Report on Tour of Old Mayfair
We were promised a champagne cocktail of a walk and this was not a misnomer.
From the weather, a glorious autumn day (apart from the smallest shower 10 minutes from the end), to the delivery of Peter, our guide, to the buildings, streets and atmosphere of Mayfair everything bubbled.
Peter had a virtual Tardis that transported us from the Reformation, through the Regency and Victorian eras up to the present day. He took on the personas of major historical figures such as Beau Brummel and Prinny, Palmerston, Aspinall and Lord Lucan and had an endless supply of epigrams, anecdotes and quotes relating to these figures. We were even treated to a rendition of ‘A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square’ in situ.
The walk started at the Green Park and we walked past the In and Out Club where Palmerston had lived, along to Shepherd Market,
where the original May Fairs were held. These fairs were notorious for their debauchery and riotous nature. The area was then redeveloped by Edward Shepherd and became known as Shepherd Market.
Blue plaques too numerous to mention were passed and discussed. Oldest shops, oldest terraced house in London (which housed
Aspinall’s casino and now Annabel’s),oldest trees; oldest biggest hotels, feuds and alliances. Every turn and corner held a story.
In the Mount Street Gardens there is a beautiful Jesuit Church – The Church of the Immaculate Conception also known as the Farm Street Church. One of the stained glass windows is deemed to be the best example of post war stained glass in London. However, the gardens outside were a hot bed of intrigue during the Cold War. Apparently Soviet spies adored Catholic
churches and many dead drops took place in these gardens.
On to Grosvenor Square which, for the time being houses the only US embassy in the world that does not own the land on which it stands. Apparently Kennedy tried to buy the land and the Duke of Westminster offered it to him in exchange for all the lands that his family had lost in the War of Independence! We all await the eventual fate of the eagle atop the façade as it is part of the listed exterior but Qatar has bought the building and do not want it and the US would like to take it with them to Nine Elms.
With a pleasing synchronicity our penultimate stop was outside the Handel House Museum, in Brook Street, which our group visited in July. I, for one am looking forward to the next walk on our programme.
As a parting shot I couldn’t help but wonder if Donald Trump had adopted the Devonshire method of electioneering-look it up!