A Walk down the Arcadian Thames with Tim

Join Tim on perhaps the most beautiful walk in London at yhe most beautiful time of the year. We will walk the Thames from Richmond to Twickenham passing the great mansions of the intellectual elite of the eighteenth century. This stretch of the river was called the Arcadian Thames as its views inspired lofty thoughts of paradise on earth.
A central figure was Alexander Pope, the great poet who gave us more memorable quotes than anyone bar Shakespeare. From 'Fools rush in where Angels fear to tread' and 'To err is human; to forgive, divine'. Both quotes could easily apply to my walks!
Pope was also a great gardener and launched what became known as the English Landscape movement which still dominates our great country homes today and we’ll see one of the gardens he developed.

Along the river there developed an alternative to the official royal court. Centred on Marble Hill House and the remarkable Henrietta Howard, the cream of London's intellectual society gathered here in the 1720's. Apart from Pope, there was Jonathan Swift of Gulliver's Travels fame, John Gay who wrote the Beggar's Opera and Horace Walpole who started the Gothic Revival. We'll visit a couple of these great houses which still retain their past grandeur.

We'll see secret gardens, royal palaces and wonderful views of the river. We'll follow in the footsteps of Virginia Woolf, JMW Turner and exiled French monarchs. We'll also visit the legendary Eel Pie Island where rock royalty performed, from the Stones to the Who and just about everyone in between.

We meet at Costa Coffee just outside Richmond Station (District and Mainline) at 10.45 to start walking at 11. We'll end two hours later in a great pub inTwickenham and then catch a train back to Richmond or central London.

£12 card or cash on the day or via PayPal or bank transfer. Telephone: O7846899156