Down the Thames From Westminster To Greenwich

BY David Willmott

"Down to Greenwich? " I hear you say, " Oh I've done that many times." Maybe you have in the past, but unless you've made this historic journey in the last five years, you'd be surprised at the changes that have taken place.

To begin with, the river boats are now part of the London transport system, so if you have a Travel Card or Freedom Pass, you get a reduced fare.

From Westminster, the boat crosses the Thames to the new pier on the South Bank. This is adjacent to the imposing building that used to be County Hall, built by the London County Council. Now, it incorporates an hotel, an Aquarium and an art Exhibition. Next is the London Eye.

This giant Ferris wheel, giving unrivalled views over London, looks like remaining as a popular tourist attraction.

We sail downstream and approach Hungerford Bridge which carries trains into Charing Cross Station. For many years there was a rather dark and unpleasant footbridge alongside the railway, but thankfully this has been replaced by two footbridges of light modern design, giving a more pleasant means of crossing.

On past the Royal Festival Hall, now being refurbished 55 years after it was opened for the Festival of Britain.

By now you will have noticed how many larger passenger boats there are on the Thames. Some are of the fully-enclosed catamaran design that skims over the surface of the river; while others, glass covered, offer a panoramic view as you dine on board.

Immediately after Waterloo Bridge, is Somerset House, once the depository for records of Birth Deaths and Marriages. Now it houses the works of the Courtauld Institute, and a restaurant with views over the river. The courtyard has imaginative fountains, and in winter is frozen over to form a skating rink.

You cannot fail to notice the brutal concrete structure that houses the Royal National Theatre, but the riverside has been opened up and landscaped with pleasant trees to become part of the Thames Walk.

A flicker of tv screens reminds us that we are passing ITV's London Television Centre, before coming to what was the OXO factory. Now converted to shops, apartments and a rooftop restaurant, this redbrick listed building is known as the OXO Tower since the word OXO forms part of the structure.

It's now that the buildings along the South bank present a new face to the river. Warehouses, wharves, and industrial buildings of the past have been transformed into expensive apartments with balconies overlooking the river. Restaurants, where clients are entertained, and shopping malls have replaced the hum and bustle of dockside activity. Cranes, bollards and pieces of machinery have been retained as reminders of a bygone era.

To the left, the golden fiery top of the Monument peeks out between the

array of modern office blocks. Nothing can diminish the grandeur of Wren's

St Paul's Cathedral, but nearby is the curiously shaped block designed by Norman Foster and known to Londoners as the "Gherkin".

Another new landmark on the south bank is the Tate Modern. When this was built in 1963 as the coal-fired Bankside Power Station, there was an outcry against such a structure being erected opposite St Paul's. Now it has become an icon of the twentieth century as an art gallery of renown. It is umbilically linked to St Paul's by the Millennium Footbridge, a modern structure that swiftly earned the title of The Wobbly Bridge because of the way it swayed on the day it first opened.

Almost at once, there's another new tourist attraction, the reproduction of

Shakespeare's Globe Theatre, built in the round in the style of an Elizabethan theatre, with galleries and a thatched roof. The audience and the cast often have to brave the elements as their forebears would have done.

This whole area has been opened up to reveal its historic past, with a sea¬ going replica of Drake's ship the Golden Hinde, and the pinnacled tower of Southwark Cathedral now visible from the river.

Nearby is the veteran cruiser, HMS Belfast. This Royal Navy ship is a survivor of the Second World War, and is open to the public as well as a venue for corporate hospitality.

Another recent addition to the Southwark bank is the dark glass curved shape of City Hall, the headquarters of the London Assembly stands defiantly opposite the Tower of London. More development greets us after we pass under the bascules of Tower Bridge. To the left, St Catherine's Dock, a veritable haven of waterside bars, shops and eating houses, and a marina for small but expensive craft. On the right, Hays Galleria straddles what was Hay's Dock, with a creek that flowed into the Thames. Now its a welcome resting place for visitors exploring the Thames Walk.

Continuing downstream we see block after block of new riverside development. Some of it fits well into the surroundings, while other blocks appear to have been designed without thought for the Thames and its history. Nestling in beside the modern blocks, some well-known pubs have managed to survive, such as The Angel, The Mayflower, and the Prospect of Whitby.

A bend in the river reveals a skyline reminiscent of New York, albeit on a smaller scale. Canary Wharf, with its stainless steel tower is the focal point of Docklands, the vibrant financial centre that has brought new life to what was once the grimy London docks.

Suddenly, the tower of the Royal Greenwich Observatory appears on the

skyline, with the white buildings of the former Greenwich Palace, and the

masts of the tea clipper "Cutty Sark" on the shore. We are nearing journey's

end as the architecture of the town of Greenwich reflects its nautical past. A glance downstream will show you two more modern structures, the shell¬like gates of the Thames Barrier, and the outline of the Greenwich Millennium Dome. History past and present is revealed to you on the journey from Westminster to Greenwich.