A Quirky Tour of Leicester

Come with me on a journey

The quirky tour of Leicester is best undertaken by bicycle
whilst wearing a top hat.

1) Start on Victoria Park at a fine piece of brutalist architecture; James Stirling's 1959 Leicester University Engineering Department.  It's probably the only building from Leicester that can be found in international studies of modern architecture.  It's my favourite building too and a good starting point for our tour.

2) Stop off at the Lutyen's War Memorial to the great war, build in 1923.  It is very similar in style to other other great arches he designed, for example, Thiepval.  Not beautiful, but neither is war.  

Leicester

Thiepal

3) Follow Peace Avenue down to University Road, past memorials to the women who died in the war, and commonwealth soldiers.  On Lancaster Road, stop off at the Richard Attenborough Centre for disabilities and the Arts.  This houses an excellent cafe, and some of Richard Attenborough's fine Picasso ceramics.  Follow the cycle route across Waterloo Way.  Notice the modern blue and beige building on the right.  It is another Leicester award winner.  This time architecture's carbuncle prise 2008.  Continue around the edge of the Prison, and up Infirmary Road to the Magazine (the gateway, not the pub.)  Notice the Jain Temple, with it's fine marble facade.  It was a congregational church once.  If you go round the back, you can see on the roof, an amazing array of gompahs.  

4) The Magazine; a bit of old Leicester stranded in the new.  This sums Leicester up.  Notice the bright copper green of the new DeMontfort Business building opposite the Newark House museum.   Near by is the old city wall, the Castle Mote, and St Mary De Castro (Leicester has a long history of communist sympathies.)

The magazine

5) Walk through Castle Gardens to see the Castle Mote.  See the submerged route of the old city wall, tastefully picked out in white marble chippings.  At the end of the garden near to the busy main road into the city centre is a memorial to Richard III.  It is said that his dead body was brought in to Leicester from Bosworth field on the back of a horse.  (He had just lost his kingdom.)  It was laid to rest in the crypt of the Greyfriars.  Funnily enough, that place went on to become the main offices for Social Services, and I can vouch that there is still a strange smell in the basement, where the records are kept.  It is also said that his body was later taken from the crypt, and thrown into the river soar, near to the statue.

Jewry Wall

6) I like the Jewry Wall and it's Museum.  It is usually very quiet.  The roman remains, as noted by Pevsner, have that  'heavily restored' look to them, which makes you wonder whether they are genuine at all.  Mind you, this work was done in the 50's, so they are become ancient relics in their own right.  The Roman wall is fantastic, and it is a complete mystery why it has been left untouched for 1900 years.  

7) If you are feeling cold, do look in at 'Britain's Heritage' fireplace centre.  It's on a street called Holy Bones, next to the Guru Nanak Gudwara (which also has a free museum.)  Next to this building are the offices of the Mablethope Children's Holiday Centre, where many of Leicester children go for free holidays to the seaside near Skegness.  Also near this building is an awesome underpass, worthy of Croydon.  A colleague of mine who grew up in Leicester told me that when that was built, the residents of Leicester knew for certain that they lived in a truly great city.

Wyggeston House

8)  Cross over the top of the underpass towards the city centre.  Apparently this recently appointed municipal car park will soon be dug up again, and turned into a tranquil square, to commemorate the Queen's diamond Jubilee.  The far end of the street is bordered by High Cross.  This street was once the main thoroughfare through Leicester.  Not so now, like an ox-bow lake, separated from the main flow. It is difficult to see Wyggeston House, left slumped to the right of the square, but it's worth a glimpse.  Next to it is the Guildhall and the Cathedral.  From here the new Shopping Centre, with it's gigantic Christmas aluminium covered turkey, lies between you and another oasis of green and history.  The Unitarian Meeting Hall is a fine old building.  The monuments to the great and good read like a Leicester street directory.

The county Rooms

9)  Cross over the road from the Cathedral grave yard to a back street I enjoy called New Street.  This street has a number of lawyers offices and is unassuming and old.  At Friar Lane turn right, past Greyfriars.  At Hotel Street, you can see the County Rooms.  These fine Georgian Assembly rooms haven't changed much, and still act as a focal point for high class fun.  Just outside, as if to note that some people have always slaved in this city, is the seamstress, and rather fine sculpture.  You can visit Leicester Market from here.

10) Leicester Market.  At about 11.00 am on a Saturday morning, you will see something on the market that is typical of Leicester. It is a genuine piece of the world, that you may have to spent £100's to see otherwise, here on our doorstep.  Chinese traders have set up an enterprising array of stalls, largely selling hot food to the Chinese students from the two universities.  There is not much written English here, so take pot luck, just like my aunt used to have to do when she took us out in Hong Kong as kids.

Leicester Town Hall (a city, since 1921)

11) Visit the Town Hall Square.  Leicester Town Hall is a find Victorian 1878 building built in a Flemish style, rather than Gothic, which I find refreshing.  See also the Methodist Church on the square, associated with John Wesley.  Left down Bishops Street, notice the fine, but now empty, Midlands bank building, with it's enormous art nouveau stain glass window.  Also the Turkey cafe, built in 1901.

12) Continue down Rutland Street to find the new 'Curve' (in Leicester we tend to drop the 'the', calling it simply 'Curve', as in "I'm just going toilet".)  'Curve', built in 2008, designed by Rafael Viñoly , may also join the international architecture books, but I not so sure.  It looks a bit like a cross between the Titanic and a radiator.

Turkey cafe

'Curve'

13)  Cut through St Stephen (Serbian Orthodox) church yard to The Leicester Mercury Building (Terminus for the Titanic?)  You are heading for London Road and back to Victoria Park. Two buildings to note.  One the Railway station.  What a great building.  Two, the Top Hat Terrace half way up the hill on the right, look round and up, and see the teardrop window.  Then down DeMontfort street to another St Stephen's church (Scottish Presbyterian).  Amazingly, this building was moved, stone by stone, from it's original site next to the train station.   

14)   Let's end at the New Walk Museum.

Have a rest on your route