Southwark was never part of the City of London. It was run by the Bishop of Winchester – and successive bishops seem to have decided to create an anarchic free-enterprise zone opposite the tightly regulated City. This paid them dividends – pleasure houses, theatres, bath houses (meaning roughly the same thing in Elizabethan London as in today’s San Francisco), bear baiting rings, and hundreds of taverns all paid rent to the enterprising bishops.

I must admit to a vested interest here – I’ve been researching Shakespeare’s Southwark for my own company, Podtours, and I’ve just put out an audio tour of the area narrated by a thespian friend of mine.  We focused on the theatre history of the area – with the New Globe, the site of the old Rose Theatre, and a house said to have been a brothel where some of Shakespeare’s actors were customers. But you get a trip through the foodie Borough Market and the brewing traditions of the area, too.

A more general audio tour that covers the same area is available from Tourist Tracks.  From London Bridge, this tour visits Southwark Cathedral, Borough Market, the Menier Chocolate Factory, and the George Inn and Guy’s Hospital, before heading east towards Tower Bridge and the Tower of London.

Southwark is one of London’s least known neighbourhoods – but there’s a lot going on there. There are great old pubs, there’s Vinopolis with its fine wines, there’s the Globe, and of course there’s Tate Britain.  There’s the Hop Exchange, where hops from Kent were brought to be traded, and fortunes were made and lost, and there are still the old tavern yards off Borough High Street. It’s definitely worth giving up half a day to explore – if you’re visiting Tate Britain, just stroll along the river bank towards Southwark Cathedral.

Southwark is definitely becoming trendier – driven by the presence of Tate Britain and the foodie delights of Borough Market – and yet it’s still got the authentic griminess and spontaneity of old London. You know,I like to think Shakespeare would still be happy here – perhaps drinking a cappuccino in Borough Market and doodling a few lines of verse on the tablecloth…

Post from: The London Traveler