Major guiding associations in London
Each association usually provides set walks on fixed times each week. These are good value for money, and always undertaken by qualified guides.
- Clerkenwell & Islington Guiding Association
- CityGuides Official guides to the City of London and City of London Guide Lecturers Association
- City of Westminster Guide Lecturers Association
- The Greenwich Tour Guides Association
- Guild of Registered Tourist Guides for Blue Badge Guides
- Institute of Tourist Guiding is the body that regulates tourist guiding organisations.
Other organisations that undertake walks
- London Walks
- City Sidewalks
- City Highlights
- London Explorers Group (currently closed to new members)
- London Footprints
- Tales of Two Cities
- Discovering London (Peter Berthoud – does the Seven Noses of Soho walk)
- Unseen Tours by Sock Mob (tours by people who have been living on the streets)
- London Walks and the Discovering London club
- Charles Booth Walks (Sean Patterson – great walk in Deptford)
- London Walking Tours
- Unrealcityaudio (Dr Matt Green – brilliant walks with Actors – invoking past history – coffeehouses and C18th Fleet street)
- FunLondonTours (Matt Gedge)
- Walk City London
- Walk London With Us
- Walking London (Brasilian Guide London)
- London Blue Badge Guide web site listing contains links to many individual guides web sites and Blue Badge Tourist Guides hosts others.
Guiding Courses for people who wish to explore Guiding further
- City of London
- Islington and Clerkenwell at University of Westminster
- City of Westminster at University of Westminster
- East London at Birkbeck College
- London Region Blue badge guide training
Courses on London History
- City Lit
- Birkbeck College
- Museum of London
- City of London Adult Education
- Sutton College of Learning for Adults
Libraries & Archives for Research
- City of London has the Guildhall Library (best collection of London books) and the Barbican Library (which has a specialised London collection including some items not in the Guildhall) and the London Metropolitan Archives (good collection of books, and nearly all prints, maps and documents). All City libraries use a common TalisPrism Online Catalogue for books, the Opac Catalogue for the LMA and the Collage database of images. The based Museum of London shop stock an excellent selection of London books. Also excellent online resources (library membership required, but free)
- Bishopsgate Institute Library
- City Lit Supported Learning Centre and Electronic Catalogue and Electronic resources (need to be registered as a student for these)
- Camden Archives and Catalogue Search (not yet online) and Online Information (need to be Camden library member)
- Hackney Archives and Online Catalogue
- Islington Local History Centre
- London Library (members only) and Online Catalogue
- RSA Fellows Library (fellows only)
- Access-to-archives searches the National Archive and a large number of UK archives
- The National Archives and the Catalogue
- The British Library and Integrated Catalogue
- Parliamentary Archives and Catalogue
- University of Westminster Library and IT services and Library Search and E-Library (need to be logged into intranet with a student username and password)
- London Business School Library (very good library) with first rate electronic services (need to be student,society or alumni or pay to get hold of them)
- University of London, Senate House Library (student or pay)
- Society of Antiquities Library (by appointment only)
- The British Museum Department of Print and Drawings Study Rooms and Collection database
- Victoria and Albert Prints and Drawings Study Room and Catalogue
- Science Museum Library
Other web resources on local history
- East London History Society
- Islington Society
- Islington Archaeology & History Society
- Hackney Society
- Camden History Society
- Canonbury Society
- The London Society
- London Topographical Society
- Tower Hamlets History Online
- Rotherhithe & Bermondsey Local History Society
- Friends of City Churches and the City Events website
- London and Middlesex Archaeological Society
- Greater London Industrial Archaeology Society
- London Historians
Other good resources
- Bricks and Brass web site (best architectural web site I’ve seen) which includes a tool for estimating the date of a house
- Researching Historic Buildings in the British Isles by Jean Manco is also full of suggestions
- London Remembers is an Google Maps mashup showing most memorials in London (including plaques)
- English Heritage London Blue Plaques is another one created by Reed Design
- The website of Bob Speel for Victorian Art (including sections on London)
- A guide to the alleys, courts, passages and yards of central London by Ivor Hoole (hosted on IanVisits).
- Great Trees of London part of the Trees for Cities web site lists some old and well known trees
- Trees of London by James Wilkinson includes walks in green spaces identifying various trees
- London Gardens Online is an excellent resource run by the London Parks and Gardens Trust
- Time Travel Explorer HD/Pro is a recommended application for an iPhone/iPad. Expensive, but allows superimposition of different maps including Roque and Greenwood
Good Blogs/Websites on London with History/Walking Content
- The Shady Old Lady’s Guide to London
- Diamond Geezer
- Londonist
- Georgian London by Lucy Inglis
- Secret London by Kieran Meeke
- IanVisits by Ian Mansfield
- Knowledge of London by Roger Sligo
- Juerg’s London by Juerg Mueller
- Bollards of London
- Plaques of London shows most of the Plaques in the London area.
- City Road Online – local blog covering the City Road and surrounding areas in Islington and Hackney
Any corrections or additions welcome. Please contact