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The Flying Scotsman returned to service on Thursday 25 February 2016, following a £4.2 million restoration. Scheduled to leave London King's Cross for York at 7.40am, I felt totally privileged to be there and wave her off. A huge Thank You to the National Railway Museum in York for leading the campaign to save this magnificent locomotive. Here are a few photos of an unforgettable day. Enjoy!
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Welcome to Scones of the Year 2015 where I announce my Top 11 favourite places to eat scones. This is the London Scone Review’s third annual virtual awards. If you'd like to read the full article please visit my other blog, the London Scone Review and check out Scones of the Year 2015.
The author of this blog is a qualified City of London and City of Westminster Tour Guide who leads guided walks combining world famous landmarks with hidden treasures often missed by the crowds.
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The Farmacy – Philadelphia
This month’s scone blog features two fabulous afternoon teas but I’ll start off with a little controversy. Last month I was in USA and it was lovely to see @keftiugal again. She took me to some very cool and amazing places, but nowhere we went to had scones on the menu. The nearest I got to eating my beloved scones was when we went for Sunday brunch to The Farmacy, a restaurant in West Philadelphia near the University, and on the menu were American biscuits.
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September found me enjoying scones in quite diverse locations, starting off I made a return visit to one of my favourite tea rooms, I then partook of a cream tea in one of London’s top hotels and finally checked out the in store café in supermarket.
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This month I’m delighted to say that I’ve managed to partake of afternoon tea at The Goring and Oakley Court, two hotels which have been on my to do list tea list for absolutely ages, plus enjoyed scones for breakfast at Caravan.
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The transformation of King’s Cross is well underway and there’s a lot to discover. So whether you are looking for somewhere nice to eat in a fascinating heritage building or wanting to enjoy a family day out, King’s Cross is well worth checking out. Last week I was delighted to be taken on a private tour of the area and hear more about some of the projects which are opening soon
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One of the pleasures of writing this blog, apart from eating the scones of course, is discovering new, quirky places, so twitter friend and I decided to visit Ham Yard Hotel in Soho, which only opened a couple of months ago. Despite being a Westminster Guide, I have to say to my shame, even I had a bit of difficulty finding it as it's tucked away behind Piccadilly Circus but for me that just added to it's charm. 
I ordered the scones which arrived warm and beautifully presented wrapped in a napkin in a wire basket. They were accompanied with a generous portion of clotted cream and two bowls of jam, one strawberry and the other cherry.
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St Pancras Renaissance
Amongst my friends my scone #obsession is well known so for my final blog of 2013, Scones of the Year seems like the perfect end to a fun filled year. So sit back and enjoy, in no particular order, a review of some of my favourite cream teas.
It's no secret that my favourite building in the whole of London is the St Pancras Renaissance Hotel as its beautiful gothic architecture never fails to take my breath away however many times I see it. Sadly my bank balance won't permit me to stay there but I have been able to visit a couple of times this year with some of my twitter friends, aka #teamcake, to enjoy their giant scones. Their scones have become legendary, they're so huge they could easily feed a family of four. Add to that the sumptuous surroundings it is the perfect place for a special tasty treat.
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Last week I took a little detour to visit the delightful St Pancras Old Church which is quietly tucked away behind St Pancras International Station. Although adjacent to the busy main railway line it's a peaceful, little oasis.
It’s believed to be one of the oldest sites of Christian worship in England, dating back to 314 AD, although the church one sees today was restored in the Victorian period. It became known as Old when the new church was built in nearby Euston Road. The church and neighbouring railway station are both named after a child martyr beheaded in Rome for his Christian faith.
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The transformation of the 67 acres of former railway land adjacent to King’s Cross and St Pancras International Stations is considered to be Europe's largest current urban regeneration project. The project involves the creation of housing, office, retail units and public spaces.
In October 2012 I was lucky to obtain a place on one of the development site tours and our small group donned hard hats and safety goggles before undergoing a tour of the building site.