Highlights St Clement Danes .

Today was small jobs day. We contributed to the household on line order for food stuffs, then walked to the nearby tube station to add money to our oyster cards. They told us we were in debit after our trip to Gatwick so it was good we had not tried to use them straight away. We then walked on to a bank to trade our ‘old’ notes for new ones, which was no problem to do. Then we headed for the tube to take a line to St Clement Danes.

This is now also known as the Central Church of the RAF. A brief history first. It was originally called St Clements and then St-Clement-of-the-Danes after Danish settlers with English wives settled in the area. The church was rebuilt after the Great Fire of London although it was not actually affected by the fire but was just very run down. In 1941 it received a direct hit from a bomb which destroyed all but the outer walls and tower. In1958 restoration was completed and it was reconsecrated as the Central Church of the Royal Air Force.

We found the hand carved slate memorial to Ted’s 214 squadron and then had a quiet wander around the church. Outside John took more photos including those of Dowding and Bomber Harris, while I found a cache that had been placed to acknowledge this church.

We had decided to walk to Hamley’s rather than bus or tube. It was a cooler day so walking was pleasant and we could see the sights. The route took us close to another church, the Queen’s Chapel of the Savoy. It was tucked away on a side street and we only saw it because of caching. The listing told us about it.

A palace was built on the Savoy estate in the fourteenth century by John of Gaunt, and it was plundered and burned in 1381 during the Peasants’ Revolt. What was left of it was cleared away in the early sixteenth century by command of King Henry VII to construct a foundation known as the ‘Hospital of Henry, late King of England of the Savoy’. The hospital was a charitable foundation to provide a night’s lodging for 100 ‘pour and nedie’ men. Engravings of the hospital show an extensive complex of buildings, including a great dormitory, longer than Westminster Hall, and three chapels, dedicated to St John the Baptist, St Catherine and Our Lady. The hospital foundation was dissolved in 1702, and most of the complex was demolished in the early nineteenth century for redevelopment and to allow the construction of the approach road to the new Waterloo Bridge. All that survives today is the Chapel of St John the Baptist, now known as The Queen’s Chapel of the Savoy.

We thought this might be a church that Jane didn’t know about. She had not only heard of it but she could tell us a bit more. Military officers are allowed the use of the church and a friend of hers had the christening of his triplets in this chapel.

We next stopped in Trafalgar Square to look at the various buskers and pavement artists. Then we went to the 4^th plinth to see what was now on display. Not our favourite display we decided, although the sentiment displayed was fine.

Our next stop was Piccadilly Circus as we were a bit footsore by now. A short sit-down on the steps was all we needed before heading to Hamley’s. John always has a new lease on life in here and we had a lot of fun looking at the various displays. As usual they had a number of staff demonstrating various new toys, so things were flying around the store and children were trialling various pens that squiggled and trains that went around short tracks. There is now a large section for Harry Potter and ‘the Lord of the Rings’ as well.

After a late pub lunch we made our way to Berkeley Square, trying not to sing about nightingales on the way. The target was house number 50, which has been called the most haunted house in London as well as the oldest unaltered building. Supposedly the attic room is haunted by the spirit of a young woman who committed suicide there. She apparently threw herself from a top-floor window after being abused by her uncle and is said to be capable of frightening people to death. From 1859 until the early 1870s Mr Myers, who had been rejected by his fiancée, lived in the house. It was said that he locked himself inside and slowly went mad. In 1879 a report in the Mayfair Magazine alleged that a maid who stayed in the attic room had been found mad and had died in an asylum the day after. It was also alleged that after a nobleman spent the night in the attic room he was so paralysed with fear that he could not speak.

Finally, in 1887, it was alleged that two sailors from HMS Penelope stayed a night in the house. By morning one was found dead, having tripped as he ran from the house. The other reported having seen the ghost of Mr Myers approaching them aggressively.

The house seemed normal to us but the area  was lovely and the history interesting.

It was time now for home, so we headed to the tube for a direct connection to Shepherd’s Bush. We walked home with a side step to a market, but it was too late to buy asparagus. Instead we bought some from Jane and Ian’s local store and enjoyed it for tea while they went out for the evening.