BACKGROUND
My Project Monopoly Series continues over the summer in London. We are experiencing an extended heatwave but the sunny days have given me a golden opportunity to venture out and look around this city. My umbrella is my best friend. This is the list so far:
| No 0 – Introduction | No 3 – King’s Cross Station | No 6 – Pentonville Road |
| No 1 – Old Kent Road | No 4 – The Angel Islington | |
| No 2 – Whitechapel Road | No 5 – Euston Road |
Each post will follow the same format.
MONOPOLY PROPERTY NUMBERS 6, 7 AND 8: PALL MALL, WHITEHALL AND NORTHUMBERLAND AVENUE
MONOPOLY TRAIN STATION NUMBER 2: MARYLEBONE
(Details of books and maps at the end of the post)
The three purple properties are close to each other, with Trafalgar Square as the hub. Unless there is a reason to visit a specific shop or property on one of these streets (perhaps The OWO in Whitehall if you need an unhurried break), it is best to cover them in one session. It is easy to extend the tour to end at Marylebone Station, and for this reason we swapped Whitehall with. Northumberland Avenue and visited the latter first. See below for a proposed route.
HOW TO GET HERE
For transport options, Citymapper is invaluable as a tool to get from A to B. We started from Green Park tube station and walked south towards Pall Mall, east towards Northumberland Avenue and Whitehall, then took a bus north-west towards Marylebone Station. This is an efficient way to cover these four squares on the Monopoly board’s second side in a few hours.
ASPECTS OF MY VISIT
The walk, as proposed by Mr Gochugaru on another fine Saturday morning, is detailed at the end of this section. You will see many grand buildings and marvel at how this country had the money, engineering skill and determination to raise such monuments in the past.
Pall Mall
Northumberland Avenue
Whitehall
Road signs
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Horse Guards and Equestrian Statue of Prince George, Duke of Cambridge
Cenotaph and The Old War Office (now a hotel)
Downing Street and historic red phone box
A proposed short tour covering Pall Mall, Whitehall, Northumberland Avenue and Marylebone train station:
- Start the day by having breakfast at one of the cafes around Green Park tube station (Jubilee, Victoria and Piccadilly Lines). There are many options depending on your appetite, level of excitement and also the company you are sharing this experience with. I have had breakfasts at: budget (Pret), mid-range (The Wolseley, Fortnum and Mason), luxury (The Ritz). There is also a coffee kiosk just inside Green Park as you exit southside, located in the ‘Ritz Corner’. I suppose if you were in a rush you could get a coffee here and say ‘I had coffee at the Ritz’ conveniently dropping the ‘Corner’ from your conversation. For other recommended coffee shops, European Coffee Trip is a useful guide
- Walk down St James’s Street, taking in the historic buildings
- Turn east into Pall Mall, taking in the historic buildings
- At the end of Pall Mall you will be at Trafalgar Square. Make a note for when you visit the red properties on the Monopoly Board. The National Gallery and the Café in the Crypt (St Martin-in-the-Fields Church) are both useful for breakfast if you skipped this earlier
- Head south to Northumberland Avenue
- Turn into Great Scotland Yard to reach Whitehall
- Walk along Whitehall and look out for Horse Guards (photo op if you must), the Cenotaph and the entrance to Downing Street
- From Downing Street walk to catch the bus no 453 (bus stop A/ Westminster Station – Parliament Square or bus stop N/ Horse Guards Parade) towards destination Great Central Street, which is the location of Marylebone Station
- If you are struggling with Old Kent Road, bus 453 from the opposite side of the road (bus stop G/ Westminster Station – Parliament Square or bus stop S/ Horse Guards Parade) towards destination Deptford Bridge will get you there and you can tick this off your Monopoly list
- During the bus ride to Marylebone Station you will pass Trafalgar Square and Regent Street, and will also be able to look towards Piccadilly, Coventry Street and Oxford Street
- Alight at the final destination, Marylebone Station (Grand Central Street)
- From here is is a short walk to Chiltern Street (parallel to Baker Street) where there are many cafes and independent shops. We had lunch at Cafe Murano and visited Niwaki, Sabre (for their bamboo handled salad servers) and Labour and Wait. For coffee we suggest Monocle Cafe (no 18 Chiltern Street) which has a nice toilet. You will know what I mean when you see it
- Although I don’t suggest it for the same day, a short bus ride south from Baker Street takes you to Oxford Street, from where you can cover Oxford Street, Bond Street and Regent Street (the green properties)
- One alternative after visiting Whitehall (instead of going either to Marylebone Station or to Old Kent Road on the bus 453) would be to head towards Parliament Square to see Parliament and Big Ben. You are then close to the London Eye and Westminster Pier where you can pick up a river cruise. Westminster Abbey is also in the area.
MAPS AND BOOKS
London city map 1:10,000 by Freytag & Berndt, ISBN 978-3707924268
No Free Parking: The Curious History of London’s Monopoly Streets by Nicholas Boys Smith, published by John Blake Publishing, ISBN 978-1789465389. See chapters 4 (Whitehall), 5 (Pall Mall), 14 (Northumberland Avenue) and Interlude: Railway Stations.
Do Not Pass Go: From the Old Kent Road to Mayfair by Tim Moore, published by Vintage, ISBN 978-0099433866. See chapter 4 (The Purples) and chapter 10 for Marylebone Station.
An Opinionated Guide to London Neighbourhoods by James Manning, published by Hoxton Mini Press, ISBN 978-1917719001. See chapter 8 (Marylebone) if you want to explore the area after visiting Marylebone train station.