Uncensored: red London bus pictures

London is famed the world over for its red double decker buses. Two Austrian visitors to London were made to delete images that they had taken, earlier today, of a double decker London bus in Walthamstow, East London. Father and son, Klaus and Loris Matzka, were ordered to delete their images by two police officers who cited anti-terrorism laws. Matzka senior was told that photographing anything to do with public transport was "strictly forbidden". What's more, the officers made a note of their hotel address, passport numbers and other personal details.

Ordinarily, taking pictures of red London buses - as long as the photographer is not endangering their own safety - does not incur the wrath of police officers.

Visitors and locals alike can still enjoy a trip on a Routemaster bus - the type of red double decker bus that springs in to my mind when I think of a stereotypical London bus - on two heritage routes in the British capital.

Enjoy a ride on a Routemaster and a walk from St Paul's Cathedral, over the Millennium Bridge along the South Bank to the Tower of London with the Ride and Stride London audio downloadable tour.

The prototype Routemaster appeared in 1954. Five years later Routemasters entered service in numbers in 1959 and a production run spanning seven years saw nearly 3000 built. The bus quickly became a favourite with Londoners and although its design life was seventeen years, it was so uniquely suited to London’s traffic that no one wanted to get rid of it. The iconic Routemaster was withdrawn from service in 2005.

There are five Walk Talk Tour London city guides. Each podcast guided tour retails at £5.95. Purchase two tours simultaneously and receive a twenty per cent discount. All of the Walk Talk Tour London travel guides are available in English, French, German and Spanish. To hear an audio sample from the Ride and Stride mp3 guided tour please click here.

Routemaster bus fans living or staying in the North West of England are in for a treat tomorrow with the annual London Bus Day being staged at Museum of Transport Manchester. For more information please click here.

Independent minded travellers can go walk about in Manchester, too, with the Manchester: Then & Now audio downloadable guide. Visitors can also hire the tour from the city's Visitor Information Centre in the Town Hall Extension, on Lloyd Street.

Finally, London set to celebrate St George's Day in style

For years Scots have proudly celebrated St Andrew's Day on November 30, the Irish diaspora has revelled on St Patrick's Day (March 17) and the Welsh have enjoyed St David's Day on March 1. And rightly so, but for a long time the English have failed to make a song and dance about St George, their country's patron saint. In London that is set to change.

The Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, has announced plans to celebrate St George's Day (April 23) in the English capital. In an official statement published on March 22, Jonhnson said: "St George’s Day has been ignored in London for far too long, but I’m truly pleased to announce some fantastic events to mark this occasion. We have much to be proud of in this great country, England has given so much to the world, politically, socially and artistically."

On St George's Day, Mr Johnson intends to board a Routemaster bus to Leadenhall Market, where food and drink based festivities, celebrating England's patron saint are scheduled to take place. Visitors to London can hear about the rich history of Leadenhall Market with The City and the Tower, Walk Talk Tour, London audio tour.

There are five Walk Talk Tour London city guides in all. Each Walk Talk Tour London travel guide is downloadable and available in English, French, German and Spanish. Each Walk Talk Tour podcast guided tour is composed of commentary points. Listeners hear about the personalities and events associated with a particular feature or building and then receive clear instructions outlining how to reach the next commentary point. Unlike a conventional guided tour with a Walk Talk Tour London audio guide listeners have the flexibility to stop, start and listen again as their interest, the weather or their bladder dictates.

On Saturday April 25, two days after St George's Day, a free concert entitled 'Contemporary Music, English Roots' will be staged in Trafalgar Square. The Square will be alive with the sound of English inspired folk music from 12.30pm to 18:00. Independent travellers can discover the history of royal and monumental London, including Trafalgar Square, with the Palace Trail London iPod travel guide. To hear an audio sample from the Palace Trail London city walking tour please click here.

Four days prior to St George's Day, on Saturday April 19, the 400th anniversary of the first publication of William Shakespeare's sonnets will be marked at Shakespeare's Globe Theatre on London's Bankside. The free event begins at midday and ends at 17:00. Independent minded visitors can hear about the new Globe Theatre's history and acting in the Shakespeare's day with the Ride & Stride mp3 guided tour.

Each Walk Talk Tour London audio guide represents excellent value at just £5.95 a piece. Purchase two tours simultaneously and get twenty per cent off. Payments are processed using the secure Barclays epdq system.

Pictured above is Leadenhall Market.

London at your fingertips

London is synonymous with certain things, as all great cities are. The British capital might make you think of Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament, Buckingham Palace, Tower Bridge, the Tower of London or black taxis.

For many people, a red double decker bus is a symbol of London. If red double decker buses are typical of London, than the Routemaster is the daddy of London buses. The iconic red Routemaster buses were withdrawn - from all but two Heritage routes - in 2005. London's elected Mayor (not to be confused with the Lord Mayor of London), Boris Johnson, promised a new Routemaster that would be fit for the twenty-first century. Visitors and bus enthusiasts alike can see the winning designs and noteworthy entries at the London Transport Museum until March 29, 2009.

Independent minded sightseers can enjoy a ride on an original Routemaster bus with the Ride & Stride London audio tour. Listeners will hear about the other British icons that the design consultant employed on the project was responsible for. (Please note that the cost of the bus ride is not included in the tour price). Listeners are then instructed to disembark at St Paul's Cathedral.

The eagle eyed among you, might notice that one of the fingers on the figure pictured left (which surround the statue of Queen Anne) is missing a finger. The four female figures are said to represent England, France, Ireland and North America. The statue stands in front of the west door of St Paul's Cathedral.

Listeners to the Ride & Stride London audio guide have the freedom to enter the Cathedral if they wish. Simply pause your mp3 guided tour and then resume it, once you're done. Sir Christopher Wren was charged with designing a new St Paul's after the previous cathedral on the site was destroyed in the Great Fire of London of 1666. Queen Anne was on the throne when Wren's masterpiece was completed in 1711. To hear an audio sample from the Ride & Stride London city guide please click here.

Hear about the influence that a contemporary architect and his firm have had on London with the Ride & Stride London travel guide. Sir Norman Foster's commissions in the British capital have included the Millennium Bridge. The bridge links St Paul’s Cathedral on the North Bank of the Thames, with the Tate Modern, a huge modern art gallery housed in Bankside Power Station on the South Bank. On grey London days, such as the one pictured above left, a Walk Talk Tour makes an ideal guide, as listeners have the flexibility to stop, start and resume their tour as they wish or as the weather dictates.

Listeners to the Ride & Stride city walking tour will hear about Tate Modern's history and have the chance to go and contemplate the meaning of art.

See and hear about the new Globe Theatre which opened thanks to the tenacity of an American actor, Sam Wanamaker, who has since passed away. Learn about the origins of various terms as you stroll along the South Bank. Walk past City Hall and then cross the River Thames, using Tower Bridge. At the commentary points along the route you will hear about the stories and characters associated with well and lesser known London.

The Ride & Stride podcast guided tour concludes in front of the Tower of London. There are five Walk Talk Tour London city guides all of which are available in English, French, German and Spanish.

Each Walk Talk Tour London iPod travel guide costs just £5.95 a piece. Purchase two tours simultaneously and receive a twenty per cent discount.

Changing the Guard (and the water)

London has earned a reputation - which it is keen to dispel - of being an expensive city. Many of the great displays of pageantry associated with royal London such as Changing the Guard (pictured left) can be enjoyed for free.

The sentries on duty on Whitehall form part of the Queen's Life Guard, which is charged with protecting the monarch when she is in London.

The area just beyond Horse Guards, before you reach St James's Park, is known as Horse Guards Parade. This is the venue for Beating the Retreat and Trooping the Colour in summer.

Independent minded travellers can enjoy the freedom to explore the best of royal and monumental London with the Walk Talk Tour Palace Trail city walking tour. It is easy to confuse Changing the Guard with Mounting the Guard. The former ceremony takes place at Horse Guards, the latter is performed at Buckingham Palace. To hear a short audio sample from the Palace Trail London city guide please click here.

In these troubled economic times, a Walk Talk Tour London audio guide represents excellent value at just £5.95. Buy two tours simultaneously and receive a twenty per cent discount. There are five Walk Talk Tour London audio guides in all. Each of the London city guides is available in English, French, German and Spanish.

Visitors to the British capital can find out when Changing the Guard is scheduled to take place by checking out the Palace Trail London audio tour's Where & When page.

The Palace Trail London travel guide begins outside Westminster Abbey and concludes in front of Buckingham Palace. En route listeners to the Palace Trail podcast guided tour walk through St James's Park. The lake in the Park is currently being drained. See picture above left.

St James's Park is the oldest of the six royal parks in London. King Henry VIII bought the land in 1532. The lake which is being drained in stages was built to the designs of architect John Nash in the early nineteenth century.

The spring clean of the lake is due to be completed by the end of April this year.

Alternative Valentine's Day activities in London

Valentine's Day can be a tricky proposition for loved ones. Gents, are you tired of saying it with flowers, chocolates, jewellery on February 14? Then why not take the opportunity to go walkabout in the capital?

Enjoy a ride on a London icon, an original Routemaster bus, and then take a romantic stroll along London's South Bank with The Ride & Stride city walking tour.

Each of the professionally researched, produced and recorded Walk Talk Tour of London is narrated by actor and broadcaster Jonathan Keeble. All of the Walk Talk Tour London city guides come complete with a free downloadable map, so you and your beloved won't miss a thing.

Unlike a conventional guided tour, Valentines enjoying a Walk Talk Tour audio tour have the freedom to stop, start and resume their commentary as they see fit. Couples can enjoy the panoramas from Tower Bridge on the evening of this Saturday, February 14. For more information go to www.towerbridge.org.uk. The Ride & Stride podcast guided tour concludes outside the Tower of London. To hear a short audio extract from the tour please click here.

Booked tickets for a performance at the Royal Opera House this Saturday? Then why not enjoy hearing about the history of Leicester Square, Covent Garden and much more with The Museums, Galleries & Performing Arts London travel guide en route to your performance. This tour begins outside The National Gallery. Visitors can enjoy a twilight tour of paintings on the theme of love of the National Gallery between 16:00 and 17:00 this Saturday.

To hear an audio sample from The Museums, Galleries & Performing Arts London iPod travel guide please click here. This London city sightseeing tour concludes outside the British Museum.

Like the other four Walk Talk Tour London travel guides, the Ride & Stride audio guide is downloadable from the website. All of the Walk Talk Tour London walking tours are available in English, French, German and Spanish. Each mp3 guided tour costs just £5.95. Purchase two Walk Talk Tours simultaneously and receive a twenty per cent discount. Buy three at the same time and make a thirty per cent saving.

The bronze sculpture on Bow Street (above left) is called the Young Dancer it was created by the late Enzo Plazzotta.

Pea Soup off London Menu

There was a time, when London's air was regularly thick with fog, often likened to pea soup.

Thankfully, the capital's air quality has improved as emissions of sulphur dioxide (associated with the burning of fossil fuels) has reduced. “We’ve moved away from using coal and wood in the home and our industries have become much cleaner,” said David Britton, a meteorologist at the Met Office in a telephone interview with Alex Morales, a journalist from the news agency Bloomberg.

Fog forms when tiny water droplets are suspended in the lower atmosphere, which is created when moist air cools close to the ground.

There are days when fog is more likely to occur, such as around Bonfire Night on November 5, when bonfires are lit and fireworks are set off across Britain to mark the thwarting of a plot to blow up the Houses of Parliament in 1605, which King James I was due to open that day.

The Great Smog of 1952 contributed to the death of some 4,075 people. The thick smoke filled fog first formed of London on December 5. It lingered over London for four days, as high pressure, low temperatures and very slight winds combined to keep the Smog above the capital. Most victims of the Great Smog succumbed to respiratory and cardiovascular problems. Vehicles were abandoned, businesses and schools closed. A person who ventured out would hold a handkerchief to their mouth.

London's air quality has improved beyond all recognition since then. So much so that one of the best and most cost effective ways to explore the British capital is on foot.

Going Walkabout with Walk Talk Tours is an enjoyable way to see London's sights and do your bit for the environment. A Walk Talk Tour London city walking tour also offers sightseers maximum flexibility, as listeners can stop, start and listen again to any part of their commentary.

Visitors to London can hear about how Guy Fawkes plotted to blow up the Houses of Parliament with the Walk Talk Tour, Palace Trail, London travel guide. Discover royal and monumental London at your own pace. To hear an audio sample from the Palace Trail please click here.

Each Walk Talk Tour London audio walking tour costs just £5.95.Customers buying two tours at once will receive a twenty per cent discount. Purchase three at the same time and get thirty per cent off. All of the Walk Talk Tour London city guides are available in English, French, German and Spanish.

Go walkabout in the City of London

The engine of the British economy is having a tough time of it with job losses and uncertainty sapping confidence in the City of London.

The Ernst & Young Item Club predicts that up to 3.4 million people will be out of work in the UK in 2011. In its most recent report the Item Club predicts that the UK's gross domestic product will shrink by 2.7 per cent this year.

The Guardian newspaper reported earlier this month how, nationally, across the financial services sector (which includes banks, building societies, fund managers and securities trading firms) jobs are being shed at the rate of 8,000 - 10,000 a quarter. Many of these jobs are based in the City of London.

The Square Mile, as the City is known colloquially, has experienced setbacks before and emerged wiser and stronger from them.

Independent travellers can go walkabout in the City of London with The City & The Tower, London city guide, and the longer City & South Bank Circular, London city walking tour. Both mp3 guided tours are brought to you courtesy of Walk Talk Tours.

The City & The Tower podcast guided tour begins outside St Paul's Cathedral. Sir Christopher Wren designed the masterpiece after the Great Fire of London in 1666.

The Bank of England has featured prominently during the credit crunch. See the Old Lady of Threadneedle Street's premises and hear about some of the audacious attempts to defraud the Bank with The City & The Tower, London walking tour. There's even a Bank of England Museum which is admission free.

With a Walk Talk Tour, you're free to go at your own pace, so if there's a particular attraction you wish to visit, or the weather takes a turn for the worse you can stop and resume your tour later.

The City has some striking examples of modern architectures at its best, as listeners to The City & The Tower, London iPod travel guide will discover. Marvel at the Gherkin, so called because of its similarity - in shape - to the vegetable and Richard Rogers' Lloyds of London building. To hear an audio sample from The City & The Tower, London audio guide please click here.

See and hear about the Monument, Old Billingsgate Market and Customs House. The City & The Tower, London iPod travel guide concludes outside the once infamous Tower of London.

All of the Walk Talk Tour London audio guides are available in English, French, German and Spanish. The English language versions are narrated by actor and broadcaster Jonathan Keeble. Each Walk Talk Tour London travel guide costs just £5.95. Purchase two Walk Talk Tour podcast guided tours at the same time and receive a twenty per cent discount. Buy three simultaneously and get thirty per cent off. Each Walk Talk Tour London travel guide comes complete with a free downloadable map for listeners to print off, so you won't miss a thing.

Square Mile buckles up for bumpy 2009

The City of London for so long the engine of the UK economy is braced for a difficult year.

The Square Mile is a colloquial term for the City of London. Broadly speaking the Square Mile could be said to refer to the area on the North Bank of the Thames between Waterloo Bridge and Tower Bridge where many financial intuitions are based. Since the Big Bang of October 27, 1986 - when deregulation of various trading practices were made to the way in which the London Stock Exchange operated - many financial institutions relocated their offices to Docklands.

The Big Bang saw London overtake New York as the world's leading financial centre. Financial services have long been big contributors to the City's feel good factor. However, after a tough year and a bit confidence is thin on the ground in the Square Mile.

Some respected sources have estimated that 17% of the financial workforce in the capital will lose their jobs - that's some 85,000 people.

The government's Minister for the City, Paul Myners, was quoted in The Guardian as saying: "I think we are in an environment now where people will seek evidence of strong and effective regulation as a precondition to wanting to do business. There's going to be more evidence of capital. We are in a mindset where safety and probity are highly valued."

The Square Mile is faced with increasing competition from alternative financial centres such as Dubai and Singapore.

Visitors to London can explore the Square Mile with The City & The Tower, Walk Talk Tour London travel guide. The podcast guided tour begins outside St Paul's Cathedral. Listeners will see and hear about much of the City's most prominent architecture, which can be found in the Square Mile, including the Bank of England, the Mansion House 30 St Mary Axe (more commonly called the Gherkin), Lloyd's of London and Leadenhall Market.

The City has endured and emerged stronger from crises in the past. Listeners to The City & The Tower, London audio walking tour, will hear about the Great Fire of London which devastated the City in 1666. Discover the length smugglers went to in the past to avoid paying custom duties. The City & The Tower, London travel guide, concludes at the once notorious Tower of London. To hear an audio sample from The City & The Tower, London audio guide please click here.

There are five Walk Talk Tour London city guides. Each Walk Talk Tour London audio guide costs just £5.95. All of the mp3 guided tours - with the exception of the longer City & South Bank Circular podcast guided tour - can be completed in two hours.

All of the Walk Talk Tours of London are available in English, French, German and Spanish. Each of the English language tours is narrated by broadcaster and actor Jonathan Keeble.

Three year exile for MPs?

MPs may have to vacate the new Palace of Westminster, so that long over due renovations can be carried out. According to The Times, in excess of 500 miles of telephone, electricity cables and water pipes need replacing. They were last replaced after World War Two.

The first Palace on the site was built in the eleventh century. King Henry VIII and his family were the last royals to live in the Palace. They moved out in 1512.

Since then the Westminster site has witnessed an assassination, a gunpowder plot and many great debates over the most important issues of the day.

The Houses of Parliament is one of the British capital's most iconic buildings and is the seat of British democracy. Visitors to London can hear about some of the history of the new Palace of Westminster with the Palace Trail, Walk Talk Tour audio downloadable walking tour.

The most photographed part of the New Palace of Westminster is the Clock Tower (pictured above), which contains the famous Great Bell popularly known as Big Ben. Londoners first heard Big Ben chime in July 1859.

On this day (October 16) in 1834 after a fire that started decimated the bulk of the previous Palace of Westminster. Westminster Hall was the only original medieval building on the site to be saved. Charles I was sentenced to death in the Hall in 1649. In more recent times, Westminster Hall has had a less gruesome role to play in our history. Major national figures such as Sir Winston Churchill, and more recently, in 2002, Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, have lain in State here, enabling people to file past and pay their final respects.

The New Palace of Westminster emerged from the ashes of the 1834 fire under the gaze of architect Charles Barry. Augustin Pugin was responsible for designing much of the New Palace's interior. The work on the New Palace of Westminster was not complete until 1870 (by which time both men had died).

Listeners to the Palace Trail, London travel guide can hear about the Upper and Lower Houses of Parliament operate today.

Hear about some of the great statesmen past and present who are commemorated in Parliament Square. To hear an audio sample from the Palace Trail London city walking tour please click here.

There are five Walk Talk Tour London city walking tours. All of the mp3 guided tours are available in English, French, German and Spanish. Each Walk Talk Tour London tour guide costs just £5.95 and can be completed comfortably within two hours - with the exception of the longer City & South Bank Circular walking tour.

Customers purchasing two tours simultaneously will receive a twenty per cent discount. Buy three at the same time and get thirty per cent off.

Make the most of your Walk Talk Tour London audio guide by checking out our Where & When pages for each tour which provide information about admission prices and opening times for key attractions and events on each tour's route. Many of these events like Changing the Guard at Horse Guards can be enjoyed for free.

All of the Walk Talk Tours of London are narrated by actor Jonathan Keeble. Each London audio walking tour comes complete with easy to follow instructions and a free downloadable map - for you to print off - so you won't miss a thing.

Thames Braced For Festival Fever

This weekend will see Londoners say goodbye to the summer and hello to the autumn at the Thames Festival. The festivities will take place between Westminster Bridge and Tower Bridge over this weekend, September 13 - 14, 2008.

A whole host of activities will be taking place on, over and along side the river. Highlights will include the Feast on the Bridge. Londoners and visitors alike will be able to get in the Festival mood at what the organiser describe as a "spectacular 'harvest supper' that will take place on Southwark Bridge on Saturday from 12:00pm - 22:00.

If you enjoyed watching the rowing at the Olympics, then the Great River Race could be for you. The Great River Race celebrates its twentieth birthday this year. Around 300 boats ranging from gigs, skiffs, Chinese dragon boats, gigs, war canoes, Viking longboats, Irish curraghs and whalers will compete in a twenty-two mile race to find the UK Traditional Boat Champions. The race which begins in Richmond is scheduled to pass under Westminster Bridge at 16:30 and arrive at Tower Bridge fifteen minutes later. The finish line will be marked by a vessel beyond Canary Wharf. The first boats are expected to cross the line at 17:20. Commentary on the race will be provided on Millennium Bridge.

Londoners and independent travellers can hear about the once thriving 'Pool of London' - the stretch of water between London and Tower Bridges - with the Ride & Stride podcast guided tour or the City & South Bank, London travel guide. To hear an audio sample from the Ride & Stride, London audio walking tour please click here.

Both the City & South Bank Circular, London city walking tour and the Ride & Stride mp3 guided tour pass the Scoop by City Hall. Various cabaret acts will be performing over the course of the weekend. Lord Foster of Thamesbank was responsible for designing City Hall and the Millennium Bridge as listeners to the Ride & Stride London city guide will discover.

The Thames Festival will finish with a fireworks display that will begin at 21:45 on Sunday evening.

There are five Walk Talk Tour London travel guides that visitors or interested locals can enjoy throughout the year. Each of the Walk Talk Tour London audio walking tours is available in French, German and Spanish.

All of the Walk Talk Tour London city guides can be completed in two hours with the exception of the longer City & South Bank Circular mp3 guided tour (which is a combination of The Ride & Stride iPod travel guide and The City & The Tower, London city walking tour). Each Walk Talk Tour of the English capital costs just £5.95. Customers who purchase two tours simultaneously will receive a twenty per cent discount. Buy three simultaneously and get thirty per cent off.

Unlike with a conventional walking tour, listeners to a Walk Talk Tour London travel guide are free to stop, start and listen again to any part of their downloadable tour as they wish - or as the Great British weather dictates.

Each professionally researched and produced Walk Talk Tour comes complete with easy to follow instructions and a free downloadable map - for you to print off - so you won't miss a thing!

End in sight for Guards' Bearskins?

Top brass from the Ministry of Defence are set to meet members of a charity that campaigns for the ethical treatment of animals. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (Peta) hope to persuade the MoD to ditch the practice of using Canadian black bears' skins to make the Guards' distinctive 18 inch high fur hats.

Prototypes of synthetic alternatives to bearskins have been tested, but the MoD has found that fake furs have not proved to be sufficiently weatherproof or durable. It is thought that bearskins were first worn by British soldiers after the battle of Waterloo in 1815. The First Foot Guards were renamed the Grenadier Guards after defeating their French counterparts the French Imperial Guards, who wore bearskins.

Bearskin hats are made from two separate pieces of fur. One piece is used for the front of the hat and one for the back. The pieces are then wrapped and stitched to a bamboo cage.

Independent travellers in London can hear about the history of the Queen's Life Guard with the Palace Trail, London travel guide. Mounting the Guard at Horse Guards and Changing the Guard at Buckingham Palace are the two regular ceremonies most associated with royal London - and enjoyed by tourists. To make the most of the Palace Trail iPod travel guide take a look at our Where & When page which provides information about opening times and admission charges of key attraction along the tour's route. And information about the dates and times of Mounting the Guard and Changing the Guard.

When the changing of the Guard takes place the Guards leave via the Central Gate, which is also used on State Occasions. When the Queen is in residence, the Guard comprises three officers and 40 men, but when she is absent the Guard consists of three officers and 31 men. The whole ceremony takes approximately forty minutes.

The Palace Trail podcast guided tour concludes in front of Buckingham Palace. The Palace has 775 rooms making it the largest of the British Royal Family's residences.

There are five Walk Talk Tour London city guides. Each Walk Talk Tour London audio walking tour costs just £5.95. Customers buying two Walk Talk Tours at once will get twenty per cent off. Purchase three simultaneously and receive a thirty per cent discount.

All of the Walk Talk Tour London podcast guided tours are available in French, German and Spanish.

The Palace Trail, London city walking tour, takes in the highlights of royal and monumental London. The trail begins outside Westminster Abbey, where British monarchs are crowned. Walk on to the New Palace of Westminster - or the Houses of Parliament as it is better known. Hear about some of the differences between the Upper and Lower Houses of Parliament. Discover which late iconic world famous British statesman is commemorated in Parliament Square. To hear an audio extract from the Palace Trail, London visitor guide, please click here.

Pause for thought at the Cenotaph where Britain's war dead are commemorated. Then walk on to Downing Street. Home of Number 10, the Prime Minister's official residence. Continue up Whitehall to Horse Guards, where Mounting the Guard takes place. Walk onto Charing Cross. Hear about the checkered history of the equestrian statue of Charles I and more.

Walk on into Trafalgar Square, which is dominated by Nelson's Column. Hear about some of the protests and celebrations that have been held in the Square over the years.

Walk Talk Tourists continue their podcast guided tour by walking under Admiralty Arch onto the Mall. Listeners to the Palace Trail audio walking tour then walk through St James's Park (London's oldest royal park) to Buckingham Palace.

With a Walk Talk Tour, London tour guide, you're in charge. No need to feel like a lemming as you traipse after the tour guide with the umbrella, or feel too conspicuous with a guidebook in your hands. Listeners to a Walk Talk Tour mp3 guided tour of London can stop, start and listen again to any part of their chosen tour as they wish - or as the weather dictates.

Why not do your bit for the environment and go walk about in London at your own pace and in your own time with a Walk Talk Tour? All of the Walk Talk Tours of London can be completed in two hours - with the exception of the longer City & South Bank Circular mp3 guided tour - but you can spend as little or as long as you want exploring the sights along each tour's route.

London Bridge set to go woolly

A Free Sister of the City of London is going to exercise her right to drive sheep across London Bridge in order to highlight two causes close to her heart. Female Freemen are known as Free Sisters. Amanda Cottrell, a former High Sheriff, is hoping to raise awareness - and funds - for the Save Canterbury Cathedral Appeal. Cottrell is also trying to promote Produced in Kent, a scheme that is designed to encourage to buy food locally in the Garden of England.

Cottrell will be accompanied by Viscount Linley and historian David Starkey this Sunday morning, August 31.

The picture above was taken from besides London Bridge looking over to the North Bank of the River Thames.

Visitors to London can hear about the history of London Bridge with the Ride & Stride iPod travel guide and the City & South Bank Circular, London travel guide. The latter of the two London city walking tours is a combination of the Ride & Stride podcast guided tour and The City & Tower audio walking tour. To hear an audio sample from the City & South Bank Circular podcast guided tour please click here.

The original bridge across the Thames was built by the Romans. After the Roman withdrawal from Britain the bridge fell into disrepair. Hear about the various bridges that were built after the fifth century. Listeners to the Ride & Stride, London visitor guide or the City & South Bank Circular mp3 guided tour can hear about the origins of the song 'London Bridge is falling down..."

For almost four hundred years, from the early fourteenth century to the late seventeen century, the severed heads of convicted traitors would be displayed by the South Gate as a reminder to Londoners of the price for disobeying the king.

The current elegant concrete London Bridge was opened by the Queen in 1973. The current bridge's predecessor as London Bridge was dismantled and transported to Lake Havasu City, in Arizona.

One of the most famous byelaws in the capital relates to Trafalgar Square. "No person other than a person acting at the direction of the Mayor shall within Trafalgar Square –
(1) feed any bird (which shall include dropping or casting feeding stuff for birds);
or
(2) distribute any feeding stuff for birds." The above is taken from the updated Trafalgar Square byelaws of 2002.

Independent travellers can hear about the history of Trafalgar Square with the Palace Trail, Walk Talk Tour London travel guide. Listeners to the Palace Trail, London city walking tour can discover why Brain Haw is the sole anti-war protester allowed in Parliament Square. Hear the story behind the equestrian statue of Charles I, which stands on the roundabout at Charing Cross.

There are five Walk Talk Tour mp3 guided tours of London. The Walk Talk Tours of the English capital are all available in English, French, German and Spanish.

Visitors are forbidden from giving any animals at London Zoo a cigarette Under Section 17 of the Zoological Society of London Act (1928).

Each Walk Talk Tour London city guide costs just £5.95. Customers purchasing two tours at the same time will receive a twenty per cent discount. Buy three simultaneously and get thirty per cent off. Walk Talk Tours represent excellent value for people travelling in groups and parties.

'Can of ham' garnished with a Gherkin

Developers have unveiled plans to build a new 18-storey skyscraper close to the site of Lord Foster of Thamesbank's Gherkin. The proposed building designed by Foggo Associates would stand 90m (295ft) tall.

Julian Wells from developers Targetfollow told the Evening Standard that: "The design is spectacular and we think it will add a huge amount to the City skyscape."

Planning permission for the building will be decided upon in Autumn. If permission is secured, the demolition of the two office blocks currently on the site will begin in two to three years time.

30 St Mary Axe is one of the tallest buildings in London. However, most Londoners now affectionately call it, “The Gherkin”, because of its obvious similarity to the vegetable’s shape. It reaches 180 metres/590 Feet skywards – making it over three times higher than the Niagara Falls.

Despite its shape, there is only one curved piece of glass in the entire building which can be found in the lens right at the top.

Independent travellers in the English capital can explore the City of London with The City & The Tower audio downloadable walking tour.

The City & The Tower, London visitor guide, begins outside St Paul's Cathedral. The magnificent place of worship is the handiwork of another great architect, Sir Christopher Wren. Walk through Sr Paul's Churchyard where the founding father of Methodism, John Wesley, is among the figures commemorated. Continue along Cheapside to St Mary-le-Bow. The Church was all but destroyed by the Great Fire of London (only the crypt survived). Wren was responsible for designing the building that stands today.

Listeners to the City & The Tower mp3 guided tour then walk on to Watling Street. The original street was one of the most important Roman roads in Britain. Hear about the remains of the Temple of Mithras. Walk along Queen Victoria Street and pause by the statue of one Arthur Wellesley - better known as the Duke of Wellington. Hear about some of his exploits on the battlefield. Hear about a famous female nineteenth century reformer Elizabeth Fry. A likeness of Fry appears on the back of five pound notes in England and Wales. And hear about the Old Lady of Threadneedle Street.

Next stop on The City & The Tower London walking tour is The Gherkin. This Walk Talk Tour audio walking tour of London finishes outside the Tower of London. To hear an audio sample from The City & The Tower, London city walking tour, please click here.

There are five Walk Talk Tours of London, which are available in English, French, German and Spanish. Each Walk Talk Tour mp3 guided tour of London costs just £5.95. Customers purchasing two tours simultaneously will receive a twenty per cent discount. Buy three at the same time and get thirty per cent off.

With a Walk Talk Tour, London travel guide, you're in charge. No need to struggle to follow - let alone hear - the man with the umbrella. Listeners to a Walk Talk Tour podcast guided tour are free to stop, start and listen again. Each Walk Talk Tour mp3 guided tour comes complete with easy-to-follow instructions and a free downloadable map - for you to print off - so you won't miss a thing.

Make the most of the City & the Tower, London iPod travel guide, by consulting our Where & When page, which provides information about admission charges and opening times along the tour's route.

Covent Garden Cooks Up a Feast

One of the most popular areas in London will be staging a nighttime market. Covent Garden will play host to the capital's only food night market, reliving its role as the original Larder of London. An array of delicious foodstuffs will be on on sale from over forty stalls erected on Covent Garden's famous piazza.

Covent Garden is more commonly associated with street entertainers. The market will start this Thursday, August 7 and Friday, August 8. The night markets will continue for every Thursday and Friday for the remainder of August. A List chefs will cook up a storm in kitchen theatres. The Hairy Bikers are due to appear on August 15.

Independent travellers can hear about Covent Garden's rich and varied history with the Museums, Galleries & The Performing Arts, London travel guide. The London tour guide begins outside the National Gallery, take in the National Portrait Gallery, before listeners have the chance to follow in the footsteps of the stars in Leicester Square. Walk on to St Martin's Theatre, the home of the world's longest running theatre show. Then head to Long Acre and the site where John Logie Baird made the first television broadcast in Great Britain in 1929. Then walk back in time with Walk Talk tours to Covent Garden.

When the Romans left Britain in the fifth century it was thought that their city of Londinium had been abandoned. However, recent excavations under the London Transport Museum building revealed that Covent Garden was the hub of a thriving Saxon settlement called Lundenwic, with its own port on the nearby Thames. This settlement was in turn abandoned after the Vikings invaded. Monks from Westminster Abbey (then known as Westminster Convent) tended ‘convent’ garden. The monks grew fruit and vegetables, and they sold their surplus produce to the town’s people.

There are five Walk Talk Tours of London. Each of the audio walking tours is available in English, French, German and Spanish. Each Walk Talk Tour audio walking tour of London costs just £5.95. Customers purchasing two tours simultaneously will receive a twenty per cent discount. Buy three at the same time and get thirty per cent off.

Walk Talk Tour, London visitor guides represent excellent value for people travelling in groups and parties.

With a Walk Talk Tour, London iPod travel guide, you're in charge. No need to feel like you stick out like a sore thumb with a guidebook in your hands, or struggle to keep up - let alone hear the tour party leader with the umbrella. To hear an audio sample from the Museums, Galleries & The Performing Arts mp3 guided tour please click here. Each Walk Talk Tour podcast guided tour comes complete with a downloadable map, so you won't miss a thing.

All of the Walk Talk Tour podcast guided tours of London - with the exception of the longer City & South Bank Circular mp3 guided tour - can be completed in two hours. Unlike conventional sightseeing, listeners to a Walk Talk Tour audio walking tour are free to take as little or as long as they want to explore the sights along each tour's route.

Make the most of your Walk Talk Tour London city walking tour by checking out our Where & When pages, which provide information about the admission prices and opening times of attraction along each tour's route.

Tate Modern Extension: Will bigger be better?

The architects responsible for Britain's most popular art gallery, the Tate Modern, have unveiled plans to nearly double the South Bank attraction's floor space. The Swiss architects, Herzog and de Meuron, plan to create a brick pyramid which will stand 213 feet (65metres) high.

The original plans (also drawn up by Herzog and de Meuron) for an extension to the iconic gallery would have seen the creation of a huge glass pyramid.

The new plan to create a brick ziggurat will cost £215 million ($430million). The new brick design is far more in keeping with Sir Giles Gilbert Scott's power station. Edwin Heathcote wrote in The Financial Times on 19 July that the design is: "A near-solid brick base with a single vertical slot echoes the bulk of the power station, while the series of slits lightens the structure. The brick and extensive natural ventilation also make this a far more sustainable proposal."

Independent travellers in London can hear about the history of Giles Gilbert Scott's building and the Tate's subsequent acquisition of it, once it had been decommissioned on the Ride & Stride, London city walking tour.

Tate Modern opened in 2000. The power station designed by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott closed in 1981. The architects preserved the building's external appearance.

Exhibitions at the Tate Modern regularly grab headlines. Remember Doris Salcedo's Shibboleth, a great crack that cut through the former power station's giant Turbine Hall? More recently, a British born artist recently received funding to stage Work No.850. Martin Creed has devised a programme where according to a Tate Britain press release: "A person will sprint as fast as they can every 30 seconds through the 86 metre gallery at the heart of Tate Britain. Each run is followed by an equivalent pause, like a musical rest, during which the gallery is empty."

Visitors can catch a glimpse of the runners until 1 November.

Get to grips with the capital's history - and do your bit for the environment and your waistline, too - with the Ride & Stride mp3 guided tour. The tour begins with a ride on a much loved London icon, an old Routemaster bus (please note the cost of the ticket for the bus ride is not included in the tour). Get off at St Paul's Cathedral. Hear about the Cathedral's architect Sir Christopher Wren. Then continue your tour across the River Thames via the Millennium Bridge. Hear about Tate Modern and why Shakespeare's Globe Theatre was built on the South Bank. Discover how the efforts of an American led to a new Globe been built.

Step inside a recreated prison at the Clink Museum and see a replica of the Golden Hinde. Hear about the gory history of London Bridge. Take a look at HMS Belfast and the London Mayor's seat of power, City Hall. Then cross over to the North Bank of the Thames via Tower Bridge, before concluding your tour outside the once infamous Tower of London. To hear an audio sample from the Ride & Stride podcast guided tour please click here.

There are five Walk Talk Tours of London. Each Walk Talk Tour audio downloadable walking tour of the English capital is available in English, French, German and Spanish. Each Walk Talk Tour also has an accompanying Where & When page, which provides information about the opening times and admission charges of key attractions en route.

Each Walk Talk Tour is divided into commentary points. Listeners will hear about a particular landmark, like the Tate Modern, and then they will receive instructions explaining how to get to the next commentary point. Listeners will then be asked to press pause. Walk Talk Tourists then press play when they reach the next destination on their tour. In addition, each Walk Talk Tour comes complete with a downloadable tour plan (map), so you won't miss a thing.

Unlike on a conventional guided tour with a Walk Talk Tour iPod travel guide you're in charge. Sightseeing with children? Are there times when they drive you to distraction? With a Walk Talk Tour you can stop and start your tour as you see fit.

Each Walk Talk Tour of London costs just £5.95. Customers purchasing two tours simultaneously will receive a twenty per cent discount. Buy three at the same time and receive a thirty per cent discount.

Tower Bridge set for £4m makeover

Tower Bridge is one of London's most photographed icons. The famous bridge is set to have its increasingly down-at-heel exterior stripped down to its original base. Then over 20,000 litres of blue and white paint will be applied to the bridge. The work is due to commence this month and is scheduled to take three years to complete.

The operations manager at Tower Bridge, Eric Sutherns, told The Times (Monday, 14 July)the bridge would not be totally encased in scaffolding. "People will still be able to take their photo from angles where you can't see the work going on."

The bill for the work will be £4 million, but taxpayers will not have to foot the bill. The restoration will be paid for by the Bridge House Estate. The Estate was established by monks, and, according to The Times it is now worth some £700 million.

Tower Bridge opened to the public in 1894. The 244 metre long structure was designed by Sir Horace Jones, an architect, and John Wolfe Barry, an engineer. The bridge was deemed necessary to cope with the ever growing volume of goods and people crossing the river.

Originally, Tower Bridge was painted brown. It was given a coat of red, white and blue paint in 1977 to mark the Queen's Jubilee.

Visitors to London can hear about Tower Bridge's history with the Ride & Stride, London walking tour or the City & South Bank Circular audio downloadable walking tour. To hear an audio sample from the City & South Bank Circular, London travel guide, please click here.

There are five Walk Talk Tours of London. All of the London visitor guides are available in English, French, German and Spanish. All of the London iPod travel guides with the exception of the longer City & South Bank Circular can be completed in two hours.

A Walk Talk Tour audio downloadable walking tour is not like a conventional walking tour. With a Walk Talk Tour you're in charge. No need to struggle to keep up - let alone hear or understand - the tour guide with the umbrella. No need to feel conspicuous with a guidebook in your hands.

Sightseeing with children? Do they drive you to distraction? With a Walk Talk Tour you can stop and start as you see fit. If the weather takes a turn for the worse, you can visit one of the numerous attractions on each tour's route and then resume your tour once the clouds have lifted.

Make the most of your Walk Talk Tour podcast guided tour by checking our Where & When pages - which accompany each tour - to find out the opening times and admission charges of key attraction on each tour's route.

Walk Talk Tours are divided into commentary points. Listeners will hear about the personalities and history behind landmarks and lesser known buildings. Walk Talk Tourists then receive instructions which inform them as to how to reach their next commentary point. Simply press pause and then play once you reach your next commentary point. Each Walk Talk Tour comes complete with a downloadable map, so you won't miss a thing! Each commentary point corresponds to the same number on the map. For example, Tower Bridge is commentary point Twelve on the Ride & Stride mp3 guided tour.

Each Walk Talk Tour of London costs just £5.95. Customers purchasing two tours simultaneously will receive a twenty per cent discount. Buy three at the same time and get thirty per cent off.

Hadrian to storm British Museum

The latest temporary exhibition at the British Museum opens in a few days time, on 24 July. The exhibition entitled Hadrian: Empire and Conflict will allow visitors to view over 200 exhibits loaned from more than 30 countries. The venue for the exhibition is the Museum's magnificent Reading Room.

Who was Hadrian? Many of you will remember him as the Roman Emperor who had a wall at the northern most point of the empire named after him, which stretched from the Solway Firth in the east to Wallsend, on the River Tyne, in the west (about 75 miles/120km). Hadrian was the Roman Emperor from 117AD to 138AD.

The Spanish born, Publius Aelius Hadrianus, held important posts in Rome. After Hadrian's father died, one of his uncles, the future emperor, Trajan, became his guardian. Hadrian became second-in-command, accompanying Trajan on military campaigns. When Trajan died, Hadrian was proclaimed emperor.

Hadrian loved Greek civilization. He succeeded in unifying and strengthening Rome's grip on its empire.

Visitors to the British Museum will be able to see a diverse range of artefacts from Hadrian's reign. Rachel Campbell-Johnson wrote in The Times, on 16 July, that: "The British Museum now assembles a spectacular show whose exhibits range from the heftiest stone pieces to the most fragile slips of papyrus with anything from portrait sculptures, through stone inscriptions and architectural models, to coins and mosaic pieces in between."

Independent travellers in London can enjoy Hadrian: Empire and Conflict until 26 October. Why not hear about the history of some of London's cultural highlights with the Museums, Galleries & Performing Arts audio downloadable walking tour? The walk can be completed in two hours, though with a Walk Talk Tour you can spend as little or as long as you want exploring the sights.

The tour begins outside the National Gallery on Trafalgar Square, before guiding listeners to Leicester Square via the National Portrait Gallery. From Leicester Square Continue your Walk Talk Tour, London walking tour, to St Martin's Theatre site of the world's longest running play, before walking on to Long Acre (site of the world's first television broadcast) before reaching Covent Garden. To hear an audio sample from the Museums, Galleries & Performing Arts, London iPod travel guide please click here.

Feel free to stop and soak up the ambiance of London's Mecca to street theatre. With a Walk Talk Tour you're in charge. No need to look conspicuous with a guidebook in your hands or struggle to follow - let alone hear - the tour guide with the umbrella. Sightseeing with children? Are they driving you to distraction? Simply stop and refuel (or allow the rain clouds to clear) and then resume your tour.

Make the most of your Walk Talk Tour, London city guide, by checking out our Where & When pages which provide information on opening times and admission charges of key attraction on each tour's route, like the British Museum.

Listeners to the Museums, Galleries & Performing Arts tour proceed from Covent Garden via the London Transport Museum and the Royal Opera House. Hear about the Blind Beak and his brother on Bow Street, before walking to Thomas Neal's. Then walk the final leg of the tour to the British Museum.

There are five Walk Talk Tours of London. Each London travel guide is available in English, French, German and Spanish. Each Walk Talk Tour comes with a downloadable map, so you won't miss a thing.

Each Walk Talk Tour of London costs just £5.95. Customers purchasing two tours simultaneously will receive a twenty per cent discount. Buy three at the same time and receive a thirty per cent discount. Walk Talk Tours represent excellent value for people sightseeing in groups and parties, too.

Buckingham Palace: On this Day...

The administrative centre of the Monarchy was in the spotlight for all the wrong reasons on this day, 9 July, in 1982. Michael Fagan managed to evade security measures, climb up a drain pipe and enter the Queen's bedroom.

The Queen talked with Mr Fagan for ten minutes or so, before she was able to call a footman - when Mr Fagan went for a cigarette break. The footman then detained the barefooted trespasser until Police arrived.

The Queen should have happier memories of 9 July, too, as it was on this day in 1947 that Princess Elizabeth, as she then was, and Lt Philip Mountbatten became engaged to be married.

Breaches of royal security, although rare, understandably grab attention. Many of you may remember when the self styled Comedy Terrorist (surely a contradiction in terms) managed to breach security at Windsor Castle and gatecrash Prince William's 21st birthday party.

Visitors to London often want to see the pageantry associated with the Royal Family. Independent travellers can undertake the coronation procession in reverse, from Westminster Abbey up Whitehall - via the Houses of Parliament and Big Ben, 10 Downing Street and Horseguards - then under Admiralty Arch and along the Mall to Buckingham Palace with the Palace Trail audio downloadable walking tour. The Palace Trail guides listeners through St James's Park (rather than straight down the full length of the Mall).

The route is steeped in history. At Westminster Abbey hear about the origins of the term robbing Peter to pay Paul. Hear why the Houses of Parliament's official name is the New Palace of Westminster. In Parliament Square see where two giant statesmen of the modern era are commemorated. To hear an audio sample from the Palace Trail, featuring an extract about Sir Winston Churchill, please click here.

The Mall was filled with over one million people crowed onto the Mall in June 2002 to celebrate the Queen's Golden Jubilee.

Visitors to London can still enjoy regal London at its best at Horseguards and outside Buckingham Palace. Mounting the Guard takes place at Horseguards and Changing the Guard takes place at Buckingham Palace. Check out our Where & When pages to find out when the ceremonies are due to occur.

There are five Walk Talk Tours of London. Each of the London iPod travel guides is available in English, French, German and Spanish.

Each Walk Talk Tour is divided into commentary points. Listeners receive instructions explaining how to get from one commentary point to the next. In addition, each Walk Talk Tour, London city guide comes complete with a downloadable map - for you to print off - so you won't miss a thing. Each commentary point is numbered on the map, so, for example, on the Palace Trail, Westminster Abbey is labelled 1.

With a Walk Talk Tour you're in charge. No need to feel too overtly like a tourist with a guidebook in your hands or struggle to follow - let alone hear - the tour guide with an umbrella.

Each Walk Talk of London costs £5.95. Customers purchasing two tours simultaneously will receive a twenty per cent discount. Buy three at the same time and receive thirty per cent off. Walk Talk Tours represent excellent value for people travelling in groups and parties, too.

All of the tours with the exception of the longer City & South Bank Circular mp3 guided tour can be completed in two hours, but you're free to take as little or as long exploring the attractions en route.

British Museum Top of the Pops

The British Museum attracted in excess of 6 million visitors in 2007, making it Britain's top cultural attraction, according to a report published on 1 July. The British Museum attracted 6.04 million visitors, pushing Blackpool and the Tate Modern into the silver and bronze medal positions in terms of visitor numbers with the former attracting 5.5 million punters and the latter 5.23 million.

The First Emperor Exhibition proved a huge hit with museum goers from across the UK and visitors from abroad. The First Emperor Exhibition complete with its collection of 2,000 year old Terracotta Warriors attracted in excess of 850,000 visitors. The Terracotta Army was created to protect the First Emperor Qin Shihuang in the next, or afterlife. The Terracotta Army was stumbled upon in 1974. The Times reported in an article published on 1 July that during the Exhibition's run the British Museum's ticket office "was inundated with as many as 180 calls an hour, hordes of visitors queued from as early as 5.30am to be sure of getting one of the 500 day tickets released almost four hours later."

Independent travellers in London can hear about the history of the British Museum with the Museums, Galleries & Performing Arts audio downloadable walking tour. Listeners will hear how Sir Henry Sloane's vast collection of antiquities formed the basis of the Museum's original collection when it opened 249 years ago. Hear which famous nineteenth and twentieth century social theorists studied in the Reading Room in the centre of the courtyard. The heart of the Reading Room is the King's Library, which is so named because the books in it were donated by King George IV.

See the capital's first covered public square, the magnificent Queen Elizabeth II Great Court, which was designed by the award winning architect, Sir Norman Foster and his firm, Foster and Partners. The Queen officially opened the Great Atrium in December, 2000.

To hear an audio sample from the Museums, Galleries & Performing Arts podcast gudied tour please click here.

Visitors to London can see the Millennium Bridge and City Hall on the Ride & Stride and the City & South Bank & Circular, London iPod travel guides.

With a Walk Talk Tour, London travel guide you're in charge. No need to struggle to keep up with the tour guide with the umbrella or feel conspicuous with a guidebook in your hands. Sightseeing with children? If they're driving you to distraction - or the heavens open - simply pause your tour and resume it when you've recharged your batteries or escaped the worst of the weather.

Each individual Walk Talk Tour has a Where & When page detailing the opening times and admission costs (where applicable) of key attractions on each tour's route.

Each Walk Talk Tour, London city guide comes complete with detailed instructions describing how you can get from A to B and a downloadable map - for you to print off - so you won't miss a thing!
In addition, the five audio downloadable walking tours of London have been translated into French, German and Spanish.

Walk Talk Tours also allows visitors and locals alike to go walk about in Edinburgh, York and Manchester.

Tower Bridge rises to the occasion

London's Tower Bridge was officially opened on 30 June, 1894. The Bridge is a London icon.

In 1884, Sir Horace Jones, an architect, and John Wolfe Barry, an engineer, beat over 50 other entrants in a public competition to design a new bridge downstream from London Bridge. Jones and Barry's design did not restrict access to the then bustling 'Pool of London', the stretch of water between Tower Bridge and London Bridge. The 244 metre long structure was built to provide extra capacity for the ever increasing volume of human traffic and goods, in late nineteenth century London, which crossed the river Thames.

Tower Bridge is easy on the eye, in part, thanks to the attractive granite and Portland stone cladding around the steel framework of the towers. Visitors to Tower Bridge can enjoy great views of London from the Bridge's walkways in the Tower Bridge Exhibition.

Independent travellers in London can hear about some of the interesting incidents that have taken place on or above Tower Bridge with one of two audio downloadable walking tours. The Ride & Stride iPod travel guide begins near Trafalgar Square and takes listeners on journey along the South Bank via St Paul's Cathedral, the Millennium Bridge, the Tate Modern, Globe Theatre, London Bridge, HMS Belfast, City Hall, before returning to the North Bank of the Thames via Tower Bridge. The Ride & Stride, London city guide concludes outside the Tower of London. To hear an audio sample from the Ride & Stride mp3 guided tour please click here.

Legend has it that Robert McCulloch, the man who bought the old London Bridge in 1968, dismantled it and then transported it to Lake Havasu City, Arizona, believed he was actually purchasing Tower Bridge. Both McCulloch and the man selling London Bridge, Ivan Luckin, denied this claim.

The Ride & Stride podcast guided tour can be completed in two hours, but visitors are free to spend as little or as long as they wish to explore the sights. The City & South Bank Circular, London visitor guide also takes in Tower Bridge. This podcast travel guide will take a minimum of three hours to complete.

All five of the London Walk Talk Tours are available in English, French, German and Spanish. Each tour is divided into commentary points. Listeners receive instructions telling them how to reach their next commentary point. Listeners are then asked to press pause and then press play once they have reached their next commentary point. Each Walk Talk Tour downloadable travel guide comes complete with a map of the route - for you to print off - so you won't miss a thing!

With a Walk Talk Tour you're in charge. No need to struggle to follow - let alone hear - the man with the umbrella, or feel conspicuous with a guidebook in your hands. Each Walk Talk Tour of London costs just £5.95. Walk Talk Tours represent excellent value for people travelling in groups and parties.

Canadians to Rock Trafalgar Square

Canadians in London will be able to celebrate their national day in Trafalgar Square this Monday, 30 June and on Canada Day itself, Tuesday, 1 July. Londoners, Canadian expats and visitors will have the chance to sample Canadian food and listen to live music from Canadian performers in the traditional place for mass gatherings in central London.

On Monday, 30 June, a free open air concert in Trafalgar Square starts at 19:45. The event is ticket only and all the tickets have been snapped up. Fear not, for visitors will be able to get a feel for all things Canadian in Trafalgar Square from 11am on Canada Day itself. At midday sightseers can watch as street hockey teams compete for the Trafalgar Cup. Try a bit of Canadian food or listen to stand ups from the Just for Laughs Festival who will perform in the Quebec Pavilion.

Trafalgar Square regularly plays host to events of one sort or another. Londoners rejoiced on hearing that their city had won the race to stage the Summer Olympics in 2012. Sightseers flock to the Square on a daily basis.

Independent travellers in London can explore the UK's capital with one of five Walk Talk Tour downloadable visitor guides of London. The five London downloadable travel guides are available in English, French, German and Spanish. Visitors wanting to sample British pageantry at its best can enjoy Mounting the Guard at Horse Guards and Changing the Guard at Buckingham Palace. For more information on the opening times of attractions along the Palace Trail's route - including information about Changing the Guard - please click on our Where & When page.

Listeners to the Palace Trail audio downloadable walking tour can discover when the lion's at the foot of Nelson's Column were installed. Hear where London's smallest police station was once based and find out about some of the demonstrations that have turned nasty in the Square in the past.

Each Walk Talk Tour, London city guide comes complete with an easy to follow downloadable map, so you won't miss a thing. Sick of standing out like a tourist when you're sightseeing with a guidebook in your hands? Struggle to keep up - let alone hear - you're tour guide. With a Walk Talk Tour, London tour guide you're in charge.

Nelson Mandela's Capital Show

The most iconic statesman in the world will celebrate his 90th birthday in Hyde Park, London, today (Friday, 27 July) before an adoring crowd. Acts including Annie Lennox, Leona Lewis, Razorlight, Jamelia and Simple Minds will perform in an event which the Queen, Gordon Brown and Bill Clinton will attend. Nelson Mandela has arrived in the British capital for his birthday bash - even though his birthday is not until 18 July - which is designed to raise money for his 46664 campaign which promotes awareness of HIV-Aids in his native Africa. The number 46664 denotes Mandela's prison number while he was incarcerated on Robben Island, during Apartheid.

Prior to his imprisonment as leader of the ANC, Nelson Mandela, visited London in the 1962. Mandela recalled how on a visit to Parliament Square in 1962 he and his friend and fellow civil rights activist, Oliver Tambo, had joked about the prospect of a statue of a black person being erected here. Two years later he was imprisoned for his anti-apartheid activism and remained there for 26 years, until 1990. The plaudits have come thick and fast for Nelson Mandela since, who is now rightly lauded as a man of peace and reconciliation. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for Peace in 1993 and the following year he made history when he became South Africa's first black president.

In August 2007, Mandela unveiled a 2.7 metre high statue of himself in Parliament Square. Things have not all been plain sailing for Mandela he has lost a son to HIV-Aids and has recently been criticised for failing to speak out sooner, and in more vocal terms, about the violence and intimidation in Zimbabwe.

Independent travellers in London might not be able to secure a ticket to the Hyde Park concert, but they can still see Mandela's statue and learn about some of the other greats commemorated in Parliament Square with the Palace Trail, audio downloadable walking tour. To hear an audio sample (featuring a put down by Winston Churchill) from the Palace Trail, mp3 guided tour, please click here.

The Palace Trail begins outside Westminster Abbey. Listeners hear about plotting, fires and politics at the Houses of Parliament and learn about the iconic Big Ben, before hearing about Parliament Square. Walk Talk Tourists will hear about the Cenotaph, Downing Street and Horse Guards site of Mounting the Guard. The tour continues via Charing Cross to Trafalgar Square - where another famous Nelson, Admiral Horatio, is commemorated. The tour then continues under Admirality Arch to St James's Park before ending in front of Buckingham Palace. Sounds a lot? The tour can comfortably be completed in two hours, but with a Walk Talk Tour, you're free to spend as little or as long exploring the attractions en route. You can always consult our Where & When pages, which provide information on the opening times of attractions along each tour's route.

There are five Walk Talk Tours of London, which are available in English, French, German and Spanish. With a Walk Talk Tour, London travel guide, you're in charge. No need to stick out like a sore thumb with a guidebook in your hands, or struggle to follow like a lemming the man with the umbrella. Let alone hear what he or she says.

Each Walk Talk Tour podcasted guided tour comes complete with an easy to follow downloadable map - for you to print off - so you won't miss a thing.

Walk Talk Tours represent excellent value for people travelling in groups and parties. Each individual Walk Talk Tour of London costs just £5.95.

In addition there are two Walk Talk Tours of Edinburgh, and a Walk Talk Tour of York and a Walk Talk Tour of Manchester.

Must See London: Buckingham Palace

Queen Victoria was the first Sovereign to take up residence in Buckingham Palace in 1837. She acceded the throne 151 years ago today. King George III bought Buckingham House in 1761 and began the work on converting the residence into a palace.

Buckingham Palace is not the Queen’s only official residence – Her Majesty also has the use of Windsor Castle and the Palace of Holyroodhouse, in Edinburgh – but it is the most widely recognised of her official residences and is also the administrative centre of the Monarchy.

Buckingham Palace has almost 800 rooms. Nineteen of the rooms are State Rooms which are used for official business. When she is in residence, the Queen holds a weekly private audience with the Prime Minister at the Palace.

Visitors to London can undertake the Coronation Procession (from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Abbey) in reverse with the Walk Talk Tour, Palace Trail audio downloadable travel guide.

Queen Victoria made the first recorded royal appearance on the balcony, in 1851, during celebrations marking the beginning of the Great Exhibition of that year. The balcony of Buckingham Palace has often played host to celebrations marking momentous events and special occasions, such as the end of World War Two. Members of the Royal Family appeared before crowds on VE Day, 9 May, 1945. They were joined by Winston Churchill. More recently, on 12 June, 2002, the Queen and her offspring and grandchildren celebrated her Golden Jubilee on the balcony before a crowd in the Mall estimated to be a million strong.

To hear an audio sample from the Palace Trail, London city guide, featuring an example of Churchill's masterful oratory and wicked sense of humour, please click here.

The Palace's State Rooms will be open to members of the public from 29 July - 29 September. Visitors to the capital can still enjoy the Changing the Guard, before the Palace is open to members of the public. For information on the dates and time of the ceremony, please look at our Where & When pages.

There are five Walk Talk Tours of London. The London travel guides are available in English, French, German and Spanish. Each professionally produced iPod travel guide comes complete with clear verbal instructions as to how to get from A to B and also a downloadable map of the route, so you won't miss a thing!

Each Walk Talk Tour consists of commentary points. Listeners hear a commentary about a particular attraction and then receive instructions directing them to their next commentary point, before pressing pause. Independent travellers press play when they reach their next commentary point.

With a Walk Talk Tour downloadable travel guide you're in charge. No need to struggle to follow - let alone hear - the man with the umbrella or stick out like a sore thumb with a guidebook in your hands.

The Palace Trail mp3 guided tour and the other Walk Talk Tour London audio walking tours cost just £5.95 each. Customers purchasing two tours simultaneously will receive a twenty per cent discount. Buy three at the same time and receive a thirty per cent discount.

Queen Elizabeth II 55 Not Out

Fifty-five years ago today, Elizabeth II was crowned Queen of Great Britain and Northern Ireland in a ceremony at Westminster Abbey. She was twenty-five years old at the time. The Queen is also the head of fifteen other Commonwealth realms. Elizabeth ascended the throne after her father, King George VI died on 6th February, 1952. Why the long wait before the coronation? The weather was a factor in waiting until 2nd June before staging the procession and coronation ceremony. At the time, the date was statistically the sunniest of the year. Needless to say, it rained!

Nevertheless, more than 20 million people tuned in to watch the BBC’s coverage of the ceremony. Many Britons had their first taste of television that day. An estimated three million well wishers lined London’s streets in a bid to catch sight of the new Sovereign in the gold state coach.

The Queen is now 82 years old. She is held in high regard by many Britons from all walks of life. Her decorum, tact and knowledge of world affairs have proved useful for the eleven different British Prime Ministers who have served during her reign. The first British Prime Minister to serve during the Queen’s reign was Sir Winston Churchill. Churchill was voted Britain’s Greatest ever Briton in a BBC poll a few years ago. To hear an audio sample from the Palace Trail iPod travel guide featuring Churchill please click here.

The Palace Trail, London city guide is one of five Walk Talk Tours of the UK’s capital. All five mp3 guided tours are available in French, German and Spanish. Each tour comes complete with a downloadable map. For more information about all of the London podcast guided tours please click here.

Independent travelers in London can learn about Westminster Abbey’s rich history on the Palace Trail London travel guide. The Palace Trail mp3 guided tour follows the coronation procession in reverse: the trail begins at Westminster Abbey heads up Whitehall via Parliament Square and then under Admiralty Arch to Buckingham Palace. Unlike Elizabeth fifty-five years ago, Walk Talk Tourists have the opportunity to walk through St James’s Park along the Diana Princess of Wales Memorial Way before reaching Buckingham Palace.

The image to the left shows the Changing of the Guard.The Queen’s Birthday Parade – more commonly known as Trooping the Colour – takes place this year on Saturday, 14th June at Horse Guards Parade. Unfortunately, the event is ticket only. However, visitors can obtain a good view of the parade from the Mall and St James’s Park.

On the 4th and 5th June, the Massed Bands of the Household Division Beat Retreat on Horse Guards Parade, before the Queen, who takes the salute, accompanied by other members of the royal family.

The Palace Trail downloadable travel guide’s Where & When pages provide information on the Changing of the Guard at Horse Guards and Buckingham Palace.

Tate Modern embraces Street Art

Six acclaimed international artists will have their works on display at the Tate Modern from 23rd May - 25th August, 2008. The artists' urban themed art will be the first to adorn the Tate Modern's distinctive facade.

Just like watching the Arsenal? However, like the Arsenal team there's not a Brit in sight. The mysterious Banksy would surely have made a good fist of decorating the Tate Modern's facade. The line up is impressive, nevertheless. Italian Blu, JR (from France) and Sixeart (Spain), Brazilians Nunca and Os Gemeos and US collective Faile.

Better still, the majority of it is free to enjoy, though some of the exhibitions do charge admission fees.

Visitors sightseeing in London can enjoy visiting the former power station with a Walk Talk Tour mp3 guided tour. The Gallery opened in May 2000. To hear an audio sample from the South Bank Circular downloadable travel guide please click here.

Listeners to the Ride and Stride podcast guided tour can learn about some of the other highlights on the South Bank. Find out why the original Globe Theatre ended up on the South Bank of the Thames with the City & South Bank Circular iPod travel guide or the Ride and Stride city guide. The present Globe opened in 1996 and owed much to the tenacity of one individual - Sam Wanamaker. Discover the origins of the phrases 'Winchester geese' and 'in the clink' in your own time, with a Walk Talk Tour travel guide.

There are five Walk Talk Tour mp3 guided tours of London for you to enjoy. Each London tour costs £5.95 and there are discounts for purchasing more than one tour at a time. Significant discounts are available for groups and parties.

Each Walk Talk Tour city guide comes complete with a downloadable map. The five London walks are available in English, French, German and Spanish.