Kenwood House

We are very lucky to have so many beautiful parks in London, and I make sure to visit them as often as possible during the summer.

A few weekends ago, we headed over to Hampstead Heath, for a sunny Sunday spent exploring Kenwood House.

Taking a stroll around the lake by Kenwood House.

Kenwood House is an English Heritage building, and is a former stately home, steeped in history, and full of paintings, beautifully ornate furniture and impressive fireplaces.

This fancy bench is looking a little ruff around the edges...

There is a room that houses jewellery - everything from bejewelled belt buckles, to brooches, to rhinestone hair combs, to pendants with delicate portraits of family members painted onto them.  

I loved this heart-shaped lock and key brooch!

There is an abundance of art work in the house, many of them portraits, by artists such as Rembrandt, Turner and Van Dyke, and they cover nearly every inch of every wall.

I like to call this work of art: The Thinker...

Personally, one of the things I find most interesting when visiting English Heritage buildings, is the furniture.  Even though nobody lives there any more, you sill feel as though you are having a nosey around someone's home, because the furniture makes it less like a museum, and more like a place of residence.  My favourite piece of furniture was a sofa with cloven hooves!  It was designed by Robert Adam, the very same Scottish architect who designed Kenwood House itself.  This particular sofa used to live in the White House, but was returned to Kenwood House by President Kennedy, when Jackie O wanted to redecorate (clearly, she was not a fan of the hooves). 

Keep those hooves off  the furniture!

Kenwood House has been in the press a lot lately, as there is a new film out called Belle, which is based on Dido Elizabeth Belle, who lived at Kenwood House for 30 years during the 18th Century.  As such, there is also a small exhibition in one of the rooms, featuring costumes from the movie and a copy of a painting which features Dido Belle and her cousin, Elizabeth Murray.

I kind of wanted to swap dresses...

Believed to be Britain's first black aristocrat, Dido was born the illegitimate, mixed race daughter to naval captain, John Lindsay and her enslaved mother Maria Belle.  Dido was brought to live with Lindsay's extended family in England, and was raised by the Earl of Mansfield and his wife at Kenwood House.  

 Spot the odd one out...

Having explored the whole building, I can safely say that without a doubt, my favourite room in Kenwood House is the library...

Beautiful in baby blue and baby pink! 

Afterwards, we walked around the Heath a bit, before heading down the road to the Spaniards Inn.  If you've never been to this pub, then I recommend it as a year-round great choice in London!  During the winter, it's a cozy place where you can tuck yourselves away in an alcove by a fireplace.  In the summer, however, there's only one option:  the garden.

Eagerly awaiting our lunch...

The beer garden is huge and pretty, and the perfect place to sip a nice glass of chilled wine, accompanied by a house-made scotch egg!

If it's good enough for Keats and Dickens, then it's good enough for us!

A lovely day out, and as entrance to Kenwood House is free, it's a great budget-friendly option for an excursion in London.  Just don't forget to stop off for a drink at the local boozer afterwards!

Havin' a kick & prance with me old chinas!

We spent a lovely day dancing and listening to music at Swing East last Sunday, in Poplar, the heart of London's East End.

Top line-up!

As well as being the epicentre of Cockney rhyming slang, and pie and mash, the east is also home to the Chrisp Street Market, which is where the event was held.  Built as part of the Festival of Britain in 1951, this was a great location to listen to live music and DJs playing records from the 50s.  The icing on the cake, was that no bees and honey were required, because it was freeeeee!

There were three bands that played throughout the afternoon, starting with Carmen Ghia & the Hotrods, who were fun, energetic and really got the party started...

 What a voice!!!

Followed by Sugar Ray's Lucky Combo, who played an excellent set, which kept the dance floor packed...

Sugar Ray's Lucky Combo, fronted by Pat Reyford, who incidentally hails from Poplar!

The last band of the day were The Hot Tin Roofs who provided a large dose of sassy swing to keep the crowd entertained...

Apparently my dirty dancing with Loverboy got this pretty lady a little hot under the collar...ooops! You can't take us anywhere...

They were all excellent, and the combination of jumpin' tunes and witty banter (Carmen Ghia is a hoot!) kept the party atmosphere going all day.

Diamond geezer, DJ Nel Raiser played a mix of rock n roll, jump blues and swing music, and I liked what he played...I liked it a lot!  Everyone else liked it too, as the dancing continued non-stop, all day.  If you don't Adam and Eve it, then have a butcher's at these...

Good thing we all had on our dancing Ones and Twos!

Of course, with all this dancing, we worked up quite an appetite, so we headed for a bite to eat at Maureen's.  Cast your minces on these...

Pie, mash and liquor - it had to be done! 

But the real star of the show...

I'm not telling a porky - I think this hot salt beef bagel was better than the ones on Brick Lane...! 

There were also a few stalls selling records, vintage clothes and accessories, homeware and food and drinks.

Roll out the barrel, we'll have a barrel of fun!

Overall, the day was a great success - there were loads of people in attendance, and it was a complete mix of locals, non-locals, old, middle-aged, young and younger!  There was a real street party atmosphere, and even the sudden downpour of rain (which I don't think many people were expecting - good thing we were sheltered from it!) didn't dampen any spirits.

Me and my Treacle...
Photo by Yole Quintero

We were pretty cream crackered after a full day of kicking and prancing, and ducking and diving!   It's fun events like these which are part of the many reasons why London is one of the best cities in the world.  Hopefully Swing East will continue to put on this event at Chrisp Street Market, and make it an annual party!

Maybe it's because I'm a Londoner, that I love London so....