Churches and Cathedrals in North Watford

"The mother church of the Catholic Church in England and Wales, Westminster Cathedral is the seat of the Archbishop of Westminster. Opening in 1903, the building is in a neo-Byzantine style, filled with attractive decorative mosaics and constructed from a blend of brick and concrete. The Grand Organ, constructed between 1922-1932, is considered one of the most successful and impressive of its kind."

"Often overlooked in favour of Westminster Abbey is Westminster Cathedral. The mother church of Roman Catholics in England and Wales, this cathedral is situated next to Victoria Tube station on the District and Circle lines. Over 360ft long and 284ft tall the incredible construction that is Westminster Cathedral was built in the early 1900s."

"St Paul’s Cathedral (fee*) is an Anglican church designed by Sir Christopher Wren in the English Baroque style. The present church was consecrated in 1697; however, it sits on the same site as the former medieval church of the same name which was badly damaged by fire. Today it is the seat of the Bishop of London and one of the most important churches in London."

"Along the south bank (always worth a wander), you can stop in at Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre, the Tate Modern Art Gallery, and even quickly cross the Millennium bridge for a visit to St. Paul’s Cathedral. The Globe and St. Paul’s Cathedral are both included on the London Pass, whilst the Tate Modern is free to enter."

"For centuries this has been one of London’s most iconic buildings, and it remains a breathtaking structure, inside and out. Sir Christopher…"

"Finally, All Hallows-by-the-Tower is believed to be the oldest surviving church in London, and overlooks the Tower of London on Byward Street. The church was founded in 675, and while it has obviously undergone extensive restoration since then, it still contains an Anglo-Saxon arch from the time which we believe qualifies it to take the crown as London’s oldest church!. Thanks to its proximity to the Tower of London, this church was frequented often where beheading victims were sent for a temporary burial!"

"A post shared by Spring Education London (@springedulondon) on Mar 29, 2019 at 4:06am PDT. Though bombed in WWII, All Hallows by the Tower remains a gorgeous Grade I listed church. The oldest in the City, having been founded by the Abbey of Barking in AD 675, it was from this church that Samuel Pepys watched the Great Fire spread in 1666."

"All Hallows-by-the-Tower is associated with the executions on Tower Hill, and has a piece of Roman pavement in the crypt 4"

"A post shared by Hugo de Groot (@hugo_de_groot_creative) on Mar 22, 2019 at 10:18am PDT. Among the oldest churches in London, Temple Church was built by the Knights Templar, an order of crusaders founded in the early 12th century to protect pilgrims travelling to Jerusalem. Serving as a HQ from the order’s early days, the Round Church was modelled on the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem and contains the effigies of some of medieval England’s most important men."

"This historic site was first built by the Knights Templar as their English headquarters back in the late 20th century. These days the church prides itself on its musical output and together the choir and the Harrison & Harrison organ produce some of the most sonorous gospel music in the city. It's one of the very oldest churches in the city, sure to fascinate history buffs."

"The name, Temple, derives from the Order of the Knights Templar, an order established in 1118 for protecting pilgrims. (You may know of them as the knights who wore white tunics with red crosses on them.). In 1162, the group built their first church and houses on the banks of the Thames."

"St Mary Woolnoth was said to have been founded originally by Wulfnoth, a Saxon noble, on a Roman Temple to Concord. The church is famous among architects. It was built by Nicholas Hawksmoor in 1716-1721."

"This bizarre looking Anglican church was designed by Hawksmoor – his only City of London church. The original dated back to Norman times"

"Not only is St Helen’s one of the oldest surviving churches in the City of London, but it is also the largest, and contains more monuments than any other church in London (except Westminster Abbey of course). The church was designed with two parallel naves, which is why is it is so much wider than a usual church, and it was actually divided in two at one point, with half serving the nuns and the other half serving the parishioners (it is also the only nunnery still standing in the City of London). Among the more famous parishioners of this church was William Shakespeare who lived nearby in the 1590s."

"St Helen Bishopsgate was formed originally of two medieval churches joined together. On the left is the nave of a Benedictine Nunnery, which, in the early 13th century was built onto the existing parish church. The two congregations were then separated by a solid screen (now columns)."

"This church dates from the 12th-century and managed to survive both the Great Fire of London in 1666 and the Blitz"

"This beautiful little 18th-century church was James Gibbs’ first commission. It sits in the middle of a busy traffic island on the Strand"

"St. Giles-in-the-Fields is known as the Poets’ Church and has a number of important burials plus a burial pit of plague victims"

"St Pancras Old Church isn’t that old nowadays, having largely been rebuilt as recently as the 19th century, but it probably dates back to Saxon times, most likely the 7th century AD, making it one of the oldest churches in London. It’s a fairly small, humble but atmospheric church, around ten minutes’ walk from King’s Cross and St Pancras railway stations. The churchyard and surrounding St Pancras Gardens are also noteworthy – the churchyard contains the tomb of architect Sir John Soane, which was the inspiration for the famous British red telephone box design."

"Just across the King’s Cross, St Pancras Old Church is one of the oldest churches in London, whose origin can be traced as early as the days of Norman conquest. The place is calm, soothing and offers regular mass services on Monday, Tuesday, Saturdays and Sundays. Moreover, this church also hosts live music gigs and interactive sessions for visitors."

"It’s thought to be one of the oldest Christian places of worship in England. It dates back to the fourth century and got renovated in Victorian times."

"Restaurants Italian Covent Garden. If Angela Hartnett’s Michelin-starred Murano is altogether too fancy and too pricey, take the children to this casual but classy offshoot in Covent Garden. The kids’ menu allows little‘uns to choose from four kinds of fresh pasta and four different sauces, with ice cream or fruit salad for afters – and all for a tenner."

"For refined and generous dishes, look no further than Angela Hartnett’s Café Murano. The menu picks the best from Italy’s northern regions: tortelli stuffed with pumpkin; hearty risotto Milanese with osso bucco. Punchy flavours accent simply cooked meat and fish dishes, seen in tender grilled octopus with vibrant salsa verde and borlotti beans, or braised rabbit in a heady rosemary and tomato stew."

"The inside of Silk Road now too often resembles a seminar of Theatre and Performance students at Goldsmiths, which is why it’s all the more important to bypass sitting inside and get the food to go — which is still an option not a lot of people take advantage of. Since reopening in July, it feels like some dishes are back at a high consistency: the T.E.P. (tomato, egg, pepper) noodles had a proper hit of chilli and cumulonimbus egg whites coddling tensile noodles, and barely cooked tomato chunks, while getting the handmade cabbage in a tupperware makes it easier to drink its umami rich sauce despite it being at least 80% scalding oil."

"A south-of-the-river institution, Silk Road is a northwestern Chinese restaurant specialising in Xinjiang cuisine. Snack on grilled cumin lamb skewers, feast on what is underwhelmingly called 'medium chicken' an aromatic broth redolent with star anise and chilli, chicken on the bone and potatoes. That's not all, the waiters bring superb homemade noodles to dip in the broth and slurp contentedly as part two of the dish."

"Get an authentic taste of China in South London at Silk Road. Silk Road’s short menu includes Sichuan-style dishes and Xinjiang specialities. What attracts most people to Silk Road however is the noodle and stew menu."

"Late night serenades, a caviar menu and a dining room drenched in red velvet: dates don’t get much more glamorous than they do at Park Chinois. From the swoon-inducing live band to the bathroom taps shaped like gold swans, this Mayfair Chinese restaurant is an exercise in opulence, styled after the glamorous nightclubs of 1930s Shanghai. Intimate nights can be shared upstairs in the Salon de Chine, while dinner in the downstairs Club Chinois is accompanied by a high-kicking cabaret show – a dead cert for getting all concerned hot under the collar."

"Despite the top-hatted concierges at the front door, Park Chinois on Berkeley Street remains something of a hidden gem – a sexy, tasty secret you’re not likely to forgot once you’ve discovered it. Not that you have to make the pilgrimage to Mayfair to enjoy a serving of 1930s Shanghai. Park Chinois at Home now operates seven-days-a-week, within a three-mile radius of the restaurant, from 12pm to 11pm."

"The first thing to know about Alan Yau's Mayfair restaurant, inspired by the golden era of French chinoiserie and with more than a nod to old Hollywood glamour, is that it's beautiful. The second is that the live jazz is so good, the vibe so smoochy, it should have an X certificate - the world's first X-rated restaurant. And the third is the food."