Dickens and London
     
       
     
     City of London Walks: Discovering Wren Churches
 

Steeple of St Mary le Bow

Steeple of St Vedast


Steeple of St Augustine

Sir John Betjeman said 'Before the Fire of London in 1666 there were ninety-seven parish churches within the walls of the City of London.  Fifty-one were rebuilt by Sir Christopher Wren and new ones were built in the 18th and 19th centuries.  Today a mere thirty-eight survive and each one is worth a visit.'  The Wren churches are known for their inventive steeples, the variety of their plans and the ways in which Wren created distinctive interiors designed for Anglican worship.  The Friends of the City Churches works to ensure that the City Churches are preserved for posterity and as far as possible open to the public and this walk explores some of the 24 surviving Wren churches. 

We start at 2pm from 1 April to 30 September and 11am from 1 October to 31 March on Tuesdays and Saturdays, meeting by the east entrance to the City Information Centre in St Paul's Churchyard.  The walks are led by qualified City of London Guides, will last one and half to two hours and the cost is £6 per person, £4 concessions, with accompanied children under twelve free of charge.