dg comments

please empty your brain below

Everyone should go to Down House, especially in this bicentenary year, but it is not in London but Kent. The fact that the modern postal address is in the so-called 'London' Borough of Bromley is just a bureaucratic anomaly.

Chris | Homepage | 24.03.09 - 8:58 a.m. | #

7. Highgate Cemetery is a must, although the West Cemetery is more interesting than the East Cemetery where Karl Marx rests.

Leuconoe | 24.03.09 - 9:00 a.m. | #

"77. Be inspired by more theatrical performances than anywhere else in the world"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
Bro...oadway\\_theatres
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
Wes...st\\_End\\_theatres

There appear to be more theatres in Broadway than in the West End. Does that mean there are more theatrical performances in New York than London?

Mark | Homepage | 24.03.09 - 9:15 a.m. | #

Erm - be completely and utterly ignored by an entire tube carriage no matter how bizzare your dress or behaviour?

disgruntled | Homepage | 24.03.09 - 9:19 a.m. | #

(sorry, I meant that one appears to be missing)

disgruntled | Homepage | 24.03.09 - 9:21 a.m. | #

Were the 33 boroughs asked to submit something to go in the list? - it smacks of "We hate you Boris - 'ere 'ave this for yer XXXXing list."

Bina | Homepage | 24.03.09 - 9:54 a.m. | #

Yeah, but at least Boris is finally allowing the English to celebrate their patron saint's day properly this year!

dg writes: Just as they did in 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2008...

Blue Witch | Homepage | 24.03.09 - 10:06 a.m. | #

Boris forgot to put my #1 reason to visit London: All major UK bank branches

K | 24.03.09 - 10:13 a.m. | #

Where did Boris get the 2million budget from? He should be an attraction- London's very own Clown.

Amused | 24.03.09 - 10:27 a.m. | #

I think listing London's anarchic markets (Walthamstow, Brixton, Ridley Road, etc.) *is* a fair thing to do - after all they really are pretty unique to this city. Nowhere else do you get such an insane diversity of goods, servcies and people (and tat!).

Dan | 24.03.09 - 10:29 a.m. | #

"Why not visit the charming village of Tower Hamlets?"

Scaryduck | Homepage | 24.03.09 - 10:32 a.m. | #

Following the link gets you this message:

"The page you have requested is not available.This might be because the attraction is now closed, the event is over or the special offer or competition has expired."

Only in London, certainly, would a major campaign be launched with a website message like that!

Capability Bowes | Homepage | 24.03.09 - 11:25 a.m. | #

3. Have afternoon tea in William Morris's historic Red House in Bexleyheath, an internationally significant home of the Arts & Crafts movement - IN KENT

6. Stroll the gardens of Down House in Bromley, home to Charles Darwin and where he wrote "On the Origin of Species" - IN KENTfhyf

18. Be wowed by the largest cut and polished white diamond in the world – Cullinan I (First Star of Africa) at the Tower of London- I THOUGHT THIS WAS THE KOH-I-NOOR?

20. Watch a performance at the famous Brit School in Croydon – whose alumni include Amy Winehouse, Adele and Kate Nash - IN SURREY

38. Look out for "The Diver" in Rainham – the only sculpture to stand in the river Thames - IN ESSEX

51. Embark from the same point in Royal Kingston that Victorian novelist Jerome K. Jerome started his novel "Three Men in a Boat" - IN SURREY

60. Pay tribute at suffragette Sylvia Pankhurst's commemorative site, Pankhurst Green in Woodford - IN ESSEX

86. The most popular European City for business - SAYS WHO?

Capability Bowes | Homepage | 24.03.09 - 11:55 a.m. | #

OK, so I appreciate that he's trying to promote activities in the outer boroughs, but maybe it's time to acknowledge that not all boroughs really have much of note from a Tourist perspective?

I'm insanely disappointed at the omission of so many of the obvious *star* attractions, like Trafalgar Square, Leicester Square, Covent Garden, Oxford Street, Camden Market, Spitalfields Market, Borough Market, Soho, Chinatown, the South Bank, Hampton Court Palace and the Science & Natural History museums.

By missing out the star attractions, they've made the list less credible (so tourists won't bother using it), and they've also made London sound a bit... crap.

Mark Lee | 24.03.09 - 1:01 p.m. | #

The Mudchute wasn't a bit of waste ground in 1989 when it was a haven of peace and tranquility away from that mess that was to become Canary Wharf. It's been 18 years since I last saw it, but I'm glad it's still there and not gobbled up by some greedy developer looking for their quick buck

Big Al | 24.03.09 - 1:16 p.m. | #

I suspect compilation of the list was outsourced to someone in Bangalore, who used a couple of dodgy pamphlets and dubious internet links to come up with the top 100. Or am I just being a cynic?

Walker | Homepage | 24.03.09 - 1:38 p.m. | #

Since Boris was pretty much elected by people in the outer boroughs, I guess it's payback time. Just as it was in that vote on which parks should be refurbished - I'm sure the expert panel only added Burgess Park to ensure that there would be one "gritty" inner-city park on the list, since they knew there was no chance that the locals would vote for one.

And I can't say that celebrating the feast-day of an apocryphal Cappadocian patron saint who we share with Catalonia, Russia, Lithuania, Greece, Beirut and Genoa (amongst many others) exactly gets my pulses racing. At least St Patrick existed and actually went to Ireland, even if he was Welsh...

Baldassaro | 24.03.09 - 1:52 p.m. | #

I'd be disappointed if there wasn't a "ride at the front of the top deck of a London bus" or something like it in the list. Prefereably the number 79 ...

Jag | Homepage | 24.03.09 - 2:25 p.m. | #

Why couldn't they just save some money and publish DG's Random london Borough's and alphabetical Museums? ONLY in London.

Ian | Homepage | 24.03.09 - 2:31 p.m. | #

Right, so some sculpture in a river in Essex gets a mention, when neither the Sherlock Holmes Museum or Wellcome Collection get a look in? I notice the rather brilliant London Transport Museum is also omitted.

There are lots of sculptures in rivers in Essex. Most of them go by the full title: Shopping Trolley.

L | 24.03.09 - 4:30 p.m. | #

And I think there's a pair of sculptures in the river around the Greenwich peninsula - the one of the cutaway boat section and the Gormley cloud-man thing.

Good summary, DG.

M@ | Homepage | 24.03.09 - 4:50 p.m. | #

Things that should have been on their cheap, wretched list and aren't:

Eltham Palace
The London Eye
Changing of the Guard
Hampton Court (OK, not technically London but near enough given that Croydon gets a mention)
Kew Gardens
The Guildhall
Cleopatra's Needle
The Wallace Collection (home of "The Laughing Cavalier")
Sherlock Holmes Museum
Madame Tussauds
Hampstead Heath
Highgate Cemetery
Albert Memorial
Royal Albert Hall
Bethnal Green Museum of Childhood
The Geffryre Museum
Pollock's Toy Museum
HMS Belfast
The Cenotaph
Thomas Coram Foundation
Inns of Court
Great Midland Hotel, St. Pancras
The Cutty Sark
Crystal Palace Park

..... and that's just the ones which spring to mind while staring out of the window for a couple of minutes.

Capability Bowes | Homepage | 24.03.09 - 5:40 p.m. | #

I work quite near Mudchute Park/Farm, Big Al, and I can report it still is a haven of peace and tranquility. I know DG is going for comic effect when he states it's a "lump of wasteground" but actually it's a very nice spot to escape the daily grind of Canary Wharf. And its neither muddy nor a chute.

Johnny Topaz | 24.03.09 - 5:46 p.m. | #

I emailed "Only in London" with some comments and they got VERY snotty:

"We should point out first of all that we have never described this as a “top” 100 list – simply a list of many examples of what makes London unique. No doubt you’ll have your own. No doubt everyone in London would have their own.

We have also never said that this is aimed at just “overseas” visitors to which several of your comments refer. This could be as much for people who live here which is why some of them are a little less obvious than your Buckingham Palace or Trafalgar Square suggestions"

oooooh, get you missus.

Capability Bowes | Homepage | 24.03.09 - 6:03 p.m. | #

This morning, the "Only in London" page definitely said "Here's a list of the top 100".

And now it says "Here's our list of 100".

So if they told you "We should point out first of all that we have never described this as a “top” 100 list" then they are, I'm afraid, liars.

diamond geezer | Homepage | 24.03.09 - 7:08 p.m. | #

And I was hoping for more ideas for places I haven't photographed yet. Oh well.

(and Matt, the Greenwich sculptures aren't in the water, the Gorm is on a platform)

Ham | Homepage | 24.03.09 - 7:38 p.m. | #

Since all links to this list are currently out of service, I'll have to judge based on the blog and comments. As a Canadian resident and occasional visitor there are about fifteen items on Capabilty Brown's list that interest me (or that I've already seen), and about the same number in DG's examples that I wouldn't visit if I had to cross the street.

I did learn one thing though. I had thought that the Battle of Barnet was the Bees' desperate attempt to avoid relegation in League Two...

Oliver | 24.03.09 - 8:27 p.m. | #

Interesting to note that we can no longer access the '100' online. I wonder if your blogpost had anything to do with that...

el d. | Homepage | 24.03.09 - 8:42 p.m. | #

It's accessible, but the URL is different than what's linked here, maybe related to the 6pm update. Here's what it should be:

http://www.visitlondon.com/attra...-london-the-
100

Note that the URL, like the title of the list, no longer contains the word "top".

There are some more things on the list, besides the three DG mentioned, that also are excellent only-in-London experiences, like Notting Hill Carnival, the London Eye, Wimbledon. But then there are also a fair number more that range from generic to unappealing, like the Tooting Bec swimming pool, the Hard Rock Cafe, or "The most popular European City for business" (which isn't really an "experience").

I can appreciate their desire to make this list more than a just rehash of countless others to list the obvious highlights (thus the omission of things like Buckingham Palace and Trafalgar Square in favor of less interesting places), but it doesn't excuse the entries that are just wrong (the prime meridian, say).

Josh | 24.03.09 - 8:58 p.m. | #

Thanks Josh!

Oliver | 24.03.09 - 9:15 p.m. | #

"Thackary's pub" - Do they mean William Makepeace Thackeray? Because, frankly my dear, the place is a dump and unworthy of the slightest detour from one's Greenwich intinerary. No mention of the Royal Naval College, the National Maritime Museum, Greenwich Park, the Royal Observatory (although the Meridian gets a mention), the view of London from the General Wolfe statue, the Cutty Sark..... so that's historic Greenwich, is it? Entirely dismissed save a ratty old pub and an imaginary line.

I suspect there has been some jiggery pokery on the "Only in London" site as the day has progressed, as I suspect that there are quite a few Londoners who ain't happy with BoJo's little list of things to do.

The inclusion of Heathrow Airport is very odd - seeing as how many of the people this list is ostensibly not aimed at will have arrived via the airport......

Exit, pursued by a bear | Homepage | 24.03.09 - 10:33 p.m. | #

79. Travel on the world's oldest subterranean travel system in the world – the London Underground

sorry, wrong again. There's a stretch of underground railway in Budapest that pre-dates the London Underground by at least 10 years.

"We have also never said that this is aimed at just “overseas” visitors to which several of your comments refer. This could be as much for people who live here which is why some of them are a little less obvious than your Buckingham Palace or Trafalgar Square suggestions"

So people from Barnsley, Penzance, Aberystwtyh or Dundee don't want to see Buckingham Palace or Trafalgar Square, but want to play football on Hackney Marshes? riiiiiiiight.

And some of their "research" is just plain risible. A quick search on Wikipedia revals:

The largest polished gem from the stone is named Cullinan I or the Great Star of Africa, and at 530.2 carats (106.0 g)[2] was the largest polished diamond in the world until the 1985 discovery of the Golden Jubilee Diamond, 545.67 carats (109.13 g).

So their source is at least 23 years out of date.

Thanks DG, this must be the most entertaining blog entry you've ever made!

Exit, pursued by a bear | Homepage | 24.03.09 - 10:49 p.m. | #

Another DG classic, and it certainly seems that someone in authority seems to read your posts. Firstly you got the service update tube map improved on TfL's website, and now the Only in London website makes some updates in line with your recommendations.

Personally, I like to take a riverside walk down the Victoria Embankment, past Charing Cross, then up to Trafalgar Square. I'm surprised they haven't listed more in the way of walks on this list, as London is certainly a most attractive city to explore on foot in my opinion.

Andrewh | 25.03.09 - 12:32 a.m. | #

burma jade | Homepage | 25.03.09 - 4:45 a.m. | #

Is there an echo ......?

Johnny Topaz | 25.03.09 - 10:09 a.m. | #

Haha! Good work, sir - DG 1-0 Boris, I think.

It does smack a bit of a list submitted by boroughs, doesn't it? Which would explain Eltham Palace not being there, because it's low in Greenwich's pecking order when it could be promoting the council's mates at the Dome instead. And Downe House, which is lovely but spiritually as far from London as you'll get (but ticks Bromley's box nicely).

Anyway, if a couple of commenters here are to be believed, maybe it should just be called "only in Middlesex, Kent, Surrey and Essex"

Darryl853 | Homepage | 25.03.09 - 11:44 a.m. | #

You know, I swear they are changing this list on an almost hourly basis. Im sure that Big Ben wasnt on that list yesterday.

dg writes: It's always been number 87, honest.

A lot of the list smacks of corporate sponsorship. Why make a statement about the amount of theatre in London and then, in a separate listing, mention "Mama Mia" specifically?

Capability Bowes | Homepage | 25.03.09 - 1:11 p.m. | #

To those of you questioning Hampton Court Palace's right to be in the list... it's actually in the London borough of Richmond upon Thames

And to the commenter who suggested riding at the front of the top deck of the bus... how about riding at the front of a DLR train? :D

Mark Lee | 26.03.09 - 11:26 a.m. | #

It did come as a surprise to us at the Royal Geographical Society to be on the list - a pleasant one, of course.

We do have the largest private map collection in the world (2 million maps) and lots of events and exhibitions all year round.

Although, geographically speaking, we're actually in Westminster...

Adrian | Homepage | 26.03.09 - 12:18 p.m. | #

Like the "London Borogh of Bromley" - actually in Kent, the "London Borough of Richmond upon Thames" is actually in Surrey.

Capability Bowes | Homepage | 26.03.09 - 1:41 p.m. | #

Nice to see you keeping pointless PR bods on their toes, as ever!

Novaelius | 26.03.09 - 7:16 p.m. | #

Visit London are spot on with their Bromleys and Richmonds. They're all in London, not Surrey, not Kent. If you insist on playing this game, then even the London Eye is in Surrey.

We've discussed all this before...

diamond geezer | Homepage | 26.03.09 - 10:19 p.m. | #

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