Literary Footprints 2020, the annual running of our celebration of all things literary London is under way, you can check this year’s full programme here.

Jill Finch will be running two walking tours as part of the festival; Shardlake’s London on 5th October and a new tour for this year, Rivers of London Book 1: Covent Garden on 14th October (both start at 11.00 am).

Click on Jill’s name above for booking links, meanwhile here’s a brief taster of what to expect.

I will once again will be taking to the streets following Matthew Shardlake, the reluctant hero of C J Sansom’s series of novels around the City, including a visit to Lincoln’s Inn, the oldest legal ‘precinct’ in London.

With its Tudor hall and historic vaulted chapel undercroft, it’s like walking back in time; and groups always love seeing the old maps that illustrate how ‘rural’ it was in Shardlake’s 16^th Century London. Even today it is a little oasis of calm and tranquillity in the middle of the very busy City.

I’m also running a brand new walk in Covent Garden for this year’s festival.  It’s based on the first book in the hugely successful Rivers of London series by Ben Aaronovitch.

Peter Grant – the narrator/hero – loves London. He can’t imagine living or working anywhere else, as beautifully summed up in a conversation with his boss, Thomas Nightingale:

“There’s more to life than just London,” said Nightingale.

“People keep saying that,” I replied. “But I’ve never actually seen any proof.”

Two very different books, but it’s their shared celebration of London that I will look to bring out, for people to enjoy its streets, buildings and atmosphere. As well, of course, discovering for yourself lots of the locations you’ve been reading about in the books.