A return Urban Wander around Brackenbury, London W6

From our offices, I frequently used to take lunchtime wanders out towards Brackenbury, which is a residential area of London with a village-like feel, situated near Hammersmith and Ravenscourt Park. When I looked back through the notes from my various urban wanderings, or dérive, I was surprised to see that I had not been here since 2013. With the weather clear, but crisp and cold, I wrapped up warm and headed out.

It never ceases to amaze me that I always spot something new, even on familiar wanders, and this building was no exception. This is a former mission hall, sitting rather curiously in the middle of a row of neat terraced houses, and now home to the John Campbell Scenic Studio.

John Campbell Scenic Studio, former Mission Hall, Iffley Road, London W6

Not far from Iffley Road, although I'm kicking myself now for not noting down the road name, was an unexpected and isolated piece of street art in an otherwise pristine neighbourhood.

Street art, London W6

I took the photo for the combination of chimneys, towers and scaffolding.

Holy Innocents Church, Dorville Crescent, London W6

I'm now wishing I had taken a picture of the full doors rather than just the stained glass windows.

Stained glass windows, Ravenscourt Park Mansions, London W6

And finally on this short drift, a brightly painted bridge carrying the Piccadilly and District lines. I'm always curious about this road and wonder whether the road itself was dropped beneath the level of the houses to allow higher vehicles to pass beneath. 

London Underground railway bridge, near Ravenscourt Park, London W6

    

Urban Wandering: the towers of London W6

Having recently moved into some new office premises near Hammersmith, I found myself with a whole new playground to explore at lunchtimes and after work. It's not really an area I've given much attention to in the past, as it's largely residential, but a quick explore earlier in the week revealed quite an interesting feature in that the area between the Hammersmith Road and Barons Court seems to be scattered with towers. I'm not talking about industrial towers, or water towers here, but instead towers built as part of the residential landscape. These are mostly on corners of properties, but some also seem to spring up in the middle of terraces. Again, as with many of my urban wanders, I probably only scratched the surface here, and the sky was grey, so definitely another place to return to on a sunny day.

Towers of London W6

 Towers of London W6

 Towers of London W6

 Towers of London W6

Towers of London W6