Untold London

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Untold London

Guiding you through 2,000 years of London history. Bring an umbrella.

20/09/2026

This round skyscraper only has one curved piece of glass. 🏢

Completed in 2003, 30 St Mary Axe - better known as The Gherkin - is 180m tall and a massive part of the London skyline.

But amazingly, almost all of the glass covering it is completely flat. The triangular and diamond-shaped panels are carefully angled around the building to create the appearance of a smoothed curved surface.

There is actually only one curved piece of glass on the entire building, and it's the lens sitting right at the very top.

📍 Want to spot this yourself? I've added The Gherkin to my Free Interactive London Map, which features over 100 hidden secrets and GPS walking routes.

Join one of my guided walking tours to explore the city's architecture with me.

Click here to get it for free:
https://linktr.ee/Untold.london 🗺️🚶

16/09/2026

Why do people think this tomb is a time machine? 🕰️🤯

This is the mausoleum of Hannah Courtoy in Brompton Cemetery. Hannah was born in 1784 and reportedly worked as a maid before inheriting a fortune from a wealthy merchant.

After her death, this unusual Egyptian-style tomb was built for her and her two daughters. But over time, a much stranger story became attached to it.

According to legend, Hannah knew the Egyptologist Joseph Bonomi and an eccentric inventor named Samuel Warner. The pair supposedly convinced her to fund a time machine based on secrets hidden within ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics. And some people claim that machine was concealed inside this tomb.

The story was encouraged by the tomb's mysterious appearance, the apparent absence of its original plans, and claims that its keys had been lost.

This is almost certainly all just a story. But as places go to hide a time machine, a locked Victorian tomb isn't a bad choice.

📍 Want to spot this yourself? I've added Hannah Courtoy's tomb to my Free Interactive London Map, which now features 100 hidden secrets and video locations. You can also book a spot on my guided walking tours!
Click here to get the free map and tour tickets:
https://linktr.ee/Untold.london 🗺️🚶‍♂️

15/09/2026

A little Untold London walking tour update 👣

First of all, a huge thank you to everyone who has booked, shared the tours, or come along so far. It’s been brilliant seeing the dates start to fill up - with some now officially SOLD OUT.

There are still spaces on a few upcoming dates (full list of dates on my website):

📍 This Saturday, 19 September – last chance to book
📍 26 September – low availability
📍 3 October – low availability
📍 17 October – low availability
📍 7 November – low availability

🎃 Halloween tours are also now available!

I’ll be running special evening walks on 30 and 31 October, exploring some of the darker stories from the City’s 2,000 years of history.

Tickets are £20 per person, with the full list of dates and booking details on my website:

👉 www.untoldlondon.co.uk/tours

Thanks again for all the support so far - it’s been genuinely lovely seeing people come out and explore the City with me.

13/09/2026

Have you ever felt Albert Bridge shake while walking across it? 🌉

There’s a reason this stunning piece of Victorian architecture was nicknamed "The Trembling Lady." Soldiers from the Chelsea Barracks were actually banned from marching in step across it to prevent the vibrations from collapsing the bridge! The signs are still there today.

While the marching has stopped, the bridge is actually closed to vehicles right now due to a cracked cast-iron component discovered during a February 2026 inspection.

🚶‍♂️ Love discovering our city's hidden history? Tap the link in my bio to get the Untold London interactive map and book tickets for my in-person walking tours.

Make sure to follow the page for more untold London stories and secrets!

09/09/2026

If you find yourself near Trafalgar Square, take a short detour to Adelaide Street to see "A Conversation with Oscar Wilde". Unveiled in 1998, this monument is highly unusual because it invites the public to sit directly on the granite bench and join the playwright in conversation.

Unfortunately, it also became the target of constant vandalism. The statue originally featured a bronze cigarette in Wilde's hand. It was repeatedly stolen, replaced, and even sawn off by thieves. After numerous attempts to restore it, the cigarette was eventually left missing.

Until now - where it seems to have been replaced again!

Find this statue on my free interactive map on my website. Walking tours also available with dates up till Christmas.

Let me know in the comments if you have ever stopped for a chat with Oscar on your walks through the city.

06/09/2026

There is one very easy way to annoy people on the London Underground. Anyone who uses the tube knows the sacred rule: stand on the right, walk on the left.

The reason behind this tube etiquette dates all the way back to 1911. The underground's very first escalators opened at Earls Court, and they were slightly different from the ones we use today. At the top, they featured a diagonal section that deliberately pushed stationary passengers off to the left. Keeping slower passengers on the right meant anyone walking could continue straight off without crossing in front of them.

By 1921, recorded announcements were already telling passengers to stand on the right. More than a century later, the rule is basically sacred. TfL actually tried to change it in 2015 at Holborn to increase capacity by 30%, but passengers were not enthusiastic about abandoning the etiquette.

I have put together a guide to the city's best hidden spots. Download my Free Interactive London Map to explore them yourself: https://linktr.ee/Untold.london

04/09/2026

London is covered in a secret language, and most people can't read it.

From hidden 2,000-year-old Roman ruins, to strange symbols built into pavements, buildings, and even lampposts, the capital is packed with overlooked history.

As a qualified City of London Green Badge Guide, my Untold London walking tours show you the stories and details hiding in plain sight across the Square Mile.

The feedback on the tours has been brilliant, and they’ve already picked up multiple 5-star reviews from guests who have come out on the route.

Once you start noticing these details, you can’t stop.

Head to https://www.untoldlondon.co.uk/tours to check upcoming dates, grab your spot, and come explore the City with me.

02/09/2026

Why does this clock look like it has a man trapped inside? 🕰️🚶‍♂️

Just outside Paddington Station, you can find this incredibly surreal clock. At first glance, it appears to have a man stuck inside, endlessly wiping away and redrawing the hands every single minute.

Of course, he isn't actually trapped! The clock is a high-definition digital screen playing a twelve-hour, pre-recorded film. To create this illusion, an actor manually painted and erased the hands in real time for a full twelve hours.
If you look closely at the silhouette, the man is wearing a 19th-century suit. This is a very clever nod to Isambard Kingdom Brunel, the legendary Victorian engineer who originally designed Paddington Station.

Created by Dutch artist Maarten Baas as part of his famous "Real Time" series, this clock was installed in 2021. Next time you are rushing to catch a train, make sure you take a moment to look up!

Want to uncover more of the city's best-kept secrets with me? You can book tickets for my in-person walking tours right here: https://www.untoldlondon.co.uk/tours. I've also added this clock to my Free Interactive London Map, which now features 100 videos of hidden secrets.

Click here to get the map for free: https://linktr.ee/Untold.london. Be sure to check out my page for more London stories! 🗺️🚶

30/08/2026

This fountain was once used by 7,000 people every single day. 🚰

In Victorian London, finding clean drinking water was incredibly difficult. Most public water supplies were contaminated with sewage, which allowed deadly diseases like cholera to spread rapidly through the city.

To combat this, the Metropolitan Free Drinking Fountain Association was formed. In 1859, they installed London's very first free public drinking fountain on the wall of St Sepulchre-without-Newgate church in Holborn.

It was an instant success. Around 7,000 people used it daily, drinking from two metal cups chained to the stone structure. Over the next six years, another 85 fountains were built across London. While many no longer work today, they remain on our streets as reminders of the Victorian campaign for clean water.

📍 Want to spot this yourself? I've added the historic Holborn fountain to my Free Interactive London Map, which features over 50 hidden secrets and GPS walking routes.

Check my bio to access!

26/08/2026

Have you ever noticed these strange black and white circles across the London Underground? 🚇🧩

There is a different one at every single tube station, 272 in total. Known as Labyrinth, this massive art installation was created by artist Mark Wallinger in 2013 to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the Underground.

While every design is unique, look closely at the bottom right corner of each enamel plaque and you will find a number. Those numbers follow the exact chronological route taken during a successful 2009 Guinness World Record "Tube Challenge" to visit every station on the network, completed in just 16 hours, 44 minutes, and 16 seconds.

Once you start trying to spot them, you will find yourself searching for one at every single station!

📍 Want to spot these yourself? I've added some of my favorite Labyrinth locations to my Free Interactive London Map, which features over 50 hidden secrets and GPS walking routes.

Check my bio to access.

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http://linktr.ee/Untold.london

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