It was a cold damp day when I decided to venture to the heart of South West London ad tackle this ever growing project of London's river crossings over the Thames. Damn, what a summer it has been so far, no sun, no warmth just plenty of damp. Oh well, at least this year there is going to be no drought order in place.
People know about Putney. It has a 'vibrant' high street, and by that we mean bars, clubs, a mall and Burger King. And, like many of the places visited on this journey down the Thames, it is surprisingly posh. That is in fact a trait right up until the East End. The River Thames cuts through the capital like a snake filled with money, distributing it wealth at both sides of the river like a musket gun. But none of this is real. Down the road from Putney on the South side of the river we come to the sinks of Roehamton and if we take swanky Fulham on the North Bank then just down the road we come to the North End Road, home to excellent Kebab Eateries, a great market and Ethiopian Coffee Houses. Maybe in five years time, Teff will become the new fad for those gastro pubs on Putney High Street.
But what is Putney Bridge itself like? Well, it is London's second oldest crossing point after London Bridge and Kingston Bridge. And like London Bridge, it has a place of worship at both ends of itself.
Putney Bridge, first built in 1729, represents the beginning of London's sprawling reach. The current structure was built in 1886 and by then, the metropolis had fast expanded from the Medieval core of the City and Westminster. Putney is revolutionary in that it was the future of urban living. Sprawling, clustered around a transport node and expanding from that core, Putney Bridge was the first time that London had truly went far beyond its size. Although it was a century later when Putney became physically attached to the urban sprawl, nonetheless, the fact that a bridge was actually constructed illustrated the growth and spread of the Capital in the eighteenth century. Putney was the beginning of Urban living as we know it. I wonder how many people think of that while they cross this bridge?
Getting there and away:
Tube - Putney Bridge (obvious that one). Bus - 14 (24hr), 22, 39, 74, 85 (24hr), 93 (24hr), 220 (24hr), 265, 270, 414 (Northbank only), 424, 430, 485 (Southbank only), N10, N22, N74