Reviews by KarenThis venue is owned by Kingston University and normally has an entry fee of £5 on the days it is open to the public (Thursdays to Saturdays).
This was the home of an artist called Dora Gardine and her husband Richard Hare which was a fan of Russian art. They combined their first names to come up with Dorich.
It is easy to access via public transport and is just next door to Richmond Park.
It has no disabled access to the upper floors of the house.
7/10
I took the opportunity to visit this private day school just outside Esher. IT is a historical house and was the marital home of Princess Charlotte (daughter of the then Prince Regent) and her husband Pirce Leopold Later the first king of Belgium and uncle to both Queen Victoria and Prince Albert).
The building set in nice grounds, and it is possible to use public transport to get to it (it is about 20 minutes walk from TFL Oyster bus stops in the centre of Esher, or you can get a Surrey bus to the school gates.
There was a lot of useful information available on the self-guided tour of both the house and grounds.
8/10
Greenwich currently houses London’s only planetarium where you can see shows about the night sky. They run a number of different shows throughout each day.
It is located next to the Observatory at the top of the hill in Greenwich Park, and it is free to visit the exhibitions in the Observatory (separate charges exist for shows and the Observatory).
The fee for a show is £9, but it is free if you are a member of Royal Museums Greenwich. I saw the show The Sky Tonight Live. It changes throughout the year to say what you should be able to see if you look at the sky around the time you visit. An astronomer introduces themselves and then narrates the show. They also take questions at the end. The seats lean back a long way (so you are looking up at the ceiling) which can feel a bit weird surrounded by strangers and it gets very dark.
7/10
This costs £11 or £6 is you are a member of the Art Fund using your National Art Pass. Once you have a ticket you can return anytime during the next calendar year. In that way it is similar to a very reasonably priced membership but with out any additional perks such as discounts in a café or shop. It would be useful if entry could be added to the Royal Museums Greenwich membership
It is known as Britain’s Sistine Chapel and is by Sir James Thornhill. It has recently been restored and shows many royal and political figures of the time on the ceiling and along the wall.
In addition to seeing the main hall, your ticket entitles you to visit the Victorian Skittle alley in their undercroft. It is free to visit the visitors centre and the chapel.
8/10
The normal on the day entry fee for this cathedral is £20 but I converted Tesco Clubcard coupons to save money.
It is a large cathedral, but some parts may close for services, and the whispering gallery was closed when I visited. They have a free audio guide If you can manage it you can climb 376 steps to the stone gallery and an additional 152 steps to the golden gallery for some good views across London.
The Cathedral includes memorials and tombs of a number of historical figures including Horatio Nelson, Florence Nightingale and Christopher Wren.
It does have a café and shop but they are overpriced.
8/10
The Victoria and Albert Museum is a large museum of art and design. It is free to enter with charges for some exhibitions.
They offer a variety of free tours to show case different aspects of the museum. This can be useful as the museum is vast with lots of corridors.
There are shops and restaurants but they are a bit overpriced.
7/10
I went on a general introduction tour
This museum explores both the history and the future of science. It is free to enter and the temporary exhibitions were all free too.
It has cafes and a shop but does not offer membership and they do not seem to have discounted sales often so the souvenirs can be a bit over priced.
There were large areas closed off and being renovated, which made it difficult to see everything as you need to change floors to get around some of these areas.
6/10
This small central London National Trust property was the home of the Victorian writing couple of Thomas and Jane Carlyle. You can see where they lived, wrote and entertained other writers such as Charles Dickins.
It is a very small property which includes a small garden but no facilities such as a café and the shop is a table in one of the rooms. It also has no lift meaning those with a problem with stairs to the anything other than the ground floor which other properties such as Dickins House now has.
5/10
I visited on a spring day and there were some daffodils & blossom in the wilderness and other flowers in the formal gardens.
7/10
This new gallery celebrates the art of photography. It has many examples of cameras through the ages, including some you can handle yourself.
6/10
