some becoming beggars but others getting by and even moving up in social class. On the walk you meet Olaudah Equiano, Mary Prince, James Somerset, Granville Sharp, Sarah Parker Remond, Thomas Clarkson, Ottobah Cuguano, Elizabeth Heyrick, Billy Waters, Samuel Johnson, Francis Barber, Hannah More, the Fisk Jubilee Singers, CLR James and more names now often forgotten.

Historic Highlights of Highgate Village
2026-05-30 11:00 - 12:30, 2026-06-27 11:00 - 12:30, 2026-07-25 11:00 - 12:30, 2026-08-29 11:00 - 12:30, 2026-09-26 11:00 - 12:30
Explore the history and architecture of Highgate on a guided walking tour. Discover the area’s famous residents, see historic buildings and enjoy views of the city. Learn about Highgate Cemetery where figures such as Karl Marx and George Eliot are buried. See the historic Highgate School and St Joseph’s Roman Catholic Church and admire the architectural variety of the high street dating from the 1600s.
Enter the dates of your walk (Format day, date and month, example Saurday 245th March): Public Tours; 30 May, 27 June, 25 July, 29 August, 26 September
Also available to book all year round at weekends for private groups, please enquire directly to Heritage Guides.

First and Quirky Kings Cross and St Pancras
2026-06-23 11:00 - 17:00
A visit around the regenerated railway lands. The walk consists of some very interesting and diverse ‘firsts’
A visit around the recently regenerated railway lands. The walk consists of some very interesting ‘firsts’, a lot are transport based, but also about the contrast in the life styles of the inhabitants. The area has recently undergone a massive transformation and is very much a ‘destination’ with so many new companies moving into the area. It is also a walk about the lives of the poor as well as the home of some iconic inventions and well-known traditions. We visit the old coal drops yard, now completely transformed and St Pancras Old Church graveyard, which includes John Soanes grave the inspiration for the telephone box. Like all my walks – we end with an optional drink in an interesting pub for some light refreshments

First and Quirky Kings Cross and St Pancras
2026-11-18 11:00 - 13:00
This walk is held on the 39th anniversary of the Kings Cross Disaster and will cover a visit to the plaque to remember those that lost their lives on that terrible night and we see how things have changed
A visit around the recently regenerated railway lands. The walk consists of some very interesting ‘firsts’, a lot are transport based, but also about the contrast in the life styles of the inhabitants. The area has recently undergone a massive transformation and is very much a ‘destination’ with so many new companies moving into the area. It is also a walk about the lives of the poor as well as the home of some iconic inventions and well-known traditions. We visit the old coal drops yard, now completely transformed and St Pancras Old Church graveyard, which includes John Soanes grave the inspiration for the telephone box
