Urban metro systems are the lifeblood of most cities; tens of thousands of locals and visitors alike use them on a daily basis. Travelling on often crowded trains can be unpleasant, but in many cases the experience is made more appealing by the fact that in many European cities the metro systems also double as art galleries, showcasing designs and works of famous artists. Station platforms, ticket halls, passageways, accesses reflect art trends, visions, ambitious plans – or maybe just the desire to create spaces people could feel comfortable and at ease into, even while doing something quite ordinary like commuting from A to B. 

So when you travel in these six cities below, perhaps from one museum to another, don't forget that there is an awful lot of amazing architecture and art below ground, not just above... 

LONDON 

Why it's so special

London has one of the most famous metro systems in the world and yet many people forget that it also a huge architectural treasure trove. The man behind such legacy is Charles Holden. Holden designed some of the most iconic Art-Deco stations on the network in the 1920s and 1930s, together with the HQ of London Transport, situated right above St James' Station and the imposing Senate House at London University in Bloomsbury. A key defining moment of Holden's work is when he travelled to Germany, Scandinavia and the Netherlands in the early 1930s. After this journey his projects displayed a stronger European/Scandic influence. 

What to look for

One of Holden's first project was a string of stations on today's Northern Line, between Clapham North and Morden. These South London stations, built in the mid-1920s have a typical Modernist look and are characterised by the white Portland stone cladding, huge ticket halls and the iconic Underground roundel in coloured glass, framed by two columns at the front. Another of Holden's creations was the beautiful and functional large circular ticket hall of Piccadilly Circus station. After his trip to Northern Europe, Holden designed the stations on the Northern and Western extensions of the Piccadilly line. One of my favourite is Southgate, which looks like a flying saucer. Another very interesting station is Gants Hill on the Central Line: this station is entirely below-ground and was designed in the 1930s but because of the war was not completed until 1947. Here Holden experimented with a grand vaulted ceiling, a style he saw in the Moscow metro.

PARIS 

Why it's so special

Paris Metro boasts probably one of the most recognisable designs, particularly the famous entrances to the subways, which were designed by architect Hector Guimard. In fact Monsieur Guimard designed two types of entrances, one with a glass roof and one without; both are iconic example of French Art-Nouveau, built in cast iron and displaying the classic botanic symbolism associated with this style. Sadly of the 141 entrances built between 1900 and 1912 only 86 remains as many were (criminally, I'd say) removed in the 1960s. 

What to look for

Although not all the Guimard's distinctive entrances were torn down, unfortunately just two roofed accesses remain, one at Porte Dauphine and another at Abbesses. The inside of all the stations built in the same period (i.e. before WWI) is quite austere and with the famous white glossy bevelled rectangular tiles. The reason for the stark choice was that electric lighting was very rudimental at the time and so this design allowed for a better refection of the light. When the new North-Line was built (now line 12 and part of line 13) the design was improved adding arches of coloured tiles – the colour to mark interchange from ordinary stations. The best preserved station in this very distinctive style is Solférino.

STOCKHOLM

Why it's so special

Stockholm metro (Tunnelbana) was developed in the 1950s, at a time of strong cultural and artistic expansion in Sweden. Being the city located on a number of islands, the tunnels had to be dug very deep, in fact right into the bedrock - and in most stations the bedrock itself has been left magnificently exposed, adding to the cavernous and almost pre-historic atmosphere. In the 1960s and 1970s the then Social-Democratic government decided that art had to be available to everyone, not just displayed in galleries and therefore commissioned a number of projects for the Tunnelbana, transforming it in what is now called 'the longest art museum in the world'. Get a day-pass and take time to explore the Tunnelbana network - which is also a sensible option in case of bad weather.

What to look for

There are several stations worth mentioning, but I'd note in particular T-Centralen, where in the 1970s the artist Per Olof Ultvedt honoured the workers who built the station by painting their silhouettes (and his own) on the walls and ceilings. At Solna Centrum, Anders Åberg and Karl-Olav Bjork painted a fiery orange/red, hellish landscape above a Scandinavian pine forest, running for almost 1km along the walls, a statement again deforestation that was taking place in Sweden in the 1970s. 

Östermalmstorg features stark charcoal-coloured drawings showing key female figures from history: it is the work of feminist and peace advocate artist Siri Derkent in the early 1960s. Don't be surprised by the cold and haunting atmosphere of this place; the artist wanted to highlight that this station was designed to double as a shelter in case of nuclear attack. At Rådhuset, the artist Sigvard Olsson created a pink underground grotto, complete with various imaginary archeological findings, including a mock chimney stack base.

VIENNA

Why it's so special

Vienna Stadtbahn was built at a time of Austro-Hungarian imperial opulence and splendour, between 1894 and 1901. Although several lines were originally planned, only part of the network was eventually built and in the 1980s the Stadtbahn was incorporated into the city's U-Bahn system - it now constitutes lines U4 and U6 of the system. The style of some of the stations built at the turn of the 20th century reflects the Jugendstil/Art-Nouveau architecture, which in Austria found its expression in the Vienna Secession manifesto, a movement of artists who objected to the prevailing conservatism of the Vienna cultural establishment with its traditional orientation toward Historicism.

What to look for

he two above-ground buildings part of the (former) Karlsplatz Station are some of the finest examples of this style and were designed by Otto Wagner and Joseph Maria Olbrich, both members of the above mentioned Secession movement (the latter was in fact a founding member of it). These stations, with their distinctive steel framework and white marble slabs became the most modern, innovative, revolutionary (and thus controversial) buildings in Vienna at the time. Believe it or not, they were both scheduled for demolition in the 1980s, but thankfully the resulting public outcry managed to save them and today one of them houses a small museum and the other a cosy café. Another beautiful Art-Nouveau station is Kettenbrückengasse - also designed by Secessionist architect Otto Wagner.

ATHENS

Why it's so special

Compared to other European cities Athens metro system is fairly new as the bulk of the network was built from 1991 onward, though Line 1 is actually an old rail link between the city the Piraeus port that opened in 1869. However the tunneling of the other two lines under such an ancient city led to the discovery of over 50,000 artifacts, making it the biggest ever archaeological excavation ever made in the Greek capital. Many of these art treasures are now displayed in the stations, which means that metro travellers can almost journey back in time in time, rather than just from place to place.

What to look for

Syntagma Metro Station is where many of the artifacts discovered during the tunneling have been put on display and it is not unrealistic to say that this is now a huge, if slightly unusual, museum of Greek and Roman local antiquities. Here metro passengers can view Roman baths, an ancient aqueduct, marble tombstones, and even a mosaic from the fifth century AD. Archaeologists have also included a very educational geological cross-section – each layer of earth is testimony to a different period reaching back to prehistoric times, starting with Byzantine times, moving down through Roman, ancient Greek, and finally prehistoric. Indeed, a travel back to ancient times.

BERLIN

Why it's so special

As in other cities, Berlin started developing its metro (U-Bahn) system at the turn of the 20th century and also in the German capital we found one man behind most of the architectural design of the stations. Swedish architect Alfred Grenander worked on the U-Bahn stations design from 1902 until 1930, including the viaducts between Nollendorfplatz and Kreuzberg, which proved highly controversial at the time. Sadly he was almost forgotten after his death in 1931, but his designs are strikingly modern and still welcome thousands of Berliners and visitors alike today.

What to look for

Grenander's style evolved over the course of his work on the U-Bahn. Wittenbergplatz station, which opened in 1913 and was partially rebuilt after being damaged in WWII is arguably his masterpiece, a stunning example of Art-Nouveau. Toward the late 1920s his style became more modern and functional and we can see this at Hermannplatz (1926) and Alexanderplatz (1930 - his last work): here we find coloured glazed tiles, riveted steel columns or grand pillars covered by tiles and exposed beams.

Apart from Grenander's style, Berlin's U-Bahn is a fantastic mixture of modern and old, which means that every station is different and a real pleasure to explore.

London, as every metropolis, has always attracted gay and lesbian people. In the days before social media and the internet and even more in days when male homosexuality was still on the criminal books (lesbian relationships were never a crime in the UK, but male to male ones were so until 1967), there was an obvious need for the gay community to meet and socialise in places where its members could feel accepted and more or less openly display their sexuality. Often these venues, including bars and clubs cluster around an area, people move in the area as a result and a district acquires a distinct 'alternative' feel.

However London is a fluid metropolis and over the course of the years 'gay districts' have shifted around its territory. Looking at Soho or Vauxhall today one may be led to believe that these areas have long been London's 'gay central'. And yet, if one had walked around Soho in the late 70s or even the early 80s it would have been hard to find anything but seedy strip joints and decrepit bars fleecing the occasional straight tourist.

Similarly there are areas that once were the centre of everything gay, but now are a very distant memories of those heady times. Earls Court is one of them. For many years this has been (and to some extent still is) a place notorious for its transient population, lured by its (then) cheap housing, often in large Victorian mansion blocks. In fact in the 70s this area was nicknamed 'Kangaroo Valley', because of its large number of Australian residents on their UK temporary visas. Today, with house prices tens of times higher and parts of the area boasting prices amongst the dearest in the city, backpackers have moved on, though the area is still home to many cheap hotels and hostels.

Just stepping out of Earls Court underground, outside of which stands the only remaining TARDIS police telephone box made so famous in Dr Who. Once dodged the inevitable crowd of tourists taking pictures, turning left and up a short 2 minutes walk up the road at number 180-182 used to be the Copacabana, later Club 180. Today it's a Wagamama restaurant and a separate bar, but starting in the late 70s and up to the mid 90s here was London's first public nightclub aimed at a gay clientele. The Copacabana was at the forefront of the then emerging clone scene and featured a bar upstairs called Harpos and the Banana Max. One wonders if the diners at Wagamama are at all aware of the dance shenanigans that once happened there.

A bit up the road and passed the junction with the Cromwell Road, on the left is Logan Place. Here at no 1 was the residence of Freddie Mercury who also died here in 1991.

Back to the station and continuing along the Earls Court Road we reach the Old Brompton Road. On the left at 60 Colherne Court lived Diana Princess Of Wales before his engagement to Charles in 1981. She owned a flat here, which had been donated to her by her parents and had two lodgers at that time.

The segment between here and the Warwick Road used to be the epicentre of gay life up to the late 80s. First of all the old Colherne Pub, which is now a straight ordinary gastro-pub called The Penbroke. In its original name the pub stood there since the 1880s and always attracted a Bohemian clientele, in fact it has been reported that already in the late 1930s there were drag entertainers performing at weekends. Gays informally started attending in the 50s but it was in the 70s that the pub turned itself into a leather bar, with blackened windows and acquired worldwide fame. So much that the Colherne is also featured in Armistead Maupin's book 'Babycakes', part of the Tales of The City series. Famous regulars were Freddie Mercury, Rudolph Nureyev and Kenny Everett. The venue also had a number of less salubrious regulars, as it was also the stalking ground of three serial killers, including Colin Ireland, known as 'The Gay Slayer', who murdered five people and died in HM Wakefield Prison in 2012, aged 57.

Next to the Colherne was a small underground dance club, known as The Catacombs. Empty for many years, it was recently converted into a luxury residential apartment and sold for £2.5m.

A few doors down Old Brompton Road, on the opposite side, stands a branch of Clone Zone, one of the few remainders of the time when this was a thriving gay centre. Clone Zone started as a small retail stall in the nightclub that used to be at the corner of Old Brompton and Warwick Road. Originally named The Lord Ranelagh, it was famous as 'Bromptons' in the 80s and early 90s.

In September 1964 a young, non-gay, male band, The Downtowners, persuaded many of the local cross-dressers to come into the Lord Ranelagh and perform in a show called 'Queen of the Month'. The shows proved very successful and every Saturday night the pub was packed to capacity. However the also attracted the attention of homophobic tabloids and in May 1965 The News of The World published an an article entitled 'This show must not go on.'The massive publicity ensured that on the Sunday night the pub was so packed that every table and chair had to be removed. Crowds spilled out on to the pavement onto Old Brompton Road. The police closed the show. Many well-known celebrities were among the clientele and the Lord Ranelagh is thus considered to have played a role in the history of gay liberation in the UK.

On the opposite side from the Lord Ranelagh and down a few hundred meters along Old Brompton Road is Brompton Cemetery. This is one of the 'magnificent seven' London burial grounds and features in its centre a beautiful Victorian columnade, which is built over Catacombs - a particularly popular form of burial in those times. The cemetery, with its long grass in places is still a very popular cruising ground, possibly one of the most eeriest and peculiar around.

Earls Court's popularity in the gay community surged at a time where talks of LGBT equality were in their infancy, though many older members of our community would swear that the scene back then was far more interesting and alternative than today's. It is certain that the weight of the HIV/AIDS epidemic that swept through the community in the early 80s and the institutional homophobia of Thatcher's Section 28 changed the scene, including the one that was at that time thriving around Earls Court. The passage from the heady disco days of the late 70s to the more sombre times of the 80s was punctuated by so many sad losses in our community. But it was the progressive gentrification of the area that caused the community to move on. Higher prices in Chelsea and Kensington meant the area started to be seen as a natural extension of much richer districts. Then by the late 80s and early 90s Westminster Council was eager to redevelop Soho and cracked down on the seedy straight clubs, thus more or less deliberately attracting the gay community to move in the void.

Earls Court's gay scene was by then history.

The seaside city of Brighton, on the south cost of England is today recognised as one of the LGBT hotspots in the UK. Its Pride is one of the most popular in the country and a recent survey has estimated that between 11 and 13% of the city's residents identify themselves as LGBT. The proximity to London, just about an hour away by train, means that there is also a considerable exchange between the two. In fact one of the reasons for Brighton to become a LGBT hotspot is to be found in the railway line itself, which opened in 1841 - it goes without saying that the fast and easy train journey to and from London, coupled with an endless supply of hotels and guesthouses were reasons enough to launch the city as a great place for an illicit flirt, be that a gay or straight one!

Brighton's past as a top holiday destination in the Victorian period is today visible through the beautiful grand squares and row of white imposing buildings, plus some grand old hotels, true witness of a bygone age. 

A history of LGBT Brighton

In those days gay or lesbian relationships were naturally kept very much private and it was difficult to distinguish them from very close and intense friendships - the borders were often deliberately blurred. Close friendships between ladies weren't perhaps as scrutinised as in the case of gentlemen and there are accounts of many intense relationships that blossomed in Brighton, such as the one between philanthropist Angela-Burdett-Coutts (who set up the Columbia Road Market in London) and her companion Hannah, who regularly spent part of the year at Brighton's Royal Albion Hotel.

During the pre-WWII years Brighton became the leading place to have fun - this was at a time when package holidays abroad did not exist and most people would spend their free time closer to home. Having fun meant for some looking for opportunities to enjoy the company of same sex partners - though of course we have to remember that this would have been done in a very discreet way, as homosexuality was then illegal and severely punished. And yet there were events that managed to fly below the authorities' radar, like ladies-only grand balls and a even a few bars for gay men were set up, such as the Star of Brunswick (which has been converted into holiday flats a few years ago). 

During WWII the abundance of troops stationed in the coastal city were an obvious magnet for gay men and of course the obligatory blackouts and the fact that the police were occupied by more pressing security issues than actively repressing homosexual behaviours combined to provide a cover for such activities. Many armed force personnel came to Brighton attracted exactly by this situation and quite a few of them stayed after the end of the war, creating a discreet but large LGBT community for those days. The end of the hostilities and then the end of rationing in 1954 put Brighton back on the holidays map. Not just families came over - by now a lot of guesthouses had gay or lesbian owners who would allow same sex guests to stay without fear of harassment (or arrest, or course).

When to visit

Planes, trains and automobiles...

Useful links

• Visit London (Official tourism site)

• Transport for London

• Elizabeth Line (services from Heathrow to central London)

• London Heathrow Airport

• London Gatwick Airport

• London City Airport

• London Stansted Airport

• London Luton Airport

Discover and enjoy...

• Unmissable

  There's so much to see and do in London that no list would be complete and do the city any justice. Anyway, if you've never been, this is your 'bucket list' in the British capital.

  • Westminster Abbey, Britain's coronation church since 1066, the Houses of Parliament, with the iconic Big Ben. 
  • Theatreland: Piccadilly Circus, Leicester Square and Covent Garden.
  • Soho and its buzzing nightlife, heart of LGBT+ London.
  • The City, London's financial district and the oldest neighbourhood. The baroque grandeur of St Paul's Cathedral and the medieval Tower of London with its dark history.
  • The British Museum, one of the world's most amazing collection of classical art.
  • The National Gallery, home to some of the best known paintings in the world.
  • Trafalgar Square and the world-famous Nelson's Column.
  • The Tate Modern, with its world class modern art masterpieces.
  • Buckingham Palace, grand residence of British Kings and Queens.
  • Shopping at the iconic Harrod's or Selfridges department stores. Or checking swinging London's Carnaby Street or classy and upmarket Chelsea.
  • Check the view from the London Eye panoramic wheel.

  Find out more

• 

  Walk along the Thames

  The Thames Path is over 79 miles long (128 Km) and crosses London from Richmond all the way to the Eastern Marches. We’re not suggesting to walk the whole length, but there are so many sections that are worth exploring, allowing the sight of some of London’s iconic bridges and monuments from a different perspective. From the wildlife oasis and navigation locks to the West to the old warehouses and canals of the former Port of London, from which all sorts of goods were traded, from the gleaming modern towers of Canary Wharf, all the way to the Thames Barrier, which today protects the city from the North Sea tides, this is a great way to understand London and its history through its bloodline, the Thames.

  Find out more

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  Explore London’s street markets

  Everyone knows Portobello Market, which is actually a bit touristy, but there are other historical and lively street markets all around London, starting with Brick Lane and Spitalfields Markets, which are true meccas for those loving vintage clothing and second hand items (and they also offer some spectacular street food options). On a Sunday morning, pop to Columbia Road Flower Market which will fill you with colour even on a grey London day. Historical Petticoat Lane Market will give you a taste of London’s East End and to the South, Brixton Market with its bounty of Afro-Caribbean products, will open a window on the many cultures cohabiting in London.

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  Lose track of time in London’s Parks

  London can boast some really spectacular parks, where you will feel a million miles from the hustle and bustle of the city. Regents Park, St James’ Park and Green Park are the most central-located famous, however there are many parks that are just a quick trip on the Tube away. Such as Richmond Park, where you will catch a glimpse of the 600+ majestic deer, that roam free here since 1637. Or head to Hampstead Heath, with its breathtaking views over the city. South of the city you may roam Crystal Palace Park with its stone dinosaurs, inspired by Darwin’s revolutionary findings and that caused a furore in Victorian London. Another beautiful option is Wimbledon Park, with its rolling hills and country village feel.

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  Enjoy some of London’s lesser known Museums

  Starting with the Horniman Museum, created by the philanthropy of the famous tea merchant. Here you will find a vast collection of 350,000 anthropology and natural history objects in a beautiful late Victorian building. Tennis fans cannot miss the Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Museum, which is largest in the world dedicated to this sport. For a taste of the Old Masters head to the Dulwich Picture Gallery, where you will find works of Rembrandt,  Rubens, Van Dyck, Poussin y Murillo. Finally, in trendy East London you will find the Museum of the Home, where you will be able to witness, though reconstructions and many common domestic items, how our homes & gardens have changed in history.

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  Wander through the East End’s Docklands

  Once upon a time, the Docklands were the heart of industrial and mercantile London, where brothels, seedy taverns and extensive slums catered for the many sailors and warehouse workers. And not just for them - Oscar Wilde came here to find rent boys and smoke opium in these shady establishments. Although today the area is very trendy and fashionable, even unrecognisable in parts which were redeveloped in the 1990s, like Canary Wharf, you can find riverside spots in Wapping, Limehouse or Rotherithe where you can have a pint in some historical pubs dating back to those days, each with their own stories to tell. More about this (in)famous area of London is explained in the Docklands Museum of London, in Canary Wharf.

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  Take in a show

  No London visit is complete without a visit to one of the city’s theatres. London’s offer is simply outstanding and only on a par with New York’s. From classic musicals like Mamma Mia! or Phantom of the Opera, to the newest additions, experimental theatre, old classics - London has got it covered. Check also smaller theatres, as they often have really interesting offering of fringe and LGBT+ themed plays and comedies: some of these theatres are really tiny and intimate, making for a great experience. One of our favourite theatres is the Soho Theatre, which has an amazing programme of comedy, cabaret and avant garde shows.

Gallery

The Scene

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  Trafalgar Square

  Nelson´s Column

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  Tower of London

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  Houses of Parliament

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  Buckingham Palace

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  Southbank Centre

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  Vauxhall

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  Dalston

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  Soho

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  Canary Wharf

Related stories

London is without doubt one of the most accepting and tolerant cities for LGBT people today, though it's often easy to forget how the massive change in social attitudes and policies has only happened in the last fifty or so years. Before that, it was a pretty different world - a much more hostile one. In a previous post I examined Oscar Wilde's London: he was perhaps the first and most known person who somehow lived his homosexuality in a different way, though bearing no resemblance to what we would call 'gay lifestyle' today. Wilde himself was married and most of the activities he was then convicted for happened more or less behind closed doors. 

And yet his life involved visits to men-only brothels, parties and other places where illicit practices could be entertained. That is because there was an underground gay network in London, even well before Wilde's times. It's perhaps easy to think that before it became more socially acceptable to be gay, LGBT people would just get into an ordinary marriage and play the straight role all the time. But that would actually be wrong: we know from historic records that London was in the past a thriving hub of homosexual activity, pretty much like it is now - but just in a different way. 

What is true is that most gay men and women would get married; that was pretty much the absolute rule. Not getting married (and thus not procreate) was simply not a socially acceptable option. However that did not mean that sexual practices would have been confined to the conjugal bedroom with the lawful, opposite sex partner. London was in the 1600-1800s a very busy city, pretty much like now. It was also a very dirty, dark, overpopulated and dingy city, mostly in places we wouldn't suspect today, such as the City itself. In fact many areas of London, with their narrow labyrinthine streets and dark corners were the perfect set up for illicit businesses trading sex and for other unlawful encounters. 

There were several options available to men looking for same-sex meets, such as the so called Molly Houses. A Molly House in the 18th or 19th century was a tavern, pub or even a coffee house that allowed gay men to socialise. They weren't brothels in the proper sense, though there were male prostitutes operating there and some of these houses had rooms that could be hired by the customers. Most of them were places where gay people would meet, dance and sometime dress up. All of these activities were of course also prohibited, so they pretty much operated undercover and the knowledge of their existence was due to word of mouth.

The House of Mother Clap , Field Lane - The Scandal of the Century 

On a cold Sunday in February 1726 a squadron of Police constables raided the premises of a coffee shop in Field Lane, Holborn. Today this location is probably where the Holborn Viaduct is, if you fancy finding the exact spot where this place of illicit activities once stood. The owner, a lady commonly known as Mother Clap, was arrested, together with some customers. Margaret Clap (her full name) ran one of the busiest and most successful molly houses in London, one that was big enough to accommodate dancing and fiddling. She also had a room at the back which was called 'The Marrying Room' or 'The Chapel', where people could go for some intimacy. The demise of Mother Clap's house was brought forward by The Society for the Reformation of Manners, whose members managed to gather information by posing as customers, assisted by other customers who had turned informers - probably to avoid being themselves outed and reported to the police. By August that year, three of the arrested men had been hanged, two men and a woman pilloried, fined and imprisoned, plus a few more had gone 'missing'. 

In 2001 a play was written about Mother Clap's Molly House.

However the reason why the raid of Mother Clap's disorderly house is so important is that it caused a massive public outrage in London at the time. So much that The London Journal in its May 7th, 1726 edition expressed appropriate horror and proceeded to duly expose all the 'Nocturnal Assemblies of great Numbers of the like vile Persons at what they call the Markets, where they make their Bargains, and then withdraw into some dark Corners to indorse, as they call it, but in plain English to commit Sodomy'. Through this document we were allowed a rare view of what gay London looked like at the time.

So, what were the five cruising areas of London, circa 1726, as exposed by The London Journal?

The Royal Exchange

It is difficult to think that this area, today one of the busiest in the City was a hub for gay encounters in the past. If we stroll inside we see luxury shops, restaurants and a constant flow of suited businessmen. But if you had been here at the Royal Exchange (the building we see now it's not where the action took place, as that burnt down in a fire in 1838) three hundred years ago you would have seen the hustle and bustle of traders, hawkers, fruit sellers, all moving around stalls where you could buy food and drink coffee. The pillars of the arcades would have been plastered with advertisements and a few guys would have been looking for casual work. No surprise the place attracted lovers of 'the rough trade' - and of course our 'friends' of The Society for the Reformation of Manners, who would be also going round the arcades trying to find any 'abominable activities' going on. We actually know that the Royal Exchange has been a cruising ground since 1700. In that year 'The London Spy' by Ned Ward reported that "We then proceeded and went on to the Change, turn'd to the Right, and Jostled in amongst a parcel of Swarthy Buggerantoes, Preternatural Fornicators, as my Friend call'd them, who would Ogle a Handsome Young Man with as much Lust, as a True-bred English Whoremaster would gaze upon a Beautiful Virgin".

Moorfields - Finsbury Square 

Again, standing in a weary city lawn in the middle of Finsbury Square and above an underground car park it is hard to imagine this area, today busy with incessant traffic, shops and offices as an open space. However back in the 1700s this whole area north of the City had not been built up yet and was actually the last undeveloped parcel within inner London - and not by chance: it was an unattractive swamp where nobody really wanted to move to or build on. While initially it would have been open countryside, by the mid-1600s the area was known for a few filthy run down cottages, enclosures and a rather unsavory resident population, probably because they could not live anywhere else in town, even if they wanted to move. It didn't take long for the area to turn into a red-light district, as even Samuel Pepys mentions in his diary in 1668. In the overall squalor a few molly houses were established, attracting a constant flow of customers. So much so that there was even a path commonly known as 'The Sodomites' Walk'. And if you want to know where this path is - well, it is now the south side of Finsbury Square, with the tiny gardens at the centre being all that remains of the Moorfields today. 

The bogs at Lincoln's Inn 

Did you think that cottaging was something relatively modern? Think again. Another place mentioned in the London Journal was the public bog-houses (i.e. conveniences) that served Lincoln's Inn, near Holborn. Lincoln's Inn is still to this day one of the four Inns of Court in London to which barristers belong and where they are called to the Bar. The facilities in question were built in 1691 on the eastern side of the New Square, which sits to the East of Lincoln's Inn Fields and consisted of a long narrow building containing six privies, three on each side, facing each other, which surely facilitated 'conversations'. The bogs have long been dismantled and there is no sign of them today, though until the 1890s the area was still called 'The Bogs', even if the unsuspecting locals didn't quite know why. The only sign of the existence of the facilities is a stone plaque high up on the wall bearing the date 1693, which has the notice: "This wall is built upon the ground of Lincolnes Inn, no windows are to be broken out without leave." This meant that windows could not be opened into the wall overlooking the bog houses, as the stench would rise into the chambers. We can probably assume that a few young law students would have frequented these facilities between one court case and the other, though it is known that the nearby Lincoln's Inn Fields was also a cruising ground and right through the 1760s men regularly picked up one another on the Strand and then came here to use the bog house for more privacy.

Covent Garden 

Another area that is changed beyond recognition, Covent Garden has been a market for many centuries, in fact till the 1970s, when the fruit & veg trade moved to Nine Elms, Vauxhall. The area today is one of London's premier shopping and eating destinations, as well as being the heart of London's 'Theatreland'. But the history of Covent Garden is a lot more colourful: originally designed by Inigo Jones in 1630 as a upmarket piazza, with a church and fine houses and terraces, the opening of the market in the late 1600s caused the wealthy locals to move out. And as they moved out, the area and the growing fruit market became also a huge magnet for (straight) prostitution, especially along Drury Lane where every night theatre-goers could find some entertainment of a different kind after the shows. Descriptions of the prostitutes, like the famous Betty Careless, and where to find them were provided by Harris's List of Covent Garden Ladies, the "Essential guide and accessory for any serious gentleman of pleasure", published (and regularly confiscated) every Christmas from 1760 to 1793. But it wasn't just straight sex on offer here. There was a lot of bent sex too. In fact so much that the Ladies of the night were at one point on the front line in asking the authorities to do something about the spread of 'vice', as their trade started to be affected and dwindled to a trickle.

St James' Park 

Along the South side of the park, today as in the 1700s stand numerous military barracks, serving the Royal Palaces and the other government buildings nearby. And where there are soldiers there are also plenty of opportunities for sexual encounters. In High & Low Life (1781), writer George Parker deplored the men "who signal to each other in St James' Park, and then retire to satisfy a passion too horrible for description". The authorities tried to do something, including instituting patrols going around the bushes at night and even considering locking the park at night, in 1791. Apart from the obvious risks involved in cruising in the park, i.e. being sentenced to be pilloried and/or locked up in jail, often being brought to face justice by the indefatigable members for The Society for Reformation of Manners, soldiers had another thing to worry about: blackmail. The park was rife with hustlers and blackmailers such as a certain John Mitchell, who not only bragged that his penis was nine inches long but also: "When I wanted Money, I took a Walk in the Park, and got 4 or 5 Guineas a-Night from Gentlemen, because they would not be expos'd.".

Manchester is a city of firsts: it saw the first canal of the industrial era, the Bridgewater Canal in 1761, the first public omnibus service in 1824, the first steam passenger railway in 1830, the first telephone exchange in the UK in 1879 - and we can go on. Manchester in the 18th and 19th century was the industrial powerhouse of the British Empire. Raw goods would arrive into the city from the sea through its canals and the River Irwell and be morphed into all sort of quality goods ready to be exported worldwide. Manchester acquired a fame especially for its textile product, so much that in certain countries like Australia, bed linen is currently referred to as 'Manchester'. 

Towards the middle of the 20th century the city's fortunes started to change. While other areas of the UK managed to convert their industries to more modern productions, Manchester saw a progressive decline and many of its iconic factories closed down. It would be a sad story if this didn't mean a fertile ground for amazing music and a thriving and formidable rave and clubbing scene in the 80s and 90s - think of the revolutionary club Hacienda, groups like Happy Mondays, the Smiths, Oasis and New Order. In the idle and empty warehouses of Manchester people came together, danced, took Es and had a great time. 

More recently Manchester has had a brilliant renaissance, both cultural and architectural. Many landmarks of its grand past have been restored, or given a new function. New towers have changed the skyline and a new and ever expanding network of modern trams now connects the various parts of town. The old and empty warehouses have been progressively converted into trendy apartments and offices. The city seems to go from strength to strength in its rediscovered confidence. Once again Manchester is powering ahead. 

But above all Manchester is a city of extraordinarily proud people. Mancunians are incredibly friendly, open, down to earth and love having a good time. They are also keen beer drinkers! So come to the uncrowned capital of the North and enjoy its rich history, its rugged charm, its great scene and the conviviality of its people. 

By the way: we refer to 'Manchester' to define the whole metropolitan area, however strictly speaking only the area to the east of the River Irwell is the city of Manchester proper. The area to the west of the river is actually the city of Salford. No doubt Mancunians will point this out to you!

Canal Street and the Gay Village

Manchester has a rich gay scene, second only to London. Most of it is clustered around Canal Street and it's referred to as 'the gay village'. Until the late 1980s the area was characterised by decrepit old buildings and a rather seedy atmosphere. Gay cruising was going on along the canals but the police operated a no-tolerance policy and arrests were regularly made. Things changed in the 1990s when the bar Manto opened - the first one with open windows over the street: the bar closed a few years ago and its site is now occupied by another gay venue (On Bar), but its impact on the area was huge. The city council policy also radically changed, not only by actively protecting and promoting gay rights, but actually recognising the whole Canal Street area and its value to the LGBT community. Since then the neighbourhood has seen many bars & restaurant flourish and the success has also found its way in landmark gay TV series such as 'Queer as Folk' and 'Cucumber'. Manchester Pride is a key event in the UK's LGBT calendar and is held here on the last weekend of August. Throughout the event period the entire Gay Village comes alive with music, top live performances and cultural festivals. And don't miss the super-popular parade on the Saturday afternoon which sneaks around Manchester's central area and it's a huge celebration not just for the LGBT community but for the city as a whole

Our top picks in Manchester

Two great Museums 

Manchester's weather can be extremely temperamental, even in summer. But thankfully there are many museums to visit and some are absolutely outstanding. Manchester's rich industrial heritage is on display at the Museum of Science & Industry (MOSI) where the city's role in the Industrial Revolution can be fully appreciated. Check also the People's History Museum, housed in a stunning refurbished Edwardian pumping station and detailing the story of Britain's 200-year often troubled march to democracy.

The Quays 

If you want to grasp a sense of the city's modern renaissance, the best way is to head to Salford Quay. Here some abandoned and derelict old docks have recently been converted into a superb leisure and residential area, which has attracted the BBC (which has moved large chunks of its operations here into a new HQ called 'Media City') and many other production companies, plus galleries, theatres & multi-performance spaces such as The Lowry and the Imperial War Museum's northern outpost. And many shops and restaurants, of course.

The Northern Quarter 

As an area the Northern Quarter exists only since the mid 90s, but this neighbourhood, which has a distinct New York feel, just north of the city centre, has for many years be a haven for music lovers, vintage hunters and (more recently) trendy bars seekers. There are some exceptional vinyl records outlets here, in fact a true mecca for DJs. There are many gorgeous little bars in this area, many playing live music.

The Victorian Heritage 

The city has its most glorious time in Victorian times and back then its skyline was punctuated by innumerable smoking chimneys and busy canals and waterways. Things might have changed, but the canals with their locks and bridges are still there, as well as many imposing building from the era, such as the magnificent Town Hall, which features an 85 metre tall ornate tower. Another step back in time is the Greater Manchester Police Museum which is housed in a restored Victorian Police Station. Also remarkable is the Rylands Library, which is a true Victorian Gothic cathedral to books and literature.

The National Football Museum 

Ok, not everyone is into football (or soccer, if you like it in the American way), but Manchester is a city that loves its footie - who hasn't heard of Manchester United, or ManU? The city is also home to the National Football Museum since 2012, in its new architecturally stunning building opposite the also architecturally stunning renovated Victoria rail station. The museum's mission is collecting and preserving important memorabilia from the world of association football.

​I am going to state the obvious: gays love interior design. There has always been a close connection between queer guys and the desire to beautify and refine homes. Maybe because we, gays love surrounding ourselves with nice things and enjoying life to the max. Maybe because we have an innate sense of beauty.

I am sure that at least once we have all found ourselves in the centre of a major city, in the middle of the summer, the tarmac melting under our feet and the searing heat radiating from the buildings wondering why the hell we didn't choose a better time to visit... And indeed summer is not really the best time to visit cities, but thankfully many cities boasts blissful oases where visitors and locals alike can swim and relax - and why not, socialise! Here's our pick of the best.

Rome – Capocotta 

Visiting the Forum and the Colosseum is a must when in Rome, but in the height of the summer you could roast a steak on those ancient rocks, so what to do to get some respite? The good news is that the Eternal City is close to the sea and to a great gay beach – the bad news is that it's not so easy to get there. 

But let's start with the good news: Capocotta Beach, affectionately named 'il buco' because in the early 1970s the first users of this long stretch of coast could only get there via a hole (buco) in the perimeter fence, is to the south of the coastal town of Ostia Lido. In 2000 it was officially recognised as the first nudist beach in Italy and is a wide stretch of sand bordered by dune formations, covered by some shrubs. In parts the vegetation is thick enough to provide shelter (and opportunities for cruising, of course). Being quite a distance from urban areas, the sea is quite clean and in fact there is a marine reserve just about 5 kilometres offshore. There are some seasonal kiosks providing refreshments and also facilities like sunbeds, but we recommend to bring some food and drinks as at the time of writing some of these kiosks are under threat of demolition by the authorities. 

The gay beach is accessed via the 8th Cancello (Gate), which is also the furthest one. Recently the beach has become so popular that there are now unofficial areas for different 'gay tribes' – so you will encounter the bears in one section, the muscle boys in another, and so on and so forth. You can of course sit wherever you like! Just choose your fancy… Now the bad news – Capocotta beach is not so easy to get to. You will need to take the train to Ostia from the Ostiense Station (connecting with the B line of the metro), alight at Lido Centro and then take the bus (line 061) to the 8th Cancello. If you have a car of course it is a lot easier: you can park along the main road.

London - The ponds at Hampstead Heath

London doesn't have a reputation for getting scalding hot in the summer, but when it does it's pretty much unbearable. The Thames' greeny-grey hue does not look like an inviting swim and Brighton is a pretty long hike – so where to go for a refreshing swim?

Hampstead Heath is famous as a cruising ground, but the Men's Pond is nowhere near the cruising area – it's actually right on the other side of the vast parkland. There are actually several ponds, of which three are for swimming but the men's pond is the second from the South. 

The water in the ponds is crystal clear as it is fed from natural springs underneath the park (in fact the ones from which the historical and now hidden River Fleet originates), but for this very reason it is also pretty chilly, even on the most searing hot day. You are able to swim here every day, even in winter, though we wouldn't recommend it unless you're a penguin. There is a charge to enter the pond area, between £2.10 and £3.50 depending on the time/season. Or you can get a day-ticket for less than £7. 

Around the swim area are some pleasant lawns (these are outside the swim area so they are free to access) and on a warm day it feels like the whole of gay London comes here to picnic. To get to Hampstead Men's Pond the nearest station is Gospel Oak on the Overground – from there is about 400 mts walk. Or alternatively the nearest underground station is Tufnell Park, on the Northern Line and then it's about 600-700 mts walk from there.

Madrid - Lago

The Spanish capital often stays in the high 30s or low 40s (that's over 100F for our US readers) for most of the summer months. Positively roasting – not even a gallon of iced sangria would be enough to refresh (and we wouldn't recommend that anyway!). 

But in these positively scalding temps it's good to know that even in Madrid there are opportunities for socialising and having fun by the water. And only a few minutes from the city centre. The Piscina de Lago (or more correctly Centro Deportivo Municipal Casa de Campo) comprises several pools, including one that is 50 square metres. The pools are surrounded by nice lawns to sunbathe and of course socialise with the neighbours. There is obviously a mixed crowd but there is a 'gay enclave' at the top of the complex – it won't take long to find it: just follow the hot boys… 

In the summer the pools are really busy, especially at weekends so if you want to avoid the queue and more importantly find a spot to lay your towel try to arrive early, i.e. before lunchtime. The pool becomes astonishingly (and probably very predictably) busy on the week of Madrid Pride in early July – but it's a great place to hang out pre-parade/pre-party. 

The pool is open from late May till September and the entry charge is very reasonable (about €6). You can buy drinks (including alcohol), snacks and food inside the complex. There are of course changing facilities, showers, etc. To get to the Piscina de Lago is really easy – just get the metro line 10 towards Puerta del Sur and alight at Lago (it's only two stops from Plaza de Espaňa).

Barcelona - Platja de la Mar Bella

Being a coastal city with miles and miles of sandy shores, Barcelona offers a perfect blend of culture, entertainment and beach fun. The beach of Mar Bella was actually created during the redevelopment of the seafront in the early 1990s (before then it was a rather dismal industrial site) and since then it has become a favourite with the gay community, also because the beach has also a clothing-optional policy. Some people bare it all, some others don't – take your pick. 

The beach is not as wide as Barceloneta further south and it gets very busy at weekends, but it's a must over the summer months and the local chiringuito BeGay is a great spot to watch the world (and especially the hot men) go by, have a tasty snack as well as a drink or two. The chiringuito is open until late and there are often evening parties in the summer season – check theire website for details. 

There are also some activities i.e. kayaking, wind-surfing and skate boarding around. Despite not being in the very centre of Barcelona, the Mar Bella Beach is easily reachable by metro – linea 4 – and from the station of Poble Nou it's just about ten mins walk.

Berlin - Wannsee

Berlin summers can be hot as well. But fear not: the city is literally awash with opportunities for a refreshing swim and we are sure we won't surprise anyone in saying that the locals aren't shy and have no issues in skinny dipping.

It's a bit of a trek to reach the Strandbad Wannsee but it's possibly the closest you'd get to an ocean beach in landlocked Berlin – they even went to the length of shipping sand from the Baltic Sea to add to the marine feel. The area has been popular for over 100 years and the facilities have been recently renovated. The Wannsee itself is beautiful and back at the time of the Wall it was the only main lake within the West so it has some historical significance. The complex is actually huge – the sand stretches for over a kilometre and on busy days the Lido can accommodate up to 30,000 bathers, so it can get quite cosy on the sand! There is a nudist area and within it the gay section: as you enter the Lido turn right, walk past the FKK (nudist) section and then is the gay 'enclave'. Entry to the Strandbad is €8.

In terms of food & drinks, there are opportunities to buy some there, but it seems that most Berliners bring their own stuff and have a picnic. To reach the Strandbad you can take the S-Bahn lines S1 or S7 to Nikolassee (not Wannsee) and then it's about 10-15 mins walk from there.

There is something special about markets: no visit is like the previous one. And this is even more so when it comes to the colourful and varied Columbia Road Flower Market, in London's East End. On any Sunday, come rain or shine this beautiful street market is a riot of colours and gorgeous scents, able to brighten even the dullest London winter day. And let's not forget - this is the heart of the East End, so the traders (some of whom have been here for decades) really come up with the best and funniest market shouts you can possibly imagine! 

Columbia Road Market began in 1869 as a covered food market with 400 stalls, created by lesbian philanthropist (see our Brighton blog here ) Angela Burdetts-Coutts in an attempt to clean-up the area, which was previously a well known slum. The market did not take off as expected and closed down in 1886. There is hardly anything left of the original buildings that housed the market. 

In the 20th century the space was resurrected as a flower & plants street market and started trading on Saturdays. However it was moved to Sunday by Act of Parliament to accommodate the fact that the area had become very popular with Jewish traders. Again, the market suffered a decline in the 1940s and 1950s because of rules prioritising food production. 

After the war the market never quite recovered. In fact in the 1970s the whole area was mooted for demolition. Thanks to the efforts of the locals, the market was preserved and saved for the enjoyment of Londoners and tourists alike. One word of warning: do come early. Although the market is open until the early hours of the afternoon, it always gets very busy from mid-morning, especially when the weather is good There are some lovely shops flanking the street as well, together with some pretty cafes and small restaurants to enjoy.. The good news is that there are some great places to have breakfast around, such as the Cakehole, which consists in a tiny vintage shop with a cosy tea room at the back, serving some rather old fashioned but delicious cakes.

And some pub curiosities, for a merry drink along the way...

The Birdcage

The Birdcage Pub is an old Victorian pub, recently restored and a popular stop on Columbia Road. The name is a reference to the Huguenots who, after their persecution in France, immigrated to this area from the late 17th century. The Huguenots are responsible for bringing an interest for cut flowers in the East End and were also fascinated by caged singing birds, hence the pub's name.

The Royal Oak

Another pub along the road is the Royal Oak. During the War and even while the Nazi bombs were falling on London (one directly hit the road on 7 September 1940), Lil & Maisie - a transvestite couple, performed on the stage of said pub. An example of true Cockney tolerance because nothing similar would have been allowed anywhere in those years. We're told that Lil & Maisie kept going until the 1960s and even a theatre play was inspired by this pioneering duo. The Royal Oak saw a resurgence some years ago because due to its market location, it had a special licence allowing it to stay open from 7am on Sunday. The then gay landlord could therefore cater for those who didn't feel like going home after a night of partying.

​It took me a very long time to finally visit Bletchley Park, home of the WWII code-breakers, so brilliantly brought back to life in the 2014 film 'The Imitation Game'. Though the film was criticised for being a somewhat inaccurate portrayal of the reality, it was highly commended for bringing the work and the plight of gay mathematician Alan Turing to the big screen and to a big world audience. 

Bletchley is very close to Milton Keynes and there are plenty of trains from London (Euston) Station. Some fast services only take 40 minutes to cover the distance. 

If you haven't watched the film, Bletchley Park was originally a country estate, situated in rural Buckinghamshire. In 1938 with many predicting the imminence of war, Admiral Hugh Sinclair, then head of the secret services (MI6) bought the estate with the purpose of using it in the likely event of conflict. In particular the idea was to create an undercover structure to intercept and decode enemy messages. The location was ideal for this purpose; Bletchley is mid-way between Cambridge and Oxford, where the brilliant minds needed for this task were mostly based, and also close enough to London, where the decoded messages were to be dispatched to.

As the conflict became more gruesome and intense, so did the activity of the centre, whose existence and work remained secret well after the end of the war. At the end of WWII almost 10,000 people worked in the structure, many not even fully aware of the tasks that were carried on. Regardless, everyone was sworn to secret; in fact for several decades later people who worked here had been unable to reveal their work undertaken at Bletchley. Many people died having never told anyone that they had worked here, not even to their spouses.

There is plenty to see at Blecthley Park and if you want to tour it properly you may want to allow a few hours for the visit or, even better, a whole day. Your entry ticket includes a great audio & video guide that will tell you not just what is in front of you, but also many other stories, for instance I absolutely loved the interviews with people who actually worked here in those hectic days. These give you an amazing and vivid insight on what it was like to be here at the time. I also did a free guided tour, which you can book on arrival; it lasts only an hour and it only scratches the surface, so to speak, but it was conducted by a charming old gentleman with an amazing knowledge of the place, so I recommend this on top of the audio guide for a true 'personal touch'.

The Enigma Machine

During my visit I saw plenty of these machines on display in the Museum. The Germans used a complex system of encryption, which varied depending on the army command and was changed daily at midnight; the exchange of military information was encoded and decoded via an electro-magnetic machine called Enigma. These devices allowed a massive 15,000,000,000,000,000,000 possible combinations, so it quickly become necessary to employ machines to crack the enemy coding and that's how the first approach towards modern computing actually happened. Some brilliant minds worked here to build these enormous decoding devices, all recruited in quite imaginative ways, such as solving incredibly complex puzzles and crosswords.

The Huts

This is where the work of the code-breakers actually happened. After the war many huts were emptied and abandoned and it's only in the last few years, with the secrecy being lifted, that they have been meticulously restored to be exactly like they appeared in the 1940s. There are many of them at Bletchley and they had different functions, also following different branches of the enemy forces; the messages arrived from the various receiving stations via motorbike couriers or tele-printers (an early telex machine) and it was in these huts that the decoding and then translation of the messages was carried over. You can freely wander in the offices and imagine how they must have looked like when hundreds of people worked here, day and night. After decoding and translation in English the messages were sent to London to be interpreted and properly evaluated.

Bombes and Colossus

The Bombe was a decoding machine invented by Alan Turing and perfected by Gordon Welchman. It allowed Bletchley personnel to crack the Enigma code settings (unbeknown to the Germans) in record time and to therefore read the messages sent between the various commands. There were many of them in operation at Bletchley, they were noisy and smelly, however they were all destroyed after the war to preserve the secrecy and only recently a group of amateurs has rebuilt a model, which is exhibited in the museum and there are regular demonstrations to show visitors how it functioned. 

However not even the Bombe was sufficient to decode messages sent via the Lorenz machines (of which there are some exhibited in the Musuem), that were used by Hitler himself and the top commands for their high-level communications. The Lorenz allowed even more encoding combinations (billions of billions) and so a series of new decoding machines were built towards the end of the conflict, called the Colussus and developed by Tommy Flowers. Unlike the Bombe, Colossus was not an electro-mechanical machine, but rather worked via thermionic valves and thyratrons to perform its operations. Colossus is thus regarded as the world's first programmable, electronic, digital computer. As for the Bombes, also all the Colossus machines were destroyed to preserve secrecy and so only modern replicas exists – visible here at Bletchley in the National Museum of Computing.

Alan Turing's office

It is a bit emotional to visit Alan Turing office here in Hut 6 and imagine him at work in this very spot. I stopped by his desk and reflected on this very unlucky genius who has contributed so much to the war efforts but also to develop machines and concepts that we seem so familiar with today. In the Bletchley Park Museum there is a vivid and moving portrait of Turing, his work, you can view objects that belonged to him, such as a brown teddy bear he used to practice his public speech with. And then a poignant reminder of how this brilliant mind was convicted and humiliated because of his sexuality. 

Turing's unlucky fate came to light many decades later because of his talent, but we cannot forget that 50,000 people were convicted in the UK with the same crime of 'gross indecency'. Many had their entire lives  ruined by the judicial ordeal, lost their jobs & careers, were abandoned by friends & relatives and had to endure immense moral and personal damage as a result. As I read former Prime Minister Gordon Brown's letter of apology (also exhibited in this part of the museum) I could not stop thinking of how much Turing would have been able to contribute to science and progress had it not been submitted to such an ordeal, eventually leading to his suicide, at just 41 years of age. We can talk endlessly about equality, but what's more powerful than this, the basic concept of respect for anyone and the evaluation of people on the basis of their merits, rather than their sexual preferences?

The Manor House

The Manor House is where the operations were originally housed (i.e. before the huts were built to accommodate more and more personnel) and today part of it houses a small tea room where you can relax and enjoy a nice high tea (otherwise for more refreshment options there is a café in the adjacent hut). 

When I visited, inside the Manor House was an exhibition of costumes and props from the Imitation Game movie, which was quite interesting. The exhibition includes the copy of the Bombe Machine that was used in the same film as a prop. This one does not work, though – unlike the one in the museum… 

After the construction of the huts, the Manor House remained the location of the head offices, which have been reconstructed and can also be viewed.

Secrets, secrets…

As mentioned Bletchley was a secret matter and remained so for many years after the war, preventing the appropriate recognition of the efforts of the people who worked here. It is said that their precious work shortened WWII by up to two years, preventing innumerable more victims and destruction. What is quite incredible is how this secret could be preserved; with thousands of people entering and exiting Bletchley's gates every day, boarding and alighting trains at its small station, I kept marveling at how the secret was so closely maintained. But now that we can talk about Bletchley, see its restored huts and facilities and learn about the ground-breaking technology developed here, we should spare a moment for all the people who indefatigably worked here and often took their secret into the grave without receiving any mention or gratitude. And while we often think of wars as a series of won or lost battles, soldiers and generals, ships, tanks and planes, visiting Bletchley reminds us that often conflicts are resolved by intelligence, patience and methodical efforts as much as physical force.

Bletchley was a small community of brilliant scientists, gathered for a military purpose, but who in this process set the basis for the technology we use so profusely today, including the one I am using right now to write this. It was almost the precursor of modern Silicon Valley, with brilliant minds coming together in an environment that for a short time, over those very troubled war years, privileged talent, above personal status. Quite a lesson still so important and valid today. Come to Bletchley not only to touch history with your own hands, but to find yourself in a place where you can actually feel it in its often brutal intensity. It's a place for deep reflection and inspiration, not just on war in general, but on the concept of duty and dedication.

​

PRACTICAL INFORMATION

Bletchley is a village on the main rail line from London (Euston) to Milton Keynes and Birmingham, so it is served by many trains every day. The length of the journey depends on the service, but varies between 40 minutes to just over an hour. From the rail station to Bletchley Park complex it's just a short five minute walk. For all ticket options and times check London Midland Rail.

Bletchley is open to visitors daily except on 24, 25, 26 December and 1 January. During the winter months (Nov - Feb) the complex is open from 9am to 4pm, while in the summer month (Apr - Oct) it is open to the public from 9am to 5pm. For any information, you can refer to their very informative website.

Urban parks and gardens are an antidote to the city's noise, pollution and chaos. However some of the green spaces enclosed in our cities are more than that. They tell amazing stories and often help us understanding the history of the centres they sit in. Here are a few more or less known parks and gardens and the fascinating histories they hold within.

Rome – Orto Botanico / The Botanic Garden

The Italian capital is known for its chaotic and rather unruly traffic and in the summer for the often searing heat and humidity. Yet there is a place where peace and quiet are the norm, a green oasis in the very centre of the bustling metropolis, offering some beautiful panoramic views of the city and a welcome break from the summer sun. If it is forgivable for tourists not to be aware of Rome's Orto Botanico, it is rather amazing that many locals don't know about this urban garden either, tucked away as it is, wedged between the river and the slopes of the Gianicolo hill, a fifteen minutes walk from busy Trastevere.

There has been a garden on this site since the thirteenth century, when the Papal orchard used to be located on this spot. Later a proper botanical garden was established here by Pope Alessandro VI - a key figure of the infamous Borgia Family - in the sixteenth century and this makes the Orto one of the oldest botanical gardens in Europe. Successive pontiffs enlarged this space and brought a water supply from a nearby aqueduct, also to feed lakes, fountains and a number of decorative streams. When Rome eventually became the capital of the new Italian unified state, the park was further enlarged when the neighbouring Villa Corsini was annexed, in 1883. Today, the twelve hectares' garden features over 3,000 vegetal species. The view of the city from the upper reaches, which sees trees dating back over 300 years is just breath-taking and you'll be amazed that such space does not yet see more tourists.

Madrid – Parque del Buen Retiro

It is pretty much impossible not to notice the big green blob just south-east of central Madrid. But the history of this large park (350 acres) is quite impressive and deeply connected to the destiny of this country.

During the reign of Isabella I (1474–1504), the Jeronimos monastery was moved to this location and a small royal palace was built next to the church. When King Philip II moved the court to the new capital, Madrid in 1561, he ordered his architect Juan Bautista de Toledo to enlarge the Retiro and formal avenues of trees were laid. The expansion continued in the 1620s when Gaspar de Guzman, the Count-Duke de Olivares, who was King Philip IV's powerful protégé, gave the monarch several adjacent plots so that a magnificent royal house could be built. At the time this area was just outside the city, a cool and wooded location.Many buildings were added and in the 1630 the great lake (Estanque del Retiro) was inaugurated, which was sometimes used for mock naval battles. The Buen Retiro was described as The world art wonder of the time, possibly the last creation of Renaissance in Spain and a true symbol of Spanish power and grandeur.

The park fell into disrepair and then restored to its former splendour several times and the palace was almost totally destroyed by the Napoleonic troops in 1808, but in 1868 as a result of the Glorious Revolution (La Gloriosa) Isabella II was dethroned and the park became a public space, as it is today. A great green space where you can really experience the last 500 years of Spanish history.

London – Crystal Palace Park

London is a city rightly famous for the abundance of green spaces and urban parkland. But whilst almost everyone will visit the beautiful spaces like Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens, hardly any tourist venture beyond the centre to explore some pretty impressive and historical parks further afield. One of them is Crystal Palace Park, south of the city. The name is already pretty meaningful: situated on the top and southern slopes of one of the highest hills in the metropolitan area (Penge Hill), it used to be home to the magnificent Crystal Palace, which was an enormous cast iron and glass structure built by Sir Joseph Paxton for the Great Exhibition of 1851 and housing 14,000 exhibitors in a space almost a million square feet large – a true engineering feat. The Palace was originally built in Hyde Park but was moved on this site after the end of the exhibition. Sadly, if you're looking for this beautiful example of Victoriana you will find almost nothing as the structure was entirely destroyed by a massive fire on 30 November 1936. You can still see the stairs leading to the building and some enormous statues that once decorated the entrance but one can hardly imagine how magnificent this structure once was. The Victorians had also built two impressive rail stations to accommodate the flow of visitors and one of these still remains, though under-used – the other is long gone. It is said that this area also saw the first ever (and possibly last) experiment in a pneumatic passenger railway, though sadly nothing remains of it.

Sir Paxton's work is not the only interesting feature of this green area. When the Palace was relocated here in 1851, a series of stone dinosaurs were placed in the adjacent park, arranged in scenic settings recreating pre-historic environments. The history of these statues is pretty intriguing, for their sculptor Benjamin Waterhouse Hawkins, under the direction of Sir Richard Owen, created these works six years before the publication of Charles Darwin's 'On The Origin of Species'. Understandably, these dinosaurs' reconstructions, though somehow inaccurate in light of today's knowledge, created furore and outrage at the time, because they put the biblical concept of divine creation in doubt for the first time and in front of a bigger audience. Though these ideas were already circulating in the scientific world, it was the first time the public was effectively exposed to the revolutionary theory of evolution.

Victorian brilliance, engineering masterpieces and revolutionary concepts – that's more than worth the hike to the furthest reaches of south London.

Berlin - The Tiergarten

The first mention of the main parkland in the centre of Berlin dates back to 1527 when it was an area set aside by the king for the purpose of deer hunting. The limits of the park extended much further out than today, as this area was on the outskirts of the city of Berlin at that time. The urban expansion meant that the park progressively shrunk in size and in 1740 Frederick II - who wasn't so much into hunting pursuits - decided to transform the area into a pleasure garden (lustgarten). To this purpose he instructed architect Georg Wenseslaus von Knobeldoff to enrich the park with flower beds, tree-lined avenues and areas where Berliners could congregate and freely converse. A pheasant house was also built, which would then become the central nucleus of the Zoological Gardens in 1844. There were other modifications in following decades, especially the ones carried on by Peter Joseph Lenne to make the Tiergarten a 'Prussian park for the people', but the gardens remained under the possession of the monarchy until 1881 when Wilhelm I abdicated his rights to this parkland. 

One of the main alterations after this period was the addition (finalised in 1901) by Kaiser Wilhelm II of a Siegesallee, a 'Victory Parade', stretching 750 mt from Kemperplatz to the Konigplatz, which was the original site of the Siegessaule, the Victory Column. The Siegessaule itself is today a key landmark of the Tiergarten: designed by Henrik Strack to commemorate the Prussian victory in the Danish-Prussian war it was inaugurated in 1873, by which time Prussia had also defeated the Austrians in 1866 and the French in 1871, giving the statue a new purpose.

However the Siegessaule, as mentioned before, was moved from its original location at the end of the Victory Parade to a new site in the middle of the Tiergarten (where it still is today) during the Nazi period. The move was part of a general re-organisation of the park; Adolf Hitler wanted the Tiergarten to be one of the main highlights of the new monumental Nazi Capital and he therefore ordered the widening of Charlottenburger Chaussee, today known as the Strasse der 17 Juni, positioned the Siegessaule in a prominent site at the Grosser Stern and even altered its height by adding another 7.5 metres to the structure, to make it more imposing. This would have provided the perfect backdrop for Hitler's triumphal military parades. In a way this relocation saved the Siegessaule, because the original location of the structure was severely bombarded during the war so it is very likely that had it stayed there, not much of it would have survived.

Unfortunately after the war and the aerial bombardments, the park suffered some further damage in the immediate aftermath of the WWII conflict. The Tiergarten ended up being entirely in the West side of the partitioned city, but the shortage of coal meant that a large number of trees were felled to heat homes in the brutal Berlin winters. Thankfully starting in 1949 the park started to be reforested and saplings came from all over West Germany to help with the enormous task. Damaged statues were restored and the park became once again a favourite spot for Berliners. The Berlin Wall used to run along the northern and eastern edge of the Tiergarten. After the fall of the Berlin Wall the beautiful perspective of the Tiergarten through the Brandenburg Gate was finally restored.

Today the Tiergarten is an integral part of the city and a much loved green space all year round. In winter the small lakes freeze and the park turns into a snowy enchanted forest. During the long summer days the Tiergarten offers plenty of entertainment, including colourful restaurants & biergartens, such as the Cafe am Neuen See and the Teehaus in the English Gardens. There are also plenty of areas prefect for sunbathing and in many of them it is common to do that fully naked, especially in the area south of the Siegessaule, near the Lion's Bridge. 

The Tiergarten also features a monument to LGBT people persecuted and killed by the Nazi. It can be found just off the Ebertstrasse, on the south-eastern quarter of the park and opposite the Jewish Holocaust memorial. It was designed by artists Elmgreen and Dragset and completed in 2008. It consists of a cuboid with a window through which one can see a short film of two men kissing. 

San Francisco - The Golden Gate Park

In the 1860s the city of San Francisco had plenty of golden aspirations. The gold rush and consequent expansion of the urban area had created the need for a park, on the style that was already being developed in New York for Central Park. A decision was made to locate this new green space to the west of the existing city limits, in a area that at that time was an expanse of sand and not much else. Some argue that this decision was driven also by developers who were keen in starting a construction boom in that area. What we know for sure is that the Golden Gate Park in the form we see it today is very much a creation of two men; William Hammond Hall who surveyed the land and became the park's first commissioner and his assistant John Hays McLaren, a Scotsman who replaced Hall as commissioner for 53 years from 1890. 

Turning an expanse of dry, shifting sand into a park was by no means easy. Lots of water was needed and this initially came through surface pipelines at a costly price. One of the works carried on during McLaren's tenure was the erection of the two windmills to the western end of the park in 1903 and 1908. These windmills had the practical purpose of intercepting a natural source of water underground and directing it to Strawberry Hill and the surrounding Stow Lake, for use in the park. Today the area is one of the quietest and most remote of the Golden Gate Park and is a well known cruising spot. 

The Golden Gate Park houses some remarkable museums, in particular the stunning California Academy of Science, which is a must for any visitor to the city. The original museum was built from 1916 but was damaged in the 1989 earthquake: the present building encompasses 37,000 square meters and includes exhibits of natural history, aquatic life, astronomy, gems and minerals, and earthquakes.

The Conservatory of Flowers is another landmark of the park. The Victorian-style structure dates back to 1879 and is built out of wood and glass. It houses 1,700 species of plants, mostly tropical and aquatic. There is also a botanic garden in the park, which due to the local climate allows the growth of wide range of species, some no longer existing in their natural habitat.

Another beautiful and quiet area can be found around the National HIV/AIDS memorial. The city of San Francisco was severely hit by the epidemic in the 1980s and this peaceful spot allows any visitor to reflect on the immense tragedy and remember those who died as a result of the virus. Situated at 856 Stanyan Street, in the eastern section of the park, the construction of the memorial started in the early 90s and there are over 1,500 names of HIV/AIDS victims inscribed in the flagstone. 

There are other spots that are profoundly intertwined with the city's history. The panhandle section of the park (between Oak and Fell Streets) was the location of the 'Human Be-In', which was held here on 14 January 1967. This event that preceded and anticipated the famous 'Summer of Love' of the same year, which catapulted the counter-culture movement of Haight-Ashbury onto the world's attention. Attended by 30,000 people it included speeches by Allen Ginsberg and music from many famous bands, including The Grateful Dead and George Harrison. Nearby, the height to the east of the Conservatory of Flowers is still aptly called Hippie Hill and is a great spot for people-watching and absorb some of San Francisco's fantastic colourfulness.

The ever changing face of London is probably one of the most attractive qualities of the British Capital. London is one of those places that never seem to stop morphing, adapting, updating themselves. In many cities this perpetual transformation would be rejected, considered as lack of respect for tradition and history, but not in London. And perhaps this is what has saved the city from sliding into decline, as the British Empire faded and other world cities grew in importance. London has always kept changing and managed to remained relevant – and perhaps this is what will save the city again in this post-Brexit era we're living in.

And so it would be absurd to condemn the redevelopment of the Vauxhall area, which over the last few years has been mutating from an area of warehouses and countless anonymous council flats into a forest of gleaming residential high rises (controversially often snatched by international investors) and fancy upmarket offices, including the futuristic new home of the US Embassy in the UK. It almost feels like someone at an unspecified point in time suddenly realised that the area is actually minutes away from the heart of the city and therefore wonderfully suited for an upmarket makeover. But until that moment, crossing the river seemed a bit like entering another world, a dim sequence of dark alleys and under-the-rail arcades, endless rows of 1960s council flats and hefty grey concrete buildings with tiny windows and no apparent function - I have always wondered whether they had some obscure or secret connotations. When you left the towering spires of the Houses of Parliament behind you and crossed Lambeth or Vauxhall Bridge it did feel very different on the other side of the river.

The hub of gay nightlife in the '90s and '00s

Indeed it was that feeling of 'crossing a border' that made Vauxhall the hub of gay nightlife in the early 1990s. As you crossed into the neighbourhood from classy and posh Westminster, the sight of the sinister silhouette of the MI6 (the UK Secret Services) fortress building, with its high walls and endless rows of security cameras suitably welcomed you to a dark and shady part of London. The empty spaces and the semi-abandoned warehouses with their affordable rents provided a fertile ground for the establishment of new and alternative gay bars & clubs, which were also attracted by the more relaxed environment (i.e. fewer noise restrictions and more favourable licensing laws) compared to Soho. For almost two decades Vauxhall provided our community with fun and excitement. But with the redevelopment of the area things have changed - rents have increased and many warehouses have been demolished to make space for the new high-rises. Many bars and venues have already been lost, though it would be pretty unfair to just blame the redevelopment of the area for this; undeniably people do socialise differently these days and while twenty or so years ago you had no choice but to go out in order to meet someone new, these days things happen online and it's a bit like ordering a pizza. 

And yet, we should not be so quick in discarding our precious history. I know that many people think that we're now at a point that we've become 'mainstream', but are we, really? It does not take an extensive journey realise that even in the comfort of our little urban bubble, we are – still and sadly – an oppressed minority. Our hard-fought rights are in danger if we forget our past and think that what we've gained is ours forever. 

LGBT history dating back to 1650

Many people may not be aware, but Vauxhall has a rich LGBT tradition that goes back in time for many decades, in fact centuries. On the southern side of the railway is a small grassy area and a park. That is all that remains of Vauxhall's Pleasure Gardens, which opened with great fanfare as 'Spring Gardens' in the 1650s and consisted in an attractive extension of trees and shrubs. Re-branded 'Pleasure Gardens' in 1785, they attracted thousands of Londoners every day and in those times you had to get a boat to cross the river, as Vauxhall Bridge had not been built yet. The feeling of 'crossing into a different world' was an essential ingredient even back then; a main attraction of the gardens were the famous 'dark walks', which freely allowed for amorous adventures for all sexual persuasions. In fact scattered among the trees were numerous roofed wooden huts for visitors who wanted to have sex in private: we can guess that pretty much everything happened in there. Who would have said that Vauxhall had darkrooms even in those days!? It is also said that the first official appearance of a gay man at Vauxhall was at the very exclusive Ridotto al Fresco cafe on June 7th, 1732, when a chap called John Cooper, or rather is classy alter-ego Princess Seraphina, turned up dressed in a very smart pink calico gown with a mob-cap and smock, to the bemusement of the other patrons. The gardens closed in 1859, after the railway bridge cut a large portion of the land. By 1870 the area had been covered by housing and only in the 1970s the old Victorian terraces were removed to restore at least part of the park, which is what we see now.

The iconic Royal Vauxhall Tavern

​Part of that redevelopment included the construction of the Royal Vauxhall Tavern (RVT) in 1863 – originally a dance hall, and possibly for the last few decades one of  the most renowned gay & lesbian venues in London. Certainly the one with the most considerable LGBT history. It's actually difficult to pinpoint when this connection to the gay community starts, but many say that we actually have to go back to the 1940s and 1950s, a time of furtive (and illicit) same-sex relationships. There were very few places where gay people could meet and somehow try creating a community in an otherwise pretty hostile and dangerous world. In those days the RVT had a central bar around the iconic iron pillars serving three areas separated by glass partitions – one of these sections started to be attended by gay men, probably also because the other two sides of the bar were popular with young local 'tradies' and assorted manual workers – no doubt in turn attracted to the RVT because of the unoffcial 'gay 'section'. With a shared toilet serving the three spaces if one were to make someone's acquaintance in the loos and agree to meet ten minutes later at the bus stop down the road, no one would be any the wiser. There were drag shows, though, and the performers would often step onto the circular bar and do their routines from up there, often knocking glasses and bottles as they did so.

It was in the late 1960s that the drag shows became very popular and at the same time the partitions between the three areas were removed. The central bar also disappeared and moved where it's now (on the right hand side) at some point later. The 80s were a dramatic time for the LGBT people, with the scourge of HIV-AIDS and it was in those very dark days that the RVT became a true focus for the community. Many of London's top drag artists performed regularly, including Lily Savage, the famous drag persona of Liverpudlian comedian Paul O'Grady. And even Diana, Princess of Wales visited the RVT in the late 1980s, disguised as a man and accompanied by Freddie Mercury and comedian Kenny Everett. Apparently the patrons were so focused on Mercury and Everett that they failed to recognise the princess. More recently the RVT featured in the 2014 film Pride and in the Absolutely Fabulous movie.

A changing scene

A few years ago Vauxhall got in the news again because of the closure of the long-running fetish club The Hoist. Whilst the venue's manager has confirmed that the demise of this stalwart of the London scene is not due to a dwindling business or to any other pressure by the landlords, it is pretty obvious that the departure of yet another gay institution will inevitably have an impact on the character of the area. In fact even the RVT is not entirely safe, despite its wealth of LGBT history; sold to an Austrian development company in late 2014 there is the not-too-subtle suspicion that the owners may want to change the iconic venue into another bland gastro-pub for the benefit of the new upmarket residents of the luxury flats that are sprucing like mushrooms all around. Thankfully the RVT was made a Grade II listed building in September 2015 and so at least the threat receded – at least the threat of demolition, that is. However more recently attempts have been made to positively affirm and protect the use of the RVT as a LGBT space. Let's hope they succeed.

It is heart-breaking that we are losing so much of our community's heritage and history in such a short time. It may be that we socialise differently these days, though having made my coming out a long time ago, when there was no internet and mobile apps seemed pretty much something out of science fiction movies, I still think that personal contact in a bar or club is way better than ordering take-away sex on the sofa. Call me old-fashioned. But whatever the reality of today's cruising, the need for safe spaces to meet and socialise, even in a relatively open and tolerant city like London, is still pretty much there. And not necessarily just because of safety, but especially to celebrate and recognise our culture, our diversity, our right to be what we are – and to pay our respects to those who came before us, those who had to endure a much harsher environment in order to affirm their sexuality. Those who fought for the rights we can enjoy now. 

Long live Vauxhall – and the RVT.

Oscar Wilde's wit and talent are now fully recognised and celebrated the world over. Yet his judicial and personal ordeal reminds us of how homosexuality was not just frowned upon, but could cause immense damage and, in Wilde's case - imprisonment. In a way, it also remind us how much progress has been made in just over a century. 

Although Irish by birth, Wilde spend most of his life in London where he wrote most of his masterpieces. The walk we recommend is pretty easy and can be done in a couple of hours - we listed some of Wilde's favourite haunts and hangouts in the Chelsea, Mayfair and Soho. The city has changed a lot since the author's times, but many of the places we list are still there and give us a fantastic glimpse in a fascinating era.

Wilde's Home

Wilde lived in the red brick Victorian building at no 34 from the time of his marriage to Constance Lloyd in 1884 and until his tragic downfall in 1895, when he was arrested, trialled and then imprisoned in Reading for homosexual practices. And apart from The Ballad of Reading Gaol, he wrote all of this principal works in this flat: The Picture of Dorian Grey (1891), Lady Windermere's Fan (1892), A Woman of No Importance (1893), An Ideal Husband (1895), and The Importance of Being Earnest (1895).

Location: 34 Tite Street, Chelsea, London SW3 4JA 

The Cadogan Hotel

This luxury hotel had only operated for just eight years when on 6 April 1895 Wilde was apprehended by the Police and arrested in room 118 for 'gross indecency with another male person' under section 11 of Criminal Law Amendment Act 1885. The Cadogan even allowed guests to stay in said room for a supplement - no doubt this option will be retained when the hotel re-opens next year. The events in the room were immortalised by the poet laureate John Betjeman in his tragic poem The Arrest of Oscar Wilde at the Cadogan Hotel (1937) 

Location: 75 Sloane St, Chelsea, London SW1X 9SG

James J. Fox of St James

Trading in tobacco and especially fine cigars for 225 years, this shop had many famous customers in its history - apart from Oscar Wilde himself, who allegedly smoked one hundred of his personalised cigarettes a day. Wilde once said: "A cigarette is the perfect type of a perfect pleasure". His were made from Turkish tobacco and had a pure gold leaf tip with his name embossed on them. Sir Winston Churchill was also a regular at this shop, where he purchased his trademark cigars. In the basement is a small museum (free of charge), it's just a room in fact, but full of memorabilia of notable past customers, including the ledgers containing orders for Sir Winston and Oscar Wilde. A final curiosity: this is one of a handful of shops that are exempt from the smoking ban in public places.

Location: 19 St James's St, London SW1A 1ES 

St James's Theatre

There used to be a theatre here and believe it or not, the building at no 23 is the third to have been erected here since the demolition of the St James' Theatre in 1957. It was in this fine and classical looking theatre that Lady Windermere's Fan and The Importance of Being Earnest were premiered in 1892 and 1895, respectively. Unsurprisingly the theatre's scheduling for demolition caused great outrage and Vivien Leigh and Lawrence Olivier fought hard to avoid it but unsuccessfully in an age when old and heritage were not necessarily considered relevant. The building that replaced the theatre (offices for Tate & Lyle) was itself demolished in 1980 and then its successor followed the same fate in 2012, when the current one was erected.

Location: 23 King Street, London SW1Y 6QY

Goodyear Florist

Goodyear The Florist, established in 1879, was based at the beginning of the Royal Arcade, in Albemarle Street where now a Paul Smith shop stands. The florist moved its trade after WWII but it is here that Oscar Wilde bough his famous trademarks, the green carnations, which were reputed to be a signal for other gay men at a time when homosexuality was taboo.

Location: The Royal Arcade - Albemarle Street, London W1S 4HH

The Albemarle Club

Literally next to Goodyear is the former location of the Albemarle Club, of which Oscar Wilde was a member. The club was a very progressive institution in its heyday because it was one of the first to allow women to be members. The club's claim to fame is that it was here on 28 February 1895 that the Marquess of Queensberry (Lord Alfred Douglas' father) burst into the club, demanding to see Wilde. He was stopped by the porter so instead Queensberry left a calling card with the note "For Oscar Wilde, posing somdomite" (sic). He then set up the legal action against Wilde soon after...

Location: 13 Albemarle Street, London W1S 4HJ

Hatchard's of Piccadilly

Apart from being Oscar Wilde's favourite bookshop, Hatchards of Piccadilly are also the oldest book retailers in London, having been established in 1797 and having been in this very stop for over two hundred years. Wilde is known to have spent hours browsing books here and spent a little fortune on them. 

The writer was finally release from prison on 18 May 1897 and on the same day decided to leave the country and go to France. On his way to Victoria Station he stopped here at Hatchards for a last browse. He sadly never returned to England after that trip and died in impoverished exile on 30 November 1900.

Location: 187 Piccadilly, London W1J 9LE

Kettner's Restaurant

Kettners opened in 1867 by Auguste Kettner, chef to Napoleon III and was Wilde's favourite restaurant, so much that he actually mentioned during the trial. In fact this restaurant has been a favourite of many celebrities, such as Agatha Christie and Bing Crosby to name a few. This landmark of Soho closed its doors in January 2016 to be redeveloped and recently reopened as part of the Soho House Group.

Location: 29 Romilly St, London W1D 5HP

Oscar Wilde Bar at Hotel Café Royal

The former Grill Room at Café Royal (now called Oscar Wilde Bar) has been restored to its original 1865 glory in the last few years. Apart from Wilde, who was a regular here, the list of celebrities and royalty who have passed through the doors of this establishment is endless, from Sir Churchill to Virginia Woolf, to David Bowie (who 'farewelled' Ziggy Stardust here) to Diana Princess of Wales. 

It is in this café that on 24 March 1895 Wilde received the advice of editor and friend Frank Harris to drop the libel action against the Marquess of Queensberry (following the 'calling card' incident at the Albemarle and to escape to France at once to avoid imprisonment. Wilde decided to press on with the charges, prompted by his lover, young Lord Alfred Douglas - with the very disastrous consequences we all know. Wilde would be arrested a couple of weeks later. 

Location: 68 Regent St, London, W1B 4DY

The Langham Hotel

There is an interesting connection between Wilde and another giant of Victorian literature here. Oscar Wilde dined here with Arthur Conan Doyle and the publisher of the Lippinscott Magazine on 30 August 1889. This meeting inspired Wilde to write The Picture of Dorian Gray and Conan Doyle to write The Sign of Four, Sherlock Holmes' second book. A plaque in Langham Place commemorates the event.

Location: 1C Regent St, London W1B 1JA