WSDC 1999: London, England
Venues
The Hammersmith Novotel
Dartmouth House
The Inns of Court (Inner Temple, Middle Temple, Gray's Inn and Lincoln's Inn) and the Law Society
The Houses of Parliament
Guildhall
The Oxford Union Society
The Cambridge Union Society
Foreign & Commonwealth Office
Lancaster House
Directions to Schools and Telephone Numbers
Guide to London
Safety
Your free day
The Hammersmith Novotel
Hammersmith International Centre, 1 Shortlands, Hammersmith, London W6 7DR
Tel. 0181 741 1555 Fax 0181 741 2120
Tube: Hammersmith (Piccadilly, District or Hammersmith & City lines)
The Novotel is your home away from home. As you will have seen by the time you read this, it is a vast business hotel (in which the entire World Championships party may all fit onto one floor), with conference rooms, café, restaurant, pub, shops, special check-in desk for airline pilots, and many other useful facilities. Not all these facilities will be available to you - the minibars in the rooms are locked and external phone calls are blocked (either may be reinstated at the request of an adult delegation leader with a credit card). Under-18s will not be allowed to drink in the hotel pub. Ironing and laundry facilities are available, as is free satellite TV, radio, and tea and coffee-making facilities. Breakfasts will be served directly to your room in the morning. Safety deposit boxes are available in 3rd floor rooms or at Reception. The Exhbition Centre downstairs is ours for the week if you want an area to practice.
Dartmouth House
37 Charles Street, Mayfair, London W1X 8AB
Tel. 0171 493 3328 Fax 0171 495 6108 e-mail: esu@esu.org
Tube: Green Park (Piccadilly, Victoria or Jubilee lines) or Bond Street (Central or Jubilee lines)
The international headquarters of the English-Speaking Union was purchased in 1926 for £45,000, and formally opened by the then Prime Minister, Sir Stanley Baldwin, on 22nd February 1927 - the anniversary of George Washington's birthday. Previously owned by several different branches of the British aristocracy - including the founders of the Barings Bank - it boasts an eclectic mix of architectural features from many countries. It acts as home to the educational work of the ESU in London and also as a clubhouse for ESU members, with a reading room, restaurant, bar and courtyard for relaxation. Many TV productions and films have used its impressive Drawing Rooms and the marble staircase as locations. You are very welcome to use the building as your base while wandering in London. Opening hours are usually 9am-8pm. The closest tube stop is Green Park, from where you should walk up Berkeley Street to Berkeley Square, and turn left onto Charles Street. Dartmouth House is on the left and boasts a Union Jack and the Stars and Stripes projecting from its front. If you wish to eat in the area, try Shepherd's Market off Curzon Street, where a wide variety of British and ethnic restaurants may be found. If you wish to eat cheaply, try Sofra or one of the greasy cafés. Mayfair is however one of the most affluent areas of London and even sandwiches can erode your travellers' cheques fairly quickly. From Hammersmith, take the Piccadilly line to Green Park.
The Inns of Court (Inner Temple, Middle Temple, Gray's Inn and Lincoln's Inn)
and the Law Society
Tube: Chancery Lane (Central line) or Temple (District or Circle lines)
The Inns of Court, in and around Chancery Lane, are the home of London's legal profession. The Inns date mostly from the 14th century and were once, as you might expect, places of rest and comfort for trainee barristers. At one time the only way to obtain legal training was to serve an apprenticeship like the one a young Charles Dickens suffered at Gray's Inn (the only Inn, unfortunately, we are unable to use for our Quarter-Finals). Other famous students of the Inns include Oliver Cromwell and the two 19th century Prime Ministers, Disraeli and Gladstone, who were all at Lincoln's Inn. Surprising as it may seem today, the Inns weren't always so quiet or respectable. Several of Shakespeare's plays had their first performances in the halls and entertainment included dice and dancing, archery, football and wrestling. Traditions still remain; a horn still summons members to dinner at the Middle Temple and would-be barristers are still required to dine here a certain number of times during the year. The Law Society provides a similar haven for solicitors. Directions: Inner or Middle Temple, take the District line from Hammersmith to Temple. Walk south to the river, turn left, walk along for a while and turn left onto Middle Temple Lane. Middle Temple is on your left (look for the Parliament Chamber) and Inner Temple through an archway on your right (also the Parliament Chamber, which is through a doorway on the left and upstairs).
For The Law Society, follow the same directions and keep walking up Middle Temple Lane; turn right at the top (Strand/Fleet St.) and left onto Chancery Lane. The Law Society is on your left - ask at Reception. For Lincoln's Inn, follow those directions to Chancery Lane, turn left on Carey Street and Right on Serle Street. Entrance on the right, ask for the Old Court Room.
The Houses of Parliament
Tube: Westminster (District or Circle lines)
The Palace of Westminster was burnt down in 1834 and rebuilt in 1852 by Charles Barry. This enormous building, containing the House of Commons and the House of Lords, has over 1000 rooms and 2 miles of corridors (don't get lost!). The Houses of Parliament consist of two chambers, The House of Commons and The House of Lords. The Commons is a house of locally elected Members of Parliament (MPs), who wield most of the legislative power in the country. The central debating chamber (on which the Oxford and Cambridge Unions are based) can seat about 450 of the 650 elected MPs with the governing party on one side, facing the opposition. Major parties represented are Labour (the current Government, with an overwhelming majority), the Conservatives, the Liberal Democrats and the Scottish Nationalists. A party needs an overall majority in the House to pass its bills and a bill usually takes over six months to be enacted. The press can report on Parliament and both houses are televised with some restrictions (cameramen are not allowed to show MPs taking an afternoon nap for instance). Parliament meets from October to July. From the Strangers' Gallery, the public can watch debates in the chamber on most days. From Westminster tube station, turn right, walk past Big Ben (the famous clock and bell tower), turn left, and enter by St. Stephen's Entrance which is halfway down the Palace on your left. Go in and ask directions to the Committee Room Corridor.
Guildhall
Tube: Moorgate, Bank, Mansion House or St. Paul's (most lines between them)
This 15th century building is the centre of London's civic government and is where the Lord Mayor is sworn in and keeps his office. The Mayor takes up his symbols of office in a ceremony known as the Silent Ceremony, so called because no words are spoken. The next day is the Lord Mayor's Show, a colourful parade through the streets which starts at Guildhall and passes through the city. The hall itself has suffered many disasters during its long history, including damage from the Great Fire of 1666 and World War II. The last night will give you a chance to see the medieval crypts and the ancient Great Hall with its minstrels' gallery and hanging coats of arms and banners of the City Guilds.
The Oxford Union Society
Frewin Court, Oxford, OX1 3JB
Tel. 01865 241353 Fax 01865 250092
The Oxford Union is the world's most famous debating society. Established in 1823 and located in glorious Victorian Buildings in the heart of Oxford University, it continues to act as a forum for debate and discussion, as well as a social centre for University students.
Unlike other student unions, the Oxford Union holds no political views. Instead, the Union is a forum for debate and the discussion of controversial issues. For example, in the 1960s, Malcolm X came to the Union and demanded black empowerment "by any means necessary". In the 1970s, Richard Nixon in his first public speech after Watergate admitted,"I screwed up - and I paid the price." In the 1980s, Gerry Adams, still under his television ban, addressed the Union's members. Last year, O.J.Simpson made his only public speech in Britain after the controversial "not guilty" verdict in his criminal trial. The Oxford Union believes first and foremost in freedom of speech: nothing more, nothing less.
The Cambridge Union Society
9a Bridge Street, Cambridge, CB2 1UB
Tel. 01223 566421 Fax 01223 566444
Founded in 1815, the Union is the oldest student organisation in the United Kingdom. Traditionally a debating society it now offers a social programme for Cambridge students including films, band nights, balls and a student bar as well as debates and lectures featuring national and international celebrities. The Cambridge Union Debating Team is currently the strongest team in the country and many former World Schools alumni are members.
Foreign & Commonwealth Office
King Charles Street, Whitehall, London SW1A 2AH
Tube: Westminister (District and Circle lines)
The Foreign Office was created in 1782 and has enjoyed several homes since, including Cleveland Row and Downing Street, before opening on the current site in 1868. Around it three other state departments were built - the India Office, the Colonial Office and the Home Office - which remained distinct until large increases in staff and business during the First World War gave rise to serious shortage of space in the Foreign Office. Three grandiose reception rooms, used as offices during the war, were cleared and used as the site of the signing of the Treaty of Locarno on 1 December 1925. The suite was then redecorated, rechristened the Locarno Suite, and then returned to its original purposes until 1939 when it became home to the FO Cyphering Department. The four ministries are now merged into one interconnected and modernised block - as of 1968, the Foreign & Commonwealth Office. From Westminster tube station, turn right and walk away from the river, turn right on Parliament Street and first left is King Charles Street. Also walkable from St. James's Park or Charing Cross.
Lancaster House
Tube: Green Park (Victoria, Piccadilly and Jubilee lines)
Construction of the house was begun in 1825 for Frederick, the 'Grand Old' Duke of York, who died before it was completed. In 1912 it was sold to Sir William Lever (later Viscount Leverhulme) who named it after the county of his birth and presented it to the nation, for the dual purpose of housing the London Museum and to provide a centre for Government hospitality. Although comparatively plain externally, the building has an interior which is a brilliant recreation of decorative art in the reign of Louis XIV. If you are allowed to wander, look out for the unusual chimney piece in the Green Room, depicting the figures of Summer and Winter; the painting by Guercino in the Long Room; the ceiling painted by Veronese in the Ante Room; and the magnificent gilded interior of the Music Room.
Directions to Schools and Telephone Numbers
It is our intention that every party travelling by public transport to a school will be accompanied by a guide from the Organising Committee. In case that is not possible, however, or if you wish to make your own way there, the following instructions may help. If you get lost at any stage, however, do not waste time - call the school in the first instance to ask directions (and to let the organisers know that you are lost) or call one of the Committee directly. Do NOT wander around in silence!
Saturday 30th January
St. Paul's School
Lonsdale Road, Barnes, London SW13 9JT
Tel. 0181 748 9162 Fax 0181 748 9557
From the Novotel, walk down Hammersmith Bridge Road from the Broadway and cross the bridge to the south. Turn right on Lonsdale Road, and St. Paul's is about a kilometre down the road on your right. If you're cold, take a bus to Barnes (i.e. one going to Teddington, Tolworth or Mortlake) from the bus station above Hammersmith tube station. Get off at the stop immediately after the bridge, which is just past Lonsdale Road - look for the Garden House pub on the corner. Walking time from Novotel: 25-30 minutes.
Sunday 31st January
Dulwich College
Dulwich Common, London SE21 7LD
Tel. 0181 693 3601 Fax 0181 693 6319
Take the District line to Victoria, and go the mainline (British Rail) station. Take a train to West Dulwich (on the way to Maidstone, Ashford, Orpington etc.). From the station, turn right, follow the main road past Alleyn Park Road on your right and the College is on your right, past the traffic lights.
Eton College
Windsor, Berkshire, SL4 6DW
Tel. 01753 671000 Fax 01753 671159
You will be brought here by coach. HRH Prince William (heir to the British throne) is a pupil here - please don't do anything silly or you'll be swiftly arrested by the Secret Service agents dressed up as 13 year-olds.
Harrow School
Harrow-on-the-Hill, Middlesex, HA2 0HR
Tel. 0181 869 1229 Fax 0181 423 3112
Take the Hammersmith & City line to Baker Street and then the Metropolitan line to Harrow-on-the-Hill. From the station, turn right into Station Road, cross over the main road and walk up Peterborough Road. The school is on your right.
Royal Masonic School
Chorleywood Road, Rickmansworth, Hertfordshire, WD3 4HF
Tel. 01923 773168 Fax 01923 896729
You'll be brought here by coach.
Monday 1st February
Charles Darwin School
Jail Lane, Biggin Hill, Westerham, Kent TN16 3AU
Tel. 01959 574043 Fax 01959 540036
You'll be brought here by coach.
Blackheath High School
Vanbrugh Park, London SE3 7AG
Tel. 0181 853 2929 Fax 0181 853 3663
You'll be brought here by coach.
St. Olave's Grammar School
Goddington Lane, Orpington, Kent BR6 9SH
Tel. 01689 820101 Fax 01689 897943
You'll be brought here by coach.
James Allen's Girls' School (JAGS)
East Dulwich Grove, Dulwich, London SE22 8TE
Tel. 0181 693 1181 Fax 0181 693 7842
You'll be brought here by coach.
Alleyn's School
Townley Road, Dulwich, London SE22 8SU
Tel. 0181 693 3422 Fax 0181 299 3671
You'll be brought here by coach.
Thursday 4th February
City of London Boys' School
Queen Victoria Street, London EC4V 3AL
Tel. 0171 489 0291 Fax 0171 329 6887
Take the tube to Blackfriars (District line), which is on Queen Victoria Street.
Francis Holland School
Clarence Gate, Regent's Park, London NW1 6XR
Tel. 0171 723 0176 Fax 0171 706 1522
Take the tube to Baker Street (Hammersmith & City line). Cross Baker Street to the west and walk up it towards Regent's Park. Bear left at the top of Baker Street and the school is 100m on, on your left.
St. Paul's School
See Saturday 30th January
Advise walking this morning - and you must be there by 7.50am - sorry!
The American School in London
2-8 Loudoun Road, St. John's Wood, London NW8 0NP
Tel. 0171 449 1200 Fax 0171 449 1350
Take the tube to St. John's Wood (Jubilee line). Cross the main road, walk down Grove End Road and turn right into Loudoun Road. The school is on your right.
Westminster School
17 Dean's Yard, Westminster, London SW1P 2PB
Tel. 0171 963 1030 Fax 0171 963 1006
Take the tube to Westminster (from Green Park, take Victoria line to Victoria and change onto the District). Turn right and walk away from the river towards Parliament Square, then cross the square onto Broad Sanctuary, walk past Westminster Abbey and turn left into Dean's Yard.
London Oratory School
Seagrave Road, Fulham, London SW6 1RX
Tel. 0171 385 0102 Fax 0171 381 3836
Take the tube to West Brompton (District line - from Hammersmith you'll need to change at Earl's Court). Turn left out of the station and then left down Seagrave Road. The school is at the end of the road.
City of London Girls' School
Barbican, London EC2Y 8BB
Tel. 0171 628 0841 Fax 0171 638 3212
Take the tube to Barbican (from Green Park, take the Victoria to King's Cross and then an eastbound Circle, Metropolitan or Hammersmith & City).
Grey Coat Hospital
Grey Coat Place, London SW1P 2DY
Tel. 0171 969 1998 Fax 0171 730 0494
Take the tube to St. James's Park (Victoria line to Victoria and then District). Walk along Broadway. Cross Victoria Street into Strutton Ground. Turn right into Grey Coat Place and the school is opposite you.
Guide to London
A brief guide to the city, including where to eat and shop in Hammersmith and what to do on your day off.
Safety
London certainly doesn't rate with Bogota or Manila on New Year's Eve, but like any large city it has its dangers. Use common sense and you shouldn't have any problems. In particular, don't wander around back alleys at night on your own - stay in groups and keep to well-lit areas. Watch out in particular for the period between 11pm and midnight, after the pubs close, when boisterous crowds can be turned on to the streets looking for someone to pick on. Just don't pick on anyone else and you'll be fine. If you are catching taxis on the street, you should only use the official 'black cabs' (which have a lit yellow 'Taxi' sign). You may find random cars stopping at the side of the road and offering to give you a lift. Many of these are unlicensed drivers with unpleasant motives - don't take the risk and be prepared to wait for a black cab instead. Calling a taxi from an official minicab firm is usually OK.
If you go into the West End (London's central shopping and nightlife district) in the evenings, make sure you know what time the last tube back to Hammersmith is (usually between 11.30pm and midnight). Tubes late at night are crowded and therefore fairly safe if sometimes a little loud. After that your travel will be restricted to taxis or to 'Night Buses'. Wandering around the main areas of Leicester Square, Piccadilly Circus, or Covent Garden is fine due to the crowds and lights; in Soho (the area between Shaftesbury Avenue and Oxford Street), however, stick to the main streets - as well as London's main bar and club area it is also a red-light district and home to various ruffians and vagabonds. Near Hammersmith, you will find that Chiswick (to the west), Kensington (to the east) and Barnes (to the south, over the river) are all fairly safe - avoid going north at night to Shepherd's Bush however (there isn't much there anyway, apart from the BBC studios and an excellent vegetarian restaurant - Blah Blah Blah).
Hammersmith and the Novotel environs
Hammersmith is not a particularly pretty area but has just about every facility you might need. The Broadway shopping centre, next to the tube station and under the Coca-Cola headquarters, contains a McDonald's, a supermarket, a drug store, a hairdressers, clothes stores, a news kiosk, a coffee shop, a restaurant, etc. etc. Otherwise you will find everything else on the roads running off from the Broadway (a vast quasi-roundabout). The busiest of these is King Street, which lies opposite the main entrance to the shopping centre. Down here you will find virtually every High Street store you might need, a movie theatre (some distance down), several pubs, another shopping centre (King's Mall), and so on. Fast food outlets abound, as do cheap kebab shops on the Broadway itself.
Places you might want to note are: Pret a Manger at 8-10 King Street (good quality sandwiches), Ebla (Turkish restaurant) at 262-264 King St, Sabai Sabai (good Thai) at 270-272 King St, Anarkali (Indian) at 303-305 King St, Latymers (cheap Thai food in an appalling pub) at 157 Hammersmith Road, The Stone Mason's Arms (a 'gastropub') at 54 Cambridge Grove, or The Gate (supposedly the best vegetarian restaurant in London) at 51 Queen Caroline St. If you have something else in mind, ask at the hotel.
Or if you want somewhere slightly nicer to eat and shop and don't want to go into the West End, keep walking down King Street (a long walk) or hop on a bus and you will eventually come to Chiswick, a leafier, cleaner, more expensive version of Hammersmith. There is a great selection of pleasant restaurants of all types here. Classier still is Kensington which is a bus ride up Hammersmith Road from the Broadway (this is the road that runs up one side of the Novotel). "High St. Ken" is a shopping mecca for the well-dressed and boasts many bars and restaurants.
The Broadway is not a pedestrian-friendly road. Never attempt to cross it unless you are at traffic lights or using one of the underground subways.
Pubs in Britain close at 11pm. The drinking age is 18 which is strictly enforced in some places and not in others; younger teenagers can drink wine with meals if accompanied by adults. Although alcohol will be provided at some of the parties and receptions at these World Championships, under-18s will not be allowed to drink in the hotel bar. The hotel staff have been warned to look out for offenders and your coaches will be informed if problems arise.
Your free day
All of the places below can be visited easily by underground and on foot. Take a map and enjoy the walk. The nearest underground or tube stations are in brackets. If you really can't be bothered to walk, organised tours on double-decker buses can be booked through The Original London Sightseeing Tour (222 1234) or the Big Bus Company (0181 944 7810), but be prepared to pay.
If you want to book seats for the theatre or a West End Show, try booking seats direct from the theatre box office. On the day of the performance you can buy half-price tickets for West End productions from the Leicester Square Ticket Booth on the south side of Leicester Square.
If you want to find out about shows, concerts or comedy, get a copy of Time Out magazine (published every Tuesday).
The West End
A good starting point; the 165ft tall Nelson's Column commemorates Napoleon's defeat at sea in 1805. This is the closest you'll get to the heart of London.
Over 2000 paintings on display and it's free!
Lots of restaurants and cafes, as well as four cinemas, but don't miss Chinatown, just north of the Square, with its restaurants, dragon-adorned arches and streetsigns translated into Cantonese.
A popular but busy shopping street ; head towards Marble Arch for the famous department stores - Selfridge's, Debenhams and John Lewis and of course, Marks and Spencer.
Once a fruit and vegetable market, this is now one of London's liveliest areas
and the home of the Royal Opera House. Glitzy arcade shops, a covered market, cafes galore and entertainment by buskers and street artists.
Westminster and Pimlico
With two exceptions, every sovereign has been crowned here since 1066 and many are buried here. In 1997, TV cameras were allowed in the abbey for the funeral service of the Princess of Wales. Many important British writers, including Chaucer, are buried in Poet's Corner.
Home of the two chambers of government - the House of Lords and the House of Commons. The Strangers' Gallery in the debating chamber of the House of Commons is open to the public from Tuesday to Thursday after 4.15 pm. Prime Minister's Question Time is
The British Prime Minister's official residence since 1832. The Chancellor of the Exchequer lives next door at number 11. Gates were erected and the street closed to the public in Margaret Thatcher's time as a precaution against terrorist attacks.
Situated off Horse Guard's Road. During WWII the British government took refuge underground, conducting its affairs under 3m of solid concrete. Churchill made some of his most famous war speeches from here. Open 9.30-5.15pm. Admission £4.20.
Located at the end of The Mall. London home of the Royal Family since 1837.
Not open to the public in January or February - sorry!
Changing the Guard: one of those quintessentially English events visitors must see! The old guard comes off duty to be replaced by the new guard and gives you a chance to see the bright red uniforms, bearskin hats and lots of shouting and marching. The ceremony takes place inside the railings of Buckingham Palace, at 11.30am on alternate days - unfortunately we couldn't find out which days this week that includes.
Houses Britain's international modern art collection and its historical archive of British art. Open 10-5.50pm Monday to Saturday.
The City
The City is traditionally the legal and financial heart of London.
Built by Sir Christopher Wren after the Great Fire of London. Its dome still dominates the city. The Prince and Princess of Wales were married here in 1981.
All of Britain's most notorious criminals and murderers find their way to the Central Criminal Court, better known as the Old Bailey. The old Newgate Prison, scene of innumerable hangings, once stood here.
The heart of London's legal establishment, centred on the four inns, Gray's Inn, Lincoln's Inn, the Middle Temple and the Inner Temple.
See the famous prison and the Traitor's Gate, the gateway through which prisoners being brought to the Tower by river entered the jail to face torture and execution. The Crown Jewels are here too. Open 9-5. Admission £8.30.
Marylebone
Expect long queues. The famous waxworks museum started by Madame Tussaud over 200 years ago. The waxworks are constantly updated. The Chamber of Horrors can be fun if you're not squeamish. Open 10-5.30. Admission £8.95.
The Planetarium presents 30 minute spectaculars on the stars and planets. Admission £5.65.
Near 221b Baker Street, home of the famous fictional detective. Only worth visiting if you're a real fan.
Waterloo and Lambeth
Recent reconstruction of the original Globe theatre. Exhibition and guided tour of the theatre (no performances at this time of year). Open 10-5. Admission £5.
Chelsea, Knightsbridge and Kensington
Classy shopping district: visit Harrods just for the experience!
The hippies and punks may have moved on, but the King's Road is still a fashionable place. The shopping reflects this, as do the designer bars and cafes.
Central London's largest royal park. Speaker's Corner (near Marble Arch) can be an entertaining experience: every Sunday, anyone with a soapbox can hold forth on any subject which takes their fancy.
Situated on Cromwell Road, this is a huge, rambling, exciting museum of art and design. Open 10-5.50. Admission £5 (free after 4.30pm).
Greenwich
Full of classical architecture, Greenwich has connections with royalty, science and the sea. The best way to get there is by boat from Westminster Pier (beside Westminster Bridge). Boats leave every half hour from 10-4 and a return is £6.70. Great views of London from the Thames.
Once there, visit The Royal Observatories (old and new), the Cutty Sark (one of the most beautiful ships ever built) and The Royal Naval College.
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