Highgate Village: Tales of History and Mystery

Not too far from the madding crowds of central London lies Highgate, long famous as a refuge from the noise and stench of the city. On this walking tour, you’ll join the ranks of poets, writers, philosophers, and kings who have for centuries made their way to this charming village for some fresh air, peace, and quiet.

The tour starts outside Highgate Cemetery’s neo-Gothic western entrance. You’ll wind your way through leafy parkland to Lauderdale House. Then, you’ll follow the historic High Street, with buildings dating back to the 1600s, mercifully saved from destruction in the 1960s. You’ll arrive in the heart of the village, a place where a settlement has existed at least since the Middle Ages, where history and legend are woven into its streets.

Along the way, you’ll hear what this place sounded like centuries ago with its horses, carriages, and street criers. I’ll also share stories of writers, philanthropists, highwaymen, and ghosts who have left their traces throughout the village. The tour ends at Pond Square, where you’ll learn about Highgate’s quirky Swearing on the Horns tradition, a pub ritual where drovers and travelers would kiss a set of animal horns, buy drinks, and become honorary ’Freemen of Highgate.’

On this 60-minute walking tour, you’ll have a chance to:

• Explore Waterlow Park, gifted to the community by Victorian philanthropist Sydney Waterlow as a garden for the gardenless
• Visit Lauderdale House, the place where 17th-century actress Nell Gwynn enjoyed trysts with King Charles II and nearly dropped one of their children from a window (on purpose!)
• Walk the famous High Street that once heaved with street criers selling their wares, herds being driven to market, and dozens of pubs through the ages
• Discover where Graham Chapman wrote early sketches for Monty Python’s Flying Circus
• Learn about where Romantic poets once met, lived, and died of laudanum (opium) addiction
• Spot the house that Dickens used for one of the settings in David Copperfield
• Visit haunted spots and see where celebrities and famous Highgate residents have lived

Perhaps you’ve visited London many times but never ventured beyond central zones one or two. By the end of this tour, you’ll have encountered a completely different side of this great city through one of its most beloved villages.

We are delighted to bring you this tour, created for us and narrated by heritage content producer and Highgate local, Deborah Greenfield.