Post by Hamish Champ

Being born within the sound of ‘Bow Bell’s’ makes one a Cockney, so the saying goes. Until only a few years ago I believed the church from which these bells rang out was in Bow, in London’s east end. However St Mary-le-Bow is actually on Cheapside, in the City, the ‘bow’ referring to the large stone arches in the crypt of an earlier iteration of the building. The existing church was rebuilt by – yup, you’ve guessed it – Sir Christopher Wren, after the previous one was destroyed during the Great Fire of London in 1666. Wren's church was itself badly damaged by enemy bombing during WW2, and the current bells were cast as recently as 1956. #freelancewriting #photography #history #london #cityoflondon #churchesoflondon #sirchristopherwren #greatfireoflondon #cockney #theblitz #building #builtenvironment #heritagebuildings