KEN'S WALKS and SOCIAL EVENTS - (21,000 Members)

Explore and Enjoy London! Get out and see your City in the company of great friends! Join us for an easy (flat) and Saturday afternoon walk through one of London's lesser known Parks starting at Sloane Square tube station, then moving along the King's Road, Chelsea, then south across the Thames to Battersea Park. Then we continue long the South Bank of the Thames to Westminster and the National Theatre, before finishing at a bar very near to Southwark Station (Jubilee Line), where the socialising can continue. Walking is one of life's great social activities. The stroll lasts for about 2 hours. Look for Ken with the Ken's Events/Meetup Flag, outside the station. WHAT IF THE WEATHER'S BAD - Walking events should always be fun - If the weather is bad, walking is no fun, and we may curtail or postpone the walk, therefore please check this page on the day. Please note that there is a nominal £4 meetup organisers fee for this walk except for those holding the Ken's Events Card. If you enjoy weekday and evening walks, then you should join Ken's Weekday and Evenings Walking Group. Click here for more information. (https://www.meetup.com/KENS-WEEKDAY-EVENING-WALKS/) Tell your friends you are going! https://secure.meetup.com/LONDON-MEETUP-SOCIAL-GROUP-KENS-EVENTS/invite/ All Ken's Events are subject to a disclaimer. You must read this disclaimer before you attend this event. Please click here (http://www.meetup.com/LONDON-MEETUP-SOCIAL-GROUP-KENS-EVENTS/pages/KEN%27S_EVENTS_DISCLAIMER/) to view disclaimer. RISK WARNING: In these walks we use; pavements, cross busy roads, public parkland, towpaths, other public paths, rights of way, bridlepaths, country lanes and other recognised paths and tracks through woodland, bush and countryside. Please only wear good sturdy shoes, preferably walking boots and take care as surfaces may be uneven, tree roots may protrude, there may be low overhanging branches and some paths are also used by joggers and cyclists and sometimes cars (country lanes). On occasion wild and farm animals may also encountered. If you require insurance for these walks then you must arrange this yourself. Unfortunately no dogs and children (under the age of 18) are permitted on these walks. When you arrive at the venue look for the 'KEN'S EVENTS' Flag/Sign. KEN'S EVENTS also has a Facebook page and Twitter account. See http://www.facebook.com/Kens.events

RSVP to see the 'JOHN RUSKIN: THE POWER OF SEEING' EXHIBITION at the EXTRAORDINARY TWO TEMPLE PLACE (FREE ENTRY to the house and the exhibition). See exhibition details below. Two Temple Place is the site of Lord Astor's magnificient neo-gothic castle. We will meet first from 3.00pm at ALL BAR ONE, 6 Villiers Street WC2N 6NQ, which is very close to Charing Cross and Embankment Stations. We will head off to the exhibition venue at Two Temple Place at 3.30pm sharp. THE VENUE-TWO TEMPLE PLACE (see details of the exhibition below) At the end of October 2011 a new art venue opened to the public, housed in one of London's most extraordinary buildings! The venue is one of London's hidden architectural gems, an extraordinary neo-Gothic mansion built by William Waldorf Astor on Embankment. It opens up one of London's very special, and almost unknown, places to the public. Built to elaborate specifications by William Waldorf Astor, later first Viscount Astor, in 1895 as his residence and estate office on reclaimed land following completion of the Victoria Embankment in 1870, Two Temple Place offers a unique location in the heart of central London, overlooking the River Thames. Exterior is portland stone, interior is a testament to the skills and expertise of some of the finest sculptors of the nineteenth century, and the building combines the grandeur of a state occasion with the intimacy of a party in a private house. John Loughborough Pearson, a pre-eminent figure in his profession, was the architect chosen by Lord Astor to build Two Temple Place. Unfettered by consideration of finance and emboldened by the full liberty of expression granted to him and materials and craftsmen of the highest quality at his disposal, he was able to create a building worthy of its distinguished owner. From the gilded weather vane in beaten copper of Columbus's caravel, the Santa Maria (pictured), perched high above the house to the meticulously carved stonework, the grilles and screens of ornamental ironwork, Two Temple Place embodies much of the outstanding workmanship and architecture of the late-Victorian period. The enchanting bronze lamp standards (pictured) flanking the base of the balustraded entrance steps, playfully representative of the marvels of electricity and telephone in the shape of two small boys, are a foretaste of the riches within. The staircase hall (pictured) illustrates the original owners love of literary characters to great effect. Access to the first floor appears to be guarded by Thomas Nicholls' resplendent mahogany carvings of the main protagonists in Alexandre Dumas' The Three Musketeers perched imperiously atop the seven newel posts of the main staircase. Panelled in oak, complemented by a chimneypiece in paonazzetto marble and a floor of marble, jasper, porphyry and onyx laid in geometrical patterns, the hall itself is overlooked by a gallery of a further six statues with American literary associations, a frieze in rilievo of eighty-two characters from Shakespeare's Othello, Henry VIII, Antony & Cleopatra and Macbeth and ten pillars of solid ebony. The Great Hall, designed in the Renaissance style but essentially Tudor in plan, leads directly off the gallery and the room extends the whole length of the building on the river front, standing 35 feet high to the ridge and open to the roof, which is of hammer-beam type and a spectacular example of modern Gothic timber work, being all of richly carved Spanish mahogany. The east and west stained glass windows represent Swiss landscapes at 'Sunrise' and 'Sunset' and are the work of Clayton and Bell. The walls are immaculately panelled in irreplaceable pencil cedar and surmounted by a frieze in which a further fifty-four portraits of the heads of characters famous in history and fiction, have been modelled, carved in low relief and then gilded by the sculptor Nathaniel Hitch. Two Temple Place showcases publicly-owned art from UK regional collections and will bring the UK's regional riches to the capital city, emphasising not only the great cultural wealth of London, but that of the UK as a whole. The EXHIBITION : 'JOHN RUSKIN: THE POWER OF SEEING' Artist, art critic, educator, social thinker and true polymath, John Ruskin [masked]) devoted his life to the pursuit of knowledge. To mark the bicentenary of his birth, a new exhibition produced by Two Temple Place, Museums Sheffield and the Guild of St George, will celebrate the legacy and enduring relevance of Ruskin’s ideas and vision. John Ruskin: The Power of Seeing will bring together over 190 paintings, drawings, daguerreotypes, metal work, and plaster casts to illustrate how Ruskin’s attitude to aesthetic beauty shaped his radical views on culture and society. The exhibition will showcase significant objects from Sheffield’s Guild of St George Ruskin Collection whilst also drawing on the rich collections of both regional and national public museums and galleries, including, The Ashmolean; Calderdale Museums; The Fitzwilliam; Gallery Oldham; The Ruskin Library, Lancaster; Leeds Museums and Art Gallery; Tate; Watts Gallery – Artists’ Village and the William Morris Gallery. Newly commissioned works including site-specific installations by Timorous Beasties and Grizedale Arts, a new moving image piece by Dan Holdsworth and contributions from artists Hannah Downing and Emilie Taylor will also feature, exploring Ruskin’s contemporary legacy. While enjoying the artwork, visitors will notice the impressive architecture of the building and it’s well worth spending some time exploring the elaborate interior of this Victorian mansion. This exhibition is a hidden gem. The MEETING PLACE: ALL BAR ONE After our visit to two Temple Place, we will continue the socialising and perhaps a drink and a meal (optional) at a local bar /restaurant. Today's Event is Free for holders of the Ken's Events Membership Card. Otherwise please note that there is a £3 nominal meetup organisers charge for this event for guests and those who do not yet hold the Ken's Event Membership Card. All Ken's Events are subject to a disclaimer. Please click on 'Pages' button above or click here (http://www.meetup.com/LONDON-MEETUP-SOCIAL-GROUP-KENS-EVENTS/pages/KEN%27S_EVENTS_DISCLAIMER/) to view disclaimer. Tell your friends you are going! https://secure.meetup.com/LONDON-MEETUP-SOCIAL-GROUP-KENS-EVENTS/invite/ When you arrive at the venue look for the 'KEN'S EVENTS' Flag/Sign! KEN'S EVENTS (http://www.kensevents.co.uk/) also has a Facebook page and Twitter account. See http://www.facebook.com/Kens.events and http://www.twitter.com/KenEvents/ Please post no pre-event messages unless you are posting something relevant for the whole group.

The Wandle Trail - Discover London. Explore London. Enjoy London! Get out and see your City in the company of great friends and discover another section of the Wandle Trail (NOTE - this time we are starting at Colliers Wood Station). Join us for an afternoon stroll from COLLIERS WOOD Tube Station along the WANDLE RIVER through MORDEN NATIONAL PARK and on to MITCHAM COMMON. Walking is one of life's great social activities. From Colliers Wood underground station (Northern Line) we will take a leisurely freestyle afternoon stroll to finish at a bar close to Mitcham Common, which do great meals for under £10. To return to Central London you can catch the train from Mitcham Junction Railway Station (Thameslink and Southern Trains and Tram) or from Mitcham Eastfields Station PLAN B - Walking events should always be fun and have a Plan B - If the weather is very wet, walking in the rain is no fun, therefore check on the morning of the walk for Plan B. Please note that there is a £4 nominal meetup organisers charge for this event for guests and those members who do not yet hold the Ken's Event Membership Card. You are recommended to take out the Ken's Event Card to avoid paying the meetup organisers contribution. RISK WARNING: In these walks we use; pavements, cross busy roads, public parkland, towpaths, other public paths, rights of way, bridlepaths, country lanes and other recognised paths and tracks through woodland, bush and countryside. Please only wear good sturdy shoes, preferably walking boots and take care as surfaces may be uneven, tree roots may protrude, there may be low overhanging branches and some paths are also used by joggers and cyclists and sometimes cars (country lanes). On occasion wild and farm animals may also encountered. If you require insurance for these walks then you must arrange this yourself. Unfortunately no dogs and children (under the age of 18) are permitted on these walks. Please dress appropriately for weather conditions, and always carry a bottle of water. You need to be in moderately fit condition for this walk. All Ken's Events (http://www.kensevents.co.uk/) are subject to a disclaimer. Please click on 'Pages' button above or click here (http://www.meetup.com/LONDON-MEETUP-SOCIAL-GROUP-KENS-EVENTS/pages/KEN%27S_EVENTS_DISCLAIMER/) to view disclaimer. If weekday and evening walks are your thing, then you should join Ken's Weekday and Evenings Walking Group. Click here for more information. (https://www.meetup.com/KENS-WEEKDAY-EVENING-WALKS/) When you arrive at the start point look for the 'KEN'S EVENTS' Flag/Sign pictured below. KEN'S EVENTS (http://www.kensevents.co.uk/) also has a Facebook page and Twitter account. See http://www.facebook.com/Kens.events and http://www.twitter.com/KenEvents/

TODAY WE HAVE A SCENIC CANAL WALK along the Grand Union Canal. The walk is approximately 7.5 miles starting at Hayes and Harlington Station and finishing at a pub reasonably close (500 yards) to Northolt, Sudbury Hill and Greenford stations, offering Central and Piccadilly lines and GWR and Chiltern railways. Please bring appropriate leg and footwear for the walk. The walk is approximately 7.5 miles. Please note that there is a £4 nominal meetup organisers charge for this walking event for guests and those who do not hold the Ken's Event Membership Card. This event is free for Ken's Event Membership Card holders. The charge for non-cardholders and guests is the same as for all other walks on this group. RISK WARNING: In these walks we use; pavements, cross busy roads, public parkland, towpaths, other public paths, rights of way, bridlepaths, country lanes and other recognised paths and tracks through woodland, bush and countryside. Please only wear good sturdy shoes, preferably walking boots and take care as surfaces may be uneven, tree roots may protrude, there may be low overhanging branches and some paths are also used by joggers and cyclists and sometimes cars (country lanes). On occasion wild and farm animals may also encountered. If you require insurance for these walks then you must arrange this yourself. Unfortunately no dogs and children (under the age of 18) are permitted on these walks. Plan your journey, with TFL's Journey Planner (http://journeyplanner.tfl.gov.uk/) When you arrive at the venue look for the 'KEN'S EVENTS' Flag/Sign KEN'S EVENTS also has a Facebook page and Twitter account. See http://www.facebook.com/Kens.events and http://www.twitter.com/KenEvents/