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Trail talk: Statues on the Jubilee Walkway

I first became aware of the Jubilee Walkway in the late 1980s when I picked up a leaflet in the City Information Centre, in the shadow of St. Paul’s Cathedral, London. I had noticed a little silver plaque set into a nearby path and sought more information from the helpful people in the centre. It has only taken me more than thirty years to actually get round to undertaking the walk!

One of the panoramic panels on the Jubilee Walkway, The Queens Walk

Back then it was called the London Silver Jubilee Walkway and was created as part of London’s celebration for The Queen’s Silver Jubilee in 1977. Her Majesty officially opened it on 9 June 1977. Information panels, now sponsored and occasionally updated, were added at strategic points in 1980 and some of these remain in place. Other panels have been added for one reason or another. 2002 was the The Queen’s Golden Jubilee and the Jubilee Walkway quietly dropped the ‘Silver’ from its name. A Golden Jubilee extension spur was added to the walk the following year.

The Jubilee Walkway is now around 15 miles long if including various ‘extra’ loops, so makes a good day’s walk, particularly if peeling off to visit any of the many places of interest en route. Because the Golden Jubilee extension now has the route wandering all the way to Buckingham Palace, this week I travelled up to the nearby Victoria railway station and set off and returned from there. My walk totalled a tad over sixteen miles (c26km). Wikipedia has a useful list of the major sites passed on the five individual loops. Having walked it, I would categorically state that the optional 3.9 mile (6.3km) Camden Loop is largely a waste of time and adds almost nothing to the walk.

Leaflet to the older LondonSilver Jubilee Walkway
Leaflet to the older London Silver Jubilee Walkway
85 Fleet Street, former Reuters Building. Statue of Fame above entrance
85 Fleet Street, former Reuters Building. Statue of The Herald (Fame) above entrance
The Herald, by William Reid Dick. 85 Fleet Street
The Herald, by William Reid Dick. 85 Fleet Street

This is a London walk. There is so much to see and do, so much to divert to and explore. Instead of giving a blow by blow account of my walk, something a little different to offer some focus- a few images of statues and sculptures seen on my wander around London. There are many public works of art, a considerable number in the City of London alone. Sometimes you have to have your wits about you to spot something. Not everything is sitting on a corner in front of you, some are tucked away just a little out of sight. The trumpeting figure of Fame was hidden away slightly in a circular recess above the door to an old newspaper building in Fleet Street, and it was only a sideways glance off my route that had me espy the striking Minotaur sculpture with his back to a small garden containing remnants of the Roman London wall. This is a dramatic piece of art that I had last seen a quarter of a century ago in its previous location in Postmans Park a mile away. There are far more statues and sculptures than I include here, this is just a small personal selection from my day, enjoy.

Mahatma Gandhi, Philip Jackson. Parliament Square
Mahatma Gandhi, by Philip Jackson. Parliament Square
Millicent Garrett Fawcett. Gillian Wearing. Parliament Square
Millicent Garrett Fawcett, by Gillian Wearing. Parliament Square
Winston Churchill. Ivor Roberts Jones,  David Lloyd George by Glynn Williams beyond. Parliament Square
Winston Churchill, by Ivor Roberts Jones. David Lloyd George by Glynn Williams beyond. Parliament Square
Richard Coeur de Lion (Richard the Lionheart). Baron Carlo Marochetti. Old Palace Yard, Palace of Westminster
Richard Coeur de Lion (Richard the Lionheart), by Baron Carlo Marochetti. Old Palace Yard, Palace of Westminster
The Burghers of Calais, Auguste Rodin. Victorian Tower Gardens, Houses of Parliament
The Burghers of Calais, by Auguste Rodin. Victorian Tower Gardens, Houses of Parliament
Memorial to the S.O.E.- Special Operations Executive. Bust of Violette Szabo by Karen Newman
Memorial to the S.O.E.– Special Operations Executive. Bust of Violette Szabo by Karen Newman. South Bank
London Pride, Frank Dobson. National Theatre, South Bank
London Pride, Frank Dobson. National Theatre, South Bank
Minerva, Alan Collins. Southwark Cathedral
Minerva, Alan Collins. Southwark Cathedral
The Navigators, by David Kemp. Hay's Galleria
The Navigators, by David Kemp. Hay’s Galleria
Girl with a Dolphin, by David Wynne
Girl with a Dolphin, by David Wynne. St Katherine’s Dock
The Building Worker, by Alan Wilson
The Building Worker, by Alan Wilson. Tower Hill
Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, by Francis Chantrey, completed by Henry Weeks. Royal Exchange
Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, by Francis Chantrey, completed by Henry Weeks. Royal Exchange
London Troops War Memorial, sculptor Alfred Drury, Stone-carver and letterer William Silver Frith, architect Sir Aston Webb
London Troops War Memorial, sculptor Alfred Drury, Stone-carver and letterer William Silver Frith, architect Sir Aston Webb. Royal Exchange
James Henry Greathead, by James Butler. Royal Exchange
James Henry Greathead, by James Butler. Royal Exchange

Minotaur, by Michael Ayrton. Salters' Gardens
Minotaur, by Michael Ayrton. Salters’ Gardens, Barbican
Paternoster, by Elisabeth Frink. Paternoster Square, St. Paul's Cathedral
Paternoster, or The Shepherd and Sheep, by Elisabeth Frink. Paternoster Square, St. Paul’s Cathedral
Angel’s Wing, by Thomas Heatherwick. Paternoster Lane, off Square
Angel’s Wing, or Paternoster Vents, by Thomas Heatherwick. Paternoster Lane, off the Square
Detail from statue of Queen Anne. 'North America', copy by by Francis Bird. St. Paul's Cathedral
Detail from statue of Queen Anne. ‘North America’, her right foot on severed head with lizard behind. Copy by Francis Bird. St. Paul’s Cathedral
Sir John Betjamin, by Martin Jennings. St. Pancras Railway Station
Sir John Betjeman, by Martin Jennings. The Meeting Place and I Want My Time With You by Tracey Emin beyond. St. Pancras Railway Station
The Meeting Place, by Paul Day. St. Pancras Railway Station
The Meeting Place, by Paul Day. St. Pancras Railway Station

Detail from bronze relief frieze of The Meeting Place
Detail from bronze relief frieze of The Meeting Place
Detail from bronze relief frieze of The Meeting Place
Detail from bronze relief frieze of The Meeting Place
Detail from bronze relief frieze of The Meeting Place
Detail from bronze relief frieze of The Meeting Place
Detail from bronze relief frieze of The Meeting Place
Detail from bronze relief frieze of The Meeting Place
Detail from bronze relief frieze of The Meeting Place
Detail from bronze relief frieze of The Meeting Place
Detail from bronze relief frieze of The Meeting Place
Detail from bronze relief frieze of The Meeting Place
Detail from bronze relief frieze of The Meeting Place
Izaac Newton, by Eduardo Paolozzi. Brtish Library piazza
Izaac Newton, by Eduardo Paolozzi. British Library piazza
Young Dancer by Enzo Plazzotta. Broad Court, opposite Royal Opera House
Young Dancer, by Enzo Plazzotta. Broad Court, opposite Royal Opera House
The End, by Heather Phillipson. Fourth plinth, Trafalgar Square
The End, by Heather Phillipson. Fourth plinth, Trafalgar Square

8 replies »

  1. Well done for keeping your eyes open! So much to see, so much to miss! I particularly liked the relief carvings on The Meeting Place. What / where are the people with dogs heads at the very start of this article?

    Liked by 1 person

  2. Have you tried https://www.atlasobscura.com/, some interest places pop up.
    Next time I am in London so doing that walk.
    Seen a lot of those, it is really worth walking around Tower Hill. I highly recommend the site of the executions outside of the Tower and then the Roman Wall over the road.

    Like

    • Thanks for the suggested link. I spent a little time wandering around Tower Hill. Had hoped to visit the City’s oldest church there, but it wasn’t open. Then thought about the cafe adjoining, but I wasn’t going to pay a tenner for a bacon roll! I spent quite some time exploring the Roman Wall further on in my walk, at Barbican

      Liked by 1 person

      • Watch around Westminster not only are the Bacon rolls a tenner there a service change on top. A sandwich lunch was one of our most expensive meals in London and we leave a tip for good food and service, we would not have tipped in this place.
        I went on a wonder around the Tower of London mainly to see the St Thomas Moore site and then looked over the road and coming out of a modern building is a massive chunk of Roman Wall so went from there.
        Obscura can be interesting as it will lead you to odd places or point out things you would not have seen otherwise. Like have a drink where Jack The Ripper did or the oldest water pump in London.

        Liked by 1 person

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