HAMMERSMITH

Hammersmith is a famous area of west London notorious for being name checked in Clash songs.  Of course it has much more to offer than this but the trek there is such a fucking ache to get there (the Westway et al).

PADDINGTON

Paddington is situated in North London and is famous for its green and the police station. Many of the shops along the main road have Islamic names on their hoardings and it is only a stones throw away from more affluent areas such as Warwick Avenue and Maida Vale. It is hectic but not vibrant.

KINGS CROSS

KINGS CROSS

Kings Cross is an area of London that holds the kind of heavy notoriety which will cause a person to shy away from visiting. However once the mask drops and you can tune out of being approached by homeless types and occasional prostitutes it is possible to find gold in the area.

This is yet another part of London where I have studied where my college was situated next to an acting school called The Poor School which has given birth to amongst other people Kat Slater from Eastenders (Jesse Wallace).

Kings Cross has two main music venues in The Scala and The Water Rats where over the years I have seen bands like Deerhoof, Les Savy Fav, Blonde Redhead and No Age perform.

LIVERPOOL STREET

For anyone in East Anglia Liverpool Street is the essential hub to entry into the nation’s capital.

BAKER STREET

Over the past couple of years Baker Street has become a prominent place in my life as most days I step through the station on my way to work. Indeed briefly for seven months I worked for a company situated on Baker Street.

One of the most famous streets in London this is the home of Sherlock Holmes.

MOORGATE

Moorgate is a funny little station within walking distance of Liverpool Street but can be tough to find in the streets of The City as everywhere within begins to resemble Gotham City and only a corner away from a darkened alley where a person could get mugged. It is also very close to Barbican where I accidentally wound up when trying to walk from Moorgate to Liverpool Street.

Moorgate will forever be the station known as where I smashed my iPhone. The floors appear made of granite.

If returning to Liverpool Street via the Northern Line is well advised to change at Moorgate as opposed to transferring to Bank as the walking distance between lines/platforms in the station is shorter.

NOTTING HILL GATE

Notting Hill is far too trendy for its own good these days off the back of that movie a few years ago but after walking down Portobello Road for nearly two and half years every day on the way to work I cannot help but hold a real affection for the area.

It is a strange area of London, one that has great wealth rubbing its shoulders with near destitution.

FARRINGDON

Farringdon is a station that I travel through daily on my way to my line change at Baker Street. Briefly I studied at a college there while studying for my accountancy exams. It is a pretty intimidating place upon first view, very much the city and the kind of street that hits you with a barrage of noise and energy as you emerge from the tube station. This is the home of The Guardian.

Beyond the business part of the area though there is a soft area with many fine looking houses and apartments and some cosy and exciting pubs to facilitate and compliment them. In early 2008 a friend held her party at one such pub and here we spotted Spider from Coronation Street.

VICTORIA

This part of London never really registered on the map with me until the day I arranged me first internet date there. Or rather the lady in question Yasmine did.

BARBICAN

Barbican is a potentially very exciting place situated in the heart of the city that is best known for being the home of the Barbican Centre, a huge multi purpose arts facility that houses/hosts a huge variety of events.

The first time I visited Barbican and found it on the map was to……

To be continued…..