London is a city for the curious. Even the most familiar city streets conceal layers of history and eccentricity, details we might pass daily without ever noticing. London, The Secret Atlas, a new book by Rachel Howard and Bill Nash, is a treasure trove of some of the capital’s best-kept secrets. No matter how familiar you are with London there will be something to surprise you here.
Contents
The Secret Atlas Series
This volume forms part of a new “Secret Atlas” series from Jonglez Publishing. Jonglez are already known for their “Secret Guides” (including my own Secret Bath), but now they are producing more extensive guides for the world’s major cities, with the strapline “discover the unbounded curiosities of our planet with these unusual atlases on offbeat topics”.
These books are written by knowledgeable locals who offer first-hand expert advice, steering readers away from the usual clichés and towards the unexpected. London, The Secret Atlas covers unusual locations in both central London and the wider metropolis, combining maps, full‑colour photographs and detailed entries to create a book that is both practical and beautiful.
The result is a challenge to seasoned Londoners to see the city with the same curiosity that we often reserve for our travels abroad.
London Curiosities
The scope of the book is broad. You’ll encounter a fortune‑telling sculpture, a miniscule model of St Paul’s Cathedral, and a (fortunately long disused) executioner’s bell. There is even a wooden pavement – one of those oddities that Londoners might walk across without even noticing. And sometimes you can go behind the scenes, such as the guided tour that leads you into the atmospheric underground chambers of Tower Bridge.
The selection ranges from secret gardens and grand interiors to niche museums devoted to cricket, biscuits, or antique breadboards. Then there are the extra snippets of information: the street where traffic drives on the right, or the church with a collection of old shoes. All contribute to a portrait of a city that is endlessly surprising.
Hidden In Plain Sight
One of the pleasures of London, The Secret Atlas is its blend of the genuinely obscure with the things that are hiding in plain view. Some places require determination to reach, such as the National Trust property that must be booked months ahead, or the ornate Crossness Pumping Station, which opens only occasionally (I am still trying to coordinate a visit to London with a Crossness tour…)
Others are right before our eyes. “Britain’s smallest police station”, tucked into a corner of Trafalgar Square, is a perfect example – passed by thousands each day, yet rarely noticed. Or the poignant Foundling Museum, right at the heart of Bloomsbury. This mixture of the elusive and the obvious encourages readers to look again at the familiar, to pause and pay attention to the details that shape the city’s character.
An Invitation To Look More Closely
Above all, this book is an invitation: to wander, to observe, and to rediscover London with fresh eyes. It is ideal for residents who want to venture off the beaten track, as well as visitors seeking a deeper, more intimate experience of the city. There are maps that make it easy to plan your explorations, and full colour photographs to whet your appetite.
Whether you are hunting for curiosities, or just hoping for a wider understanding of this vast metropolis, London, The Secret Atlas offers a way in. It encourages you to slow down, to notice what is beneath your feet, and to appreciate the richness of a city that never stops revealing itself.
London: The Secret Atlas, Rachel Howard and Bill Nash, Jonglez Publishing, 2025, 9782361959692
