“Let’s all go down the Strand!” in the words of the popular Victorian song. London’s most important street was once home to all walks of life. On this walking tour, you’ll find out how this sleepy backwater emerged to become the home of the rich and powerful. You’ll also be introduced to locals who lived on the Strand by circumstance, necessity or choice, from the poor to the wealthy middle class and the mega-rich. The tour starts outside Charing Cross railway station near the Eleanor Cross, a monument that a devoted and grieving husband erected for his dead wife. From there, you’ll navigate Pudding Island, the area that was swept away during the construction of the iconic Trafalgar Square. You’ll find out how the Strand looked many centuries ago and also gaze at relatively modern buildings like the opulent Savoy Hotel and the Shell Mex House. I’ll also show you the ecclesiastical side of the area’s heritage at three of London’s most historic churches, including the world-famous St Martin-in-the-Fields. The tour ends where the Strand becomes Fleet Street, at the boundary between the City of Westminster and the City of London, Temple Bar. Along the way, you’ll also have a chance to: • Cross and recross the Strand to visit the enclave known as the Art Deco Adelphi building, all that’s left of what was to be the Adelphi estate • Hear about the pioneering Adams family, who left their mark on the area and its architectural design • Visit passages and alleyways that linked the grandest of Strand houses to flourishing merchants and traders, and hear how the modern scourge of traffic isn’t as modern as you may have thought • Find out how theatrical jealousy turned violent, shocking and titillating Victorian society in equal measure and how some of respectable Victorian society wasn’t as straight-laced as you may have been led to believe • Take a look at the bastion and bulwark of British jurisprudence, the Royal Courts of Justice, and the symbol of bureaucracy, Somerset House During this 75-minute walk, you’ll travel through over a thousand years of history and see why the Strand became the most important street in the capital.