Southwark: one of London’s centres of success

As one of the most central boroughs of London, Southwark is one of the most economically active parts of the city

Having been settled first by the Romans, Southwark was only bestowed with its current name in the 9th century. Since then, in 1965 to be exact, it became the London Borough of Southwark, absorbing the Metropolitan Borough of Camberwell as well as that of Bermondsey into its jurisdiction.

At around a quarter of a million inhabitants, the borough sits on the south bank of the river Thames, sandwiched between the London Borough of Lambeth and that of Lewisham. The London Boroughs of Bromley and Croydon form the Southern border, and the Thames marks the northern limit of the borough. Across the river sits the London Borough of Tower Hamlets as well as the City of London itself.

Due to its proximity to the City of London area, the northernmost parts of Southwark have proven popular with service firms such as those in law and accountancy. Publishers and other press organisations have also been interested in the area, with various newspapers establishing their headquarters in the area. Many of these are situated within the business park-style developments that litter the central London landscape.

Southwark for the 2012 London summer sporting events

With its central location comes the accessibility of London’s transport hubs. Clapham Junction, one of the main stations in Southwark, will enable visitors to get to many parts of the capital with ease.

While some of the Games’ venues are nearer than others, access to all of them should be simple from such a well-connected location.

Beach Volleyball, a recent addition to the schedule of the Games, will be held at the Horses Guards Parade. On the doorstep of the Prime Minister, a serendipitous event for Mr Cameron, the teams of scantily clad volleyball players will battle it out in an effort to take home a set of gold medals. Luckily for those with tickets to this event, access to this venue is nearly as easy from Southwark as from Number 10 itself.

Hyde Park and Lord’s Cricket Ground are the next two nearest points of interest in terms of the Games. These will be hosting the triathlon and archery respectively. Also at Hyde Park will be the marathon swimming – an incredible test of human stamina by any measure, which is bound to inspire a nail-biting finish.

Southwark is not far from the main hub of the 2012 games either. Newham, home of the Olympic Park, is but a short ride on the London Underground away.

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Visit Southwark’s iconic landmarks

Southwark is the last place you could call short of landmarks. For example, Tower Bridge and London Bridge, two of the most iconic structures in the world, are situated within its borders.

The more recent Millennium Bridge is situated in the vicinity of these two behemoths and receives a similar amount of attention from visitors to the area, despite its much more modern design. Nearby, construction of the ‘Shard London Bridge’ is on-going, the completion of which will see the building become the tallest in the European Union.

Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre, a perennial favourite with tourists and London residents alike, is also in Southwark. Other arts establishments include the South Bank Centre arts complex, of which the Tate Modern Gallery forms a significant part.

Southwark’s influence is not restricted merely to more contemporary art, but in fact provided inspiration to both Dickens and Chaucer in their times. Dickens, having lived in the area himself, set various novels in the borough’s urban environment. Chaucer, on the other hand, mentioned many establishments in the area, many of which survive to this day, in his Canterbury Tales.

Museums are also well represented, along with interesting places of worship. The HMS Belfast, an outpost of the Imperial War Museum, as well as the Dulwich Picture Gallery stand as testament to the former while structures such as Charles Spurgeon’s Metropolitan Tabernacle demonstrate the latter.

Getting from A to B in Southwark

Southwark is just as accessible as the very centre of the City of London. As one of the best-connected cities by public transport in the world, this is nothing to be sniffed at. Access from abroad, or indeed the more distant parts of the UK is possible via one of the many airports in London.

Heathrow, Gatwick, London City and Luton airport are all viable options. London City is the closest to Southwark, but may not have the same range of flights available. Heathrow and Gatwick are a bit further from the borough, but are still highly accessible.

From mainland Europe, travellers have the option of taking the Eurotunnel, the ferry or the Eurostar. This opens up both Paris and Brussels as potential access points to London. The termini that these services use in London are all well integrated into the Greater London transport network, so onward travel to Southwark will be easy.

Coaches are an option for travel into London from other parts of the UK, while local buses are useful for shorter journeys. By private car, the best route into Southwark form the M25 is likely to be the M1 and A5 from the North, or A24 from the South.