Stalking Mulberries in London's East End

11.00am-1.00pm Sunday 23 September Start: Stepney Finish: Victoria Park

Dr. Peter Coles has been unearthing the history, the myths and truths behind London mulberry trees.  We are delighted that he has found some time to reprise a walk he did in London Tree Week in 2017, seeking out the history of mulberries and how they shaped the East end of London, from Stepney Green to Victoria Park.  It is not all heritage however, some of it is very current, as one of London’s oldest surviving mulberry trees is under threat by the redevelopment of the London Chest Hospital.

Book now to join Peter on this intriguing walk, this coming Sunday (23 September) – book here – and remember, you can avoid a booking fee by using the PayPal button.

London’s ‘Pedway‘ was to be a 30 mile network of pedestrian only routes on bridges, terraces and walkways several feet above the ground (see photo above).  This network was to provide safe routes for pedestrians in the City of London, away from the traffic, so that the traffic could flow unimpeded.

Begun in the early 1960s, and as much inspired by pedestrian terraces of the Festival of Britain, on the Southbank a decade earlier, as they were by the architect Courbusier or town planner, Buchanan.  The network was never realised, in fact there were only ever some short sections, the most enduring being the ‘high walks’ of the Barbican centre.  In part it was found to be unpopular with pedestrians, while it was also left up to individual developers to add to the network as they constructed new buildings (some of whom chose not do so). Read more about what we uncovered.