Pepys Day

In September 1666 the Great Fire of London swept through the City. Man-about-town Samuel Pepys witnessed and recorded the events of that extraordinary week. The fire started at 1.00am on September 2nd and by mid-morning Pepys was writing about it in his diary. The fire was put out on September 6th and we are marking this as Pepys Day.  There is so much more to Samuel Pepys and his Diary than that one fateful week in September. His diary covers just over nine years.

Pepys Day this year will be on Friday, September 5th with all proceeds going to the Lord Mayor’s Appeal.   Tours by an official City of London Guide will include much about him, his life and exploits and the times in which he lived as well as key moments from the Great Fire. There are four different walk routes. Two routes start from the Monument on Fish Street Hill and both end inside The Royal Exchange at Engel bar. Two further walks start from The Royal Exchange at Engel bar in the afternoon and will head south down to the river, as well as west towards Fleet Street. 

MORNING TOURS FROM THE GREAT FIRE OF LONDON MONUMENT will leave at 5 minute intervals starting at 10:00 with the last departure at 10:22.

AFTERNOON TOURS FROM ROYAL EXCHANGE will leave at 5 minute intervals starting at 13:30 with the last departure at 13:52.

Eventbrite tickets cost £20.00 plus booking fee, which includes the tour and a refreshment voucher to redeem at the Royal Exchange’s Engel bar.  Any surpluses benefit the Lord Mayor’s Appeal, 

Tickets can be booked here – http://bit.ly/44wYbSG

Nominate St. Michael’s church garden for ‘Toast the City’ Award, vote here !

City AM – a provider of City news – is running ‘Toast the City’ Awards, celebrating the best spots in the Square Mile.

Many have already discovered and enjoyed the peaceful oasis provided by our garden at St Michael’s  — and winning a Hidden Gems award would be a wonderful way to raise our profile even further.

If you have a moment, we would be grateful if you could cast your vote via the link below. The Hidden Gems category is right at the end of the list:

TOAST AWARDS — City AM Events .

Thank you for your support — and for helping shine a light on this special space in the City.

Bank Black Cabs Trial to commence on 28th July

Today it was announced that from Monday 28 July, licensed (black) taxis will be able to travel between Poultry and Cornhill, Monday to Friday 7am to 7pm, as part of a new experimental traffic order at Bank junction. 

This follows the Court of Common Council decision in June 2024 to proceed with an experiment.  It was agreed at Planning and Transportation Committee in February 2025 to proceed with a route that allowed for an east and west route across the junction for taxis.

This is a phased introduction of the experiment, with the westbound movement for taxis between Cornhill to Poultry to follow later this year. 

Full Story Here