#MyStrand: Justin Sherin, playwright and screenwriter

Wych Street looking towards the Strand, c. 1890, from 'Lost London' by Hermione Hobhouse. Shared by @WychStreet, 10 December 2017.

I often scour Instagram for gorgeous, strange, or mysterious looking photographs of the Strand, historical and contemporary. @WychStreet, an account run by Justin Sherin, is an account I return to again and again, as the photographs – and generous evocative captions – instantly transport me into the past. Justin was kind enough to share some…

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People of the Strand: Alice and Kimberley at Two Temple Place

Featured Image: A beautiful stained glass windows at Two Temple Place, and the 'Unbound' exbition duty managers Alice and Kimberley.

Like many people, I have been enjoying the virtual offerings of museums and galleries during lockdown. For this post, I’m grateful to Two Temple Place for letting Strandlines share excerpts from their blog ‘Voices from Two Temple Place’. I can’t recommend the blog enough, and applaud the blog’s mission to be an ‘inclusive online platform…

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The Strand’s Foggy Past in Conan Doyle’s Work

In the late 19th century, the Strand Magazine propelled Arthur Conan Doyle’s writings to new heights. This meteoric rise brought wider public attention to some of the issues that plagued London in the 1890s. In the Strand Magazine pieces, complex connections between writing by Doyle and the concerns of the Smoke Abatement Society are apparent.…

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People of the Strand: Fortunatus (died 1601)

Shell Mex House, Public Domain image uploaded by Wikipedia user Mahlum.

‘If one could choose a single location in which the encounter with cultural complexity became routine, it would be that unique gathering of peoples along the Thames.’ So says John Cramsie, author of a book about such encounters in the early modern period, though mostly ones away from London (British Travellers and the Encounter with…

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Black Lives Matter

A black and white photo of a Black Lives Matter banner held up at a protest.

Black Lives Matter. Monday 25th May 2020 marked another instance of police brutality against a member of the Black community in the United States. George Floyd, a Black 46-year-old father, son, and brother, was murdered by white police officer, Derek Chauvin, in broad daylight – a disproportionate reaction to Floyd supposedly passing a counterfeit $20…

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Celebrating Volunteers’ Week 2020

Just some of our wonderful contributors! Browse all contributions here.

Strandlines couldn’t exist without the generous contributions of a fabulous group of volunteer researchers and creative writers. 1-7 June is Volunteers Week in the UK: a chance for organisations across the country to celebrate the amazing contributions that people make in their spare time around so many other committments. By way of a thank you…

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Black Lives Matter protest, Trafalgar Square 31 May 2020

Photo of Trafalgar Square by Zima Magazine on Instagram.

Black Lives Matter. Below, we’ve archived a selection of photographed geotagged at Trafalgar Square on 31 May 2020. The protests in May and June 2020 were a response to the murder of George Floyd by police in Minneapolis. But, as organisers and participants write in their photo captions and in television interviews, the reality is…

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Life and Work on the Tower RNLI Lifeboat Pier

Stan Todd, helmsman on the RNLI Tower pier.

Anyone who has crossed the Waterloo bridge might have noticed the Royal National Lifeboat Institution Pier, on the north side of the Thames. This is the busiest lifeboat station in the United-Kingdom. I spoke to Stan Todd, a full-time helmsman on the station, and looked over archive materials, to find out more about how the…

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Stranded

Image: Laurie Wiegler with her mother, Kathleen Leonard

This is where Samuel Johnson first inspired me Where I discovered the Queen Victoria statue unexpectedly Devoured small tuna sandwiches with cucumber And realized one night, mournfully, I was too old to join the fun at the pub. It’s where I left my laptop at a café while eating lunch one day, Scurrying back to…

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Dan Kirmatzis: Strand series

Strand Series (40) Dan Kirmatzis 2020

The Strandlines team periodically check in on photos tagged to the Strand (and surrounding areas) on Instagram and Twitter. We came across Dan Kirmatzis’s work on Instagram. A huge thanks to Dan for so generously sharing his photographs and insights into his inspiration and processes.   “Although I take many photos in the street genre…

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