Bloomsbury

Photo of a residential street Photo of a residential street
Photo by me, a house neither you nor I can afford.

Bloomsbury is a nice change of pace from the chaos of Kings Cross to the North, being mostly quiet residential streets.

It features the University College London and the British Museum - all grand, classical buildings - but also lots of nice human-scale Georgian shops and terraces.

I was particularly taken with Lamb’s Conduit Street - a leafy partially pedestrianised road with many good coffee & lunch options.

Things to do

The museum: A terraced house with a bright red door. The museum: A terraced house with a bright red door.
Photo by me.

Foundling Museum

Formerly the Foundling Hospital - set up in 1739 by Thomas Coram to house children who often had to be abandoned due to extreme poverty.

The museum tells that story and also has a large collection of artworks - the hospital raised funds by becoming the city’s first public art gallery.

£12.75 - Under 21s free

foundlingmuseum.org.uk
A vibrant sculpture showing a reclined figure
Photo by me, a pretty memorable exhibit.

Wellcome Collection

Confusingly located next door to the Wellcome pharmaceutical company’s actual offices.

There’s a lovely café, an absorbing collection of medical exhibits, a library and a comfy reading room - albeit monopolised by UCL students.

Free

wellcomecollection.org
Charles Dickens' dining room with a meal laid out on the table.
Photo by me. I wish I had such a nice dining room.

Charles Dickens Museum

Set over five floors of one of Charles Dickens’ former residences, I’ve read no Dickens but enjoyed this museum more than I expected.

It is a chance to see inside a Bloomsbury terrace as it would’ve been in the 1800s and to explore an early example of celebrity culture.

£12.50 - Children £7.50

dickensmuseum.com

Speciality Coffee

A flat white on a wooden table outside Store Street Espresso on a grey day A flat white on a wooden table outside Store Street Espresso on a grey day
Photo by me. Outside. In the rain.

Store Street Espresso

Nice coffee shop featuring guest roasters. Lots of seating but goodness me the entire population of London descends upon the place at lunchtime.

www.storestespresso.co.uk