Into Parliament I shall go!

 It never hurts to have friends in high places, and today I took advantage of a rare Monday off to visit a friend who works in the House of Lords. Having lived in London for the best part of 4 years the Palace of Westminster is a pretty familiar sight, but shamefully I'd never made it inside. Until today.

Getting into the Lords is a bit like getting into departures at an airport - security scans for me, and a trip through an x-ray machine for my satchel. I also had to wear the most unflattering photo ID I've ever had the pleasure of hanging round my neck for the day - I was talking at the time it was taken, so I can't say I was unhappy that at the end of the day I had to surrender that gormless portrait at the gate rather than keep it as a souvenir.

Westminster Hall
Image: David McKelvey

From there our tour started, rather unexpectedly, with a trip through the service passageways and carparks - with a bit of impromptu Prescott-spotting en route. There are some fab things to see even in this more mundane environment, though: fixed to on one concrete pillar is a plaque marking where Guy Fawkes was apprehended in his attempt to blow up Parliament, while the sight of a sign marking two parking spaces as 'Peers' motorcycles only' is always good for a giggle.

From there we made our way into Westminster Hall, the oldest building in the complex: a cavernous stone space with a soaring Medieval timber roof and a veritable floor of brass plaques marking historic events. It's an inspiring sight - and also home to both the palace's gift shop, and home to what I'm told is a beautiful crypt, though it wasn't open on the day we visited.

House of Commons

The palace itself is a bewildering warren of corridors, though you can always tell when you have strayed from Commons into Lords or vice-versa due to the strict colour-coding; should the carpet or furnishings switch abruptly from red to green, you know you've wandered into the other territory. Along these passages are committee rooms and other official chambers, sometimes opening out into vast galleries glittering with gilded picture frames and elaborate floor tiles, their walls packed with huge murals and regal statues.

Royal Gallery

Largest of these is the Royal Gallery, which forms the main procession route for the Opening of Parliament, and often hosts addresses by visiting foreign heads of state. I understand Angela Merkel spoke there quite recently, though it was deemed politic for Nicolas Sarkozy to hold his speech elsewhere, decorated as its walls are with images of British victories in the Napoleonic wars.

House of Lords

The culmination of the trip, though, was seeing the Commons and Lords chambers, decked out in green and red, the former with its ornate throne for the Speaker and (now glassed-in) public gallery, the latter home to a great red cushion or 'woolsack', for the Lord Speaker. This cushion lies in front of an even more elaborate throne, where the monarch sits during the State Opening of Parliament, and I was amused to learn that the eldest child of any serving member of the House of Lords is entitled to sit on the steps of the throne to watch proceedings in session.

Before it was time to go, I was offered the chance to get a bite to eat - and instead of one of the fancy Lords' restaurants, we opted to eat in the canteen beside the Press Gallery - I've always wanted to know what it's like to be a lobby journalist. And it turns out it's cheap and cheerful, but still much more comfortable than your average cafeteria. Very cheap, in fact; a roast lamb lunch cost less than £3. Maybe the politicians hope that well-fed journalists will write friendlier stories about them!

All images copyright UK Parliament unless otherwise stated

Bermondsey Docks and Jacob's Island

This was one of my favourite walkabouts - if you time your visit to when it's just getting dark then it is such an atmospheric place to explore. 

Just ashort walk from Bermondsey or London Bridge station, this area of London has a very colourful history. The area around the old docks used to be Victorian London's most infamous and impoverished slum, 'Jacob's Island'. Described by scandalised social reformers as 'the very capital of cholera'. It was so notorious that Charles Dickens associated it with his most famous villain, Bill Sikes, who met his end slipping from the roof of one of its wretched dwellings. 

Historic image of the slums crowding the waterways
of Jacob's Island - once one of London's most notorious areas.

Nowadays there are still lots of narrow streets with Victorian warehouses and mill buildings - though in a dramatic reversal of the area's fortunes, many of these have now been converted into frighteningly expensive apartments. 

Follow the winding roads away from the roar of Jamaica Rd and you'll find yourself at the Thames. Here you can rest your elbows on the riverfront wall and breathe in the warm smell of the foreshore mud, listening to the slow slap and hiss of the water below. 

Immediately before you are banks of houseboats joined by platforms covered with plants in an improvised garden, while in the distance this peaceful scene is overlooked by the neon glow of the City. After dark, the bridges and London landmarks are lit up in a stunning display - though this atmosphere also has a darker edge; even putting aside the area's destitute past, this was also a place of execution for pirates.