Soon, the Beers London art gallery in Little Britain (near London’s Smithfield Market) will be closing its doors for the last time. Its final exhibition, works by several artists, will end on 29 August 2026.
Over the years, we have been visiting Beers, and always made to feel welcome by Kurt, its owner and his assistant, Rebecca. He has a very good eye, and has been exhibiting works by promising, often not too well-known, artists. We have never been disappointed by what we have seen at his gallery.
A few days ago, we were invited to the private view of his final show, which we attended. Kurt welcomed us warmly, and explained that the art market in London is declining rapidly – there is little money around for buying art at present.
After viewing the show, we said goodbye to Kurt, and wished him well for the future.
As we walked away from the gallery, I had a lump in my throat. I had not imagined that the closing of an art gallery would have seemed so sad and affect me so much.
TRAGICALLY, my friend the art historian and author, Michael, died twelve years ago. I had known him since 1964, when the film “Goldfinger” was released in the UK. By a strange coincidence he was born on the same day in October as my mother, and his mother was born on the same day in May as I was. He studied art history at London’s Courtauld Institute, where he also completed his doctorate. His doctoral supervisor was the Director of the Courtauld, the art historian and Keeper of the Queen’s Pictures, Sir Anthony Blunt (1907-1983), who was eventually unmasked as a Soviet Russian agent. When Michael was studying at the Courtauld, it was housed in Home House on London’s Portman Square. I never managed to visit Michael there, but since his demise, I have been there three times.
Originally, Home House was built for Elizabeth, Countess of Home (c1703-1784), a Jamaican born heiress. The edifice, which was completed during her lifetime, was designed by the famous architect Robert Adam (1728-1782). He is famed for having designed not only buildings, but also their interior décor and furniture as well as many small details (e.g., door handles). After a series of owners, Home House was leased in 1926 by the industrialist and art collector Samuel Courtauld (1876-1947) to house his then growing art collection. In 1931, following his wife’s death, he gave Home House to the then young Courtauld Institute of Art, which he helped to found.
The Institute remained in Home House until it shifted to its current home, Somerset House, in 1989. Home House stayed unoccupied until 1998, when it was extensively and beautifully restored and became a private members’ social club, called, unsurprisingly, Home House.
Of all the Adam designed structures I have visited, and these include Kenwood House, Osterley Park, Kedleston Hall, Pountney Bridge, The Adelphi Buildings, and Lutin Hoo, the restored Home House has the best set of Adam designed interiors I have seen. Today, unless you are a member of the club or a member’s guest, it is not otherwise possible to enter this gorgeous mansion; And it was an honour that a friend of ours, a member of the club, has invited us there on several occasions.
After our most recent visit to Home House, I could not help wonderin whether its present reincarnation would have met with my friend Michael’s approval. I have a sneaking feeling that he would have enjoyed what it has become.
LONDON IS NOT one the world’s cheapest places for eating out. It is not difficult to spend a great deal of money on a meal that is far from satisfactory, and many visitors to London find that this is the case. I am a Londoner. I want to share a few places with you that offer good food at prices that are very reasonable by London standards. Some of them serve alcohol, which invariably will hike up the final cost of a meal. All of them have been serving customers for many years, but given the economic situation in the UK, one can never be sure for how much longer they will remain in business. Having warned you about this, here is my list, which was up to date when I wrote this in August 2026.
Beigel Bake (159 Brick Lane, London E1 6SB). Open 24 hours a day, this is no ordinary bakery. It does sell delicious breads and pastries, but this is not what makes it special. There is usually a long queue of customers waiting to order generously filled beigels. The fillings include smoked salmon, chopped herring, and freshly made salt beef. The salt beef is some of the best I have ever eaten, and when served with pickled gherkins and strong English mustard, as it is at Beigel Bake, it is superb. PS: near Beigel Bake, there is another place, Beigel Shop, which I cannot recommend.
Lisboa Patisserie (57 Golborne Road, London W10 5NR). With a mural of Azulejo tiling, this Portuguese establishment serves good coffee at below average prices. It also has a wide range of sweet pastries, as well as the famous ‘pastel de nata’. There are many savoury snacks available including a range of croquettes (meat, prawn, salted cod) and sandwiches (some of the fillings include Portuguese smoked ham, pork escalopes, and chicken escalopes). Everything is reasonably priced in this tiny Portuguese enclave. And facing it across the road, is the Lisboa Delicatessen, where a wonderful range of foods from Portugal can be purchased.
Falafel King (95 Golborne Road, London W10 5NL). Not far from Lisboa Patisserie, this outlet serves delicious wraps containing freshly made falafels.
Cafe Maja (238-246 King Street, London W6 0RF). Located at the western end of POSK, the Polish cultural centre in Hammersmith, this restaurant is one of my favourites. It serves superbly prepared Polish dishes at very acceptable prices. Whether you want a simple meal of beautiful borscht, or a hearty meal including meat, vegetables, and salads, you will not be disappointed. Polish food is often thought to be heavy, but what is served at this place is delicious, filling, but made with a delicate touch. And if you want desserts, there is always a selection of tempting Polish cakes and pastries. This place is well worth a detour.
Sagar (37 Panton Street, Leicester Square, London SW1Y 4EA). This vegetarian restaurant serves very acceptable, reasonably priced South Indian fare in a pleasant, modern dining room. You can order chaats, dosas, idlis, vadas, rasam, thalis, dal, and more. Although much more costly than in India, these authentic tasting dishes are not highly priced by London standards, And as a bonus, this place is in the heart of the West End, near Leicester Square.
Mani’s (12 Perrin’s Ct, London NW3 1QS). This very popular eatery (avoid on weekends as it gets too busy) in Hampstead village caters for a wide range of tastes, and does it well. You can have everything from cooked breakfasts, sandwiches, wraps, and salads to wholesome lunch dishes. I particularly enjoy their Caesar Salad topped with grilled chicken. The menu is too vast for me to describe everything that is available at what I consider to be the best place to eat in Hampstead.
Raavi Kebab (125 Drummond Street, London NW1 2HL). This unpretentious, hardly decorated restaurant is a place for carnivores! Raavi’s serves North Indian dishes. Their biryani is great as is the fried fish (lightly dusted with turmeric and chilli powder before being cooked). At the front of the restaurant there is a charcoal grill. The kebabs (chicken, lamb, and seekh) prepared on the grill are excellent. Other more complicated dishes are available, but those I have mentioned are my favourites.
Caphe House (114 Bermondsey Street, London SE1 3TX). This charming place in trendy Bermondsey Street serves Vietnamese dishes, all of which are tasty, refreshing, and enjoyable. Customers can customise their pho, rice, and noodle dishes, making them vegetarian or otherwise. Banh mi baguettes. Summer rolls, and other Vietnamese food items are also available. To round off the meal, try a Vietnamese coffee. And if you are not worried about calories, go for the egg coffee, which tastes a bit like Italian zabaglione.
Rye Lane Market (48 Rye Lane, London SE15 5BY). This amazing place in South London contains a food court with a difference. As the market’s website (https://ryelanemarket.com/food) explained: “The food hall brings together independent kitchens serving Mexican, Peruvian, Caribbean, Indian, Colombian and other cuisines, plus desserts, juice bars and specialty coffee.” In addition to the Carribean and Latin American food stalls, there are several serving dishes typical of various African cuisines. My favourite stall is the Colombian kitchen, where mouthwatering dishes are prepared by a husband and wife team while you wait. On weekday lunchtimes, most of their quite substantial, tasty dishes are served at a special reduced price. It is well worth making a special expedition to this lovely market and its wonderful food court, which unlike so many other food courts, is completely devoid of branches of fast food chains.
Up to this point, I have been recommending places for people who want to eat good food without spending a fortune. The next few places are slightly more expensive, but given their high quality are good value for money.
Mangal 1 (10 Arcola Street, London E8 2DN). London is full of Turkish restaurants, but Mangal 1 is, in my opinion, outstanding. Their meats (lamb and chicken) grilled on a charcoal filled ocakbasi are top class. I particularly enjoy their lokma (rolled lamb fillet), Adana kebab, yogurtlu Adana, and ciger (liver), apart from the yogurtlu dishes, the others are served with generous amounts of mixed salad. One of the many starter dishes which I like is Patlican Salata, which contains grilled aubergines and peppers. But be warned that if you indulge on starters. You might find it difficult to finish the main courses, and it is these that are the ‘stars’ of the meal.
Sporting Club De Londres (27 Elkstone Road, London W10 5NT). From the outside, this place looks like a large garage or warehouse. Step inside, and you will feel as if you have been transported from London to Madeira. But enter only if you have a good appetite because the superbly cooked Portuguese dishes served here are very generous. Everything is good on the menu, from seafood to meat dishes. It is not ultra cheap, but it is very good value, and great fun eating at this haunt of London’s Portuguese community.
Jia (1 Harrington Road, South Kensington, London SW7 3ES). Conveniently close to the South Kensington museums, this Chinese restaurant serves Sichuan dishes. It is popular with Chinese students studying nearby at Imperial College, because the food served at Jia is aimed at the Chinese customers rather than the many tourists who visit the area. For a real treat, order one of the hotpots, which contain enough food for two. Jia is delightfully different from many other (mainly Cantonese) Chinese restaurants in London.
Four Seasons (12 Gerrard Street, W1D 5PR). Located in London’s Chinatown, this is one of many Cantonese restaurants in the area, but one where I have always eaten well. This restaurant is one of several members of a group of Four Seasons restaurants. All of them are noted for the excellence of their roast duck. Although there are many dishes to choose from, my favourite is House Special Fried Noodles. Every time I have ordered it, it has arrived with a different array of seafood and meats. Many other dishes on the menu are worth ordering.
Ciao Bella (86-90 Lamb’s Conduit Street, London WC1N 3LZ). Londo is flooded with restaurants claiming to serve Italian food. Some do it badly, and a minority do it well. Only recently, I ate at Ciao Bella near Russell Square, and the food was really good. Both the pasta and meat dishes would have been quite acceptable had they been served in a trattoria in Italy frequented by locals who know their food. Both my wife and I have spent much time in Italy, and can distinguish between Italian food aimed at foreigners and that which has been prepared for discerning Italian diners. What we ate at Ciao Bella was not only up to the mark, but also not outrageously priced.
Hafez (5 Hereford Road, London W2 4AB). This is a place to see as well as to dine at. This Persian restaurant has the most eccentric interior décor of any restaurant I know. The food served from its extensive menu is quite satisfactory, but not as amazing as the decoration of the room in which you consume it.
Asakusa (265 Eversholt Street, London NW1 1BA). Not far from the popular Camden Market, this quaint Japanese restaurant serves excellent freshly prepared food. Whereas there are many chains serving Japanese food (e.g., Itsu and Wasabi) at supposedly budget prices, they do not provide great quality for the prices they charge. In contrast, Asakusa does give you great quality, and therefore good value for money.
The Champion (1 Wellington Terrace, London W2 4LW). I have travelled all over England in search of a good traditional Sunday roast lunch, and have usually been disappointed. The Champion pub, which is not far from where I live, serves a superb Sunday lunch. The deal is that one orders a platter to be shared by two (hungry) people. This platter contains three expertly roasted, tasty chunks of meat (e.g., lamb, beef, chicken, or pork). The meat is accompanied by a variety of vegetables and the traditional Yorkshire Puddings. And this superb offering is no more costly than the many mediocre Sunday roasts I have eaten elsewhere. Although the Sunday roasts are wonderful at The Champion, I cannot recommend other things I have eaten there.
So, there you have it. You can follow my suggestions or not. I may have omitted many other great places, but those above are ones I know. Once again, I should emphasise that things can change, but I hope that those I have written about neither disappear nor change for the worse.
THE SOAS GALLERY in London’s Bloomsbury is holding an exhibition of traditional textiles from Afghanistan until 19 September 2026. The embroidered items in the show have been lent by the Kiran Thakar Collection.
Some pieces are silk and others wool. Interestingly, there were items that incorporated small mirrors such as also can be found in embroidery in Kachchh (Kutch, western India). At least two exhibits were woven using the ikat technique, also found in Gujarat.
The small, well displayed exhibition is a ‘must’ for anyone interested in Asian textiles, and a joy for those who enjoy beautifully prepared handicrafts.
THE FIRST TIME I visited Paris (France) was with my parents in 1968. We travelled there and back on the Silver Arrow (sleeper) train, which was loaded on to a ferry that plied between Dover and Dunkirk. We tried to sleep in our berths while the train was on board the ship, but I found that difficult mainly because I wanted to watch our train being loaded and unloaded at the channel ports. After returning from Paris, we disembarked from the train at London’s Victoria Station. Immediately after stepping on to the platform, my mother pointed excitedly at a lady exiting the carriage next to ours – our fellow passenger was Sir Winston Churchill’s wife.
During that first visit to Paris, my father pointed out something that sparked my interest. Painted dark green, it was a drinking fountain covered with a decorative dome, which was supported by four sculptures of ladies (caryatids) with bare arms. It was a Wallace Fountain, and after having it pointed out to me, I began spotting them in many parts of Paris,
In 1872 following the Siege of Paris (1870). Sir Richard Wallace paid for 50 of the so-called Wallace Fountains (as described above) to be installed in the city. Each of the drinking fountains is of the same design They were designed by Charles-Auguste Lebourg (1829-1906).
In 1959, a late cast of the of the Wallace Fountain was presented by the London Borough of Shoreditch to Hertford House in London’s Manchester Square. Hertford House is the home of the huge art collection that was established by Sir Richard Wallace, and is now a public art museum – The Wallace Collection. So, it is appropriate that a cast of one of Wallace’s fountains stands close to the Collection’s main entrance.
“c. 1904 four ornate fountains were installed in Shoreditch. This was done through the Metropolitan Drinking Fountain and Cattle Trough Association … Artistically designed water fountains were required and Dudley Fortescue found four designs that he liked, including this Wallace design, which he had seen and liked in Paris. The fountain was made and installed at The Oval, Windsor Terrace, EC1, on 19 July 1904. A newspaper report named an anonymous donor, ‘E. F. F.’. Philanthropic men would sometimes give the name of a close female relative, rather than their own but, still, we cannot find an E. F. F. for Dudley Francis Fortescue, his wife being Lady Camilla Eleanor Fortescue, and the marriage having no issue. Perhaps the ‘E.’ was a misprint for ‘D.’? In 1959, when the fountain had ceased to function, the Wallace Collection asked Shoreditch Council if they could have it for Hertford House and it was installed in its current location in 1960.”
“During the past 150 years there have been few changes to the methods used to manufacture Wallace Fountains. The decorative cast iron process was invented in France by Jean Pierre Victor André who established a successful, award-winning art foundry in 1835 and set up Val d’Osne, a workshop foundry in the Haute Marne region. The Val d’Osne foundry manufactured the first Wallace Fountains in 1872 and Val d’Osne markings can be found on the oldest fountains still operating in Paris.”
Today, the London’s Wallace Fountain is no longer functional, but every time I see it at Manchester Square, it brings back memories of my first of many visits to “The City of Light”.
THE MAUGHAN Library in London’s Chancery Lane is now part of King’s College London. It occupies a mainly nineteenth century building that was (until 1997) the Public Records Office. In 2001, the college acquired the building from the Crown Estate and renovated its interior. The garden facing the main façade of the library is on land part of which was once owned by Clifford’s Inn – a former Inn of Chancery. The garden was designed by George Carter. It contains two sculptures, one portrays Confucius, and the other, a semi-abstract, is by Dorothy Brook.
Near these sculptures and attached to the wall of an out-house (a bicycle shed), there are some bas-reliefs depicting the continents. They have the titles: “America”, “Australasia”, “Europe”, “Africa”, “Canada” (not a continent), and “India” (which is not a continent, but a sub-continent). Made in plasterwork, they were removed from the north wall of Dunstan House, a publisher’s office building, in Fetter Lane, which was constructed in 1886, and demolished in 1976.
The rectangular plaques are nineteenth-century plasterworks. They have been attributed to the artist Walter Crane (1845-1915). In the 1870s, Crane:
“… became increasingly involved in the decorative arts, designing textiles, stained glass, tiles, wallpapers and plasterwork. In 1884 he was a founder member of the Art Workers’ Guild and, four years later, founded the Arts and Crafts Exhibition Society, of which he served as President for many years. In 1898, he was appointed Principal of the Royal College of Art.” (https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/blue-plaques/walter-crane/).
I had not known about these bas-reliefs until 25 July 2026, when I visited an art installation curated by Artangel (https://www.artangel.org.uk/) within the library. This organisation chooses unusual venues for their artistic events, and a darkened room in the library filled with metal shelving was certainly a curious place for a show. Normally, entry to the library and its grounds is restricted to members of Kings College and other people who have been given special permission, but because of the Artangel event, I was able to enter, and discover yet another of London’s many delightful surprises.
WHILE HAVING MY hair trimmed recently by an Albanian barber, who came to London from Prishtina in Kosovo, I recalled a visit to a barbershop in rural Italy.
Before and after
It was in the 1980s and I was driving through northern Italy on my way to visiting my sister, who lived further south. I decided that I should have my hair tidied up before I saw her, and stopped my hired car outside a hair cutting establishment in a small village.
I entered the parrucchiere and was summoned to a chair by one of the barbers. He began cutting my hair, and then stopped suddenly. Throwing his hands up above his head, he exclaimed operatically:
“Forfore!”,
Which is the Italian word for ‘dandruff’.
Hearing this, other customers sitting in the shop, awaiting their turn, looked alarmed, and covered their heads with their hands.
Without asking me, the barber applied a lotion to my head. Whatever it was, it felt as if it was boring its way into my skull. This medication added an extra 5000 lire (£4 at the time, but about £10 in today’s money) to my bill (those were the days before Italy adopted the Euro).
Well, I am pleased to report that today my barber from Kosovo did not feel it necessary to throw up his hands and exclaim in Albanian:
VISITORS TO LONDON are offered tickets to travel on buses that follow various routes that connect places that the companies operating them, like Big Bus and Toot Bus, consider to be of interest to tourists. Once a ticket has been purchased, the holder can get on the open-topped double-decker bus at one stop along its route, and disembark at another, and continue doing so all day. However, the ticket holder can only use the buses of the company that issued the ticket. Using Big Bus as an example, the price per adult ranges from £49.99 for a 24-hour ticket to as much as £69.99 for a 48-hour ticket, which includes a boat trip and walking tours. Children’s tickets are £10 cheaper than those for adults.
What these companies offer is without doubt helpful for minimally adventurous tourists. But the users of this service are confined to travelling along the few routes on offer, and must wait until one of their company’s vehicles arrives.
The hop-on hop-off companies provide travel within the Transport For London (‘TFL’) zones 1 and 2. An adult 24-hour TFL travel card, which gives unlimited use of all Tube, DLR, Elizabeth line and London Overground services within these zones costs £16.60, and £29.80 for zones 1 to 8 inclusive, which covers most of London. With a TFL travel card, the tourist can hop on and off as many bus and tube trains as he or she wants within the validity of the travel card. The zone 1 and 2 card costs one third of the price of the cheapest adult Big Bus ticket, and allows the traveller much greater flexibility.
Using a TFL travel card means that you are on your own, without a guide. But that hardly matters as there are good travel apps to help you find your way from A to B. And if you select bus routes carefully, you can get to see much of London from a regular TFL bus route. For example, the number 148 will carry you alongside Hyde Park, down Park Lane, past Hyde Park Corner and Buckingham Palace, to Westminster Abbey and the Houses of Parliament, and across the Thames on Westminster Bridge. Further along this route, you will reach the Imperial War Museum. Another route, number 9, runs past the Design Museum, Kensington Palace, the Royal Albert Hall, Knightsbridge (near Harrods), Green Park, Hyde Park Corner, the Royal Academy, Piccadilly Circus, Regents Street, Trafalgar Square and the National Gallery, and Aldwych (where you can catch one of several buses to St Paul’s Cathedral). And this is only two of many bus routes that link places that many tourists wish to visit. In addition to the buses, the TFL travel card holder can cover great distances quite rapidly using the tube trains.
With a little bit of ingenuity and a TFL travel card, a visitor to London can get a far more interesting experience of London, its sights, and its people, than if he or she opts for the relatively inflexible, far costlier hop-on hop-off buses,
THE GUILDHALL ART Gallery is one of London’s many excellent places to view paintings, often by well-known artists. Until 20 September 2026, it is holding an exhibition of paintings by Jock McFadyen, who was born in Scotland in 1950. He studied art first at the Glasgow School of art, then at Chelsea School of Art.
The exhibition at the Guildhall is called “Underground (and Surface)”, and is displayed in three rooms. One of them, the first you enter, has McFadyen’s large scale paintings of Underground (‘Tube’) stations. These works transform the mundane aspects of these everyday sights into dramatic works of art. The views and details that so many commuters see twice a day, and probably hardly notice, become strangely significant when viewed in McFadyen’s pictures. The room housing these pictures is not silent. Recordings of Underground train sounds, collected and recorded by Jem Finer of The Pogues (a popular music ensemble) provide a background to the paintings.
Another large room contain McFadyen’s images of London above ground. Like the Underground paintings, the overground ones are large. They depict views of London in ways that make ordinary scenes become extraordinarily beautiful. One picture is curious because it shows a line of buildings in Bethnal Green standing beneath a portrait of Mont Blanc covered with snow.
The third and smallest room contains some of McFadyen’s portraits. They are competently executed but not nearly as visually exciting as the works in the other two rooms. Nevertheless, taken as a whole, the exhibition is worth a visit.
yamey 