When my friend and I were looking for things to do in London last month, one of my friend’s colleagues suggested we visit ‘The Cult of Beauty’ exhibition at the Wellcome Collection. The free exhibition at the Euston Road museum explores concepts of beauty through the ages and across cultures in the context of gender, race, age, health and status. We arrived at the Wellcome Collection around 11.30am to find the exhibition was closed until 12pm, so we went off to explore the main collection while we waited. On coming back at 12pm, we found the museum had put a…

West Mersea sits at the end of a road that floods twice a day. The tidal causeway, the working oyster sheds, the estuary views with no coastal development spoiling them — these things are connected. This village stayed small because access stayed inconvenient. Plan around the tide and you get one of the best value lunch days within two hours of London. Ignore it, and you get a queue of cars on a flooded road going nowhere. How to Cross The Strood Without Wasting Your Trip The Strood is the only road onto Mersea Island. It’s a raised causeway crossing…

Five hundred years since they ruled over England and Wales, the Tudors still captivate audiences in a way few other royal dynasties can. Aside from the crazy drama that wouldn’t be out of place in the most far-fetched soap opera (six wives, multiple beheadings, religious schisms, to name a few), much of the family’s enduring appeal is down to its clearly defined image. Very few English monarchs are as instantly recognisable to the masses as Henry VIII or Elizabeth I (above). With his wide-legged stance, square bearded face and red hair, Henry VIII (below) still cuts an imposing, majestic figure…

I had a week off work at the beginning of January so decided to spend a day in London, as I hadn’t been back to the capital in more than a year. I didn’t have much of a firm plan, other than tickets to see Holbein at the Tudor Court at The Queen’s Gallery, so I was happy to see where the mood took me. Tokyo Diner It was early lunchtime when I arrived at Paddington and feeling peckish, I headed towards Leicester Square to visit one of my favourite Japanese restaurants, Tokyo Diner. The restaurant is tucked away down…

You have a week in England. You want history that doesn’t feel like homework — something that leaves you talking at dinner rather than skimming placards in polite silence. Bletchley Park keeps appearing on every serious shortlist, and the reputation is enormous. But the admission price gives you pause, and a reasonable question follows: is this engaging for a general visitor, or does it only reward people who already know the Enigma story? The honest breakdown, after examining exactly what you get per pound: Bletchley Park delivers more value than most UK paid attractions in its price bracket — but…