Open House London is this weekend and Kennington is well represented.
First up, places that are varying degrees of difficult to visit outside of Open House:
60 Ambergate Street, a “small but well-crafted flat renovation” near Kennington tube
The Mobile Gardeners Park, which we wrote about here
Morley College, the adult education centre in North West Kennington. While you’re there, why not visit London’s largest guerrilla gardening site, located directly in front of Morley College in the giant, lavender-filled flower beds in the middle of Westminster Bridge Road:
Guerrilla tulips in bloom at the Guerrilla Gardening on Westminster Bridge Road, London April 2011, by Richard Reynolds
The Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain
The Cinema Museum, a true labour of love in the former Master’s House of the Lambeth Workhouse, a Victorian Gothic building where Charlie Chaplin once stayed with his destitute mother. It can be a little tricky to organise tours of the Cinema Museum normally, and there’s a charge, so going during Open House is recommended.
Perronet House, a concrete council block on the north roundabout in North Kennington. If this looks or sounds unpromising then wait till you see the inside – fantastic views across London from two sides, outstanding use of period features, and a sun-drenched terrace full of plants. The photo of Elephant & Castle Shopping Centre below was taken from Perronet House.
Then there are these places which can be visited easily enough outside of Open House:
Beaconsfield, which we wrote about here
Siobhan Davies Studios, which we wrote about here
Lambeth Palace, the official London residence of the Archbishop of Canterbury in England which dates back to the 13th century, is fully booked during Open House, but you can buy tickets for future tours here.
