walk/tour
Outside McDonald's, Liverpool Street, EC2M 7PY
What is a city for? This question is more urgent than ever: a warming planet, a housing crisis and ever changing working-living patterns are forcing us to reconsider what a city is or should be. How can these ideas coexist? How can they come into conflict? This tour explores the forces that have shaped London in the 20th and 21st centuries, and whether they can get us where we need to go next.
Liverpool Street
Liverpool Street
Meet: Outside McDonald's, Liverpool Street Station entrance on the corner of Liverpool St and Sun Street, EC2M 7PY
The tour will take place entirely outdoors, including a few narrow pavements and some steps. There is an elevated platform which has a lift.
The walk will explore a few landmark buildings in the City of London with a particular focus on who uses the buildings and whether the buildings are meeting their needs. How do these buildings perform their intended function? Why does a building look the way it looks?
Starting at Liverpool Street Station and heading south towards the City's eastern cluster, along the route we'll discuss whether the London built environment is currently meeting the needs of many living in it, and how it might change (or fail to change) to address the needs of future generations of Londoners.
Juan Castro-Varón is an award-winning designer-maker and architecture aficionado. His metal work under the name MINILITH, is informed by 20th century architecture and the built environment, as well as his background as an engineer.
Most recently, Juan was awarded a Gold Award at the Goldsmith's Craft and Design Awards 2024, for 'Stet fortuna domus' a piece about the UK's housing crisis.
This tour is led by a participant of Open City’s Golden Key Academy – a course training up insightful and engaging guides dedicated to explaining London and bringing its many stories to life. It is part of a wider collection of tours created by Golden Key Academy guides for the Open House Festival celebrating their conclusion of the eight month course.
Further information on the Golden Key Academy can be found here https://open-city.org.uk/golden-key-academy
Liverpool Street Station (in front of the entrance on Liverpool street, in front of McDonalds)
Drop in / Guided tour
institution/profession, historical house
A rare opportunity to explore the Georgian headquarters of the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings (SPAB), the UK’s oldest building conservation charity, not normally open to the public.
Unknown, 1740
